Hey all i thought I would share a project I am making in the next couple weeks. The idea started when I thought of how nice it would be to have a quilt, ground cloth and bivy all in one sub 1lb setup. What I came up with is pretty simple and will be very light. I am making a pretty basic quilt 48in shoulder girth 36foot sewn foot box. That's where the normal ends I'm making it with a outer shell of tyvek 1443 a inner of 1ounce ID nylon and 2.5 climashiel apex insulation. The foot box is 18 inches Long from there you have a pad sleeve sewn to the edges of the quilt as well as the end of the footbox. The bottom of the pad sleeve will be sil nylon and the top nano mesh. The estimated weight is 14onces for a 40ish degree quilt that's waterproof. Keep in mind I am using this for short trips with good forcasted weather I jus like the idea of having some insurance. So what do you all think? Fwiw price is around 80$ to make it. I know there will be condensation thus the synthetic insulation

I like parts of the plan. I don't like the ground cloth being attached though. That means if you set up on wet ground, you have to bring that into your pack with your quilt. I prefer a separate ground cloth to keep the moisture and dirt away. I suppose since this is for short trips with good forecasted weather, that's not really a big deal and could be rather nice when the weather is agreeable.

Hmm I didn't think about that Eugene good point. I could use nano mesh on the bottom as well and make a separate ploycryo ground sheet. What I was worried about wil a separate ground cloth was water pooling on it and flowing under the quilt and getting the inside wet. With the pad sleeve the only opening on the quilt is the top

It sounds like what you have in mind is a "topbag" rather than a quilt. One of the things people like about quilts is the versatility. You can snug it up or you can let yourself hang out the sides if it is warm. You didn't mention any way to vent. This suggests to me that the comfortable temperature range might be a bit narrow.

It's hard to beat the math. If your tarp is too small to protect against bugs and/or splash back and/or wind driven rain, then you need a weather and/or bug bivy. If you increase the size of your tarp (weight) to the point that it provides complete enclosed bug & weather protection, then you can forgo the bivy. However, either option usually ends up weighing around the same.

Ditto ground cover/bivy. Give up one, increase the other. Ditto quilt/bivy - reduce the insulation (weight) of the quilt, then you need an extra layer (bivy) to provide heat capture.

After you play with the numbers, many typically realize the key is simplicity. So, I generally take a slightly oversized solo tarp (8x8), sans bivy, along with a 4x8 piece of Tyvek.

I've set up my quilt so that I can swap out/combine 2.5 & 5.0 Apex for 50, 35 & 20 degree min temps. I use syn fil instead of down, because I'm willing to deal with more bulk/weight rather than baby my equip. And because I make my own gear, I can swap out/discard the Climashield as necessary as it loses its thermal qualities - even within 12 months - because it's cheaper than the M90 shell/liner.

Edited by Hobbesatronic on 06/06/2011 08:32:24 MDT.

Hobbes, can you post a pick of your interchangeable insulated quilt? I've been thinking about making something similar and would like to see how you did it.

I'll second Eugene's remarks. Also, venting could be especially important if you are in what is basically a waterproof/air proof top bag. you do not want to work up a sweat.

I'd also be interested in some more info about Hobbes' quilt. Pics?