Sleeping bag focus group questionnaire

varova87

Well-known member
Mar 21, 2006
3,557
0
Texas
Mummy, summer bag is synthetic (Marmot) and Winter bag is a MTN Hardware 800 down fill. Both under $250

What is the coldest outside temperature in which you normally camp? coldest nights are in the twenties. If it's below 20, I'm not going.

If you were going to buy a new sleeping bag, how important are the following factors in making your choice?

(a) Weight. The lighter the better as we do 4-5 day trips sometimes on the AT.

(b) Comfort. A wider mummy is nice because I sleep in a hammock, so it adds to the padding around me and increases warmth.

(c) Durability. A middle ground? I'm scared to say long-lasting because then I won't be able to afford it.

(d) Sharing
Here's an idea for hammockers... I'd like to have a sleeping bag that had a sown-on "sleeve" on the bottom to slide a thermarest in. One of the biggest problems in hammock sleeping is that the sleeping pad ends up sliding out from under a part of your body and you wake up at 3am and can't feel whatever limb isn't on the pad. Have a thin pocket sown up both sides on the bottom to slide it down in to keep the mat in place.

(e) Price. I'd spend up to $250 on a good bag. I simply don't go enough to justify anything more.

(f) Country of origin I would prefer USA, but I won't pay another $100 to have it that way.

(g) Color. Polka-dots. I prefer earth tones. Both of my bags are blue.

(h) Water resistance. Not terribly important. I sleep under a rain fly.

(i) Try before you buy. If I knew it hadn't been slept in before, sure. Otherwise I'd be worried that mr. fat and sweaty had it before me.

(j) Warranty. Warranty is a huge plus. This is the biggest reason I buy my stuff from REI.
 

BahatiDisco2

Member
Aug 18, 2009
19
0
42
Bend, Oregon
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What is the coldest outside temperature in which you normally camp? Coldest average outdoor temp is around 15 - 20 degrees F. I usually do most of my camping during the winter, in the snow.
If you were going to buy a new sleeping bag, how important are the following factors in making your choice?
(a) Weight. Would need to pack down small because I would use if for backpacking. I prefer light because some of my other gear is not. I also keep a cheap synthetic bag in my car for emergencies, but when I know I am going to be car camping I will take my Marmot
(b) Comfort. I do not like narrow, however it keeps me much warmer. I tend to have enough room in my current sleeping bag to place clothes around me so they are warm in the morning. A liner for my bag might be my next purchase since I tend to sweat in my bag.
(c) Durability. Needs to be somewhat durable. I don’t want to nix the breathability of the bag for higher durability. I tend to put my bag inside a bivy anyway which helps protect it.
(d) Sharing. My girlfriend would say yes to the sharing. She is always freezing. A zip together bag would be nice.
(e) Price. For a nice down bag that is light and packs nice, 300-500 dollars. For a synthetic bag that packs up nice, 150-300 dollars
(f) Country of origin. I would pay around 50 dollars more for a bag produced in the US
(g) Color. Generic colors work best for me.
(h) Water resistance. I don’t need it to be water resistant. That usually means lack of breathability and I tend to sweat. My bivy sack keeps it dry in the snow.
(i) Try before you buy. Yes
(j) Warranty. Lifetime is a bit much for a sleeping bag, but I would want a warranty for more than 10 years.
 

jmonsrvr

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
819
0
montara, ca & newport beach, ca
What kind of sleeping bag do you use now

What is the coldest outside temperature in which you normally camp?

If you were going to buy a new sleeping bag, how important are the following factors in making your choice?

(a) Weight. Do you need an ultralight bag that packs down small because you also use it for backpacking? Do you not care about weight because the furthest you carry your bag is 20 feet from your truck to your tent? depends but its important

(b) Comfort. Do you like a narrow mummy bag? Do you prefer room for moving or storing extra clothing inside? Do you like having a hood or not?- depends on one factor- the outside temp. that i will be using the bag in..

(c) Durability. Do you want to buy a sleeping bag that will actually last you 20 years? Do you want a bag that you can just throw on the ground, might get trampled by your dog, or you can use to pad a tree when winching? i want it to be well made and last, ive had one of my western mountaineering bags since 1994 and it still looks new and works just as good as the day i got, but then again you truly get what you pay for when itcomes to sleeping bags. its been all over the world and on top of several peaks. still light weight, functional and technology to design and build has changed little if any. western mountaineering makes great bags
(d) Sharing. Are you interested in buying a sleeping bag that could be zipped to a ground sheet and would fit two people, or one person plus a dog, or two people plus a dog? I know I'm asking for trouble here, but it's a serious question. Some people like the idea of sharing a sleeping bag with a special someone. sure strictly for nice summer car camping...

(e) Price. How many US dollars would you consider spending on a sleeping bag? Which is partly related to... depends- summmer bag 300 bucks, all around bag 400 bucks, winter mountaineering bag 800+ bucks

(f) Country of origin. Do you care if your sleeping bag is made in China or the United States? Would you be willing to spend more money on a sleeping bag if it was made in the USA? I buy western mountaineering and feathered friends..USA

(g) Color. For some reason this matters to people, even though 90% of the time you're in your sleeping bag your eyes are closed. What color would you want your next sleeping bag to be? Black? Red? Camo? Rainbows and unicorns? I buy western mountaineering and feathered friends so color is not an issue

(h) Water resistance. How much do you care if your sleeping bag will stay dry? If you have a leaky tent maybe the sleeping bag is not the issue. If you sleep inside your truck, in a camper, in a log cabin, in a roof-top tent, or in Arizona maybe water resistance is not a big deal. If you sleep in the snow, under a tarp, or in Scotland maybe this is important to you. Depends- but the option is nice. gore-dryloft

(i) Try before you buy. If a company offered you the option of renting a sleeping bag for a trip and then let you apply 100% of the rental fee towards the purchase of the sleeping bag if you wanted to then buy it, would that encourage you to try it out? No.

