Diamond baffles?

Hi guys,


I wanted to get your thoughts on diamond baffles on a down jacket. What are the advantages? I'm thinking about picking up the SD Tov and it has diamond baffles - wouldn't all of that extra stitching add quite a bit of weight?


I guess I can't really think what the advantages over traditional tubes would be...


Thanks a bunch!!!

Kevin

The extra thread for diamond baffles vs horizontal is so minimal I doubt a postal scale would pick it up. Down will not shift as much with diamond baffles. Some people want to shift the down (for example shake more to the front of the coat). Others may prefer down does not move. When washing, the diamond baffles have less down per baffle, so there is less danger of breaking fragile baffle material by the wet down. On the other hand, every stitch is a point where there is no insulation, thus cold penetrates. There is a baffle system (used mainly in sleeping bags) where the the inner seam is slanted from the outer, so that there are no cold spots. This would be the reason to choose a horizontal baffle system over diamond. When looking at down jackets inspect the seams on the inside and outside and see if they are offset. If not each seam is a cold conduit.

The TOV does not appear to have baffles at all. In the photos I have seen it looks to be, like many other down outer garments, of sewn-through construction. If that is the case then the pattern used for the sewing through is pretty much irrelevant when it comes to warmth; the pattern is more of a fashion issue. The weight of the extra thread used to create the pattern would be negligible.

Baffles are strips of lightweight fabric that are sewn to the outer and inner layers to form tubes that are then filled with down. The baffles define the thickness of the insulation by separating the inner and outer fabric layers. With sewn through construction, the outer and inner fabric are sewn together at intervals; there is no significant insulation where the layers are sewn together.

The "diamond baffles" to which you refer are a cosmetic feature and have nothing to do with function.

+1 to this.

The vast majority of down jackets between 50 - 200 bucks are sewn through, and not winter weight (unless your winter temps never drop much below freezing).

Lori and Pika - thanks for the correct terms. I had forgotten that "sewn through" is really what I was getting at for the diamond patterns. The term baffel is not correct. The sewn-through down jackets really are down sweaters - intermediate layers. I consider my Montbell down "jacket" at 4 oz a repacement for a 7-oz fleece layer, NOT as a jacket.

Learn something every day. I always thought that the sewn through "baffles" were just the cheap baffles, and that the internal "box" structures were the good and more expensive to manufacture ones. But if I understand correctly, sewn through is the correct term. I went to the Feathered Friends web site to check out their description for clarification.

Hi guys,


Thanks a ton for the really informative answers. I also thought that sewn-through designs were just kind a cheap way of doing baffles. Does the sewn-through method have any particular name?


Thanks for the advice. I'll have to check one out at REI and see if it would fit my needs. It doesn't get super cold where I live, but it is fairly wet!