20 F bag

jenglish712

OK gear nuts!

I'm a cheapskate on most stuff. But I am looking to get a new 3 season bag as most of mine are 10+ years old. The cheapskate in me looks at like the TETON Sports TrailHead +20°F Ultralight(2.9 lbs, 87"x 32"x 22") or Ledge Sports FeatherLite +20 F Degree Ultra Light Design, Ultra Compact Sleeping Bag (84 X 32 X 20). BUt I think about using it for a decade and think about base level dridown like Kelty Cosmic 20F or Kelty Ignite 20F.

It really doesn't seem like Dri Down is that much smaller or lighter for double the money. I am not ultralight... I think last trip I was at about 32# skin out weight with a small summer weight bag but almost 3.5 liters of water. So I'm not sure if Its worth to money... or if I go cheap I will be kicking myself for trying to save $10/year over the life of a sleeping bag.

beemerphile1

I can't comment on the bags you are looking at but I have never regretted buying quality. Divide the extra $$ by the number of nights.

Look at the Campmor store brand bags, I bought their down bags probably 15 years ago and still use them. I have read a lot of good reviews on Big Agnes products.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

^^I concur. I've not used any of the bags you describe either, but I have a good Sierra Designs 23F bag (which I think is technically 2 seasons, but it really depends on where you are at) that I like, which is the closest I have to a 20F bag.

Maybe you know this already, but don't store the bag compressed. Hang it up if possible. If you take care of it so it lasts, it is easier to justify the additional cost.

jenglish712

The compressed sizes of the bags look pretty similar, which seems pretty great for synthetic bags. But looking at the the poofy loft of the down bags unrolled and the thin lunpiness of the synthetics unrolled makes it really hard for me to believe they feel the same at 20F.

patrickjd9

I bought a Mountain Hardwear Ratio 15 earlier this year. I like it so far, and it suits this bigger hiker well. Went for a long size for the extra diameter at 5'11, 245.

whmscll

I love my Western Mountaineering 20-degree bag. It's lightweight down and scrunches down to the size of a loaf of bread. Pricey, but I bought it 15+ years ago and it's still going strong. I agree with not going cheap on your bag, it will pay off in the long run.

jenglish712

I ended up going with the ignite. Won't compress down quite like a $500 bag. But at under 3# for a 20F treated down bag for $143 out the door I couldn't pass it up. I don't spend but 2-4 nights in it in a year so it was hard to justify spending 2-3x the price.