Down Control

[hiknmik]

Having never owned down bags till my WM Caribou ( It's sweet by the way)
I have a question for all you continous baffles bag owners.
I am looking at purchasing a 5 deg to -5 deg bag. The WM Antelope most fits my needs. My question is, is down moving in the baffles that big a deal? The Dakota has a V-block on the side which maintains the down on top, the Antelope does not. I've read bits and pieces over the years of people "shifting" the down for temp control but to me that sounds like a lot of hassle and also makes me think that the down could/would shift over time.
I thank you in advance for your input.

Thanks
Mike

[Just Jeff]

Shifting the down means you pick up your bag and shake it a few times. IMO, it seems like the V-block takes away some of the flexibility of the bag. YMMV.

[peter_pan]

Design accomplishes many things....Old military expression is to "soldier proof it"....Mom's say " Kid Proof"....The cross baffled designs by any name are to guarentee a stated thickness... Pull it out of the stuff sack and use it...simple no brainer.

A continuous baffle design ets the user shift down by shaking to one side or end or edges or center depending on design and the users desire...This gives wider range of use...shift it off of you for warmer weather...shift more to the top for cooler weather ( remember it is the pad that does the insulating on the bottom... the compressed down under you adds little to nothing for warmth) ...The user has to make a decision and spend a few minutes shifting to the desired position... some understanding of design and function, as well as experiance and skill is necessary to get the most ( or even to avoid discomfort because down is not allocated properly for conditions) out of this type of bag...

That said, normally I prefer to be able to do some shifting.

Pan

[hiknmik]

Thanks for the in-put. Shift is good, if you do it yourself. Looks like I'll be getting a new piece of gear.
thanks
mike

[Tinker]

I have a semi rectangular summer bag which I can use at any temperature between 70 and 30, if I shift the down right. The only downside :p is that when I use it over my basic hammock for cold weather, usually, by the end of the night, most of the down is on the bottom (no problem if I bring a light quilt).