Katabatic Sawatch 15*or EE Enigma 10

I own two EE quilts. They’re nice.  They do the job. But their prices have increased significantly in recent years and their designs are rather simple. If I were purchasing today I’d go with the Katabatic.

I have not owned a Katabatic, so I can only give feedback on EE. I have a Revelation, and I doubt I would buy one again. While EE gets some criticism for its temperature ratings, I think they are realistic when the quilt is new, and obviously the weight and price are great. My problem with it is that they use the absolute minimum amount of fill to get the necessary loft. So it was ok for a few years, but as it gradually lost some down and loft, it got pretty thin in spots, and I was always trying to shift down around. Eventually, there were too many cold spots and I just gave up on it.

So if you are looking for a light well-priced quilt that will be good for a few years, I think it could be a solid choice. If I had bought another (or their closed foot version, which would be my choice now), I might even get 5 years out of it, which isn’t bad, to be fair. But I decided to try something different. I replaced it with a zpacks classic sleeping bag that I modified with snaps to pair with a quilt strap, and I’m very happy with it so far.

Responding to Dan’s experience with cold spots as his EE quilt has aged:

I could have sworn that at some point, EE offered the option to over stuff the quilt by 1-3 ounces of down.  Looking at their ordering page I don’t see that option, even for a custom quilt.  Huge bummer.  Hammock Gear offers 1-4oz of over stuff for their Burrow.   UGQ quilts offers 1-3oz of over stuff for their Bandit.  Gryphon Gear says their quilts come with 80% over stuff.  Katabatic doesn’t offer over stuff for their Flex quilts.  Neither does Dutchware for the Sierra Sniveller.

At one point I bought a Sierra Designs Nitro quilt as a backup and mainly because I got an excellent deal on it.  It has not aged well.  Even after only a few uses, there are huge sections of baffles that when held up to the light, have almost no down in them at all.

If I were in the market for a new down quilt or sleeping bag, I’d definitely be interested in one that has over stuff to resist the settling of down that seems to happen over time, leading to cold spots.  I guess Hammock Gear, UGQ, and Gryphon Gear would be at the top of my list when shopping for a new quilt.

try washing the EE quilt and see if loft is restored?

shake it out really good each time you use it, make sure the down is evenly distributed.  If there are thin spots then wack on other places in that baffle to get the down evenly distributed?

If the baffles are horizontal, the down tends to shift down to the edges.  Where you tuck it underneath you and the down doesn’t help much.  Shift the down more to the center?

With the overstuff you don’t have to worry so much

Ive tried just about everything, Jerry, including all the things you mentioned. With a lot of effort I can get the quilt to be almost acceptable, but it got to the point where it’s just too much constant effort, and still not doing a great job.

*RE: OP, you may have made an error, an EE Enigma 850 Long/Wide 10F w/draft collar is $415.00

I have owned every Katabatic Quilt, they are fantastic in every way. I am on the broad side, 5’11 185# and find that I must have a wide quilt in every brand to eliminate drafts, 90% of the time I don’t use the pad attachment system, I just snap the snap behind my head and even though I roll around the wide width allows the quilt to stay down on the mat or off to the sides.

I currently own two quilts, both are EE 950 down, Regular/Wide, one is a 10F other is a 30F. I got them and sold the Katabatic quilts because Katabatic quilts are much heavier than the EE 950 offerings and also Katabatic quits are sometimes off on the specs, like 3-5 oz off.

Katabatic! Easy decision. Better design, better overall quality/craftsmanship, accurate temp rating, superior attachment system, and overfill option is available pre- and post-sale*. And I’m not saying EE makes bad quilts, it’s just more like… Would you really pick a Toyota over a Lexus if they were the same price?

I’ve purchased two EE’s but sold both of them. I’ve purchased four Katabatics and they’re still in my gear room. In the end, though, the choice is yours so you do you, Kev.

* Sorry, Jeff, but I think you’re mistaken about overfill on Katabatic’s Flex series. Pretty sure they offer it on every quilt they make. i checked their website and every Flex listing offers the link for overfill.

Thanks for the replies everyone, appreciate all the feedback. Despite what a couple of you have said, I am leaning towards the EE Enigma 10. Hear me out, Ryan spoke glowingly of it, his wife used it year round , but the main concern is the Katabatic Sawatch not being wide enough. Their wide quilts only go up to 58″ wide. Being 6’3 with a 37 inch sleeve, 54-55 inch shoulder circumference, I am afraid the 58″ will be too narrow for me. I hear ya on the down migration and so forth but all my research tends to show that was an issue prior to 2019 with regards to EE quilts. I want to try Katabatic but I just have gotten feedback from others on Reddit that it was too constrictive for them at their similar size and height.

* Sorry, Jeff, but I think you’re mistaken about overfill on Katabatic’s Flex series. Pretty sure they offer it on every quilt they make. i checked their website and every Flex listing offers the link for overfill.

I must have missed it somehow.  Thanks for the correction.

I have one 10* duck down quilt. (ZB)

In my limited experience with it, I have the impression that it doesn’t pack as well as Muscovy or goose down. Of course fabric and fill weight play a role, but it takes up a lot of room in my pack. Otherwise I’ve had no problems with it.

I’ve had an EE for many years. I think of it as a beginners quilt at its price point. When you’re first putting a kit together.. Katabatic when you have all your other gear paid for, or in my case Zenbivy Muscovy .

On sale. They all frequently go on sale.

Just as a frame of reference, I’m also 55” around the shoulders, with an 18” neck, and I have zero issues with my wide Katabatics.

Also, I’m pretty sure Katabatic and EE allow returns, so why not just order one of each and compare them head-to-head in the comfort of your own home and then return the one you like least? No hearsay, bias, or speculation sitting in your den with both on hand. 👍🏻

JGH,

Thanks for the reply! Did you happen to reply to a prior post not too long ago as well?

In an ideal situation, I would order both but in my situation can only order one though. Is it wife enough to drape and wrap around you if fully to create a seal if you weren’t using the straps?

I believe I’ve responded to your threads before this one. I don’t use any manufacturer’s strap systems as none of them make sense to me. I afix snaps directly to my Exped Ultra pad and fashion my own straps. They work brilliantly. I added 4oz overfill to my Palisade and its still cozy.