Top Quilt General rules?

[mountaingoat]

I am a very cold sleeper, but with a good underquilt I need very little on top. The phoenix is nice and wide and comes up my sides enough that even when it's cold I could get away with the smallest cover.

[G.L.P.]

if your goal is 20F ... i would get at least a 3 season TQ .... and a good UQ
even being a hot sleeping(i am as well) i found the lowest i can go with my 40F summer TQ is 35F but that is just for testing.. for real life hangs i would use a 3 season TQ for 35F ... i still go by the rule of have more then you need when it comes to temp ratings... you don't want to be stuck out on the trail with a 40F TQ in 20F weather ... just not smart if you ask me
at least with a 3 season TQ and a UQ rated for that temp you should be fine
you want more under you heat rises so you will have more heat loss from your UQ then you will from your TQ

i use a 3 season most of the year and a 40F TQ during the summer
but my UQ's always have some room temp wise to spare just in case
also like others have said everyone is different.. this is just my take on it and is not intended to be taken as a standard of use .... but over years of backpacking it's what i found to work for me

[exup]

I may be wrong but I feel the warmth from an UQ is more important and holds more weight with having a low rating in colder temps. In warmer summer temps, I feel a TQ is more important. I don't really know why, but that's the way its seemed to work for me these past seasons.

If I could only buy one season worth of stuff I'd go with 3 season. Most places 3 season takes care of a good majority of the winter. I plan on setting myself up for summer, to take me to 30 degrees (that's 3 season in the midwest I think) and ill take care of winter next year.

[littlebigpole]

I think I will end up with a 3 season UQ and 3 season TQ. I think as hot as I sleep that I will end up with less on top most of the time. Like others have mentioned I dont want to get out and have a cold snap remind that its better to have more than less so I will keep that in mind.