3 season sleeping bag Australian conditions

[cooperdeedo]

I have noticed plenty of information concerning high performance sleeping bags for 0 - sub zero conditions. I can appreciate in these types of conditions quality and performance is at its most critical, and usually people are paying premium prices for a sleeping bag that is going to perform when you need it most; hence the amount of information available.

The problem i have come across while in the market for a 3 season(spring and autumn) sleeping bag for Australia's varied climate conditions, is cutting through all the crosstalk (advertising hype) to work out what i really need... after reading numerous threads on this forum on sleeping bags, I can understand there is still very healthy discussions on what to look for in a sleeping bag and what suits one person may or may not suit another.

For myself i need a sleeping bag to be used in autumn and spring, in Australia. My tent is a Sierra Design Light Year, the same as this one here http://www.paddypallin.com.au/default.aspx?page=78&product=324&Group=373 though i did not pay anywhere near the price... being a one person tent i would like a water resistant sleeping bag to help with condensation.
being rather new to bush walking, recommendations/ experiences are very welcome.

To give you an example of what i have found might suit my needs:

Macpac Escapade 700 http://www.macpac.com.au/shop/en_au/gear-and-clothing/sleeping-bags/sleeping-bags-travel/escapade-700-standard-size.html?SID=wwzYdkEO0LwIlzV/MiRyUGhmQYSJy3kNrYoAarEA7Lg=
fill power: 600 loft
Weight: 1.2 kg
temperature rating: Comfort 2 C (enough for 3 season?)
Outer material: 30D Vapourlite (meant to be water resistant... anyone had any experience?)

Can anyone recommend an alternative?

Note:I am pretty sure i have read through every equipment based post in this forum being new to this forum i hope i have stayed within forum rules and have not doubled up on any post!

[blacksheep]

the key thing for the versatility you seek is a good hood and a construction that has no cross block baffles dividing the upper and lower parts of the bag. This will allow you to sweep down on top where it can loft and make the bag suitable in colder conditions, and of course the opposite. If you don't mind a snug fit, a more tapered bag gives you best effeciency, so a bag cut this way with a zipper that extends through the foot box will also cater for a wider temperature range.
a water resistant shell may not be required for general use, but a water resistant fabric on the foot and hood section is a nice feature, as these areas are most likely to rest against condensation on a tent wall.
I think 700gms of 700 loft down is certainly a bit warm for summer use, unless you open the bag and use as a duvet...
(no surprises here, but I think either the macpac lattitude 500 or 700 are good options, fit the above criteria, are deserve to be on the short list-especially now as the macpac sale is on now, but you probably know that)
cheers

[brissifirey]

I have use an Exped IBIS WB shell http://www.exped.com/exped/web/exped_ho ... enframeset

Had it in temps from 25c to about -8 , very useful bag as it has a full zip and it's pertex Endurance shell is VERY water resistant and actual weight is 1150 grams.

[cooperdeedo]

That is an impressive temp range brissifirey! The Exped range of sleeping bags look very nice indeed, did you buy yours here in Aus? as i wouldn't mind checking them out...

Thanks for the information blacksheep, I was hoping for some advice on the macpac sleeping bags and enjoy the knowledge you hold in that particular area. It is also good to know i was on the right track!

I think 700gms of 700 loft down is certainly a bit warm for summer use, unless you open the bag and use as a duvet...

So do i! The sleeping bag will be used in warmer climates of Australia, I intend to use my winter sleeping bag for the colder nights... I probably will not use the sleeping bag as a duvet in my single person tent...

the macpac lattitude 500 or 700 are good options

I did have a look at these two but thought they might be a little too toasty? for the general use i am intending. That is why i leaned toward the escapade 700, thought it might do the trick and keep me cosy, instead of steamy and wanting to sleep on top of the bag do you agree? or should i reconsider the lattitude 500...

I knew about the macpac winter sale and heard today that there is 25% off other brands in the store. I will go have a look this w/e and see what i can find, i also hear kathmandu and other stores are having sales... so it does sound like a good time to go shopping

[cooperdeedo]

I suppose the question to ask is what does everyone else do when it comes to warmer hiking? Do you have one sleeping bag to combat all conditions and put up with being too hot on the warmer nights... or do you have an array of sleeping bags tailored to all of natures conditions?

[blacksheep]

RE: escapade vs lattitude.. if you already have a second bag for winter then I'd cross of the Lattitude 700. Whether you opt for escapade 700m or Lattitude 500 will depend on choices such as budget and need for space/weight savings/water resistant hood and foot.....go take a look around,and see what suits. The guys in the Macpac store there are a knowledgable bunch too.
cheers.

[Ent]

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[cooperdeedo]

I like the idea of the one planet semi rectangular sleeping bag with multiple zipper options to regulate the temperature. I just looked at the distributors list for One Planet and realized i was in the exact same street as two One Planet stockists and i did not go into either of the shops thinking they were mainly outdoor clothing stores...
Had a look at the WM a while back and only ever hear good reports, but if it was out of WM and OP I would have to go with OP due mainly to the fact of the readily accessible customer support right here in Aus. I wonder if anyone here has had to do a warranty claim with their WM sleeping bag bought in the US....

the weight difference is not worth the cost premium over one of the types already mentioned.

It seems to me a lot of companies are aiming towards the ultralight sleeping bags at premium prices (most money to be made?), I am all for progress don't get me wrong, but i hope they don't forget about us young guys that don't mind carrying the extra .5kg and little more bulk if it means saving a $ (might be more robust too!)

