Author Topic: Rab Ascent 500 & other sleeping bag bargins  (Read 11530 times)

wintonian

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Re: Rab Ascent 500 & other sleeping bag bargins
« Reply #15 on: 01:16:13, 14/03/14 »
If I had the Xtherm I'd be outside testing it all  :D

I confess I gave it a go last night with the Helium 3.8 which unfortunately for me feels like laying on concrete  :( , hence the need for the Xtherm.

If your still looking at the Exped Downmats 7 then the Downmat Lite 5 may be worth looking at, seems to be a lot cheaper at around £75, but for mainly a packdown volume penalty and duck rather than goose on the flip side it appears to come with a 5 yr guarantee instead of 2 yrs. It weighs only 25 grms more (10 grms when taking the diffrent pumps into account) and is R-rated at 4.1 rather than 5.9 but Exped say that equates to -12° and -25° respectively and seen as the Ascent 700 is rated to -12 (according to the bags label) the extra 13° seems a bit wasted to me.

Price is rather important to me so small trade offs for large cost saving are rather attractive I think.

Looking at Exped video the mini pump for the Downmat 5 looks like a bit of a faff when tired at the end of a day, however the (stupidly named IMO) Schnozzel Pumpbag is available for around £25 separately  making it still a fair bit cheap then the Downmat 7 and of course this in a way allows you to split the cost, plus there is an even sillier shower attachment for the pump bag and it can be used as an extra dry bag.

I'm tempted.
« Last Edit: 04:43:12, 14/03/14 by wintonian »

Tammy

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Re: Rab Ascent 500 & other sleeping bag bargins
« Reply #16 on: 13:34:59, 07/01/18 »
Hi, can someone confirm , Rab Ascent 700 or 500 best for 5’6” female who is a cold sleeper heading to Nepal in Feb .. need warmth 🙏lol.

NeilC

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Re: Rab Ascent 500 & other sleeping bag bargins
« Reply #17 on: 11:46:16, 08/01/18 »
Hi, can someone confirm , Rab Ascent 700 or 500 best for 5’6” female who is a cold sleeper heading to Nepal in Feb .. need warmth 🙏lol.


What temperatures will you be facing? That's the all important question.

Tammy

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Re: Rab Ascent 500 & other sleeping bag bargins
« Reply #18 on: 11:58:57, 08/01/18 »
It will be below Zero as we are doing the Rara Lake trek.

NeilC

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Re: Rab Ascent 500 & other sleeping bag bargins
« Reply #19 on: 12:15:25, 08/01/18 »
It will be below Zero as we are doing the Rara Lake trek.


Well that rules the 500 out then.

Comfort temp under the E13537 rating scheme means a standard women, lying in a normal sleeping position (ie you don't need to be huddled up), should sleep in comfort. It assumes you're in  tent, on a properly insulating sleeping mat and wearing a single layer of thermal underwear. As a women that is the temp you should look at when buying a bag. Men, particularly larger men, can looking between Comfort and Limit.

Bearing in mind that everyone feels the cold differently, my advice is to leave a healthy buffer between the Comfort temp and the lowest temp you'll face. So you need to know what that temp is. "below zero" covers a lot of ground.

I would have thought the 700 would be at the minimum level of protection you'd want, quite possibly you'll want more. I just googled Rara temperature and according to Accuweather it's -6C tonight which would rule that out too.

Check out: http://sleepingbags-cumulus.eu/uk/categories/sleeping-bags - good quality, good value and go as warm as you need. For instance the Alaska 900 has a comfort temp of -10C for about £250. Alpkit also have decent value bags. If money is no object then there is an almost infinite range out there. I'm only looking at the lower price range.

But without knowing the lowest temp nobody can tell you what you'll need. You don't want to go for something way over the top either as you'll boil in say a -30C bag and might not  sleep a wink.



Also you've not mentioned accomodation. A teahouse is a different to a tent.
« Last Edit: 12:39:25, 08/01/18 by NeilC »

Tammy

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Re: Rab Ascent 500 & other sleeping bag bargins
« Reply #20 on: 13:15:34, 08/01/18 »
Thanks for the info ..
we won’t be in tea houses, we will be in tents- I will be alone in a single “man” tent.

Sloth

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Re: Rab Ascent 500 & other sleeping bag bargins
« Reply #21 on: 13:59:43, 11/01/18 »
I've got an Ascent 500 and have used it down to -4 ish with no problems in the UK. It is not a narrow technical bag so is wider in the foot end, this can lead to it being colder for some but is more comfortable for me. It is to hot for uk summer use but can be unzipped quite far down and used as a quilt allowing you to cool off. The bag is 2-3 years old now and still lofts really well. I sleep quite hot and I know I would be ok on your trek with an Ascent 700 and that it would be far to hot for me in the UK for what I use it for. ?Remember what goes underneath you is as important as what goes on top and that you can increase your warmth with a down hat and down booties. Good luck on the trek.

 

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