I am currently using a Therm-a-Rest Z-Lite that has been trimmed down to 46” by 20” at the shoulder tapering to 12” at the knee and weighs 7.4oz. This pad is long enough to give me ground coverage about an inch above my shoulders to just under an inch past my knees. I normally sleep in the fetal position which makes the pad feel longer and makes it less likely that I will wake up too high or too low on the pad. I use my pack too pad my lower legs and feet.

Now most of the ultra light pads I have found are too short. The minimum length I can use is 35”. That length would provide padding for my shoulders to just past my hips. I have an incredibly long torso and very short legs. I am a very boney individual but don’t require an inflatable mattress. I do enjoy the comfort of an egg crate style pad but would be willing to try other shapes.

Do you have any options/ideas that would save me weight without having either my shoulders or hips on the ground? Also, as if this wasn’t hard enough, I do prefer a pad that can be folded instead of rolled. It fits my pack set-up better, but that can change also.

As usual, thank you for your help.

you might try a gossamer gear nightlight pad trimmed down to the same dimensions. although i don't know if it would be lighter or not. if you want to go lighter than that you might want to go to a gg thinlight, however they are thin and wont provide neatly as much comfort. IMO 7.4oz isn't too bad if you can get a good nights sleep.

and you're probably better off just piling up some pine needles to sleep on.

I have a suggestion. It is not very durable, so it probably will not stand up to a long trip.

Bubble-wrap, also known as bubble-pack.

I have a whole roll of it. You probably do not want the big bubbles, and the small bubbles are better (take 2 layers of it).

One guy gilded the lily by making a large nylon case for the bubble-wrap, in order to make it more durable, but that added a good deal of weight back into the solution.

--B.G.--

+1 on the gossamer gear nightlight. Get a full sized one, cut out four 10" segments and join them with pieces of velcro tape. That will give you a 40" pad that is more comfortable than your z-lite, and probably a tad lighter.

FWIW, a full length nightlight pad is around 12 oz. This would be around 6 oz plus the minimal weight of the velcro without doing your tapering cut.

So I took a look at the GG NightLight full length pad. I have figured out that if I was to trim one down to the same dimensions as my current pad it would weigh 4.51oz. This pad would be 46" long, 19" at the shoulder and waist. It would taper from 19” to 12" for the last 26". The only difference would be that this pad would be an inch narrower over all than my current pad.

The question I have is. Would I be able to cut 1/2" "scoring" lines a crossed the pad (like the torso pad has) so I could fold it? I’ve never seen one of these pads in person and don't know if they are soft, brittle or how well they will stand up to being altered. Will these scoring lines be necessary or can I just fold the pad without them? How does this pad compare in comfort to a Z-Lite? What are your thoughts?

Edited by notu on 04/11/2010 09:55:45 MDT.

it can be scored, gossamer gear sells the short ones scored to fit in their pack pockets, shouldn't be to hard. they are pretty soft and flexible. i don't own one nor have i slept on one, so i can't say as to the comfort compared to a zlite, but i have laid on one and it seemed pretty comparible in terms of comfort. but laying on one for 10 seconds is alot different than sleeping on one.

Justin, I use a 3/8" thin light pad that I trimmed to 38" long. We must desire similar length as I would not want it any shorter. I have tapered it to 17" wide at the lower portion. It weighs 3.45 oz. This pad has been amazing efficient when it comes to keeping me warm. The only time I felt chilled using it was a 15 degree night.

Since then I have started using longer but taper GG Nightlight for cold temps. This pad is a nice step up. I don't mind harder surfaces to sleep on so this thing is a real treat and does much better in colder temps. Not sure the length (guessing 54") but it too is tapered and weighs 6.05 oz. The only negative for me with this pad is that it is fairly bulky when coined and dropped into my pack, requiring me to use a larger pack.

Jamie

Do you fold or roll your Nightlight pad? If you fold the pad do you think cutting lines in it is necessary?

Any more comparisons on the GG nightlite vs the latest version of the zlite on comfort, it is fairly close on weight

GG 19" x 76" 340g - 352g

Z lite 20" x 72" 410g


Anyone use these in a TRest compack chair?

Edited by IPARider on 04/11/2010 15:45:41 MDT.

Justin, I roll my nightlight into a tube and drop it in. The I pack my gear inside the middle of the rolled up pad. Because of the egg shelf design it is rather thick so it takes up a fair amount of volume. I don't think it would fold well unless it is scored (partial cut).

Jamie

I looked my math over and it looks like I got my numbers mixed up.

So it looks like if I was to trim a Nightlite down to the same square inches as the pad I use now it would weigh 6.5oz. That would be a savings of 0.9oz. Which is nice but apparently the GG pad is pretty bulky. The bag I use is pretty small, I don't think it would fit. I don't want to get a new/larger pack so I think I'm going to stick with the pad I've got.

Thank you everybody for your input.

He has some nice foam pads that work really well as pack frames and have good insulation, light too.

http://www.suluk46.com/products%20%20-%20P4%20PF%20Sheet.html

@ Jamie,

I cut my full length GG Nightlightdown to about my knees and it easily folds into 1/3's for use as a frame sheet in my ULA Ohm. Rolling it up took up way too much volume inside my pack, but that's with my gear so I'm sure it varies.

I think the GG Nightlight folds quite fine without needing to score the pad, there is a certain amount of memory to the foam. Personally, I definitely wouldn't recommend scoring the pad at home, I tried very lightly and precisely scoring a small section of my full length Nightlight with a very sharp razor and found that after folding over and over on the scored line that the incision grew and eventually ripped through in about 30 seconds. I wasn't confident at all a home scored job on a Nightlight pad would hold up very long in the field.

Suluk46 offers a great variety of pads that can be cut down to specific sizes. I purchased a pad from him and was very pleased with the pad and his service:

Suluk 46

Also, don't forget Nunatak! They're selling their version of the Mt. Washington style pad called the "Lunapad". They currently have full length 2nds w/ cosmetic blemishes on sale for only $25. They're made of Evazote, basically the same material as the GG pads, but in-stock and cheaper:

Nunatak Lunapad (scroll down to Sleeping Bags section for clearance)

Edited by Eugeneius on 04/21/2010 20:22:10 MDT.

The Suluk46 pad is the best I've seen so far. I just placed an order for the 1/2" x 19" x 44"

Thanx guys