Hello all. I am becoming interested in making/modifying my own gear and would like to try experimenting with different kinds of fill in a sleeping bag. I have looked at some DIY write-ups on how to sew bags but I am not very good with the thread and needle so it might be a problem when it comes to baffles and such. So I thought: why not just get a proper sleeping bag and replace the filling?


So what I am looking for is really a cheap bag, since I will start out by violating it with scissors and needles. I would like it to be a winter bag with plenty of volume so as to accomodate whatever I fill it with.


Any tips? Nice forum by the way, you will probably see more of me.

Cheap Coleman 0*-30* bag from Walmart will probably be your best bet. Not only are they cheap (sub-$100) but the baffles will be large to accommodate that cheap incompressible fill, and the shell materials are sturdy enough to take a beating from constant modifying.

Welcome to the forum!

welcome to the forums
i, too, am thinking of doing the same thing. i dont have a sewing machine and wont by the time i start hiking, plus i'd like to get the feel of working with down before i start making my quilts from scratch.
i am looking at the REI Siesta, its on clearance for less than 50 bucks on rei outlet right now.
a wally world or similar bag would be great too.
i'll post pics soon.

Thanks for your replies. I live in Sweden so walmart is difficult to get to.... =) But I will see if they are available here. Gonna look at the REI bag also.

On topic: When it comes to sewing your own sleeping bag I have found one or two turorials but you can pnly get so much from a block of text. Can you recommend any videos that can be helpful? Didn't find much on youtube but I may be missing something.

The synthetic insulation used in sleeping bags is typically manufactued in wide sheets. A bag may have one sheet per side of the bag and quilted in. If you are planning to make a small cut and remove the insulation through that cut it probably won't work for synthetic bags. You probably would have to remove all the stitches seperate the insulation from the fabric. In short a complete disassembly.

I think your best bet is an old down sleaping bag that has lost loft or has been damaged in some way. Then you could make one short cut in each baffle and pull all the down out. You could then replace it with new down or some sort of loose synthetic fill.

That is good advice Steven, I hadn't thought about that. I am simply gonna check out flea markets and second-hand shops and look for big down bags that have seen their best days.