Compared the macpac Escapade 700 and Lattitude 500 (both standard), found they both use the vapourlite outer shell. There is a more expensive lattitude xp range which uses loftpro. Other than that the main differences were:

the Lattitude 500 had a more mummy tapered shape
Lattitude 500 had 700 loft (comfort rating of 0 c)
Escapade 700 had 600 loft (comfort rating of 2 c)
Lattitude costs about $200 more (price of the 100 loft difference i would say)

The extra loft and the more mummy tapered shape would contribute to the 2 c difference in comfort rating.

I think I will look at the OP sleeping bags as this sounds like a better option and probably more cheaper in the long run if i can get away with the one sleeping bag and use zippers, thermals, liners etc to vary the temperature.

Cheers cooperdeedo

[blacksheep]

I like the idea of the one planet semi rectangular sleeping bag with multiple zipper options to regulate the temperature.

just so you know, most tapered/semi rectangle bags have this feature (including the escapade and lattitude)

the weight difference is not worth the cost premium over one of the types already mentioned.

It seems to me a lot of companies are aiming towards the ultralight sleeping bags at premium prices (most money to be made?), I am all for progress don't get me wrong, but i hope they don't forget about us young guys that don't mind carrying the extra .5kg and little more bulk if it means saving a $ (might be more robust too!)

so that's why we (and others) have a range. there are people that go to enourmous lengths to shave 50-100gms of each bit of gear (and it does add up over a full pack load) and those that don't. choice is good.

Compared the macpac Escapade 700 and Lattitude 500 (both standard), found they both use the vapourlite outer shell. There is a more expensive lattitude xp range which uses loftpro.
Other than that the main differences were:

the Lattitude 500 had a more mummy tapered shape
Lattitude 500 had 700 loft (comfort rating of 0 c)
Escapade 700 had 600 loft (comfort rating of 2 c)
Lattitude costs about $200 more (price of the 100 loft difference i would say)

you saw the sale pricng? lattitude 500 @$511.95,Escapade 700 @ $279.95

so you can factor this in your decision, these prices run for one more week...good luck with you research.
Cam

[tas-man]

<SNIP> I think I will look at the OP sleeping bags as this sounds like a better option and probably more cheaper in the long run if i can get away with the one sleeping bag and use zippers, thermals, liners etc to vary the temperature.

Cheers cooperdeedo

I will throw in a bit of feedback from my 40 years of using my one and only Everest mummy bag with no zips in all ranges of climate, from below 0°C in NZ and Tassie, to Papua New Guinea. Until I invested in a silk liner some 5 years ago, I used a standard (not too light!) YHA style cotton liner with my bag, and was able to adjust the comfort in varying temperatures by working from sleeping on top of the bag (in the days before sleeping mats in the liner, to adjusting the amount of my torso in the bag according to the ambient temperature. So the extra facility of a zip allowing more options, I never personally saw the need for, and was happy to be "half in/half out" on most occasions. On my walks in PNG in the 1970's, I was the envy of my mates on top of Mt Albert Edward at 0°C, warm as toast in my undies, while they had all their clothes on inside their cotton floc tropical sleeping bags, and were still shivering!

[Ent]

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[photohiker]

Choosing a bag for 3 season Australian use.

A next to impossible to answer question. Where in Australia will the bag be used, and what are the temperature extremes expected? Does the user sleep warm or cold?

There is definitely a focus on this site for cooler temperature bags, but that just reflects the nature of the island/alpine landscape, it's latitude, and the changeable climate in much of the area frequented by bushwalkers in Tasmania.

The way forward is to get a handle on the temperature range required and the user's sleeping temperature. Use a UN13537 rated bag to get a handle on how the ratings work for you and then choose a bag based on that research. Personally, I would suggest you forget season ratings, they are not standardised and they are too vague in this context.

Waterproof shell materials are a trade-off between function and weight. It may be worthwhile to sort the condensation problems in the tent rather than spending the extra dollars and weight on a waterproof shell. How bad is the condensation, it sounds as if it might be quite bad?

[cooperdeedo]

Thanks to everyone that posted their input and ultimately helped in me choosing a sleeping bag. When it comes to bush walking I find this forum second to none and from just reading the posts I have gained invaluable insight.

In the end I picked up a Kathmandu Pacesetter Epic v3http://www.productreview.com.au/showitem.php?item_id=46036 sleeping bag for $240 (which was definitely the deciding factor). Being a run out model the bag was already heavily reduced, and happened to be only one left in the store (the one out on display) which had a couple of cosmetic marks, that helped me negotiate a further reduction.

Here are some specs for anyone interested:

Outer Shell: Epic by nextec
Fill: 500gm
Loft: 700
Weight: 1160gm
Comfort rating: 0 C
Zip: Full length
Shape: Mummy

I have just came back from a week long coastal surf trip and found the bag to be extremely warm. Since the full length zip stops at the foot box, the sleeping bag still hugs the body nicely and stops from sprawling all over the place and touching the tent walls. The water resistant outer shell works great with water beading off the sleeping bag.

photohiker:

How bad is the condensation, it sounds as if it might be quite bad?

The light year tent also happens to be new, i had heard of numerous condensation problems with single person tents and was just taking all aspects into account. One of the reasons for the week surf trip was to safely try out some kit including the tent before using it while bush walking.
I found the tent to perform really well, plenty of ventilation (I could always feel the sea breeze rushing through the tent) especially when guyed out. The only condensation i could find was at the foot of the tent where the bag happened to touch at times, but it was the smallest of amounts that where never bothersome. Also the floor of the tent was a little damp where the sleeping mat touched, I think this could be because I used shade cloth as a ground sheet?! hardly anything to worry about but i might try tyvek and see if this still happens.

Cheers

cooperdeedo