The UGQ XL-Bandit Quilt

Like I wrote in an earlier blog post I decided once again to upgrade my quilt to a warmer one, just to make sure that I wouldn’t get cold on my hike across Scotland.
So I ordered The UGQ XL-Bandit Quilt.

These are just my first impressions of The UGQ XL-Bandit Quilt, as I haven’t used it properly yet so I will do an update when I get back from my Thruhike of the Arizona Trail and The great outdoors Challenge (TGO Challenge).

The quilt specs

Let’s have a look at the specs:

• Fill Power: 950
• Temperature Rating: 10*F/-12*C
• Width: 60″ (152cm)
• Length: 78″ (198cm)
• Inner Shell Color: M10 BLAZE ORANGE
• Outer Shell Fabric: OD-INK FABRICS
• OUTDOORINK® Outer Shell Pattern: PAISLEY-1
• Taper Style: FULL TAPER
• Draft Collar – Neck Line: YES PLEASE
• Foot Box Style: ZIPPER & DRAW CORD
• Dynamic Tension Control: YES PLEASE
• Pad Attachment Options: DELUXE
• Weight: 28 oz (794 gram)

I decided to go for the 950 fill power because it means that I can pack the quilt down to a smaller size (higher fill power means that the down quality is better and more fluffy so less down is needed to reach the desired temperature rating) and it saves weight (but that’s just crazy talk as it saved me 0.48oz/13g going from 850 to 950 fill power).

I toss and turn when I sleep so going for the XL-Bandit instead of the normal Bandit version made more sense, because I could get the 60″ (152cm) width. That should give me more room to move around and still keep the quilt from sliding up and creating draft.

Apart from getting rave reviews online, the other big reason I went with the UGQ brand was the color/pattern options 🙂
I got a little carried away here and chose the Paisley-1 pattern for the outside and a nice orange for the inside of the quilt – which matches nicely with the orange in the pattern 😉

Having used my Western Mountaineering Astralite quilt on a few hikes, I already learned that the draft collar is very nice thing to have to keep you nice and snug during the night.

The dynamic tension control is supposed to keep the draft to a minimum so I am really looking forward to testing that out.

The weight is a little on the heavy side in the land of UL, but I am a cold sleeper and I have come to realise that a good nights sleep while hiking is alpha and omega.

First impressions

I knew that I made a bold move by ordering that crazy pattern 🙂 And as the weeks went by I started to question my decision 🙂 but when I opened the box and saw my new quilt I was pleasantly surprised – I actually really like the pattern and colours! Lucky me hehe.

The quality of the quilt, the stitching and the loft is outstanding! This is a pro level product and great care is put into making this feel and look top level (or that’s what I presume, I don’t think its possible to just throw some fabric together and have it look and feel this nice)

I can only compare it to my two other sleeping bags/Quilts from Western Mountaineering namely the Western Mountaineering AlpinLite and the Western Mountaineering AstraLite Quilt

Western Mountaineering

Western Mountaineering are one of the big names in Sleeping Bags, and they have a very high standard, so imagine my surprise when I realised that this quilt from UGQ Outdoors probably is at the same level quality and actually exceeds the AstraLite in every aspect. Crazy!

Of course the Western Mountaineering AstraLite is “only” a 26° F (-3° C) quilt and weighs a mere 17.5 oz (450 g) – in the 6’4″ (200 cm) version, so it’s not a surprise that it will feel thinner.
But the fabric on the The UGQ XL-Bandit Quilt just feels better, softer and more like the AlpinLite.

These are just my first impressions, so I have no way of knowing how it will hold out after extensive use – which I will put it through on March 20th when I leave for my Arizona Trail thruhike, and the TGO Challenge.

But right now I am very happy by the result and am pretty confident that it will prove to be an amazing investment.

I will let you know when I get back 🙂