Sleeping bag - which one to get?

[Galkim]

Hey there... been posting many threads recently....
Planning on doing a part of the AT starting June 15th for 4-5 weeks... would probably be starting in upstae NY or CT going up to VT perhaps...
anyhow... i thought about getting theMountain Hardwear Lamina +35 bag which is about 117$ on most sites online, but then i found out about two similarly rated bags:
1- Kelty light year XP 40+ , which is about 75$
2- Lafuma extreme 1000 +40, which is about 55$

The Kelty's been getting mixed reviews, however the Lafuma has been getting excellent reviews, it is 70$ cheaper, roomier, only 5 deg. colder, and slightly heavier....

i would imagine than in this time of the year i wouldnt be needing anything more than 40F...
I'm just a little suspicious about the quality difference that i would be getting on such a high price difference....

Any thoughts?

[RodentWhisperer]

I've never used a MH bag, but I've tried both Lafuma's (a 35-degree down bag whose model name escapes me) and Kelty's products (coincidentally, my last Kelty bag was a LightYear XP 40). Both served well, although I found the Lafuma a little too thin for my taste; there was always a cold spot. The Kelty was cozy, but from past experience with Kelty, I was worried about its durability.

[bobp]

I've been using an MH Lamina 20 for about 6 years now. For the price, it is a fantastic bag. I love the fit and features. It is reasonably light and packs reasonably small. I have found that I need to be careful with the zipper, because it snags easily (unsnags easily, too). I bought mine for under $100 at Campmor.

[swjohnsey]

I've used the Kelly Light Year 40 in down and it was a decent bag considering the price. I replaced it with a WM Highlight 35, cost twice as much weighs half as much.

[Skid.]

One more vote for the Kelty Lightyear, my warm weather bag . Tough to beat it for the price. I add a fleece liner on cooler nites.

[Ktaadn]

I've never used a MH bag, but I've tried both Lafuma's (a 35-degree down bag whose model name escapes me) and Kelty's products (coincidentally, my last Kelty bag was a LightYear XP 40). Both served well, although I found the Lafuma a little too thin for my taste; there was always a cold spot. The Kelty was cozy, but from past experience with Kelty, I was worried about its durability.


I've been using an MH Lamina 20 for about 6 years now. For the price, it is a fantastic bag. I love the fit and features. It is reasonably light and packs reasonably small. I have found that I need to be careful with the zipper, because it snags easily (unsnags easily, too). I bought mine for under $100 at Campmor.

I also have an MH Laminate 20 and have been pleased with it. I also agree with the zipper comment.

I have a Lafuma bag too and I also agree with the comment regarding its questionable temperature rating.

To sum it up, you get what you pay for in this case.

[Glenn Gordon]

I just tried out my new MH Lamina 20 last night. Got down to about 42 degrees and raining and it was very comfortable, i wasnt hot or cold. I though it looked thin but it did the job great. For the start of my hike next spring I will get a liner of some type cause I hate being cold.

[Rock Lobster]

I used a Lafuma 600 for 1000 miles last year. I liked it a lot, except that the seams would come unstitched pretty regularly - cheap/weak thread I guess. I superglued 'em shut and it worked fine.