I wouldn't normally write any sort of gear review after just one nights use but as many people have been asking about the As Tucas quilt I thought I would write a brief 'early opinion' following the first look post a few weeks ago. I camped up on Scafell summit last Thursday night under a tarp and with the quilt in a very roomy MLD superlight bivvy. The temperature was about 6 degrees C and it rained. The trip is described here.
So was I warm enough? Yes, absolutely. I wore some very thin base layer leggings, a 100 weight fleece top and a beanie hat. If anything I was a bit too warm and could have left the fleece off. I didn't need to wrap the quilt around me like a cocoon. My feet were toasty. Was it draughty? I was in a bivvy bag so I didn't feel any draughts. Without a bivvy may have been a different story. I would have tucked the edges under me in that case. Was it roomy? Yes indeed. This was the single biggest difference between the quilt and a mummy bag. I could stretch out a knee or an elbow and turn over with ease. I am a side sleeper and tend to turn over lots. This is not an easy manoeuvre in a mummy bag as the bag turns with me so the hood ends up on top and I end up lying on the zip. In the quilt though I was laid directly on the mat and so could turn over without taking the quilt with me. This made for a notably more comfortable night for me. I did experiment with the 2 press stud fasteners. With both fastened it felt just like a mummy bag but with a bit more room. With just the lower one fastened the quilt was snug around hips but allowed plenty of torso room. My preference was to have both unfastened though. The large MLD bivvy didn't impede movement at all. Any other thoughts?
Well I can confirm that the Shoeller fabric is at least water resistant as rain splash crept in around the neck of the quilt. Also, at some point I fell asleep with my head under the bivvy which resulted in much condensation which also wet the outer quilt fabric. The down stayed dry though and continued to loft well.
So far so good then. I want to use it under the trailstar or a tent next, without a bivvy. I can then see how it copes with draughts.
I have new Gear !! First look at the As Tucas Down Quilt The inherent design flaw with down sleeping bags is that all the insulation underneath you is compressed by your body weight to a degree
where it loses all thermal efficiency. This squashed down is essentially dead weight. The idea behind a quilt is to
eliminate this dead weight and instead use the insulating properties of the mat to protect you from the cold ground.
As Tucas Down Quilt bottom ....
... and top
This idea
was popularised by legendary America backpacker Ray Jardine and has
since become become very popular, particularly within the lightweight
backpacking community in the States.
This short video from 'standing bear' explains the concept a little better than I can.
Personally I've never really got on with mummy sleeping bags. Not so much for the reasons above but more because I'm a fidgety sleeper. I tend to roll over a lot, throw arms and legs out all over the place and generally not stay in one position for long. As such, I'm forever twisting and turning; trying to move the zip, that was in the perfect position 10 minutes ago, out from underneath me. Or I'm straining the fabric trying to stretch out a knee or an elbow. I'm very envious of those lucky folk who can sleep on their backs without moving from dusk til dawn.
Quilts are therefore an attractive proposition to me, and after doing a bit a reading around the subject, I bit the bullet and ordered a custom down quilt from Marco at As Tucas. It arrived a few days ago and I thought it would be worth posting a few pics, a few stats and a few thoughts.
As Tucas offer an increasing number of ultralight outdoor products but they also offer a custom made service. I therefore emailed Marco with my quilt requirements; namely that I like a bit of wriggle room, that I'm 5' 10" and I would like it keep me warm down to about freezing point. He suggested a custom made sestrels quilt with 350g down in size medium length and regular width. The sestrels quilt in its usual form is synthetic and the details can be found here. I understand that Marco will be selling the 'Foratata' down quilt from July 15th, which is almost identical to this one. On initial inspection the quality of workmanship is superb. There really isn't a stitch out of place. The quilt is simplicity itself with a roomy enclosed foot box and a open back which can be closed up by fastening 2 press studs.
This particular quilt uses 350g of pure white 900 cuin down sourced from Poland. It has an estimated comfort rating of 0 degrees C. The fabric is Schoeller 12 denier which is 28g/m2. It is windproof and breathable. It has an 'ecorepel' coating which provides resistance against water and dirt. Full details can be found here. Marco tells me that the internal baffles are made from cuben fibre and their height is 25mm.They are sized so that the down is slightly compressed within the chambers. This allows for better control of down movement without a loss of thermal efficiency.
The down lofts really well
On my scales the quilt weighs 519 grams. It packs down to 30cm x 15cm x 15cm .
This 10 litre dry bag weighs 43 grams.
As Tucas design their quilts to be a bit wider and longer than the typical equivalent from American makers. This is so the quilt can be pulled up over your neck and head when the temperature drops without necessarily having to use a hat or balaclava. Also, it is not adorned with complex fastenings to secure it to a mat. You simply use it like you would a normal quilt at home and tuck it under your sides as needed in order to keep out the droughts. It certainly seems very comfy on my lounge floor with plenty of room to cover my head.
Plenty of room
There is also the option of putting the mat inside the quilt. This is not something I can imagine doing but a few people have asked if it is possible and the answer is 'yes'. With the thermarest and me inside its a bit of squeeze with the poppers fastened and is essentially a wide mummy bag in this configuration. There is adequate room with the poppers unfastened though, and the quilt just tucked under mat. However, I don't like this idea and I will be using it on top of the mat and tucking the quilt underneath me as it is designed to do.
With full length Thermarest inside
Room for a thermarest prolite plus regular if you want to tuck the quilt in underneath the mat.
The one thing I'm not sure of is what to wear whilst in it? In a sleeping bag I usually use a liner bag to protect the down from my general sweat and grime but of course that would kind of defeat the object of using a quilt. I think perhaps a very lightweight base layer top and bottoms will do the job. Perhaps something like these from Rohan. Any other suggestions welcome :-) I intend to use the quilt for 3 season use in the Cumbrian mountains, the first trip being described here - 'first night in the as tucas down quilt'. I will post an update as to its performance in the field later in the year.
I should also make it clear that I have no affiliation with As Tucas or Marco personally and I paid for this quilt with my own hard earned dosh.
