Have any of you who have made rectangular underquilts with Insultex noticed that it does not do well when gathered?
In my short experience, a flimsy, raw piece of Insultex does better at the hammock ends than one that is faced, hemmed, channeled and gathered. Once it has that additional structure added, if the IX falls away just a bit from what it is insulating, it does not insulate it.
So, I am going to modify my IX UQs by trimming the ends so they are already the width they were gathered to... which is about 18 inches for a 52 inch UQ. Then, I will cut a fair curve from the midpoint of each side to the new corners. I'll hem them again, and reinstall the suspension, and they should be shaped just right, without any folds or kinks, and needing no gather.
What got me thinking about this was two things. First, my IX UQ had to be gathered just right, or it was cold at the head end, and even then a piece of raw IX improved the performance by filling the ends better. Second, I started looking at the shaped-to-fit HH SS OCF Pad, which needs no gather.
Down UQs can be rectangular because they conform readily to the hammock shape when gathered. Incompressible, easily buckled Insultex is different. It occurs to me that the shape of the HH SS OCF Pad is the key to the outstanding performance of that meager piece of insulation.
As I posted in this thread, last night at about 20*F I finally got an all around toasty rest with nothing but Insultex insluation. Well, I did have an Insultex/Lamilite sit pad under my legs. Otherwise, my insulation was the following:
Speer Top Blanket
Me in light pants, down booties and my IX Vest with sleeves
IX/Lamilite sit pad inside the hammock, under my legs
One yard of raw IX
Single layer IX Insert
Single layer IX UQ 45"X52"
Single layer IX in Hammock Sock
Things were much warmer with all the air leaks finally sealed up, and five layers of IX under my torso. If the UQ were shaped to fit, and were three layers of IX, I believe it would perform very well.
- MacEntyre
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