Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Sleeping Bag

I got me a new sleeping bag a bit ago. The leftover bag from Boy Scouts and my dad's Suplus mummy bag from the 1960's weren't doing the trick. For one thing, I am taller and bigger, and those older bags are cramped. I want rolling around room.

So I got a Military Style jobber. Called the GI Modular Sleep System. (Do NOT pay $450, with shipping, for one of these. I got mine, brand new, for under $100. Oh wait, found a direct link for a cheaper one.)



It's 3 sleeping bags, really. A thin plasticized outer shell to help keep water off, a green fluffy regular bag inside that, and a black fluffy regular bag inside THAT. In warmer weather you'd leave the black inner bag behind. In the arctic you'd want that black bag and some serious long underwear.

Here''s the problem. All 3 bags together as a unit BARELY fit in the accompanying stuff sack. If you stuff the shell and green bag into the sleeping bag compartment of your backpack you still have to tie on the black inner bag to the outside of your pack.

Scroo it. If I go WINTER backpacking, I'll just have to find a slightly bigger stuff sack for the 3 sleeping bags, and pack warm weather clothing into the backpack sleeping bag compartment. I'll lash the darn sleeping bag to the outside of the pack.

5 comments:

West, By God said...

I have an used army milsurp bag just like that. The bivy/shell is GorTex. The three layers give you options for nearly any situation. It also came with a really nice compression sack. I've never had a problem with the compression sack... it isn't an easy fit with all three layers, but it isn't too bad. It does take up about half of my pack though.

This sleeping bag ROCKS. I've used just the bivy in the summer, or all 3 layers in temps as low as 10F. I don't know if knockoffs are as good as the real deal.

West, By God said...

PS - the "cheap" one you linked to is "modeled after" the real deal. The real one is expensive because it is gortex, not nylon.

Where are you gonna be in Florida? If you are anywhere near Tampa Bay, gimme a holler and we can meet up and chat about guns'n'gear over a cold one.

sofa said...

tried it yet?

Old Windways said...

Definitely a good system, there were a few guys in my Mountain Travel and Rescue class this winter who had that setup and were very satisfied with it.

Earl said...

I have the GoreTex cover, an excellent bag inside of that and from the folks that gave us Snuggie, comes a kind of flannel bag pillow case to put inside it all. Will be keeping me company on my Trusty Triumph this Summer trip.


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