I hope I am not getting kicked out again for advertising, however, if you are looking for good and reasonable priced stuff, maybe you want to got to the Sierra Trading Post homepage.

I got a North Face sleeping bag there, packs "ultra-small" when using a compression bag (size, well something around 25 ~ 30 cm in hight and 20 ~ 25 cm in width). The price was great, my girlfriend used it during our Hokkaido touring this year and she was more than pleased (of course, using a Thermarest pad, too!) .
This is one they got on sale now, $144. You should check every now and then for updates!

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Since the early seventies I used a bulky but warm sleeping bag. Two years ago I had to admit it was well past its best and bought a modern 3 season bag. I never got a good nights sleep in it below 15C. So now I have bought a bulky, yet light and warm Coleman Hudson 450. I will live with its bulk and leave something else behind, It is bulk, and not weight. The liner is no size at all. The cost £33

Right..

The sleeping bag came in the post this morning. It's an "Integral 0C". Immaculately clean and looks in very good condition.

Really nice having a built in thermarest. It rolls up with the thermarest and its still smaller than just my other 2 season bag, even when compressed.

BUT !!!!!!!! Its VERY thin. Holding it upto the light, there is practically no down in the bag (theres not meant to be on the bottom) .. I don't know how down bags are meant to look to be honest but i'm a little concerned.

Update: I've just had a 2 hour nap in it INDOORS (11c) and I was cold.. I can slide the shell cover between my fingers and feel no down in there. I think its practically empty..

0c bag !! More like 10c bag.

This is why I hate buying second hand.

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

No, this is why you hate buying off ebay, sight unseen. It has nothing to do with "used," and everything to do with being too credulous and woefully uninformed.

Ted, I don't want to get all critical on you, but you really need to do some more research if you intend to fulfill your goal of buying a cheap, warm, ultra-compact sleeping bag. Grabbing something you've got no way of checking out in person off the internet just makes it likely you're going to get ripped off. FWIW, you paid a good price for a summer sleeping bag (though personally I don't like the integrated pad systems because they don't permit me to toss and turn at will). Accept it for what it is.

First, all manufacturers exaggerate temperature ratings. Believe it. If Mountain Hardware (or anyone else) claims 0 degrees, that just means that if you wear your long underwear, gloves and a hat inside a small, stuffy tent, you'll perhaps be comfortable down to near freezing....if you remember to drink hot tea with honey before bed, aren't tired in the first place, can maintain proper blood sugar through the night, and tend to sleep warm. And that's brand new, off the shelf.

Second, warmth is directly proportional to insulation thickness. A thin bag will not be as warm as a thicker one. There's no real way around this (except certain reflective liners, which you can research on your own). When you buy a bag, what you want to know is not the manufacture's rating or the claims of the seller, but the actual measurable loft (thickness).

Third, responding to your other post, there's no practical way to re-loft down bags, particularly on a budget--you might do this with a US$500 expedition bag, but not with a thin cheapie off the internet. You can wash them with a certain degree of care in order to fluff them up....but it sounds like this was already done with the one you bought.

Again, you've got a perfectly serviceable summer sleeping bag. Now you can resume researching the bag you really want. You can do this by inspecting--up close and in person--both down and synthetic bags. Go to a few shops. Read a couple of catalogs. You'll catch on quickly.

And don't forget that any down bag, if gotten wet through misfortune or misuse, will be rendered almost useless until you can dry it out and fluff it up again. That means that you've got to take exquisite care of it in use.

Hope that helps.

Mark

Thanks for your advice Mark. I did do a fair bit of research into brands and models and read some forums but I guess its just experience that counts in used bags.

I buy and sell plenty on Ebay, so don't fret , ill get my money back

I wouldnt be too bothered if I needed a summer bag, but alas I have 2 already !

I knew I was taking a risk, but thats always the way in the modern age of ebay and forums etc. How often do you get to see and touch the things you buy in the modern world ??

Live n learn I guess.. Definately a double edged sword when prepping on a budget !!

Cheers Mark

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

I have four different sleeping bags, none ideal. The reality is, getting a good nights sleep is very important. I sleep cold and hate carrying more weight and bulk than necessary, I also hate wasting money. My favourite bag is an MEC Canadian down bag, like a mummy with no hood. about 1100-1200g and this is rated to 5 degrees c, which is probably more realistic than some claims by manufacurers (but still not warm enough for me).
My next trip I will take a new down mummy bag from a major manufacturer weighing more than I want, being bulkier than I like and costing far too much, but at least I wont be COLD. There are areas where we can all cut costs but riding after a crap shivering night is not pleasant.

