User Review: Sierra Designs Sandman

Sierra Designs Sandman
Above: The current Sandman, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed January 5, 2004 by revcounter

Rating: rated 1 of 5 stars
Design: mummy
Fill: polarguard 3D
Temperature Rating: 15 F
Weight: not the issue
Price Paid: $159

I wanted something lighter and smaller-to-pack than the monster 1982 LL Bean 0 degree quallofil bag burros carried for me to sleep in as a packer in the High Sierra for three seasons.

Spent 15 years in Maine. I weigh 200 pounds and used to be able to count the times I felt cold in a sleeping bag on one hand...

Cold spots and low or nonexistant loft have been the norm in this bag. I cannot help thinking either this design is smoke and mirrors, or the person filling the insulation at the factory was dozing when the time came to fill my bag.

The coup de grace was a Christmas overnight in (heated!) canvas tents in Yosemite Valley. The bag's very spotty history with me had me beaten down into sleeping in long johns and wool socks for the first time ever.

Even in above freezing weather on a full-sized twin bed matress, the bag afforded acceptable warmth in only the most contrived and carefully isolated sleeping positions.

I was awakened a succession of times by a cold butt, feet-even my back, as my moderate turning ran afoul of unacceptably narrow insulation boundaries.

My wife's 20 degree Katahdin bag from LL Bean, same age and use, lofts twice as high as my Sandman. She whined about leaving her toasty bag in the morning. This girl likes to wear a shortie wetsuit snorkeling in Maui.

I am usually too proud to return equipment for a refund. This time will be different.

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