(j) Warranty. Is a lifetime manufacturer's warranty on materials and workmanship important to you? YES!
 

jmonsrvr

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
819
0
montara, ca & newport beach, ca
What kind of sleeping bag do you use now

What is the coldest outside temperature in which you normally camp?

If you were going to buy a new sleeping bag, how important are the following factors in making your choice?

(a) Weight. Do you need an ultralight bag that packs down small because you also use it for backpacking? Do you not care about weight because the furthest you carry your bag is 20 feet from your truck to your tent? depends but its important

(b) Comfort. Do you like a narrow mummy bag? Do you prefer room for moving or storing extra clothing inside? Do you like having a hood or not?- depends on one factor- the outside temp. that i will be using the bag in..

(c) Durability. Do you want to buy a sleeping bag that will actually last you 20 years? Do you want a bag that you can just throw on the ground, might get trampled by your dog, or you can use to pad a tree when winching? i want it to be well made and last, ive had one of my western mountaineering bags since 1994 and it still looks new and works just as good as the day i got, but then again you truly get what you pay for when itcomes to sleeping bags. its been all over the world and on top of several peaks. still light weight, functional and technology to design and build has changed little if any. western mountaineering makes great bags
(d) Sharing. Are you interested in buying a sleeping bag that could be zipped to a ground sheet and would fit two people, or one person plus a dog, or two people plus a dog? I know I'm asking for trouble here, but it's a serious question. Some people like the idea of sharing a sleeping bag with a special someone. sure strictly for nice summer car camping...

(e) Price. How many US dollars would you consider spending on a sleeping bag? Which is partly related to... depends- summmer bag 300 bucks, all around bag 400 bucks, winter mountaineering bag 800+ bucks

(f) Country of origin. Do you care if your sleeping bag is made in China or the United States? Would you be willing to spend more money on a sleeping bag if it was made in the USA? I buy western mountaineering and feathered friends..USA

(g) Color. For some reason this matters to people, even though 90% of the time you're in your sleeping bag your eyes are closed. What color would you want your next sleeping bag to be? Black? Red? Camo? Rainbows and unicorns? I buy western mountaineering and feathered friends so color is not an issue

(h) Water resistance. How much do you care if your sleeping bag will stay dry? If you have a leaky tent maybe the sleeping bag is not the issue. If you sleep inside your truck, in a camper, in a log cabin, in a roof-top tent, or in Arizona maybe water resistance is not a big deal. If you sleep in the snow, under a tarp, or in Scotland maybe this is important to you. Depends- but the option is nice. gore-dryloft

(i) Try before you buy. If a company offered you the option of renting a sleeping bag for a trip and then let you apply 100% of the rental fee towards the purchase of the sleeping bag if you wanted to then buy it, would that encourage you to try it out? No.

(j) Warranty. Is a lifetime manufacturer's warranty on materials and workmanship important to you? YES!
 

jhmover

Well-known member
Apr 23, 2004
5,571
3
California
What kind of sleeping bag do you use now? North Face synthetic mummy bag rated at 0 degrees fahrenheit. I spent about $150 on it about 22 years ago. It's great unless it's hot and if so I sleep on top of it if it gets chilly in the morning I'll just pull it over me.

What is the coldest outside temperature in which you normally camp? Normally the 30's to 60's. I have used it at zero degrees sleeping in an old army tent on top of a slab of granite because the asshole guide said they had cots and they didn't. I do like having a good bag in case of emergency like my Rover breaks down in the middle of Nevada in winter.

If you were going to buy a new sleeping bag, how important are the following factors in making your choice?

(a) Weight. Doesn't matter much but even though I car camp smaller is better to fit in the car.

(b) Comfort.

Do you like a narrow mummy bag? One with some wiggle room is nice.
Do you prefer room for moving or storing extra clothing inside? Room enough to stuff fleece jacket or something around my feet if it's really cold.
Do you like having a hood or not? I like the hood.

(c) Durability. Do you want to buy a sleeping bag that will actually last you 20 years? Mine's lasted 22 so far. But I don't backpack and sleep in the back of the car or a tent so it doesn't get much abuse.

Do you want a bag that you can just throw on the ground, might get trampled by your dog, or you can use to pad a tree when winching? Would be nice but again not really important.

(d) Sharing. I have no need for sharing. Wife's in menopause. She'd blast me out of the thing with hot flashes.

(e) Price. I'd spend up to $300 for a good bag. Again I'm not going to Mr. Everest.

(f) Country of origin. United States.

Would you be willing to spend more money on a sleeping bag if it was made in the USA? Yes as long as it's not ridiculous.

(g) Color. I don't care what color it is. Dark would be OK. You'll sell more if they're camouflage with 20 outside pockets for storage and you call it tactical.

(h) Water resistance.

How much do you care if your sleeping bag will stay dry? A lot.

One that came with a waterproof/resistant bag you could use when needed would be nice.

(i) Try before you buy? Not really important.