So I have designed a double quilt and am ready to order the materials for it, but I need insulation that is wider than the 60 inches that thru hiker has or a design solution that would allow me to "connect" 2 pieces of climashield together. Anyone have any experience doing this, or does anyone have any ideas on how I could make it work without getting a cold line along the seam inside the quilt?

OWF has Climashield Green in 102" wide

the 3oz green in 102 will work but will most likely not be warm enough unless you use 2 layers. If you wanted to make 5oz XP or similar work you can baste the 2 pieces together. I suggest turning the material on its side to get the width and have the basting line 60" from the top of the quilt. Make the insulation a little longer and wider than the shell and then there will be no stress on it causing the basted line to separate making you cold.

Basting is just a way to stitch 2 fluffy layers together. You hand stitch with long stitch length and pull it snug, but not enough to compress the loft. I learned this from a Ray-Way hat i made years ago, worked great.

I would also not be worried about sewing the insulation together with a standard butt seam and having the seam on the shell side so it wasn't against the sleeper. The seam sticking up will help guard against cold penetration at the sewn area.

-Tim

The RayWay method works great, I've used it on two quilts now. It's even better if you use a double-layer of insulation. Then you can offset the top and bottom basted seams for more stability.

Also, Jardine recommends quilting, especially on large quilts. I do it on all my quilts, no matter what the size, as he claims is stabilizes the insulation better, especially when stuffing in a stuff sack. Some find the quilting unsightly, but it doesn't bother me.

Quilting is probably is more important if you baste two insulation layers together, as the basted seam is not particularly strong.

I read somewhere that one should cut the pieces of insulation to be joined in a wavy line so that there would not be a straight break in the insulation, or something.
I've never done this, but it sorta sounds good.

Thanks all for the thoughts. Indeed I was hoping to make it out of 5 oz XP and dealing w/ a single layer of insulation to 2 layers would be preferable for me. This basting technique sounds like the way to go. I had thought about it, but was hoping to see if anyone had any experience with it. IF others have used it w/out complaint, then I'll order the fabric and begin work this week!

On a slightly different note, I'd love to see final photos of double quilts that people have finished. I haven't settled on my final design yet, so any insight in this area would also be appreciated!

I have just about finished my double quilt. I thought i was finished only to take it out on a hike and find cold drafts coming in from the middle section when me and my girlfriend were sleeping on each side. I have yet to come up with a solution to this problem but it is something to take in account. Im thinking on mine it might be because it is to short so im going to try and sew a 1/4 yard "draft stopper" that can be tucked around our shoulders.

is this from the insulation basted area or from the gap that can form between 2 sleepers in a quilt like the this? If the head area isn't sealing closed the draft could be from there, however if the insulation isn't basted tight (but not too tight to compress loft) it may be coming from there. Nunatak addresses the gap at the top with what they call a draft tonsil. Think a blog of quilt that falls between you to close the top of the quilt.

-Tim