Author Topic: Millets sleeping bag  (Read 1926 times)

Tame Camper

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Millets sleeping bag
« on: 20:56:42, 20/10/19 »
I'm looking for a new sleeping bag. I found the Millets Baikal 1100 regular almost meets all my requirement as to size, weight and price and is on offer.
It's online and there is only a scant decription.
Does anyone have any horrorstories regarding this sleeping bag? Or would it be just  as regular as advertised?
Robert

fernman

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #1 on: 22:36:41, 20/10/19 »
I looked at the specs on their website
https://www.millet-mountain.com/baikal-1100-reg-men-s-sleeping-bag-trekking-orange-1.html

1270g is impressively light for a synthetic bag, but I suspect that might be because there's not much substance to the bag, as the temperature ratings are given as:
Comfort 5C, Limit 0C, Extreme -16C.

I also note that it scores only 2 out of 5 on each of the three property ratings, while the sole reviewer who wrote 'Super' might have used it in the warm south of France (I seem to have hit on a continental link, with prices in Euros).
EDIT: I went back to my search results, and strangely the item does not come up in Millets own UK website, but it is on Amazon UK and others.

Personally it would be nothing like warm enough for me. Are you a hot sleeper, I wonder, and when and where do you intend to use it?
« Last Edit: 22:50:28, 20/10/19 by fernman »

Ridge

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #2 on: 09:11:59, 21/10/19 »
Millets and Millet don't appear to be the same thing.


Quote
Millet is a French-based company specializing in outdoor equipment such as backpacks and sleeping bags, owned by Lafuma.

Quote
Blacks Outdoor Retail Ltd. is a British retailer, headquartered in Bury, Greater Manchester, England which owns the British outdoor retailers Blacks, Millets and Ultimate Outdoors.

ninthace

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #3 on: 10:13:44, 21/10/19 »
Millets and Millet don't appear to be the same thing.
As has been said.  They aren’t.  I discovered Millet in France and initially made the same mistake.  I have used Millet boots, which lasted well for fabric boots and their gaiters were excellent. Can’t say anything about their sleeping bags though.
Solvitur Ambulando

pdstsp

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #4 on: 10:19:34, 21/10/19 »
I have a Millet ski jacket - one of the best I've ever owned.  Millet is a completely different organisation from Millets.

Tame Camper

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #5 on: 18:11:26, 21/10/19 »
My mistake, it is indeed Millet, without the 's'. Probably pronounced as  'me lay' in French?
The one that I'm looking at is the same sleeping bag as in the link that Fernman posted, be it in a different colour.
Most of my walking and camping is done in April and May and temperatures  regularly don't drop below 2 or 3 C. At higher altitudes it might be different though. (Last May in the Cairngorms there was six inches of snow on Beinack More...but then I didn't camp there).

If I get cold I usually put on some more clothing. I survived until now... Despite my current sleeping bag being a € 18 thing from Lidl. My recent walking was done in Scotland and at times it could have been a bit warmer, reason why I'm now looking for a new -more comfortable- sleeping bag. So I think the temparature specs are good enough. Then it's the weight and pack size that I find interesting. Sleeping bags tend to be bulky. But that is for a reason and I'll have to find a compromise.
Thanks for your remarks.

April

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #6 on: 21:26:39, 21/10/19 »
I have a synthetic Mountain Hardwear Lamina sleeping bag. You might want to take a look at their synthetic range TC because they are very lightweight for a synthetic bag. Mine is 720g, it is a +5 for comfort and I use mine in temps down to zero. Like you TC I just wear more clothes to keep warm. You can get a warmer bag for just over a kg, see here

https://www.alpinetrek.co.uk/mountain-hardwear-lamina-1c-synthetic-sleeping-bag/



Hate will never win

NeilC

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #7 on: 18:44:44, 08/11/19 »
I'd say that weight (1270g) for 5C comfort isn't amazing. Decathlon bags are the same sort of stats. https://www.decathlon.co.uk/trek-500-5-sleeping-bag-pink-id_8503639.html but may not be the same quality.


seems expensive for the performance:weight ratio.


Lamina's use much more sophisticated design and materials & a better buy I'd say.


