Feathered Friends Swallow

Feathered Friends bags are not cheap, and they have to be customed-ordered. Mine took two months to arrive. It was worth it. I bought mine with a number of accessories, including extra down, a removable draft collar, and a Dryloft shell. What it all adds up to is a very useful bag across a wide temperature range that stays dry (even in Oregon!), packs to the size of a bread loaf in a compression sack, and weighs well under 3lbs. I've had it two years now and am still quite satisfied, especially when packing up my alpine pack and seeing how little room it takes up compared to my climbing partners' bags. My only other comment is that FF temp ratings are not all that conservative, so if you sleep cold (like me) consider ordering with a bit of overfill.

I bought this bag about a year ago directly from Feathered Friends. It was somewhat custom; I wanted the outside shell constructed with their Nano Sphere fabric in black. Because dark colors absorb heat and the outside of a sleeping bag can get pretty dirty even with the best of care.

The construction of this sleeping bag is the best workmanship I've ever seen.

I had read many good reviews about Feathered Friends bags and I also wanted to buy American. At the time I had never heard of another American company called Western Mountaineering, who also makes quality sleeping bags.

I got the Swallow bag for shoulder season backpacking, where the temps tend to hover around 32° and sometime down to 20°. But this bag doesn't come even close. The FF temp rating for this bag is a fantasy.

The 16.5 oz of down for this bag is insufficient, so the lofting is poor, especially given the 60-inch shoulder girth. The bag is rated to have 5 inches of loft but when you factor in the effect of humidity in the environment you lose more loft.

When I tried to talk with FF about overfill they gave me a hard time and said I should get a warmer bag. But I'm not a cold sleeper. So if you are considering a FF sleeping bag, definitely get at least 3oz of down overfill.

This is a top notch bag. Three season, 20F, high quality 700+ down, and it's amazingly light at just under 2 lbs. It's loftier than standard 550fill bags that weigh about 12 oz more. The draft collar is the plumpest that I've seen, it lofts up nicely, has continuous fill baffles, etc.

I was fortunate to get this bag on sale for $180, it normally sells for 245. I have read reports on the net of people using FF bags since the early eighties, and they are placed by many as one of the best bag makers there are along with Western Mountaineering and sometimes Marmot.

FF does all their construction in Seattle, so you can customize everything - extra fill, 800+ fill, etc...and use tuck stiching to sew the bag which only they do, to my knowledge.

I got the Swallow for my kid 18 months ago on E-Bay in new condition. Once again, I am very impressed by the quality of Feathered Friends products.

This bag is well made with durable EPIC fabric and precise stitching. My kid has used it for numerous winter trips in the Cascades and been comfortable on nights when I was happy to have a 0 degree bag. It easily meets the 20 degree rating. It weighs in right around 2 lbs, which is pretty good for a full-feature bag with durable construction.