Built in pad
I know someone who has one of these bags and he loves it.
RE: Dogmatycus
Wow! You must be the tough guy who does the sand kicking in the face of the little guy! You sound like a nice person???
I am 5’11" and 200 pounds and the REI bags I have are nice, warm, and plenty wide at the shoulders but whatever bro.
The real of things is that a top of the line bag does cost quite a bit if that’s what you want to spend.
Wiggys “Thule” is synthetic and is rated to minus 30 and will go below that. It blows doors over what your “killer” Marmot bag does, trust me. Swedge knows what he is talking about. Anybody that has a Wiggys will tell you it BY FAR the best bag on the planet. I would not trade it for any bag(s) you own.
And take your own advice, read a magazine like backpacker and you will see, Down+water=BAD & Synthetic+water=Not as Bad
Elitist
If you’re an elitist use down. If you’re a pragmatist use synthetics.
I have
both down and synthetic bags…ranging from +40 F to minus 30 F.
In over 45 years I’ve never even come close to having a bag soaked enough to matter which works well when wet. Camped in survival shelters made of pine boughs and snow Quincies down to minus 20 F.
I don’t need to fight about my decision, so I’m not telling anyone which I always use these days…but it’s made by Marmot and cost a lot of money…CHA CHING
Best Wishes
Roy
Both
– Last Updated: Nov-08-06 2:09 PM EST –
I have an EMS Down bag, rated for -20 that I use backpacking, (just about exclusively in the White Mountains,) and a synthetic REI bag rated for +20 for kayaking, (New England coastal paddling.) The synthetic bag actually packs smaller, and it will work when wet. I have no intention of kayak camping in conditions even near +20. (My "luxury item" that I carry on my pack, although I know it is pretty darned heavy, is a thermarest, I'm comfortable.)
Works for me!
Is the Wiggy’s 6 pounds…
or only 5? What kind of boat do you paddle? No mention of a water resistant finish, either. What is the packed size dimension? Must be like what a trash can? Their “ultralight” is 5 pounds for a large at 20 degrees. Wow, that’s a backsaver. Marmot’s got a sweet bag under 2 pounds that goes down to 15 degrees. I’m only funnin ya, trust me, I wouldn’t even consider a trade.
Dogmaticus
Mummy vs. semi-rectangular
Back to the rest of the question now that the fill has been beaten to death…
Mummy bags keep me warmer than semi-rectangular or rectangular, and that’s my choice for kayak camping.
But for car-camping, the extra room of a semi-rectangular bag is much appreciated. If it’s really cold, I can insert a 300-weight Polartec fleece bag inside it. The bulk and weight don’t matter for car-camping.
Now, with a handle such as yours, a mummy bag may not be comfortable enough. A good night’s sleep does depend on having a little wiggle room, not just adequate warmth.
L
– Last Updated: Nov-09-06 8:02 AM EST –
no puny 2 lb bag is going to keep my 6'3" 240 pound frame warm, think about it, divide up the 2lbs of INSULATIN per the surface area of my Body, It aint happening. 2 lbs might work if you were the size of an Olympic Gymnast, but then again with no body fat to keep them warm I doubt it would even work for them… Light bags are Great for summer use, however in the summer I just use a Mil-spec pouncho liner. But when I am on top of Mt-Mitchel in Dec, you can bet i am in my Wiggys!!! my bag compresses down to the size of a basket ball, kind of big, but for really cold conditions i will suffer the extra weight and bulk for a good nights sleep. My bag is also an extra long one as well.
I buy roomy bags
so that on cold nights I can fit several dogs inside.
One Dog night, Two Dog Night,
Three Dog Night.
Jim
I hope
you’ve clipped their toenails.
Doc
Gad Zooks!
– Last Updated: Nov-09-06 12:34 PM EST –
Wha Ho, Pilgrims;
Thanky fer all yer thoughts on dem sleepin' bags. Ah' reckon's ah'm seriously gonna look into de Big Agnes bags (Classic - need de room, mummy's git me all knotted up since ah's do alot of "travelin'" while ah' sleeps, plus ah' be a human furnace anyway so ah' overheat fast) since alot o' ye seem ta like dem, but will check out de others ye all mentioned. Still got'ta git me mind right 'bout down vs synthetic.
Jus' thought o' somethin'.... if ah' do git a Big Agnes. Gad Zooks! Wat a revoltin' sight...
