35* or 40* or 45* Down Bag
Looking for recommendations for the above non-treated down bags.
For those high temps, may as well get synthetic.
A too warm bag beats a not warm enough bag any day.
"It's fun to have fun, but you have to know how." ---Dr. Seuss
even for a 45, have a hood - no hat with my summer gear, so a hood on the bag
You don't say when or where?
[I]ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are: ... Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit....[/I]. Numbers 35
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If you're near an EMS store, they have several nice quality, reasonably priced down bags in the 25 to 40 degree range. I have the Thaw 40, their 40 degree bag, which works for me well into the 30's, or as a quilt in warmer temps.
For summer I use a 45F REI Travel Down.
+1 on the Travel Down, a great summer bag.
Who's supplying the ratings? Are they all tested to EN13537 standards?
You may want to consider a quilt for those temps to save weight and money.
"Throw a loaf of bread and a pound of tea in an old sack and jump over the back fence." John Muir on expedition planning
"Who's supplying the ratings? Are they all tested to EN13537 standards?"
Very likely it's a free for all slapping on UL or a temp ratings based on who knows what...marketing BS..not third party independent EN temp ratings so one can more accurately make apples to apples temp rating comparisons. Remember the temp rating hype before EN ratings? The certified EN ratings helped eliminate some of this practice. Buyers beware!
Fast forward to quilts. I'd like to see some third party independent certified temp ratings for quilts as there is for EN ratings on sleeping bags because there DEFINITELY is some fudging of some quilt temp ratings!!! This would make temp ratings of quilts less of a mystery or wildly wide ranging based on a seeming ever increasing list of specific to a manufacturer's if's and but's ESPECIALLY among the wt saving at all costs crowd.
Measurement of loft is no absolute accurate indicator of a temp rating in a quilt either. Nor are quilts always less expensive than conventional sleeping bags. I have a $550 true quilt. An equally accurately temp rating bag would be the same cost maybe even a lower $$ cost compared to that quilt. Nor are quilt sleeping systems always less wt as assumed than sleep systems based on a core conventional UL sleeping bag baseline comparing equal temp ratings. That's a pro quilt pro UL user misconception! With some of my quilts used as the core of my sleep system I have to use a heavier wt longer length higher R-value pad or sleep in a heavier (and bulkier) jacket or heavier clothier to sleep at the same temp raising the overall wt of the sleep system to achieve equal warmth. A quilt, or for that matter a sleeping bag, is only one part of sleep system yet repeatedly in reviews only a quilt is compared to a sleeping bag singularly as if they are always used in real world conditions as stand alone single pieces. There are factors involved that are sometimes(OFTEN?) ignored in saving those supposed ozs or $$$ or advertising warmth to wt ratios using a quilt to get at the advertised conclusions.
Without knowing what kind of climate or time of year your usually hike, I'd say, if you're going to invest in the gear, may as well go with the 35* because you can get more use out of it throughout the year than a 45* bag.
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Okay. I read everything.
The OP (Original Poster) doesn't know enough about sleeping bags and their use to be shopping for one. Some of the responses left something to be desired as well.
Feral Bill hit the nail on the head. I myself learned this one night while testing a 45 degree synthetic quilt. About 2 am I woke up under the quilt uncomfortably cold. I threw off the quilt and pulled the down bag over me. I slept like a log until 6am. The temperature was 37 degrees. There is no doubt in my mind that there are bags and quilts on the market rated at 30 degrees that would have been cold that morning.
To everyone asking about EN Ratings: Know how the rating is derived and use the product accordingly. The 20 degree bag in my example above carries an EN Lower Limit of 16 degrees. The manufacturer is conservative with their ratings.
A final word: Loft. The only specification related to warmth of bags and quilts.
Wayne
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Originally Posted by Venchka
Sorry...not sure what you mean by your first sentence.
It's not clear what your asking for. Do you want (A) a recommendation for temp rating or do you want (B) a recommendation for a specific make and model of a bag at each of those temperature ratings?
If your asking A, then knowing where and when you will be using the bag will help decided whether to pick the low end or high end of the temp range. Are you only hiking in PA in July or do you need more of a 3 season bag?
If your asking B, then you'll get as many different suggestions as there are people. Everyone has a different set of trade offs to work with. Price/weight/volume are the major variables. Apparently "non-treated" (as in adding a DWR treatment? - it's actually a good feature to have) is one factor consider.
From there pick a vender - Major manufacture or cottage industry? And so on down the decision tree until you find the bag best for you.
Last edited by Slo-go'en; 07-09-2017 at 22:36.
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I'm asking B. The more suggestions the better. The bag will be used somewhere between TN and NH in the summer or early fall. I guess I didn't think in mattered where and when I would use it since I gave a temp range for the bag...whether it's 35* in the smokies or in NJ.
NH in the fall? I would use a 20* quilt from EE
When faced with a similar decision for the summer season on my AT thru, I looked at total down weights as well as total bag weights from several reputable manufacturers. I ended up with a Phantom 40 from Mt Hardwear, but it was a close call among several. Price ended up being the decision point. That was nearly ten years ago so my brand input is probably meaningless now, but I would use the same method. If a manufacturer does not list fill specs and weights, do not look at that brand any further.
PS: The bag worked fine for those months, but I sold it after that hike. At the risk of repeating myself, I wouldn't buy it again since my 30F quilt has entered the picture. At those temps, a zipper and hood were sort of useless, I now think.
Consider body shape, and your preferred method of sleeping (back, or side sleeper.) I got a nice bag, at a nice price, with the temperature rating, and light weight... only to learn that I barely fit in it and hated it. I worked out the length consideration, but didn't consider the girth measurements.
At the temperatures you listed, you can also consider a quilt. If you decide on a cottage manufacturer, make sure you check their availability schedule. It might take six weeks to arrive at your door, or they might have it in stock.
Actually, it does matter where and when. While a 45* bag might be fine in Virginia or PA in July, it would be very marginal in Vermont at the end of August.
I find a 30 degree bag ideal for late spring, summer and early fall. A 30 degree bag is good down to 40-45 without adding any base layers and those temps are common early in the morning, even in the summer. It might be really warm when you go to bed, but at some point in the night you'll be zipping up the bag.
When it comes to picking a specific bag, the temp rating is the base line to start from. The next is price. What's your budget? Is money no object or are you on a strict budget? Just typing "30 degree down sleeping bag" into the search engine comes back with bags priced from $70 to $600. Once you narrow down the choices, then it would be easier to get opinions on those specific bags.
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