There are many variables and ways to look at your sleep system. These can impact price dramatically.
What sort of priorities do you need out of your sleep system? Ergo do you sleep in a cabin/camper on a mattress or a cot? or are you on the ground using a sleeping pad? What temperature extremes are you normally in? How warm or cold do you sleep? My wife and I can sleep in the exact same conditions wearing similar clothing and she routinely requires a 15-20+ degree warmer bag than i do.
Once you have an idea of why you need the bag and under what conditions you will be using it the other details start to fall into place.
What are you sleeping on is almost a important to keep you warm as the bag. You want insulation to keep you from conduction or convection heat loss. In cooler weather make sure your bag fits the pad and doesn't slide off. Some brands make pads that are designed to fit into certain bags. They now have pads designed for side sleepers which they didn't have a decade or more ago.
Down vs synthetic. Down is lighter and packs smaller as a general rule. Most downs lose almost all their warmth if they get wet however. The higher the number of the down (850 compared to 600) the higher the compression and the hive the price of the down. There are some synthetics that are getting closer to down in ability but not completely there yet. Synthetics do not as a rule compress as small as a similar down bag.
Mummy vs straight. Mummy will ALWAYS be warmer but some people cannot do the snugger fit.
Weight and size. The heavier the bag the more you or something has to carry out from point A to where you're sleeping. Not a big deal for us at Paint Creek in the spring but for my buddy hiking the AT its a real choice. How small does it pack down to? This may or may not matter to your use. Storage! All sleeping bags should be stored UNCOMPRESSED to avoid loss of loft which is the insulating property of down or synthetics.
Temperature rating. This is based upon how how you sleep and what conditions you'll use it in. What you sleep in also has some consideration. Most bags are rated at a "survival" temperature meaning you can survive in it at that temperature but no claims to actually being comfortable or sleeping. Some companies offer "comfort" temperature rating so check to see which it is.
So these variables all play into the price. A 15° down bag that can compress smaller than a Nalgene bottle will be exponentially more expensive than a 55° synthetic bag for car camping that's the size of a propane tank. What is important to you?
I have different bags for different purposes. I also use sleeping bag liners or a wooby to extend temperature ratings if needed. But the bag you'd see me use in the late fall at Strouds is not the one I'd use at the summer shoot (the
) even if i was using all the same other gear.
What sort of priorities do you need out of your sleep system? Ergo do you sleep in a cabin/camper on a mattress or a cot? or are you on the ground using a sleeping pad? What temperature extremes are you normally in? How warm or cold do you sleep? My wife and I can sleep in the exact same conditions wearing similar clothing and she routinely requires a 15-20+ degree warmer bag than i do.
Once you have an idea of why you need the bag and under what conditions you will be using it the other details start to fall into place.
What are you sleeping on is almost a important to keep you warm as the bag. You want insulation to keep you from conduction or convection heat loss. In cooler weather make sure your bag fits the pad and doesn't slide off. Some brands make pads that are designed to fit into certain bags. They now have pads designed for side sleepers which they didn't have a decade or more ago.
Down vs synthetic. Down is lighter and packs smaller as a general rule. Most downs lose almost all their warmth if they get wet however. The higher the number of the down (850 compared to 600) the higher the compression and the hive the price of the down. There are some synthetics that are getting closer to down in ability but not completely there yet. Synthetics do not as a rule compress as small as a similar down bag.
Mummy vs straight. Mummy will ALWAYS be warmer but some people cannot do the snugger fit.
Weight and size. The heavier the bag the more you or something has to carry out from point A to where you're sleeping. Not a big deal for us at Paint Creek in the spring but for my buddy hiking the AT its a real choice. How small does it pack down to? This may or may not matter to your use. Storage! All sleeping bags should be stored UNCOMPRESSED to avoid loss of loft which is the insulating property of down or synthetics.
Temperature rating. This is based upon how how you sleep and what conditions you'll use it in. What you sleep in also has some consideration. Most bags are rated at a "survival" temperature meaning you can survive in it at that temperature but no claims to actually being comfortable or sleeping. Some companies offer "comfort" temperature rating so check to see which it is.
So these variables all play into the price. A 15° down bag that can compress smaller than a Nalgene bottle will be exponentially more expensive than a 55° synthetic bag for car camping that's the size of a propane tank. What is important to you?
I have different bags for different purposes. I also use sleeping bag liners or a wooby to extend temperature ratings if needed. But the bag you'd see me use in the late fall at Strouds is not the one I'd use at the summer shoot (the
) even if i was using all the same other gear.
