Down help needed PLEASE!!!

[DiyGuy83]

So, I have scavenged for a bit on here and am still a little confused on what I need... Please, any help would be more than appreciated.

UQ
- Argon 67 inner and outer
- Used CatSplat's UQ Calc to figure out size & baffle info

97243

Basically, to get into the 20*'s, it says I can use 600 fill power. The thing is, I can get a pillow or two from Target and those are 600 fill power, white duck down. Would this be enough with 2.5" baffles? Or should I just bite the bullet and get a higher quality goose down? I am thinking that I could integrate some other stuff I have for insulation such as a pad, or the reflectix that I have used before in the upper 40's with just a poly filled sleeping bag and was fine.

I am just super confused and need a little direction/guidance.


Thanks

[JBRanger]

Basically 600fp would just require you use more ounces to fill the same area as if you used a higher fp.

Also, which target pillows did you use?

[CC_Cinci]

I'm not sure if you know this but your screen shot has 750 fill power plugged into the calculator. If you change the FP to 600 the # of ounces of down will increase. Generally, 600FP down will have more feathers present as well. The question of 600FP versus higher FP down mostly comes down to whether or not it's worth all of the extra money for the weight savings of the higher FP down.
Personally, since you're going with top of the line fabric, I would recommend going all out and buying a higher fill power down. If you are mostly car camping and aren't concerned about weight then the 600FP would be fine as long as it isn't filled with feathers that will potentially poke through your Argon 67.

[DiyGuy83]

Yeah, I saw that after I posted it. JB, they are the Fieldcrest Luxury, they are 62.00 but it doesn't show anything on weight. Just shows that they are 600 fill power with feathers...

The other thing is, I want to be as frugal as possible.

[hikehunter]

I used the same pillows for one of my UQs. There are some large "poke-e" feathers in them. I picked out so many of them at first.....It got very madding....if I do it again I will go to Dillards and buy the $88 goose down pillow.

[DiyGuy83]

Dillards eh? Do you think there would be enough in just one pillow to fill my project based on the screenshot? Also, what is the rating on those Dillards pillows?

[Otter1]

I read an article awhile back (BPL?) that basically implied that some feathers helped, rather than hurt insulation. That's fine until they poke you, as was pointed out above, so be aware!

[SirMarkos]

Try this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Premium-500-Thread-Count-European-White-Goose-Down-Pillow-Standard-Queen-King-/371067689547?pt=US_Pillows&var=&hash=item56655b9a4b

[DiyGuy83]

Have you bought from that seller before? 99.7% positive feedback is pretty good, but you never know, my fiance ordered a bird cage off etsy for our wedding and got the **** end of the stick, $80.00 down the drain....

[SirMarkos]

Have you bought from that seller before? 99.7% positive feedback is pretty good, but you never know, my fiance ordered a bird cage off etsy for our wedding and got the **** end of the stick, $80.00 down the drain....

We've actually bought from this seller before. Great price! We bought the King size firm, and it had 35oz of down in it. The Queen size has 28oz.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/750-Fill-Power-FP-Egyptian-Cotton-White-Goose-Down-Pillow-s-Standard-Queen-/371144204646?pt=US_Pillows&var=640300590610&hash=item5669eb2166

[DiyGuy83]

Awesome! Think I will have enough for a Top Quilt too? (Using the King size)

[DiyGuy83]

Well, I bit the bullet and bought 1.25 lbs of 100% white goose down from Smileyme.com

The fill power should be around 700, however, it is not treated with anything to be water/moisture repellent. Is that bad?

[gunner76]

Is that bad?

No...just need to be a bit more careful not to get it wet. I bought a pound of 800 fill down a couple of weeks ago. Came in big package. Soda can is for size reference

[DiyGuy83]

Has anyone used this supplier before? Any good or bad experiences?

