I'm on the lookout for a way to reduce the weight in my hubby's pack as well as my own, and after weighing most of our gear, I discovered that his sleeping bag weighs 4lbs! He is currently using an REI Syn Cat 20*F bag, which is more of a barrel shape that gives him more room. When I asked him what he liked/disliked, he said he'd never been too cold in it but often gets too hot. He also said he liked how the bag has a lot of room, but would like more. I was thinking maybe a quilt would be a good idea for him, as he tosses and turns a lot when he sleeps. He's a big guy (6' tall, 250lbs), and is using a Big Agnes Insulated Air Core as his sleeping pad.

Does anyone have any suggestions for a wide bag or a quilt that would suit him? I was looking at some of the Go Lite stuff and the Vario bag caught my eye because it looks pretty wide. I would appreciate it if some of the larger members of the forum could chime in on this :)

Shameless self promotion inbound...

Enlightened equipment makes quits in all sizes one will certainly work for your guy. I am 6'2" 325# I use a 6' reg (or slim if summer) in my hammock and a wide on the ground. If he needs more room I can do bigger. Contact me for the XWIDE (60"top 46"foot half taper)

I am the guy at enlightened but other companies with wide quilts are; JRB, Katabatic, UGQ, Wilderness logics and Ivan sure hammock gear or Tewa could do a wide too. A lot of great people out there to work with.

-Tim

I just got my quilt from Tim...SATISFIED....
Warm and roomy..just ask Tim to fit you up...

I don't have my quilts just yet, but I feel confident enough to say give Tim at enLIGHTened equipment a try! I have been talking with him ALOT over the last few days about some quilts, and IMO, he has went above and beyond to help me out. I have no doubt that I won't love the quilts that he is making for me!

im 6-2 and 215 and toss and turn a lot

i have had great luck with the western mountaineering alder it is a great all around bag and for big guys offers a lot of room and warmth to weight i think it checks in at 1 lb 15 oz or so

nice thing about it is you can use it as a quilt if unzipped all the way or batten down the hatches and hunker down on chilly nights

i have had mine down to 24 deg and was warm all night in it although not really inexpensive they are a great big guy bag with more options than a mummy bag would have so you might check those out

kevin

I received my new 22 degree quilt (no zipper, 20 ozs) from zpacks and I love it. I'm a big guy too at 6'2" and 240 lbs, side sleeper and I toss and turn a lot at night. I used it for two nights this last weekend in the Emigrant Wilderness and the nights got fairly cold. I got the extra long (78") and wide (62"). I had no problems staying toasty. Just my recommendation.

http://www.zpacks.com/quilts/sleepingbag.shtml

"I got the extra long (78")"

Zpacks does not seem to offer a sleeping bag or quilt this long. Nor do they offer any rated at 22 degrees F.

Please measure the length of yours to find out what it really is.

--B.G.--

I'm a quilt user of similar dimensions. Here's some info on a quilt that I use in my hammock and on the ground. https://sites.google.com/site/hobbyhintstricksideas/Home/warbonnet-3-season-black-mamba-top-quilt

The quilt was $275, 24oz and is a long & wide. I think Jacks R Better has a better selection though. Main thing to do is look for quilts at least 52" wide at the shoulders if he is a side sleeper. And pad straps in case he likes to toss and turn.

Hope this helps.

Tim's quilts sound like the perfect solution. They can be vented more than some other quilts because of the drawcord footbox, which should prevent overheating. Also, because they're so light and compact, he can go with a slightly wider quilt than necessary so that he can shift down to the sides. On cold nights he can close the footbox and shift down away from the sides and tuck that excess fabric under his body.

Zpacks does offer an extra long at 78", it's on the scroll down options when you go to order. I got a 30 degree bag with three ounces of overfill...might not be exactly 22 degrees but its close enough. Thanks for letting me know what I didn't get.

"Zpacks does offer an extra long at 78", it's on the scroll down options when you go to order."

Erik, what is the length of your quilt, measured on the inside or on the outside?

--B.G.--

Bob,

I haven't actually measured my quilt because it fits me fine. I can tell you that when I get inside with my feet pressed all the way to the bottom, I can pull the quilt over my head and tuck it in. Not that I would actually sleep that way but that's the best form of measurement I can give you.

Tim made me a 6'6" extra wide 20 degree quilt which I love, going to test it in the field for the first time next week.

Just when I thought I had it all figured out... we discovered the quilt idea isn't going to work :(

We went backpacking this weekend and I suggested to hubby that he should use his bag as a quilt to see if he would like it. Well, he liked it... but it turns out our two dogs also liked it, and he spent most of the night wrestling with them for who got the most "blankie"! Shutting the dogs out in the vestibule is not an option (one will take moonlit swimming trips, the other will raid other peoples' camp sites for snacks), so they have to stay inside with us.

So we're back to square one... and GoLite still doesn't have any of their down Vario bags in stock. If anyone has any more suggestions, I'd love to know what they are :) We're not looking for super-crazy light... just something moderately light and moderately priced, preferably down, and nice & roomy.

I still wouldn't give up on a quilt. I am a big guy and got a wide quilt from Tim at Enlightened Equipment. When you snap the top button and the bottom ones the quilt pulls in around you much like a sleeping bag. They really end up more like a sleeping bag than a blanket. Plus Tim even puts on cords the length of the bag. If you used those, I doubt any dog would think it was blanket.

If you don't want a quilt, Western Mountaineering and Feathered Friends makes lightweight sleeping bags in a wide cut:

http://www.westernmountaineering.com/index.cfm?section=products&page=sleeping%20bags&cat=ExtremeLite%20Series&ContentId=19

http://www.featheredfriends.com/Picasso/Bags/BagsLightFlight.html (Kestrel or Swift)

Those are great bags and don't weight much more (if any) than a quilt, but you will really be impressed with the price Enlightened Equipment sells there quilts at when you compare.