Fat Elmo sleepin' wit Big Agnes. :>)
Fat Elmo
So are mine and we are similar in size
If you think the bulky, heavy crap is god’s gift fine, lug it around, paddle a barge to contain it, whatever. But you don’t really understand down and sleeping bags do you? One of the tip offs for me is that you said it wouldn’t warm some man like you maybe only some gymnast. The smaller you are relative to your bag, the more space you have to heat up and maintain heated up, thus less efficient, thus you sleep colder. 850 fill down, the source of a really light down bag, is super efficient at capturing warmth. It is the lightest and most efficient feathers, closest to the birds skin. Ever wonder how a duck stays warm plunking into near freezing waters, flying up into super cool air? They trust their own technology. A water resistant fabric covering the outside of the bag helps with the, oh I’m an idiot wuppsies, while your average to better than average camping skills do the rest. A good cut also helps for the bag. and yes big fellas are not excluded here in mummy bag territory. Mine has a 64" girth. Having just returned from 3 nights above 10,000 feet with temps in the teens I would say my teens rated bag worked really well, nor did I have to hire a mule train to haul it.
Dogmaticus
Dogmaticus
well
http://www.wiggys.com/legacy/archives.htm
Its a long read but if you really want the dirt on Down and other bags this is it, yes its a Biased source, but think about it, its a site about ONE sleeping bag and its fill material, that’s pretty specific, its not about the market hype. wiggys is the QCC of sleeping bags. having used both professional Grade Down and Wiggys bags, i will pick the Wiggys every time. Down is just too incocsistant, it clumps, moves around etc etc.
Re: Wiggy’s Ultralight owner
Yeah … I too fell for the Wiggy’s Bag is Best horseshit and bought one about ten years ago. Within a year’s use (it was a 20 degree wide bag, I’m 6’4"), it lost about 40% of it’s loft and was good for use down to about 40 degrees.
Now I ask you … who wants to backpack with a 5 lb bag that’s humungous and only insulates to 40 degrees?
When I tried to trade it in for a new one, good ol Wiggy wasn’t half the man he said he was about standing up for his bags. He finally sent me a replacement with a left-handed zipper.
And … NO, IT WAS NO BETTER THAN THE FIRST !!!
These are industrial zippered bags whose insulation breaks down with use … no matter how much Wiggy says your grandchildren can use your bag in twenty years time … don’t believe his boastful marketing scheme. There are much better bags out there in every respect … Stockholm syndrome brainwashing aside. He talks a good game, but his bags don’t merit such praise … and he turns surly when you call him on it !!!
OK I’ll bite
just when did you test out this theory?
I put my Lost Ranger
and its Big Agnes pad on top of a n Exped air mattress. Talk about comfortable.
Agreed
– Last Updated: Nov-09-06 6:34 PM EST –
I'm 5'10", 165, but broad shouldered. I bought an REI bag that was supposed to fit me, seemed OK in the store, but after a few trips I realized I felt kinda claustrophobic. I gave it to my wife and bought an inexpensive synthetic Coleman large size, and I don't get claustrophobic anymore. Of course since it is really too big for me, it's not quite as warm as the REI was, but since I camp in Texas in Spring and fall, a 20 degree bag and the right choice of sleepwear works for all conditions.
My Wiggys is still warm!
I have had mine for 10 years and there has been no temp rating loss that I know of. The coldest I have camped with it lately it was nearly 5 degrees at about 8000 feet and was very toasty.
The problem with most synthetic temp loss is user error. People think that you can just sleep in it, never wash it and keep it packed tightly up in it’s stuff sack.
Many synthetics are hollow core and keeping them packed tight crushes the fibers. Also, without washings, it will cause heat loss as well.
Bottom line: Take care of a good quality bag (trust me I was young and blew it, kept it in stuff sack and used a zero degree bag in 27 degree weather at 7,200 feet and FROZE my A$$ off)
and it will take care of you.
NOTE: Wiggys RULE! I would buy one again but mine is still warm so no need.
Swedge-ster, sorry, but don’t want to…
dance the Swiggy’s dance. Anybody who trys to sell a 5 pound “Ultralight” is a goner from the git-go. It’s like Folbot marketing their 33" wide double as a “Greenlander”. C’mon.
Hint: buy a quality brand, like Marmot or other similar brands. Mine is 6 years old now and it is as durable, warm and water resistant as it was when I bought it.
How do you back pack with a 6 pound sleeping bag? Dude, you got to be a horse on the trail, all man to do that.
Dogmaticus
I use a North Face Goliath
which is a synth. mummy for large people. Used it this past weekend in the Catskills at 22 deg. and was toasty (0-30 deg. bag). It is a little heavy and just fits the compartment in my Bora 80. I like it quite a bit but would rather have a comparable down bag. I just didn’t feel like spending double or triple for a down bag at the time. Just another option as it is a large mummy for people that don’t fit too good in the regular size mummys.----Rich