How hard is it to make your own underquilt

[bootstick]

It is cheaper but not much and you will spend many hours doing it. Plus the UQs you get from our venders are top notch. For 8 hours of work you might save $50.

I think I will purchase from Paul and Missy or I believe it is called arrowhead underquilts, I forgot but the guy posts on here his avatar is a big red bearded fellow. Ill just wait for a deal to arise.

[boulderv7]

I think I will purchase from Paul and Missy or I believe it is called arrowhead underquilts, I forgot but the guy posts on here his avatar is a big red bearded fellow. Ill just wait for a deal to arise.

Paul and Missy are Underground Quilts and their quilts are top notch!!

[bootstick]

Paul and Missy are Underground Quilts and their quilts are top notch!!

They were really helpful, They let me know when their next sale was so I'm going to put some money aside for that, are top quilts absolutly necessary if you have a 0 degree rated sleeping bag + tarp? with an underquilt for like 10-20 degree F

[Randy]

I coulda sworn that the red beard dude was " Mr ArrowHead" of AE

[bootstick]

I coulda sworn that the red beard dude was " Mr ArrowHead" of AE

Yea thats him : ), I have a bad memory, I Was just browsing his website, He has a nice selection, ill have to do more research on the pros and cons/cost analysis of UGQ in comparison with arrowhead

[VictoriaGuy]

.... are top quilts absolutely necessary if you have a 0 degree rated sleeping bag + tarp? with an underquilt for like 10-20 degree F

Lots of people use sleeping bags in hammocks instead of top quilts; it's the under-insulation that tends to be the problem, with our butts hanging in the wind....

Whether a particular bag/pad/TQ/UQ will work for you really needs some experimentation, IMO...if you have access to a cold back yard with trees/poles you are lucky.

[OSU_Matthew]

It's definitely doable, but I would highly recommend making one with insulation in a continuous sheet, like the pattern on DIY Gear Supply, instead of fussing with down. I'm very much an amateur with the sewing machine, but I was able to cobble one together. It just takes a lot of time, patience, and pinning.

If I had to do it over, I would probably have bought one. Mine's ok, in fact I really quite like it, but I'm sure buying a down underquilt wouldn't have been much more expensive in the end, and it would probably outperform the one I made.

[bootstick]

Lots of people use sleeping bags in hammocks instead of top quilts; it's the under-insulation that tends to be the problem, with our butts hanging in the wind....

Whether a particular bag/pad/TQ/UQ will work for you really needs some experimentation, IMO...if you have access to a cold back yard with trees/poles you are lucky.

I tried this a couple of weeks ago, with a thermarest mat and an equinox tarp, with my sleeping bag + wool blanket. it was pretty chilly it was around 10 degrees F and extremely windy, i ended up going inside because i didnt make the tarp taught enough so the wind was making a lot of noise

[XTrekker]

Agreed with some of the previous posters. DIY/MYOG is something that is practiced because you enjoy the process and using something you made yourself. If your doing it to save money, you might be disappointed in the end. But if you really like making gear, and plan to make lots of gear for you and your friends/family, then you can save money in the end. But for the DIY/MYOG addicts, that money saved, just goes to more supplies to make more gear.

[FLRider]

It is cheaper but not much and you will spend many hours doing it. Plus the UQs you get from our venders are top notch. For 8 hours of work you might save $50.

Agreed with some of the previous posters. DIY/MYOG is something that is practiced because you enjoy the process and using something you made yourself. If your doing it to save money, you might be disappointed in the end. But if you really like making gear, and plan to make lots of gear for you and your friends/family, then you can save money in the end. But for the DIY/MYOG addicts, that money saved, just goes to more supplies to make more gear.

In terms of saving money with DIY, if you already have the equipment to sew items with, and you spend the time bargain shopping for materials, and you use proven designs, you can save quite a bit over purchasing whole-made items. Assuming that you have more time than money, of course.

However (and this is the kicker), prototyping when trying something new, purchasing the equipment to sew with (I'm including the tune-up needed by most used machines in this, if you're not already a sewing machine mechanic or seriously mechanically inclined), and purchasing top-flight materials will eat a lot into that margin of savings. I don't think I've saved all of that much on my DIY stuff; maybe $100 over the course of ~$500 to ~$700 spent. Which ain't bad (it's a ~14% to 20% savings), but it's not much more than I could've saved by watching the For Sale forum here or purchasing during various vendors' annual sales.

That being said, I have a kit that is specifically designed for my needs, rather than anyone else's. It's precisely what I want, and I can point to it and say, "Yep, I made that. Want to take a closer look?" to folks on the trail. There's some pride involved in that, as well as the practical side of knowing exactly how to repair my gear and where the probable trouble areas are, if it comes to that.

Which, overall, is why I recommended starting with a synthetic underquilt first: it's going to be a much easier project than down, the materials cost is going to be ~30% less at retail prices, and it's much easier to modify if you screw up somewhere along the line (down can be a real hassle if you need to modify after stuffing). On the other hand, it isn't going to be as light as a top-flight FP down quilt, and it ain't gonna stuff down anywhere near as small as a down quilt.

Hope it helps!