Modifying a new Eddie Bauer PEAK XV down parka

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Got this great EB down parka on sale for $399. last month. The internal zipper baffle was barley insulated with some bonded synthetic.

!. seam rip the top 1″ of the zipper baffle tube

2. fill zipper baffle tube with 800 fill DWR down from “Ripstop by the Roll”  (This meant stuffing loose down thru a funnel spout into the baffle tube and on down to the bottom of the tube and gradually filling up the tube.)

3. sew the tube top closed

4. shake and stroke the tightly bunched groups of down into an even distribution

Hey, it works very well. With my crude stuffing method I had to stuff the tube with likely 3 – 4 times as much as the factory would have used but it is nicely filled and will not collapse – period.

FUTURE MODS:

-> I’ll have my tailor sew a left side zipper tube on that I can also fill with down. This will give me double mating baffles like Patagonia uses on their GRADE VII and Fitz Roy parkas.

-> Next I may put a bit more down into the two upper sleeve baffles. I’ve got a gallon bag of it left!

-> I have a nice coyote fur ruff I got last month. I’ll modify the backing with stiffened cloth, sew Velcro on it and the mating soft side of the Velcro strip to the parka hood for a removable ruff.

When finished this parka will easily take me to -40 F. with proper clothing beneath it. I’ve experienced -40 F./C so I know what is needed for those temperatures.

 

 

[Eric Blumensaadt]

P.S. I have made very little of my own gear but have modified nearly every tent and pack I’ve ever owned.  So far every mod has proven very useful.

I dunno about other backpackers but sometimes (when I’m not exhausted from the day’s trip) I lie in my tent and think of how my gear could be “improved”.  And often I see other packs, tents or articles of clothing that inspire me to hand my own gear.

EX. Both my Tarptent Moment DW and SCARP 2 have been modded with the optional crossing poles being shortened and run beneath the flys for better strength against wind and snow load.

As well I’ve sewn light nylon webbing tape stake loops to the tent fly hems to be able to nail them down in a big wind storm to prevent flapping. This feature is a necessity and Tarptent now includes them as standard on some tents and optional on others. This also helps with preventing snow buildup from easily pushing in the fly. Snow slides off the fly and builds up rather quickly in a storm.

 

 

[Ken Thompson]

Have you ever considered having a jacket made by one of the fine cottage companies available? Might be a better value.

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Ken, As a matter of fact I looked at two cottage companies (Nunatak and Goosefeet) and they have nice parka, especially Goosefeet, for my tastes at least.

But this EB parks seemed to have what I wanted for a bit less, like at least $100. less with the amount of fill I wanted and the larger over-helmet hood. With Goosefeet I could have had a longer parka and that was tempting.

 

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