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  1. #1
    Senior Member drchip's Avatar
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    Top quilt size and weight

    I'm looking around at top quilts, and they seem to range in width from about 48" to 55", with most I've seen at 50". Much of what I've read about the benefit of a top quilt vs. a sleeping bag partially unzipped and used as a quilt is that insulation that normally goes beneath you is instead used on top -- or alternatively that less insulation and fabric offers a weight savings.

    I just measured by semi-mummy 20-year old synthetic sleeping bag, which I've been using for the past year as a top quilt. At the top, it's 54" wide -- which seems to suggest a pretty small savings given the potential disadvantages of not being able to use the top quilt as a sleeping bag for tent camping (which I need to do when camping with the family, at least for now). It seems maybe the zipper and hardware may contribute the most to the weight savings rather than less fabric or insulation?

    So, in terms of weight savings and size vs. a traditional full mummy-stile sleeping bag (which should be a bit narrower still than my semi-mummy), the differences seem small, at least when comparing apples to apples in sleeping bag vs. top quilt. What am I missing? How much smaller will a comparable top quilt pack, and how much less should it weigh, than a similar sleeping bag?

    Thanks for your thoughts as I decide between upgrading my 20* synthetic sleeping bag to either a 20* down sleeping bag or a 20* down top quilt.

  2. #2

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    Wow Drchip, that's a lot of questions but let's give it a shot.

    When I compare my hammock insulation to a sleeping bag, I use combined TQ & UQ so consider that extra weigh/pack volume. Also in 20* I typically were a down hood to sleep in so add that as well. I don't think it's lighter than a down sleeping bag but probably lighter than most synthetics.

    Secondly, yes down packs that much smaller than synthetic, you'll be amazed.

    I don't have experience using a TQ on the ground but I would trust it to function well because the TQ concept came to hammocking from ultralight hiking guru Ray Jardine who was a ground dweller. I will say that it was a bit of a leap of faith going from a sleeping bag to a TQ but now I can hardly remember what my concerns were.

    I see you're in Bexley, I work just blocks from there in the Near East side. Maybe you'd be interested in coming out for a hang next weekend I think some of they Ohio guys are going to hit Zaleski on Sat and Sun. It would be a great opportunity to see the gear and understand how things work, folks are glad to share their knowledge.

    http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/s...ad.php?t=62155

    David

  3. #3
    Senior Member hammockBlazn's Avatar
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    I am also very interested in this as well. I just purchased a 800 fill bag for a great price instead of a tq. Im just wondering how much space/weight I would save going with a tq.

  4. #4
    Senior Member SwinginIt's Avatar
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    Unlike Bannerstone I don't count my UQ when comparing to a sleeping bag, I compare my UQ to a sleeping pad. So as far as TQ savings, I have a 20* TQ that is 50" with a half taper, meaning it stays 50" wide for 3' before it tapers down. It weighs 17.5 or 18oz. Show me a 20* sleeping bag that weighs that little. The lightest you'll find is gonna be pushing 2lbs. And TQ can be used on the ground as well.

    An option for you if you're torn is Zpacks bags. They are 1/2 zip on the bottom so they work as TQs and sleeping bags and are super light. Actually now that I think about it I think a 20* one of those weighs as much as my quilt. So it's kinda the best of both worlds.
    "As a well spent day brings happy sleep, a well spent life brings happy death." -Da Vinci

  5. #5
    Senior Member MAD777's Avatar
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    I weigh 200# and I'm just over 6' tall and my top quilts are 40" wide.
    I'm a gram weenie, so I think the average is wider.

    Something to remember about quilt width. In a hammock, your bottom quilt wraps up around your sides partially, and the top quilt only needs to overlap that. However, if you use the quilt on the ground, it needs to be much wider because the ground doesn't come up and wrap around you like a hammock and bottom quilt.
    Mike
    "Life is a Project!"

  6. #6
    Senior Member hammockBlazn's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by SwinginIt View Post
    Unlike Bannerstone I don't count my UQ when comparing to a sleeping bag, I compare my UQ to a sleeping pad. So as far as TQ savings, I have a 20* TQ that is 50" with a half taper, meaning it stays 50" wide for 3' before it tapers down. It weighs 17.5 or 18oz. Show me a 20* sleeping bag that weighs that little. The lightest you'll find is gonna be pushing 2lbs. And TQ can be used on the ground as well.

