To Dryloft or Not?

[Mr_D]

In the market for a new winter bag. Looked at the Feathered Friends Snowbunting, and the Western Mountaineering Kodiak.

Anybody used either of these and have any comments on them? Warm at their rating of 0 degrees? I have a 0 degree synthetic mountain hardwear that I freeze in at 15.

 

What about dryloft?

 

-Mr_D

[mwienholt]

I had a FF Snowbunting for years w/ a Dryloft shell and while the quality of the construction was second to none, it was only warm the first night. The deteriorating warmth was because the Dryloft shell did not breath well enough to prevent the down from getting wet-out from inside. So, I'd whole heartedly look at FF products, but suggest that you consider something with a very breathable shell. Epic may be an option, but I'm not convinced of its breathability. However, it's not a laminate which I'd stay away from completely. Also, I know that it was the Dryloft that was a problem, b/c my partner used to rock an old, old, EMS down bag with a standard nylon shell and after three days his bag had more loft than my overfilled 800 power job. It wasn't fun. Hope this helps!

 

Cheers,

 

MWienholt

[DPS]

I have a FF with Epic. Seems to be breathable enough.

[featheredfriends]

In the market for a new winter bag. Looked at the Feathered Friends Snowbunting, and the Western Mountaineering Kodiak.

 

What about dryloft?

 

Feathered Friends stopped using DryLoft a few years ago because the number of delamination warranty returns that came back was surprisingly high. We also stopped using DryLoft because we found a more breathable laminate fabric, eVent. Since we started using eVent, I am not aware of a single delamination return, and the feedback from our customers on the breathability of the fabric has been positive. Any laminated fabric has the potential to eventually delam, so keep that in mind. Epic fabric offers excellent water resistance at a lighter weight without laminated construction. Also worth noting, the Snowbunting is about $50 cheaper and 6oz lighter than the Kodiak, but the Kodiak is a wider bag. A closer comparison would be our Ibis. Come on by or give a call if you have questions. Cheers-

 

FF