Originally Posted by
CanKiwi
I don't think there's a collectors market for these bags and I doubt they're financially valuable - I've never run across any for sale except the odd one on NZ websites where they go pretty cheap. They were good, but I think anyone buying them would do it more because they're good and they're cheap. Bag technology keeps on improving ....
I think with those Fairydown bags it was more that they were absolutely top quality - they were the best you could get in NZ then, they used a lot of down (my Polar, fluffed up, is about 18 inches high) and really really good for use in extreme conditions. I've used my Polar outside in a tent at minus forty Celsius and been warm and comfortable - they were made for those high altitude Himalayan climbing expeditions and use in the Antarctic and that kind of thing. Everest bags weren't quite as extreme as the Polar bags, but still very good. And like I said, bought mine in the 80's and 30 years on, they're still as good as new.
They were popular in New Zealand and they exported to Australia but as far as I know, nowhere else - so the numbers manufactured were probably fairly small as compared to say North American bag makers - New Zealand's just not that big a market. If you find one in North America its probably from someone who got one in NZ at some stage.