IMO Limit values do not guarantee a comfy night and I always go on the Comfort value. I've spent too many nights with a slight chill that ruined my sleep.






alan de enfield

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #8 on: 20:03:19, 08/11/19 »
The EN13537 Standard - EN13537 requires a thermal manikin test which produces four temperature results — upper limit, comfort, lower limit and extreme.
These interpret as:
Upper Limit — the temperature at which a standard man can sleep without excessive perspiration. It is established with the hood and zippers open and with the arms outside of the bag.
Comfort — the temperature at which a standard woman can expect to sleep comfortably in a relaxed position.
Lower Limit — the temperature at which a standard man can sleep for eight hours in a curled position without waking.
Extreme — the minimum temperature at which a standard woman can remain for six hours without risk of death from hypothermia (though frostbite is still possible).
For the purpose of these measurements, a "standard man" is assumed to be 25 years old, with a height of 1.73 m and a weight of 73 kg; a "standard woman" is assumed to be 25 years old, with a height of 1.60 m and a weight of 60 kg.
Of these four ratings the most useful are the 'Comfort' rating and the 'Lower Limit' rating. Both these ratings assume the sleeper wears a baselayer, hat, socks and insulating pad. In theory Men should be interested in the Lower Comfort Limit rating, and Women the Comfort rating. Therefore, if you are a man and the lowest temperature you expect to use the bag in is 0C then bags with a 0C Comfort Limit will be your starting point - then factor in other considerations that apply - see below:

Other factors which affect what EN Rating sleeping bag we need:
Metabolism - people with differing metabolisms will feel the cold more than others, some of us will 'sleep warm' and others will 'sleep cold' - a knowledge of our own tendency will also inform our decision. If you are a man and the lowest temperature you expect to use the bag in is 0C then bags with a 0C Comfort Limit are the starting point but if you are a 'cold sleeper' you may want to go for a -2C or even -5C bag.
Environment - we may expect temperatures of -5C in the area we are going to - but if we are sleeping in a two skin tent the air inside the inner tent will be up to 5C higher than the outside air temperature. We would therefore not need such a low rated bag compared to if we were sleeping in the open.
Sleeping Pad - a sleeping pad provides insulation from the ground as well as comfort - if you are using a pad with a high insulating value then this will reduce the rating of sleeping bag you will need. Remember the standard test assumes an insulating pad is used - so its only if your pad is exceptionally warm should you adjust your EN rating.
Sleeping Bag Liner - a sleeping bag liner is useful to keep the bag clean - however it will also add a few degrees to the rating of a standard bag. You can also buy specific thermal liners to enhance the performance of your bag by as much as ten degrees.
Wearing clothing - it may be that you will use your sleeping bag in fairly warm temperatures for most of the time but occasionally will want to use it in winter (say) when temperatures will be somewhat colder. In this case you could wear more clothing - sleeping in thermal leggings and down jackets/shirts can really enhance a sleeping bags performance, and whilst it may be less comfortable than sleeping in just a baselayer - it may be just for a few nights and therefore preferable to buying a much heavier bag that may be too warm most of the time.

Tame Camper

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #9 on: 21:26:15, 10/11/19 »
As Alan points out, there are quite a few different aspects that play a role in choosing a sleeping bag. I took the jump and bougth the Millet Baikal.
In real life (on the internet things are always slightly different) it seems to be the thing that I need. It is a wee bit lighter than its predecessor which was 1500 grams: this one is 1270 grams. For real, I weighed it....The pack size is is also a bit smaller. This may have to do with the fact that is about two or three inches les wide.I haven't slept in it yet, that will have to wait till next year, but so far I'm not disappointed.

gunwharfman

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #10 on: 16:30:29, 11/11/19 »
My first sleeping bag was a Lifeventure down one, it sounds similar to the Millet one? All I can say is that it never kept me warm! I don't know enough about makes a good sleeping bag from a bad one, but after I changed to my down sleeping quilt I felt much better, warm and comfortable for some time. In the beginning, I thought it was the 'bee's knees' in how to stay warm. But as the last couple of years have gone on to believe that it has now lost a lot of its warmth qualities. The down has moved around for a start and when I hold it up to the light I can see areas where there is no down, just material. I shake the bag to even out the down but it just never works as well as it did. In all of my purchasing its the sleeping bag that causes me the greatest difficulty. I'm not planning to buy another one but I keep promising myself to buy a down blanket to throw over the top and hope that this works? Trouble is I haven't got around to it yet.