The money you talk about looks exagerated to me !?
I had a look the past summer in here Bertoni - campeggio sport - tende - trekking - outdoor - zaini - sacchi letto to buy something for Iceland. The most expensive thing was around 85 euro (we talk about stuff used to camp at 4000 meters!!) I managed with a sleeping bag cover (basically a thin sleeping bag to go over normal sleeping bag) from Decathlon for 14 euro.

All of this stuff is for climbing peoples, they have much greater space problems than us....

2 Oz manufacturers who make sleeping bags that stuff very small.

Might not meet the "don't break the bank" criteria though.

Sleeping Bags | One Planet

Mont Adventure Equipment Australia : Catalog

Ted, did you check Down sleeping bags and down jackets, Alpkit outdoor gear for alpine activities including climbing, camping, mountaineering and trekking This is a British internetshop, designing and fabricating camping and climbing gear.

I bought a down sleepingbag from them last year and was impressed by the price/quality.

Good luck
Ruud

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The road is my home, it's where I am happiest

We all seem to be bringing very different ideas about what constitutes "ultra compact," where the line is drawn on "three season," and how to define "without bankrupting me." For example, in my book a three season bag is usable well below freezing, and might be rated by the manufacturer at 10F/-10C. I'd expect it to cost over a hundred dollars on sale, probably over two hundred if it was down, certainly as much as four hundred if it was a really good one.....and upwards from that figure for a true winter bag.

On the other thread there's a corresponding difference of opinion about what constitutes "easy care." From my perspective, "easy" means I can throw it in the washer at will, dry it in whatever manner suits me, don't need to worry about using a liner or special soaps, and can ignore cuts and burn holes in the cover because the filling won't leak out. That means synthetic, not down.

Probably, if the goal was to locate a good deal on a cheap, compact, warm sleeping bag, the OP would have been better served by stating a price point, a degree range, a filling material and a stuffed size. As a means of stirring up discussion while I wait for it to stop raining here in Antigua Guatemala, vague terminology ("ultra compact") seems to serve admirably well.

Someday soon: a return to blue skies and wonderfully twisty mountain roads down the spine of the continent.

enjoy,

Mark

Second that. In my opinion, a good three season bag needs to go down to between -5 and -10°C. The $400 pricetag is very accurate, too. We've just spent 350€ each for two Yeti VIB 600 sleeping bags - 1000g, very compact, 95% down and goes down to -10°C. We spent three VERY cold nights camping in late October and the VIB 600 has passed the ultimate sleeping bag test: it has managed to keep my wife's feet warm at night

What I'm trying to say is this: you might get lucky and find something sorta decent for $150, but if you want something really good be prepared to spend upwards of 400 bucks. In my experience more often than not when it comes to outdoor equipment every dollar saved is a dollar you'll eventually regret.

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"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece, but to skid across the line broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out, leaking oil, shouting GERONIMO!"

Well, I had a budget of about £100.. Looks like im going down the second hand route.

I bought a second hand Mountain Equipment bag which although advertised as -5, in most places it had no down at all.

Through advice of people here, I washed it with "Techwash" and tumble dried it with tennis balls and low and behold its about twice the bag it wasw .

Still 2 season max though but at least it wasnt a complete waste of money.

If I actually want to get on the road to capetown in 2010, I can't be spending £400 on sleeping bags ! I'll just have to suffer .



Thanks.

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

£100, Bloody hell that is more than the budget I had for two bags with silk liners!! Seriously "without breaking the bank" is very subjective. nearly everything I have bought has been from the internet because the stuff I wanted was not available in any shops I could find and if I could it was twice the price. This meant buying stuff I could not touch or feel and trusting to the gods and brand names.

My budget for bike and equipment has come in at just under 8k sterling. To some this is extortionate to others it is less than what they spend a year in Touratech! Best of luck!

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www.frothandflames.com
2012 Kawasaki W800
1997 NX 650 Dominator

just to put the cat among the birds. You should nip down to to your local army suplus store and get the all weather sleeping system. the temp range for this is + 20 to -30... Yes it has a wide range.( I can recomend this system as I have used mine since it was issued to me in 1988.)

The countries I have used it are :-
1. Norway in winter temp -45 Norcapp
2. Canada Nothern ter. Inuvik temp upto -50
3. Middle east temp from -5 upto +40
this was while in the Army and temp is centigrade not farenhight.
Since leaving the army i have taken it to :-
1.Russia Yakust and Magadan coldest it got one night was -65
2.India temp +45

As you can see I rely on a system that 20 years old. This when new cost about £300 Now you get this system from Army surplus stores for about £80 to £100.
kit inclueded

sleeping bag
Gortex outer bag and stuff sack so can be very small and light-ish.

Bring on the snow and winter biking.

RTW on a Goldwing. I AM MAD:funmetery es:

hOPE THIS HELPS YOU ALL