[Titaniumpyro]

I bought a pound of white goose down from smileyme last month for a topquilt.
I had made a poster board cylinder and weight to specs to test the fill power.
I came up with 600-650. The down was nice and white, a good number of downy feathers but not many with pokey quills. Granted I did overstuff the baffles on my quilt about 30% but it does loft a lot quicker than my hammock gear incubator 20. Overall I was happy with their product as I wasn't trying to go ultralight with my first quilt.

[DiyGuy83]

Granted I did overstuff the baffles on my quilt about 30%

What was the weight of the fill in total? Hopefully the 1.25 lbs that I ordered will be enough.

I would like to get into the teens with good base layers and the good ole hot water bottle trick.

[squidbilly]

I've bought from this seller before: http://www.ebay.com/itm/361152839138?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT The "My Luxe" pillows and comforters are 800FP. For some reason they don't list the fill weight of pillows, only the comforters. However, I bought a pair of king size/medium-firm pillows. They have about 26ozs down each. I ended up paying about $2.50 oz including shipping. Also, pay no attention to the tag on the pillow that states 75% down: this brand is 100% 800fp goose down. Just be patient: don't get in a bidding war, and you will end up with quality down-cheap.

[Titaniumpyro]

17 ounces although I did use some down I had salvaged for the foot plug. My baffle height was 2.5 " and it lofts to just under 3"

[DiyGuy83]

Just got this in the mail today, 1.25 lbs !!!

When I contacted the supplier, she said it was 650-750 fill power. Can't wait till this evening to start stuffing! I need to get this done because I am going on a trip this Friday and Saturday with a buddy of mine that is a ground dweller :mellow: maybe I can convert him to a hanger.

99325

[brianb]

Good luck and take your time stuffing. I just did this last week and it was messy. Something like one of those kiddie pools underneath your quilt while you stuff it would be a good idea. Catch any renegade down that tries to escape.

Have fun. It felt great last weekend when I pulled mine out for its first hang.

Brian

[New2trees]

Dillards eh? Do you think there would be enough in just one pillow to fill my project based on the screenshot? Also, what is the rating on those Dillards pillows?

I purchase My Luxe down Pillows off Ebay to make a UQ and TQ used one pillow for both nice soft down at 800 fill power one queen pillow had 25 oz. the Calc's had me down to 18 degrees just finished them and havent had a chance to test but I think they are going to be great.

You can find pillows for $ 100

here is the finished product
99336 99337

[DiyGuy83]

99352
99354
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Gratuitous ridgeline pic
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Stuffing down sucks...
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The center 4 baffles have 30 g of fill each and the 4 baffles on either side have 29 g each

[New2trees]

Looks great!

Trick I found to be helful with the Down Stuffing.
I used a piece of no seeum wrapped around the end of a shop vac extension tube and secured with a rubber band.

I then held this end to the shop vac hose and put the other end in the down filling the tube with enough down for the section I was stuffing ( compressing as needed). and subtracting the weight of the tube. I then slid the tube in the quilt and used the shop vac to suck the down into the baffle by holding the hose up to the quilt and tube. keeping the baffle closed so only the end with the no seeum is poking out.

This method worked well and I had 0 down floating around.

[DiyGuy83]

Thanks! All I need to do now is finish the sides with grosgrain, or maybe a rolled hem. I went with the 4 loops for tie outs instead of the long length of shock cord. I can still adjust it easily by clipping on to a couple prussiks on the whoopie slings.

[brianb]

Nice work, looks great. Addictive.

[dehler]

Well, I bit the bullet and bought 1.25 lbs of 100% white goose down from Smileyme.com

The fill power should be around 700, however, it is not treated with anything to be water/moisture repellent. Is that bad?

Did you get the 100% goose down, or a mix with feathers?

[DiyGuy83]

I got the 100%, had a chance to try everything out over the weekend and was warm! the temp got down to 18* here in STL

[x PREACHER x]

For people buying the luxe down pillows,
I bought mine from wholesalebedding.com.
After googling "wholesale bedding coupon code" I found a coupon code for 30% off + free shipping.
It brought the king size down pillow down to $62 total.
Also, it's a Google store, so the purchase is protected through them.
Hope that helps!