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  1. #1
    Member Of Wolf and Man's Avatar
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    Upgrade top or bottom first?

    Wasn’t sure whether to put this in the top quilt or under quilt forum.

    I’m a noob to hammocking. I have an Enlightened Equipment Enigma 20F quilt that I’ve been using on the ground for years. I will be using as my top quilt. I just ordered an Enlightened Equipment Revolt V2 20F bottom quilt. My question is this. If I want to expand my ability to go colder now, should my next purchase be a 0F top quilt or 0F under quilt? I’m leaning towards 0F top quilt since my current top quilt has seen 5 years of use, and I can always combine an inflatable insulated pad under me with the 20F under quilt. However, I also have a 0F sleeping bag, that I can actually combine with my 20F top quilt.

    Is there any particular logic on whether to prioritize upgrading warmth on the Top or Bottom first?

    Thanks,
    John

  2. #2
    Senior Member Rolloff's Avatar
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    I've never been cold from the top down. It's always from the bottom up.
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  3. #3
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    I'd lean toward the UQ and I'd be looking hard at a Wooki. FWIW, 5 years on that EE isn't even a factor! It's almost new!

  4. #4
    SilvrSurfr's Avatar
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    You'll get the most bang out of an underquilt. However, don't do what my friend did - he bought a 0* UQ and thought he was all set. We went camping and about 4 am in the morning, I went to water the bushes. I found my friend shivering by the dying fire and asked him what was wrong. He said he was freezing to death. I asked how he could be freezing to death with a 0* UQ (the low that night was 18* F). Well, turns out that the UQ is all he brought - he had no TQ. He didn't think he would need it.

    There are some people who think you can skimp on the TQ - they'll use a 0* UQ with a 20* TQ. I really don't follow that logic and definitely don't subscribe to it. I follow the 10* buffer rule - make sure your quilts are rated at least 10* warmer than the expected lows. And even that rule doesn't always apply. I once camped in the Pine Barrens (Batona Campground) and the forecasted low was 18* F. However, when I arrived at camp in the late afternoon it was already 13* F. By the morning, it was -3* F. Luckily, I had brought an extra set of quilts so I was able to stack them and stay toasty warm (it was car camping). But the 10* buffer rule was just destroyed by temps that were 21 degrees colder than the forecasted low.

    Places like the Pine Barrens aren't very near to where the Weather Channel puts their weather stations. I imagine it's the same in the Catskills and Adirondacks. So if you're hiking, just remember that the actual low temps can be drastically different from the forecasted low temps, especially in wilderness places with no weather stations nearby.
    "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson

  5. #5
    Member Of Wolf and Man's Avatar
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    Thanks guys. Sounds like bottom is the bigger priority. As much as I like to stick with a company I’m familiar with like EE, I think I will look at the Wookie since I heard they are built for the Warbonnet Blackbird Original which is what I’ll be using these on. After 5 years at about 30 bag nights a year, the EE quilt works like new. I can see there’s some down migration, so I should probably watch some videos on how to fix that.

    Haha I can’t believe your buddy didn’t think he’d need a top quilt. I bet he’ll never hear the end of that one.

    I’d have no problem lugging my 0F bag and it actually layers well with the 20F EE too quilt, but it’s got a Right side zip and I heard that makes life difficult with the Blackbird Original as opposed to a left zip. I should probably test it out in the yard before ordering a 0F top quilt. Sounds like a 0F bottom is the first priority anyways.

  6. #6
    SilvrSurfr's Avatar
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    You might want to talk to fellow HF member fallkniven (also a Jersey resident). He joyously changed all his quilts to EE quilts, before getting rid of them all, shortly thereafter, out of dissatisfaction with their performance in hammocks. He'll be at the November hang at Batona Camp.
    "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson

  7. #7
    Member Of Wolf and Man's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by SilvrSurfr View Post
    You might want to talk to fellow HF member fallkniven (also a Jersey resident). He joyously changed all his quilts to EE quilts, before getting rid of them all, shortly thereafter, out of dissatisfaction with their performance in hammocks. He'll be at the November hang at Batona Camp.
    I’ll be there too so I’ll definitely pick his brain. My EE backpacking quilt has been one of my most reliable pieces of gear for several years averaging around 30 bag nights per year, albeit on the ground, for all but the last 4 nights when I started hanging. They also have a stellar reputation so I’d be interested in hearing his experience and why they didn’t work out for him. I know the Revolt V2 under quilt doesn’t come with baffles unless you order them in a custom order. I wonder if that had something to do with it. Fortunately I added the baffles on my order.

  8. #8
    SilvrSurfr's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Of Wolf and Man View Post
    I’ll be there too so I’ll definitely pick his brain. My EE backpacking quilt has been one of my most reliable pieces of gear for several years averaging around 30 bag nights per year, albeit on the ground, for all but the last 4 nights when I started hanging. They also have a stellar reputation so I’d be interested in hearing his experience and why they didn’t work out for him. I know the Revolt V2 under quilt doesn’t come with baffles unless you order them in a custom order. I wonder if that had something to do with it. Fortunately I added the baffles on my order.
    You might wanna check out fallkniven's negative review of EE underquilts in post #30 of this thread:

    https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...-Made-in-China!

    Quote Originally Posted by fallkniven View Post
    In my opinion, on their underquilts, I think they have the absolute WORST design ever. None of the friggin down ever stays anywhere it's supposed to, every darn time I set it up, all the friggin down is clumped up at the bottom of the quilt. I have a 20* and a 40*, and I hate them both passionately. Constant cold spots, having to re position all of the down every night, oh and the suspension needs to be pulled tight just to reach the ends of my hammock meaning it is impossible to loosen it up to vent on warmer nights. When I asked them about the issue, they just said that they can take my UL quilt back, and just keep filling it with more down, upping the weight and changing the temp range, and offered to sell me a little bit of shock cord for like $10 I think, to try to get their quilt to work correctly. Yeah, anyone want to buy some uq's? haha
    He seems to have fallen out of love with EE quilts rather quickly!
    "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson

  9. #9
    Member Of Wolf and Man's Avatar
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    I’m also wondering if it makes more sense to get to 0F and add a 40F later, or to just go straight to the 40F and just stack the 40 and 20 together in colder temps. Any thoughts on that? Also, when it starts to drop into single digits at night, I’d probably bring the hot tent setup instead.

  10. #10
    SilvrSurfr's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Of Wolf and Man View Post
    I’m also wondering if it makes more sense to get to 0F and add a 40F later, or to just go straight to the 40F and just stack the 40 and 20 together in colder temps. Any thoughts on that? Also, when it starts to drop into single digits at night, I’d probably bring the hot tent setup instead.
    In my opinion, my 20* quilts are the greatest value. I use them almost nine months a year. My second favorite is my 0* quilts, because I love cold weather. My 40* quilts don't get much use - I just don't camp much in weather conducive to 40* quilts. If I did like camping in warmer weather, the 40* quilts would get a lot more use.
    "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson

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