NeilC

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #11 on: 12:51:43, 13/11/19 »
My first sleeping bag was a Lifeventure down one, it sounds similar to the Millet one? All I can say is that it never kept me warm! I don't know enough about makes a good sleeping bag from a bad one, but after I changed to my down sleeping quilt I felt much better, warm and comfortable for some time. In the beginning, I thought it was the 'bee's knees' in how to stay warm. But as the last couple of years have gone on to believe that it has now lost a lot of its warmth qualities. The down has moved around for a start and when I hold it up to the light I can see areas where there is no down, just material. I shake the bag to even out the down but it just never works as well as it did. In all of my purchasing its the sleeping bag that causes me the greatest difficulty. I'm not planning to buy another one but I keep promising myself to buy a down blanket to throw over the top and hope that this works? Trouble is I haven't got around to it yet.


Have you tried treating it with Nikwax Downproof? I have a very cheap chinese summer down bag that clumped and so washed it with down wash. That kinda worked but I thought it would be better if more water resistant and so then treated it with the Downproof. That not only made it much better in the damp but it fluffed up better than it was new too.

alan de enfield

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #12 on: 16:16:37, 13/11/19 »
The Test Dummy for the EN 13537 standard.




The EN 13537 test uses a person-shaped heated manikin composed of numerous different zones each equipped with their own temperature sensors and power sources. The manikin is used inside a climate-controlled room and lies on a standardised sleeping mat. He wears a set of standard pyjamas and a cold weather mask which lends him a frankly terrifying appearance. This is made worse by the data from the manikin often being fed to a computer by cables which come straight out of the manikin’s eyes. Thermal manikins do not make good sleeping companions.

The manikin is put inside the test sleeping bag and because the room is cold and the manikin is warm, the power required to keep the manikin warm is measured to determine the thermal resistance (warmth) of the sleeping bag. The test is carried out until steady-state or equilibrium is achieved, which takes a few hours.
Once the manikin test is completed, the thermal resistance numbers are correlated to a series of temperature ratings given in the Standard. This conversion is based on testing with real life people going back many years.

Tame Camper

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #13 on: 21:55:29, 13/11/19 »
The Test Dummy for the EN 13537 standard.


[nofollow]

The EN 13537 test uses a person-shaped heated manikin composed of numerous different zones each equipped with their own temperature sensors and power sources. The manikin is used inside a climate-controlled room and lies on a standardised sleeping mat. He wears a set of standard pyjamas and a cold weather mask which lends him a frankly terrifying appearance. This is made worse by the data from the manikin often being fed to a computer by cables which come straight out of the manikin’s eyes. Thermal manikins do not make good sleeping companions.

The manikin is put inside the test sleeping bag and because the room is cold and the manikin is warm, the power required to keep the manikin warm is measured to determine the thermal resistance (warmth) of the sleeping bag. The test is carried out until steady-state or equilibrium is achieved, which takes a few hours.
Once the manikin test is completed, the thermal resistance numbers are correlated to a series of temperature ratings given in the Standard. This conversion is based on testing with real life people going back many years.
Theoretically this is fine. However, I suppose that the manikin is not moved during the testing. I do move during the night, sleeping most of the time on my side, either left or right. Problem then is that the top layer of the sleeping bag (many  sleeping bags) is thicker than is the lower part, presumably because it has been designed for people sleeping on their back, on top of a isolating mat of sorts. When I lay on my side, my back gets colder because that part of the sleeping bag is thinner. Wonder if this has been taken into account.

Sleepy

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Re: Millets sleeping bag
« Reply #14 on: 10:31:36, 02/12/19 »
It does seem to be a personal thing; whether you sleep hot, cold, move about much etc etc. Your choice of mats makes a big difference too, the most recent air filled (no foam inside) tend to be cooler.


Using myself as an example, I'm pretty average build and although I apparently make a good hot water bottle, I do tend to feel the cold at times. I sleep starkers, even on top of a mountain, so do tend to need a warmer sleeping bag than some.


I have three sleeping bags; one for very hot weather, one that works well almost all of the time and one for when I decide to do something daft in the winter. Over time, I've found what temperatures I'm happy with in each.


Generally speaking, I find my own opinion is more or less in line with the manufacturer; I avoid using each below (roughly) the comfort rating. The exception being the winter bag which only had a limit rating of -25 (the comfort and extreme both say n/a) - I used it a few days ago in -3 or thereabouts and would now say, if I want to use it below that, I'll have to stay dressed. Even then, I don't think I'd want to go lower than minus 10.




Personally, I'd say 5deg comfort won't be enough in early spring, especially up north. And it seems a little heavy for what it is. But, you may find you're happy with it. I'd use a campsite the first time you use it and take a duvet or blanket to put over yourself if you find it's not enough

 

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