In my on-going quest to make everything myself, I decided to make a sleeping mat. This is suppose to be similar to a downmat 9 or a warmlite DAM, or even a BA Q-core (although a q-core has synthetic insulation). Now, I haven't finished it yet. I still need to add the insulation (wanted to try it out before throwing down a lot of money on down). I made it a little long so that I can cut it open and add the insulation latter. Here are some pictures of it. When I finish with the insulation, I will put together a video, but for now.......

This is during the construction. I was cutting out the baffles and taping them, prior to heat sealing.


Here it is all sealed up.


And here is the valve I used. It is a kitevalve I bought online.


The dimensions are about 25" wide when blown up, about 75" long (it will be around 72" when I finish it), and 4 inches thick. I am guessing, based on the Exped 9 LW that I will need to add betwen 10 and 11 oz of down. I still need to sleep on it to test it for leaks.

As for how did I heat seal it,.......well.....I cheated. I "borrowed" an impulse heat sealer from work. It is a real nice one that heats both sides.
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