    An option for you if you're torn is Zpacks bags. They are 1/2 zip on the bottom so they work as TQs and sleeping bags and are super light. Actually now that I think about it I think a 20* one of those weighs as much as my quilt. So it's kinda the best of both worlds.
    I'm rocking a 3 season 800 fill that is coming in at 28oz with compression sack. I wonder how much is zipper and hood.

  7. #7
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    You also have the hood in your face with a sleeping bag used as a TQ.

    One nice feature of TQ's is they have a snap to connect the top corners behind your neck and a draw cord to snug it all up around your shoulders and keep it all tucked in.

    The makers web sites normally list the weights of their TQ's.

  8. #8
    Senior Member drchip's Avatar
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    Thanks for the input so far. I only did a few comparisons, but yes, finding the TQ (in the 50" width range) are lighter by a half pound or pound compared to a bag. I was just wondering, if the width is nearly the same, and the length is the same, is most of the difference losing the zipper and related hardware (vs. insulation and fabric, which is where I thought I was reading the savings was). In actuality, I like the fact that most quilts, it seems, are nearly as wide as a bag, as that makes them more useful outside of the hammock.

    The difference between synthetic and down will already be a big improvement for me in terms of packed size and weight. And, since my UQ is synthetic, I need to lose some packed size especially. Losing another 8-16 oz is always useful, but I was just wondering, for someone who has to use a tent when camping with the family (they're not all converts, so no sense in packing a hammock on top of the tent...), is the weight savings worth the compromise on the ground. (And, that's presuming that since most on the ground use bags, a quilt is a compromise.)

    Thanks for the input so far, happy to hear any and all other opinions as well as I make my choice.

  9. #9
    Senior Member SwinginIt's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by drchip View Post
    Thanks for the input so far. I only did a few comparisons, but yes, finding the TQ (in the 50" width range) are lighter by a half pound or pound compared to a bag. I was just wondering, if the width is nearly the same, and the length is the same, is most of the difference losing the zipper and related hardware (vs. insulation and fabric, which is where I thought I was reading the savings was). In actuality, I like the fact that most quilts, it seems, are nearly as wide as a bag, as that makes them more useful outside of the hammock.

    The difference between synthetic and down will already be a big improvement for me in terms of packed size and weight. And, since my UQ is synthetic, I need to lose some packed size especially. Losing another 8-16 oz is always useful, but I was just wondering, for someone who has to use a tent when camping with the family (they're not all converts, so no sense in packing a hammock on top of the tent...), is the weight savings worth the compromise on the ground. (And, that's presuming that since most on the ground use bags, a quilt is a compromise.)

    Thanks for the input so far, happy to hear any and all other opinions as well as I make my choice.
    A lot of UL ground dwellers use quilts in their quest for less weight. The width determines how suitable it is for ground use. Talk to one of the vendors about what you want to be able to use it for and they can tell you how wide it should be and what kind of taper it should have. When I talked to Adam at Hammock Gear and told him I'm a side sleeping tosser and turner her recommended 50" wide with the half taper. So far it has worked perfectly. You could also have tabs added to the sides of the quilt that you can rig up to wrap around your pad to help keep it in place also. The JRB Hudson River comes with them. Although I am personally digging my HG quilt more than my JRB.

    I don't think using a quilt on the ground is a compromise. With a quilt you don't have to fumble around with a zipper if you need to get up for a midnight run or if something is invading your camp. And you're not carrying the extra weight of material and insulation that is being wasted by being crushed underneath you.
    "As a well spent day brings happy sleep, a well spent life brings happy death." -Da Vinci

  10. #10
    Senior Member drchip's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bannerstone View Post
    I see you're in Bexley, I work just blocks from there in the Near East side. Maybe you'd be interested in coming out for a hang next weekend I think some of they Ohio guys are going to hit Zaleski on Sat and Sun. It would be a great opportunity to see the gear and understand how things work, folks are glad to share their knowledge.

    David
    Thanks David. It would be great to get together at a group hang, but I doubt I'll be able to do it this weekend. I'd hoped to take the kids out to Alum Creek this weekend for a final tent camping trip for the year, but at the moment everyone in the family but me is sick, so even that is likely on hold.

    Actually hoping to try an overnighter at Zaleski in mid-December (I was last there in late September), and that's why I'm thinking of updating my gear. Any Ohio folks do trips that late down there?

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