I have my $60 EMS down bag from ebay. My plans are to remove the zippers, sew up a foot box and remove the hood. One friend suggested just putting bias tape over the zipper instead of ripping the zipper off. I suppose my question is why shouldn't I use the bias tape method? Little help?
One factor would be the weight...a bit less w/o the zipper if that's important to you.
see you on the trail,
Mike
#optoutside
Thought about that. I'm far from ultralight... If weight savings is the only plus, the zipper may stay on. But I'm really curious to see what everyone else thinks about it. Thanks for input.
I'd remove it for a couple of reasons, it'll be comfier without it for a start, even if you tape over it you'll still feel it. The second reason is for the weight saving, it is minimal but then the idea of a top quilt is to get rid of that wasted material of a compressed sleeping bag.
I've never compared them side by side but I think my TQs are narrower than a full bag, when I've used a sleeping bag as a quilt there has been a lot of fabric and insulation getting in the way. Maybe check the cut on an existing quilt and see how they compare, I think if I stitched my TQ seams together to make a sleeping bag, I wouldn't be able to fit inside.
Last edited by Shewie; 02-13-2013 at 15:50.
Well, you'd still have the question of what to do with the hood. If you remove it, it's a done deal anyway. My experience has been that sleeping bags are generally too wide at the top to make serviceable top quilts (all the extra material ends up pulling the top quilt over the edge of the hammock)
That and the weight factor of the extra material AND the zipper AND the bias tape. If you really don't want to commit that bag, buy another cheapo bag first. At least try it with another bag (like from Salvation Army or Goodwill). Don't do it to the EMS bag if you're thinking of using it {gulp} on the ground again. If you're ready to commit the bag to hammock hanging, customize it as best as you can. That's really going to give you the best hammock experience.
That's my two cents anyway...about what it's worth!
"Pips"
Mountains have a dreamy way
Of folding up a noisy day
In quiet covers, cool and gray.
---Leigh Buckner Hanes
Surely, God could have made a better way to sleep.
Surely, God never did.
Depending on how heavy duty the zipper is, it may damage your hammock, if it were to get underneath you in the night.
Leonard Outdoors Youtube.com/drleonar
I can do comfier. I suppose this is how one would start moving toward lighter gear... start lightening where you can. Thanks Shewie.Originally Posted by Shewie
Thanks Pips. I bought this bag to use as a cheap entry into the world of topquilts. I still have a 20* Big Agnes down bag and integrated pad should I be on the ground. It's just a way to tinker around a bit.If you really don't want to commit that bag, buy another cheapo bag first. At least try it with another bag (like from Salvation Army or Goodwill). Don't do it to the EMS bag if you're thinking of using it {
That's my two cents anyway...about what it's worth!
It's looking like I'll be removing the zipper. comfort and maintaining the integrity of my hammock are pretty important. Thanks everyone for weighing in.
Ive been using a western mountaineering bag as a top quilt since i started hanging. The zipper is a pain,but i dont want to destroy a quality bag. when you get in roll the sides up on the outside,this gets the zipper away from your skin ,and the hammock, the excess material on the sides of you makes nice draft stop for plugging up the gaps.
I kept it a bag so if i need to go to shelter dweller on the A T ill have a bag. I have never had it spill over the sides of the hammock because im laying on the edge. The extra material is there for when you roll over.
I have been thinking lately about making a piece that would zip into the existing zippers on the bag to widen it into a pea pod. good luck.
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