Slumberjack Sleeping Bags

Has anyone used slumberjack sleeping bags before? How are they? I'm looking to buy some reasonably priced cold weather sleeping bags for our Outing Club, and their prices seem to be pretty good. I've never used them myself, but the Wilderness Therapy Program I worked for this summer used them and we had no problems. All the reviews I've seen online are pretty good as well. Has anyone here had any experience with the brand?

Specifically, here are the bags I'm looking at:

Slumberjack Glacier 0°F Polarguard® Delta Mummy Sleeping Bag - Regular
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=38496104

Slumberjack Ultrapacker Magnum -20° Thermolite® Quallo Mummy Sleeping Bag
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=39174995

Slumberjack Glacier -20°F Polarguard® Delta Mummy Sleeping Bag - Regular
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=38496108

Thanks.

I've owned 4 Slumberjacks that I got via Prodeals when I first started working at a sporting goods store. I still have 3, which are all down summer bags. The other was a 20d Thinsulate Lite loft bag that I returned after 2 years in the early 90's after the bag stopped keeping me warm below 40d.
SJ's are more entry level rated backpacker (IMMHO) but do offer what I feel are nice features for the money. They are much better than the standard car camping crap you see at Modells and Dicks.
However, you are looking at synth fills which will likely lose loft over time and degrade the bags temp rating.

I looked at the -20d bag and would be a little leery of the Polarguard bags weighing less than 4 lbs where as the Thermolite is close to 8lbs. (I wonder if the Polarguard bag weights are off?).

The SJ's are not as well constructed as my EMS, MH and Marmot down bags.
Over the years, the SJ shells have started leaking down and the stitching has come undone on all 3 bags and my wife has had to sew them all at one time or another since '91. For the measly prices I paid (prodeals around $40 each - and approximately $90 - $110 retail) I have to say they have served me well.

Entry level is what I'm looking for. I'm going on the assumption that any college student who is beyond an entry level winter backpacker will have their own cold weather gear. What I'm looking for is a sleeping bag that would be good for people with little or no winter experience to use on an introductory winter camping trip. These bags wouldn't be used for advanced trips.

DSettahr said:

Entry level is what I'm looking for. I'm going on the assumption that any college student who is beyond an entry level winter backpacker will have their own cold weather gear. What I'm looking for is a sleeping bag that would be good for people with little or no winter experience to use on an introductory winter camping trip. These bags wouldn't be used for advanced trips.

Click to expand...

Don't forget longevity:

At our outing club, the rental sleeping bags got fairly heavy use--and rental users tend to be hard on gear. Rick's comments suggest that the Slumberjack bags may not last very long.


And I predict that students will take the bags on advanced trips... Not all experienced (particularly student) users own all their own gear.

Doug

Let me toss this out there, even though it's not the info you asked for.
For about the same price you could buy these down bags. I own their "0" rated bag, which I would give a real use rating of 25 degrees. These -15 rated bags have 2lbs 8ozs of 550 fill. Based on experience, I'd give these a real use rating of 10 degrees. I'm going to order a couple more of these for my boys to use. I think they'd be great for a club.

Hmm... I guess maybe I'll look into getting a 0 degree bag instead, see if I can't find anything for the same price but better quality than a minus 20. Any suggestions?

Is your outing club a NFP? If so, some manufacturers will offer a discount to groups. You could check several places - Go to the Manufacturers websites (Kelty and Slumberjack come to mind).

Check this place out as well Alps Mountaineering
They make a lot of entry level gear and I tested a couple of their tents a few years ago. They have some fairly inexpensive bags and they use heavy hardwear designed for abuse that kids can give.

For an outing club, wouldn't you want a bag that could be easily laundered multiple times without damage?

Dave Lang said:

For an outing club, wouldn't you want a bag that could be easily laundered multiple times without damage?

Click to expand...

Good point. Maybe buy some bag liners also.

Dave Lang said:

For an outing club, wouldn't you want a bag that could be easily laundered multiple times without damage?

Click to expand...

Chip said:

Good point. Maybe buy some bag liners also.

Click to expand...

Rental gear lives a hard life. The renters frequently take poor care of the gear and knowingly abuse it. For instance I have heard people say "Its only rental gear" before crossing rocks with crampons or snowshoes. (Meanwhile, those who own their own gear are taking it off before crossing the rocks...)

Ease of maintaining/cleaning is desirable, but I suspect that liners are unlikly to be used unless the user is cold.

BTW, we used to have our rental down bags dry cleaned at a down-knowledgable dry cleaner. (WARNING--do not just take down
to any dry cleaner (some who say they know how to clean down, don't)--the standard solvents that they use will destroy the
down. Certain solvents are ok (see below) and then the bags need to be aired carefully after use. Hand washing in water with down soap is safer, but rather laborious.

EMS 72/73 Catalog said:

Dry Cleaning Like all animal-protein substances, Down can be damaged by strong dry cleaning solvents which tend to remove the natural oils. Our experience has shown that Stoddard Fluid, a relatively mild petroleum dry cleaning agent, will not have a damaging effect on the loft and resiliency of Down products. More important is choosing a dry cleaner who is knowedgable regarding Down. Ask him if he knows the different fluids and the possible effects on the Down and nylon. If he replies that is make no difference, or that synthetic fluids such as Per-Chlorethylene (known as "perk") are adequate, find a different dry cleaner.

Click to expand...

There are now a variety of coatings on sleeping bag fabrics that didn't exist when this was written. I have no idea what effect Stoddard fluid might have on them.

The following search brings up a bunch of recommendations on how to clean down bags: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=wash+down+"sleeping+bag"&btnG=Google+Search.
(Most seem to recommend washing in water.)

It might also be worth asking at an outdoor store which rents sleeping bags how they clean them and recommendations on specific cleaners.

Doug

First post folks...

I have a Slumberjack Glacier -20F Polarguard Delta bag. I used it at approx 5F and on another occasion at -7F. I'd say it's certainly NOT a -20F bag. It performed very well at 5F but at -7F I found myself waking up all night long because due to chills. For comparison, my hiking companion was in a 15F bag within an emergency bivy bag (the thicker foil type that can fit a sleeping bag and be reused) and he was much warmer than I. Of course, there are other factors when it comes to warmth, but surely one would expect a -20F bag to out perform a 15F bag...

I guess I got what I paid for...

Bags

What are you using it for. If for backpacking it may well be too heavy/ bulky. For a cabin it may well be ok.