Zpacks sleeping bags any good?

cmat1120

FNG
Joined
Mar 1, 2018
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28
Location
AZ
Haven't seen much about zpacks sleeping bags on here. On paper they seem really good even for the money considering how light they are. Is there any particular reason they aren't recommended on here? Are they not durable or not as warm as their rating or something? I've got a cheap Amazon down bag that's not awful, but not great. It's under 3 lbs and good to freezing temps. It's tempting to upgrade to either a sub pound 3 season bag or a 4 season that's still significantly lighter than my current bag.
 

Justin Crossley

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Feb 25, 2012
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Location
Buckley, WA
I've been using one for a few years. It's a really nice, light quilt. I Don't think they like hunting very much though because we have reached out a couple of times to set up a review and they don't want to work with us at all.
 
Joined
Aug 9, 2017
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27
Location
Arizona
I've been running a 20 degree Enlightened Equipment Revelation Quilt for the last 2 years and it has been very comfortable. Packs well, lightweight (19.8 oz), and is very warm. I've not personally run a Zpacks quilt, but my close buddy runs their Duplex tent and it is very nice. Great quality, I would expect the same out of their quilts. Don't think you could go wrong with either. Believe Enlightened Equipment to be a little more 'hunter' friendly.
 
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cmat1120

FNG
Joined
Mar 1, 2018
Messages
28
Location
AZ
I've been running a 20 degree Enlightened Equipment Revelation Quilt for the last 2 years and it has been very comfortable. Packs well, lightweight (19.8 oz), and is very warm. I've not personally run a Zpacks quilt, but my close buddy runs their Duplex tent and it is very nice. Great quality, I would expect the same out of their quilts. Don't think you could go wrong with either. Believe Enlightened Equipment to be a little more 'hunter' friendly.

Knowing they're hunter friendly is encouraging and might make me pick them over zpacks. Zpacks sleeping bags seem to be a bit lighter though and cheaper for the same level of down(zpacks only does 950 and it seems around the same price as EE's 850). I'd hate to support an anti hunting company, but there's a point where function outweighs politics lol. Maybe I'll have to get a zpacks and donate to the RMEF to compensate.

Looks like EE might take the advantage with some of their quilts though(looking at the enigma). I'll have to read through the forums to get some advice on what temperature level to go with and what EE models might be better than others. I imagine if I can only get one a 0 or 10 degree quilt might be the best and I can just regulate airflow when its not as cold.
 

gfreidy

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Mar 30, 2016
Messages
527
EE changed their fill amounts for a stated temperature this year - basically increasing the fill of their quilts. I have a previously stated 10F Revelation and it basically has the same amount of fill as their new 20F. I have used mine to single digits with base layers and a puffy. I think their new stated temperatures are probably pretty close. When in doubt, I will compare to Katabatic quilt specs as their quilts seem to be spot on for temp ratings.
 
Joined
Aug 21, 2015
Messages
72
Location
WY
This year for archery elk I ran a Zpacks 30 degree solo quilt. This was my first quilt and I was pretty nervous because I'd heard that many people said they got cold in a quilt. Boy was I surprised! I never got cold one bit, and a couple nights were down into the upper 20's (I am a warm sleeper though). This thing is SUPER packable and CRAZY light (under 14 oz). I don't think I will never use a mummy bag again for backcountry bivy-style hunting. It comes with a cubin fiber stuff sack and a handy strap that wraps around your sleeping pad to keep drafts out. I also own a Zpacks pocket tarp, and I'm blown away by the quality and price. I highly recommend their gear!
 
Joined
Dec 30, 2014
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8,170
Take a look on backpackinglight. I think the primary gripes have been that they have tight foot bags with some folks unhappy with warmth.
 

turley

Lil-Rokslider
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Oct 20, 2019
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264
If I remember correctly they re-designed the foot box a year or two ago (when they unfortunately stopped most customizations).
ZPacks bags are designed to be as light as possible as they cater to the UL backpacking community. If you look at their sleeping bags amount of fill and width specs (shoulder/hip/foot box) many times compared to other bags of like temperature ratings they use less fill because the bags are cut narrower.
 
Joined
Apr 5, 2015
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5,824
My brother is a big ultra light hiker and I took a few steps down that road.

I looked at his zpacks quilt and it didn’t inspire confidence in terms of long term durability so I went in another direction. I went with an EE quilt instead. It is heavier but I am fairly happy with it.

I feel the same way about ultralight gear from other brands. In general, I think hunters use gear a little more harshly and I am curious how well some of the ultralight stuff will hold up. I feel like fast packers are more willing to compromise durability to save a little weight than I am, especially given the cost of the gear.

PS - he froze his ass off hiking around in yellow stone in May 2 years ago while I was toasty. His pack May have been 10# lighter but I was more comfortable in camp.
 

ndbuck09

WKR
Joined
Feb 16, 2015
Messages
607
Location
Boise, ID
I have a Zpacks sleeping bag. I bought it in 2016 in extra wide and xx long. This was before they went to vertical baffles so mine is horizontal baffling. The specs sound big but it's basically 62 inches in the shoulders and I'm 6'1 and it fits my height nice to where I can pull over my head for cold nights. It's supposed to be a 20 degree bag. It most definitely is NOT a 20 degree bag in real life. Its really a 32 degree bag in my opinion and I sleep hot (like our house at home is always at 65 at night in everyday life). Anything below 32 and I have to start wearing layers. Yes I understand that some say you need to let your body heat out so the bag can work properly but I've been there done that and you'll sleep horribly when you're cold, so I run layers. Before setting into my tent, i will take and shake the bag, trying to migrate the down to the top side to where it will give me insulation but I just don't think there's enough. I've reached out to them about sending it in for some overfill but they said they don't do that.

I do like the center zip aspect and the bag is fairly durable given how light the material is. It's also comfortable and super light. So I keep using it because it was an investment and I can make it go down past 20 wearing all my layers. It's just important to know it's not a western mountaineering like I bought for my wife this past summer.

In the end, I wouldn't buy a zpacks bag again and would spend my money on more widely proven western mountaineering for the things we do in being out in tents in November in the mountains. I feel that Zpacks bags were/are designed for the thru hiker crowd who isn't really doing their thing at 8k feet in the mountains in November.
 

turley

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Oct 20, 2019
Messages
264
Couldn't agree more with the post above. I've been an UL backpacker for years and have tried many brands of sleeping bags (Western Mountaineering, Valandre, Feathered Friends, ZPacks, Enlightened Equipment, Katabatic Gear, ect...). In my opinion WM, Valandre, FF, and Katabatic are at the very top in overall quality of construction and accurate to conservative in their temperature rating.
Though UL shells are fine for backpacking trips I've come to prefer a more durable outside fabric such as the Microfiber shell WM uses...especially for hunting trips.
 
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