Old Guy Question

When I grew up in scouts in the late 80's/early 90's, my dad had some 15 degree army down bags that we used that he had picked up surplus in the late 60s. Not that lofty, cotton shells, often cold. They had water resistant cotton covers we could add to them to raise their rating and (frankly) to save them from destruction. We loved them.

For all of you who know what I'm talking about, how do you think one of these: Western Mountaineering Mightylite compares?

Hi, Steadman:

Your link says Mitylite, but it leads to the Megalite. Which bag are you interested in? I have (and love) both, but I don't want to give you information you don't need.

Glenn

If you are bping far, go for a down bag, bring a pad/mattress. If camping, bring the old bag, they are so comfy. I have my first sb from when I was a kid. A Sears bag going back to the early '60's. I have to laugh a little when you only mention the '90's. I started using it again a couple years ago, after it had been stored in my closet for years.
Duane

Heh, I'd almost think you were messin' with us. Dad certainly would.

Army/DOD "down" sleeping bags were mostly feathers, not down. The comparison with a WM bag would be like a shotcrete canoe compared to a carbon fiber racing yacht. Operated correctly, they will both float.

Cheers,

Glenn
Sorry, I meant the MegaLite. There's one for sale on the pop ups in the upper right corner, and I was thinking about it for the AT in the winter.

Also not sure what the quality difference is between Western Mountaineering and MontBell.

Sorry, the baseline I end up useing for winter sleeping bags is those old Army Down bags I used to spend so much time in. We only threw them out in the 00's because the cotton had degraded too far after 40 years of use - they were falling apart, and no longer useful. I grasp now (after buying a cheap REI bag a couple years ago) that those Army bags were the equivalent of a East German car which was worth less than the steel used to make it.

I think you need to define "winter," and also decide whether you want it work in "winter" unsupported by additional clothing, etc.

The 30-degree rating is accurate; I've slept in it, with the hood snugged down, at 25 degrees with only a pair of lightweight long johns, and been plenty warm. Use heavy weight longjohns and maybe a down vest, I'm thinking I could go 20. (If I were going to try that regularly, I'd have an insulated jacket and pants - like the WM Flash hooded jacket and pants - in reserve. The Megalite is roomy enough that a "normal" build will have enough room to wear them inside the bag to bolster its rating.)

If you're looking for a winter bag for temperatures lower than 20 or 25. look at the Alpinlite instead. It's rated to 20, but I have spent a zero-degree night in it, with midweight longjohns and the Flash jacket, pants, and booties. I slept very toasty in that combination; I don't plan on it as a regular practice - it was one of those nights when the forecast was for twenty.

The other key, as you already know, is the pad you use. I spent a very chilly night in my Megalite on a Big Agnes Insulated Air Core pad; the temperature never got below 35, but the pad wasn't up to the challenge (the rating on the pad was far too optimistic.) Siince then, I've slept in the Megalite on a NeoAir All-Season and a Big Agnes Q-Core (different nights, not stacked up) on 20 degree nights, and been toasty both times.