On the advice of more than a few on this site, I picked up an InsulMat Max Thermo 3/4 this year. I love it. 2.5 inches of comfort for not much more than the Prolite 3 series - and cheaper to boot.

However, every time I inflate it, it think "man, this thing is unecessarily long".

So I got to thinking: you can cut down a thermarest, how about doing the same to a Max Thermo?

So has anyone tried this? Considered it. Blew it?

Reccomendations? Id' love to lop a few oz off this thing as I can totally get by with a GG NightLight pad size pad.

Thoughts?

Edited by heninger on 10/13/2006 09:23:01 MDT.

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/make_your_own_gear_shortening_a_therm_a_rest_pad.html

That article was the inpetus for the question.

However, sealing a maxthermo is a very different beast - it has several chambers running the length of the pad instead of one big one like the thermarests.

Hence the query to see if anyone has done this with a big agnes/Max Thermo type pad.

I don't have a maxthermo, but the pad lopping article did inspire me to cut down my X-lite Compact. It was a piece of cake. The material that Pacific Outdoor uses is great for heat sealing. Once the pad is fully deflated, flatten it out and get rid of all the wrinkles, then set your iron to med-high and use a straight edge like the article suggests. I ended up with a pad 8 oz. less than the original.

As for the insulation in the maxthermo, you're on your own. I've got no experience there, but I imagine it wouldn't be TOO tough to clean it out for your new seam.

Good luck!

Eric

Has anyone tried cutting down the Max Thermo yet? I have a regular length one that I got for cheap, but I don't want to butcher it unnecessarily...