WhiteBlaze Pages 2024
A Complete Appalachian Trail Guidebook.
AVAILABLE NOW. $4 for interactive PDF(smartphone version)
Read more here WhiteBlaze Pages Store

Page 1 of 2 1 2 LastLast
Results 1 to 20 of 26
  1. #1
    Registered User
    Join Date
    12-28-2015
    Location
    Bad Ischl, Austria
    Age
    66
    Posts
    1,588

    Default Time for a new matress - but which one?

    Just a few days ago we joked about Tipi Walters Thermarest lumping a pillow, now my Thermarest Prolite Plus developed a lump in the shoulder area.
    It had served me well for many years, but now its time to get a new one.
    The Prolite Plus had exactly what I liked and needed in comfort and insulation, but it was a bit heavy and bulky.
    Now I'm lost at all those many new makes and models and really don't know where to start.
    I'd need a somewhat comfortable 3-season mat thats easy to handle, light and small packing.
    I would use either a groundcloth whe cowboy camping or use it inside the tent, so hopefully there will be no durability issue.
    Any suggestions?

  2. #2

    Default

    My Thermarest lasted all of 30 nights on the trail, before it started popping open into a pool toy. I switched to a Klymit Static V, and have been very happy with it. Seems like a stronger construction method with more surface area between the baffles to hold it together. No noticeable change in comfort.

  3. #3
    Registered User
    Join Date
    12-28-2015
    Location
    Bad Ischl, Austria
    Age
    66
    Posts
    1,588

    Default

    How do you inflate this? By mouth?

  4. #4

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Leo L. View Post
    How do you inflate this? By mouth?
    5111tiLC-RL._SL1000_.jpg

    I had one of these, a Thermarest NeoAir AirTap Pump (available on Amazon) and used my compactor bag to inflate it. It doesn't actually fit properly, but with a bit of effort you can force the rubber tube over the mattress inflation attachment. Then it was a matter of leaving the rubber tube on the mattress, and disconnecting it as it's currently pictured.

    Tough to describe, but really easy and effective in practice.

  5. #5
    Registered User
    Join Date
    12-28-2015
    Location
    Bad Ischl, Austria
    Age
    66
    Posts
    1,588

    Default

    Ah OK, so it should be avoided to get moisture into the mat.
    True, there was a time when my beloved Thermarest had a tiny leak so I had to refill it 1-2 times per night, and during this period the mat developed a terrible mouldy/cheesy odor inside.
    The odor went away as soon as I finally could fix the leak (thanks to help from WB).

    Will have to look at the sizes, to fit two mats into my Hubba Hubba NX.

  6. #6
    Registered User
    Join Date
    11-01-2014
    Location
    Anchorage, AK
    Age
    62
    Posts
    2,500

    Default

    I love my Thermarest NeoAir Xlite! That being said, the new, 2017 REI Flash Pad is pretty impressive, light, and surprisingly inexpensive and comfortable.

    $100
    15 oz
    R 3.7

    Quilted with similar technology to the Static V pads, but with more insulation and for many people at least, a pattern that is more comfortable to sleep on than the V.
    I'm not lost. I'm exploring.

  7. #7
    Registered User
    Join Date
    08-18-2017
    Location
    Canton, Georgia
    Posts
    11

    Default

    Some say their REI Flash Pad failed on the PCT. I know they will replace but if it fails on the trail it will be pain to replace.

  8. #8

    Default

    I am a fan of the Nemo Tensor insulated 20R rectangular pad. 15.5oz and 3 inches thick. Blows up in the same time as a NeoAir Xlite. It's not as noisy and the rectangular shape gives me the feeling that I have much more room to lay on.

  9. #9
    Registered User DownEaster's Avatar
    Join Date
    03-15-2017
    Location
    Silicon Valley
    Age
    68
    Posts
    682

    Default

    One thing I like about the Klymit Insulated Static V Lite is that it's 23" wide instead of the usual 20". I sleep on my side, but alternate between left and right. A little bit of extra width means I rarely roll off the edge of the pad when I turn in my sleep.

  10. #10
    Registered User
    Join Date
    11-01-2014
    Location
    Anchorage, AK
    Age
    62
    Posts
    2,500

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by billisnice View Post
    Some say their REI Flash Pad failed on the PCT. I know they will replace but if it fails on the trail it will be pain to replace.
    The older green REI flash pads that looked like tapered pool floats seemed to have a high failure rate on their valves. I haven't heard the same regarding the new completely redesigned orange ones that came out early this year. . . but then, they haven't been out all that long either.

    Quote Originally Posted by capehiker View Post
    I am a fan of the Nemo Tensor insulated 20R rectangular pad. 15.5oz and 3 inches thick. Blows up in the same time as a NeoAir Xlite. It's not as noisy and the rectangular shape gives me the feeling that I have much more room to lay on.
    I tried out one of the Nemo pads recently. It was the insulated version, not the un-insulated version. Soft and quiet, and even though it was insulated and they claimed comfortable to 20 degrees it was much colder than either my Thermarest NeoAir Xlite or the REI Flash pad I was experimenting with on consecutive nights and it never got colder than 40 degrees F. I really liked everything about the Nemo until I tried it on a cool summer night sleeping directly on it with my quilt over the top and I was a bit cold.

