How many users keep the pad straps and how many remove them? Pros and cons to both...Thanks!

I had mine made with custom removable straps. It's only a $5 upgrade.

I would say leave them on. The straps feel very light, so i don't think you will save significantly by taking them off. I have an Arc, and i haven't used it much yet, but I find that attaching the straps tightly under my pad makes it form more of a dome shape, which I think is warmer than it sprawled flat in the tent. There are also a billion uses for the straps while you are on the trail.

JT +1

I am no expert but have had four of these quilts in as many years. I find that if I am in cold conditions, I do the snap closure around my neck and draw cord to preference and use the middle strap to retain the tightness/tuck of the quilt to keep drafts at bay. Never used the bottom strap...not ever, rarely used the third top strap (on my Arc Specialist). They really hardly weigh anything though-- I just find them mildly annoying as they dangle and get in my way more than anything else. Good luck---love that "removable option" did not think to ask about that.

couch

Pad straps? They're not necessarily meant to work with the pad. One of the key aspects about these quilts is the adjustable girth and the straps help with that. I use them all the time but never under the pad. You can do without them but they help keep everything in place and at the desired girth all through the night for a very minimal weight.

It's probably smarter to keep them on for resale value alone, but I have been using a quilt for about 3 years and never use the straps. I find them annoying and they get in the way. My Epiphany quilt has a snap around the neck that is useful to keep it snug at the top, but other then that I have no use for them....I just tuck it under me a bit. That's just my style of sleeping though.

I got my Specialist on Gear Swap, and it came with standard straps.

I don't use them above 40 degrees, as the width is plenty for me and at those temps, an occasional draft isn't bothersome.

I have taken it out in the winter, temps in the teens, gusting winds, and found the straps to be essential in keeping warmth from escaping when I roll over a few times at night. (I have and use a bivy when necessary, but prefer to got w/o if I can to avoid condensation issues and mainatain the primary selling point of a quilt - freedom of movement.


They do get in the way in the summer, I could use them loosely clipped, but setting them up under my pad isn't worth the trouble to me. But I wouldn't cut them off for resale purposes, as Steve mentions. I just need to buy some ul buckes and make them removeable like Justin's.