Is this a crappy sleeping bag?

“I've got it, and it works pretty good for me.”

“let try that again ”

“Not if you're a mummy.

Oooooohahahahahahahahhaa”

“are you a hot or cold sleeper? how tall are you? what's the lowest temp you've been out in it?”

“Cold sleeper, 5'11", 14F.

I was cold at 14F, but that wasn't the bag's fault. If I had been in a tent instead of under a tarp, I'd have been fine. Or if I had eaten enough. Or if I had changed out of my hiking clothes and into my sleeping clothes.”

“You can find cheaper...”

“If you can find one in your price range with at least 650 or 700 fill power down, you'll probably be much happier with the size and weight.”

“I can't see the bag that you are looking at. What is the name of it?”

“do you think if you had an extra liner - like on eof those fleece ones - it would have been better?

I'm asking becuase I'm thinking about getting this bag - its mad cheap - O degrees - is a heck of alot smaller and lighter than the beast I currently have - so why not is what I'm thinking

but I am a very cold sleeper, tired of carrying a heavy pack, and still on a tight budget :)

if it get it - I want to make sure its good!”

“Oh sure, if I had had my fleece pants on I'd have been fine. As a matter of fact, that morning I put my fleece pants on when I got up for a run to the privy, and left them on when I got back in the bag. I got real warm and fell right back asleep. So if I had had them on to begin with, I'd have been toasty all night.”

“I'd look for some close out deals on bags, personally.

www.northernmountain.com

www.moosejaw.com

www.reioutlet.com”

“The 700 fill power are nicer, weigh less but are usually a lot more expensive. I haven't seen many sales on sleeping bags at 0 deg or colder. Most of the 15 deg bags are too cold for me at 15 degrees.”

“Do the fleece pants not the liner, because you can wear them around camp at night and morning. What kind of pad are you sleeping with?”

“I think this is a good deal - goose down - O degree - for under $150

all the others I've looked at have been close to $300!”

“outdooroutlet.com
bobwards.com
backcountry-equipment.com(?)”

“Backside makes a -5 bag that is nice and doesn't cost a fortune. I think Father Goose Has won.”

“Hi, Twinkle Toes, we seem to be developping an internet 'relationship'.

0°F wouild be overkill for me in a three-season bag, but go for it if you feel it's right for you. At 0°F (-18°C), it is useful to know some tricks that are appropriate for cold weather camping.

At 0°, a VBL is a very good idea. This is a vapour barrier liner that prevents water vapour from entering the fill of your bag and condensing in it, thus reducing its insulating qualities. They are available through Campmor, REI, EMS, etc. Stuffing your face into the bag as you sleep will create the same problem.

A good, full length mattress is absolutely essential - in summer it would probably not be necessary with a 0° bag, however. You can cut costs by using a blue foamy - it's not as sexy as a Thermarest, but it works just fine.

I agree with LindyS about the fleece. If you tend to get cold in the evening, you can put it on and wear it to bed - same thing with a fleece sweater and it won't get clammy in a VBL.

One of the most important things to remember is to change your clothes before you get in the bag, not the next morning. Nice dry clothes are much better to sleep in and they will be more than clean enough for the next day's use.

I have had a lot of experience with Campmor and am confident that you can trust their products. I have had only excellent results with their customer service people.

I prefer synthetics, but a 550 down bag should give you all the benefits without the high price, I think. Of course one might want a higher rated down in an expedition bag, but down is not an area of expertise for me.”

“Thanks. I learned ALOT about winter backpacking this past winter with the Nor'east crew.

I only made it to 5 degrees in snow (they all got below 0 in the Dak's).
I have really great winter gear (snow pants, gaitors, jacket, down vest, thick socks, down booties, hand warmers, hot water bottle, fleece pants, fleece tops, silk type long undies, a rockin' stove, etc...).
For next winter I'm getting a candle lantern (at AmyG's recommendation to help with condensation - have heard negative things about the VBL's).
The only thing I want to upgrade - and I need a slightly warmer bag for NH than my summer bag and want to get rid of the beast - is a new 0 degree sleeping bag.

So is this a good one? Or is it a piece of crap?”

“I have their 20* model. My only complaint is that it's about 0.5 #'s heavier than advertised.”

“My vote is, it's a good bag.”

“I never used one or even looked very closely at one but if bitpusher says its good, it prolly stinks.”

“what about this one?

Backside Sleeping Bag”

“lol...

At least my pack doesn't have a turd in it...

Father Goose has a Backside bag, you might have to wait a few hours for his opinion though.”

“Or this?

Kelty Bag”

“Oops - I meant this one
”

“grrrr

Kelty Goose Down”

“so - out of the three

1. Campmor
2. Backside
3. Kelty

what are the votes?”

“It doesn't look like the Kelty has anti-snag tape on the draft tube to protect it. The Campmor does. Can't tell on the Backside.”

“if you scroll down the page - it show s that it does indeed have a zip protect thing”

“I think I'm in love with the Kelty”

“That is a good deal for that bag. Never used a Kelty bag, so I don't have any other opinions on it.”

“Twinks, the campmor down bags are very good bags for the price. Don't expect to use it at 0 degrees though. Subtract 10 to 15 degrees for a real life rating.
Go for it if you can't afford a Western Mountaineering bag.
Just my 2 cents....”

“mountain equipment

These guys do some great bags and the exchange rate is good.”

“does that mean you prefer to sleep in the cold or what?”

“i have both the campmor 0 degree and the campmor 20 degree bags....i like them but i would agree with stevestomper that they are probably rated incorrectly....i have been out in the 0 degree bag with the temperature in the twenties and was quite comfortable (wearing long underwear in the bag)....for the money, they can't be beat (imho)....”

“Hey, twink. I have the Backside Black Goose (go figure...). I really like the bag, though I've only had it down to 14 degrees. It is well made, light (for a -5 degree bag) and plenty warm enough for me. My impression is that The Backside makes a good product. You can usually find their stuff on sale somewhere. Their bags are made with either 700 or 750 fill power goose down, depending upon the model.”

“Oh wow, that's a good price on the Down Under, too. You will find that the bag is very wide at the shoulder (my big reason for buying one) and inordinately long at 94". I guess they figure that you will want to store your clothes at the foot to keep them warm at night or something...
I don't think you will find a better bag for the money. Just make sure that you are buying a current model (at least 2002). That looks to be almost identical to the Black Goose except for the fact that it is filled with 700 fill-power down instead of 750. The stuff sack they give you is killer too.”

“What were they thinking when they named their company, "The Backside"?”

“"Those who go over it, find the backside..."

I dunno, check out their website, it's pretty cool.

www.thebackside.com”

“I can't believe I forgot this. There is a guy in Denver that sales the test models for Mountainsmith. These are NOT used bags. A co worker bought their 30* long model. It retails for about $250 and he got it for like $125 or so including shipping. If anyone is interested I'll see if I can find out how to get in touch with this guy. I'm sure he had 0* bags too.”

“I've seen The Backside website.

Finding the backside sounds funny.”

“Somebody cue up "Baby Got Back"!”

“Finding the backside isn't necessarily a bad thing...;-)”

“Twinkles, I have two of the Kelty bags, a Zero and +15.
They are pretty nice and DO have a decent anti-snag feature.
The hoods are good.
They are roomier than some bags too.”

“I'll go along with that, Goose!”