    FWIW, the pads with quilting like the REI Flash, or the Sea-to-Summit pads (and possibly the Static V pads as well) require much less air to inflate than the baffled pads like the ThermaRest NeoAirs and the Nemo pads etc.

    But then, who cares if you have your inflation technique dialed so you aren't working to hard at it either way.
    I'm not lost. I'm exploring.

  11. #11
    Registered User
    Join Date
    12-28-2015
    Location
    Bad Ischl, Austria
    Age
    66
    Posts
    1,588

    Default

    Thanks everybody. Will have to look what I can get here locally, too, there is no REI, and some of the brands you are speaking about might not be available.
    I could easily get Thermarest (which I start to dislike a bit now, due to several disappointing incidents lately), Exped (which is much of my stuff from, nowadays) and some lesser known German makes.

  12. #12
    Registered User
    Join Date
    05-02-2014
    Location
    St. Louis, MO
    Posts
    1,264

    Default

    I have both the Klymit Insulated Static V Lite and the older REI Flash(green). I prefer the Klymit for both comfort and warmth, but the REI is a fine pad too.

    You can find the Klymit online. I don't know about a brick-and-mortar in Austria though...

    https://www.klymit.com/insulated-static-v-lite.html

  13. #13
    Registered User
    Join Date
    12-28-2015
    Location
    Bad Ischl, Austria
    Age
    66
    Posts
    1,588

    Default

    True, Amazon would sell the Klymit in our country.

    Anybody tried their Inertia product line?

  14. #14
    Registered User
    Join Date
    03-25-2014
    Location
    Westchester County, NY
    Posts
    2,305

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Leo L. View Post
    True, Amazon would sell the Klymit in our country.

    Anybody tried their Inertia product line?
    I have used the Inertia Xlite, the short one. However I've got only about 10 nights total on it, the most being 3 nights in a row.

    It works pretty well for what it is, but it is not meant for cold weather and, for me, not a long-term replacement for my old-style short Neoair xlite which offers a lot more support. But if it was the only thing I had I would probably be able to get used to it.

    Younger people who can sleep comfortably on a Zlite or a GG Thinlite would likely have a different take on it... it would probably feel super-cush to them.

    Whle the 'body-mapping' idea that permits the skeleton air tube arrangement works, it is, for obvious reasons, sensitive to body location on the mat — a couple of inches up or down can leave your head, shoulder and hip position out of the sweet spots for the body mapping zones and it is no longer comfortable. So if, like me, you are a tossy-turny sleeper it can be a bit annoying.

    Some very positive things about it are its weight, 6.1 oz without the bulb accessory (which I find totally unnecessary), its compactness, the tough material, and the fact that I can inflate it with only 3-4 breaths.

  15. #15
    Registered User
    Join Date
    12-28-2015
    Location
    Bad Ischl, Austria
    Age
    66
    Posts
    1,588

    Default

    Good info, so I can definitely sort the Inertia out.
    In my younger life, I was happy to sleep on any even face, be it a piece of abanodoned tarmac, a concrete floor, or a gravel bed, without any mat. A sandy beach was pure luxury.
    Nowadays my old bones apprecciate all the support and warmth of a good mat, and I'm willing to carry a little more weight if that gives me a restful sleep.

  16. #16
    Registered User
    Join Date
    05-14-2016
    Location
    West-central Indiana
    Posts
    419

    Default

    I'll throw in a recommendation for the Sea to Summit comfort lite pads. I have both the insulated and non-insulated models and really like them.

  17. #17
    Registered User
    Join Date
    12-28-2015
    Location
    Bad Ischl, Austria
    Age
    66
    Posts
    1,588

    Default

    OK, the S2S looks pretty good, would fit me better than the Klymit.

    Suppose you inflate it by using a pump sack?
    Any issue with being slippery or noisy?

  18. #18
    Registered User
    Join Date
    05-14-2016
    Location
    West-central Indiana
    Posts
    419

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Leo L. View Post
    OK, the S2S looks pretty good, would fit me better than the Klymit.

    Suppose you inflate it by using a pump sack?
    Any issue with being slippery or noisy?
    You don't need a pump sack for these. 15-20 breaths fill up my 20x72 pad quickly and completely. I like them full. I don't they are slippery or loud but, that's a matter of opinion. I sleep with ear plugs in anyway...which I recommend.

  19. #19
    Registered User
    Join Date
    10-17-2007
    Location
    Michigan
    Age
    64
    Posts
    5,126

    Default

    Just be sure to get the insulated Static V for 3 season use. I got the uninsulated version for summer use which was fine but was a little cold one night last fall. Also like the wide profile. I can not sleep on a 29 inch pad and many pads only come in wide with the long. Glad to see that REI pad comes in a wide regular.

  20. #20
    Registered User
    Join Date
    10-17-2007
    Location
    Michigan
    Age
    64
    Posts
    5,126

    Default

    Oops, that should have been can't sleep on a 20 inch wide pad.

Page 1 of 2 1 2 LastLast
++ New Posts ++

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •