What One Company Says About Their Synthetic (Lamina) Sleeping Bags - And Then There Is The Truth!

The Lamina line of sleeping bags is manufactured in China for the Mountain Hardwear Company (MH). When the line was first introduced I questioned Paul Kramer who was at the time an owner of the company why he chose the name Lamina and he said it was as close to LAMILITE as could be found. Lamilite is an insulating medium used in all of the Wiggy's sleeping bags as well as our clothing products and Lamina is the designation given to a line of sleeping bags, it is not insulation as they would like people to believe. According to the dictionary it means "a thin plate, scale or layer". How that equates to sleeping bags is a mystery except if you equate it to sounding like Lamilite. In the Spring 2005 Wiggy's newsletter I explain in detail the first effort that MH made in their desire to copy what I do. They used continuous filament fiber as I do but what they made was a failure because they had no idea as to what they were doing. While they used the continuous filament fiber it was not used as I use it, hence it was a failure.

They eliminated the use of continuous filament fiber shortly after they started the line of bags. A year or so later they started using chopped staple polyester fiberfill instead. As I have also explained in several articles all available in the archives, chopped staple polyester fiber for fiberfill purposes had its start in 1960 and was made obsolete in 1968 when continuous filament fiber entered the market originally trade named Polar Guard. MH calls the obsolete chopped staple fiberfill insulation they are using "Thermic Micro". It is of no consequence what they claim about the Thermic Micro it is still a chopped staple fiberfill form of insulation and not any better than any other chopped staple fiberfill claimed to be insulation such as Primaloft, Liteloft or Thermore an Italian product. These products are made from the cheapest polyester fibers available and are joined together via a low melt process. Essentially they take two fibers; one that is heat set at 475 degrees and one heat set at 150 degrees and blend them to form the web structure and then run them through an oven at 300 degrees. The low melt fibers melt and settle at the juncture where the non-melting fibers intersect. This is the bonding process.

I could explain further about the chopped staple fiberfill but all of the explanation is readably available in the archived newsletters. The problem that exists with MH and all of the other companies that market sleeping bags, please note I said market versus manufacture, and that is because they do not manufacture them, contractors in China do. The simple fact is that they have no foundation of knowledge principally of synthetic insulation. Virtually all of the people I have encountered in the outdoor industry with the responsibility to create sleeping bags fall's into that category of no knowledge.

As an example I purchased a Lamina bag from REI to examine it. The first thing I did was wash it two times in my front load washing machine as they recommend and then I put it in my dryer with a low heat setting. When I took it out I found it was still wet. I put it back in the dryer and this time I set the dryer at the same temperature I would dry a Wiggy's bag. When it was finished I took the bag and draped it over a chair since I could feel some wet still in the bag. I brought it to my factory so I could open it to examine the fiberfill and the construction method that the Chinese use. To my surprise there were still some damp spots. This is not unusual, chopped staple fiber does this all the time; it takes longer to dry than the continuous filament fiberfill. Also the fiber is not or appears not to be a silicone treated fiber so it does not shed water as a silicone treated fiber does. I did not open the bag to see the thickness of the fiberfill brand new, but examination of the fiberfill shows that after two launderings and two drying cycles the thickness of the fiberfill is approximately ½ inch thick. That means a total of one inch plus for the top half and the same for the bottom half of the bag. It consists of two layers of fiberfill for the top of the bag and the same for the bottom. Considering the bag had 4 inches of total loft when I laid it down to take the picture of it, see below, losing half the loft so quickly did not surprise me. The model that I purchased is the Lamina 0 or zero degree rated bag. My educated opinion is that the rating is a pipe dream.

On the MH website they clearly state in the Lamina bag information in the subject of 'FEATURES" Patent-pending, welded Lamina construction but in the booklet that comes with each bag it is clearly stated "PATENTED", welded Lamina construction. I personally do not care if they have a patent or not, what I do think they should do is be honest with their potential customers and not lie in their advertising. Of course if the patent examiner does a credible job they will find my patent and the Ecotat patent which would nullify giving them a patent. I manufactured a special design bag for a company known as Ecotat who sold the Freedom shelter which we have been making for 15 years which can be seen on the Wiggy's web site. The Ecotat patent talks about a laminated insulation too. Since I made the bags the insulation used was Lamilite a laminated form of insulation. Of course in the final analysis no other sleeping bag manufacture exists in the U.S. other than Wiggy's so who is there to copy them.

Now for the construction of the bags, it is as poor a sewing method as can come out of a sewing factory. Pictures will follow. First they are sticking the nylon to the fiber with a two sided tape. One side attaches to the fabric and the other side to the fiberfill; this is what they call welding. In order for the manufacturer to do this the shell and lining are cut and them the fiberfill is cut. Once cut the adhesive tape in place on the nylon and them the fiberfill layered on top. The next step to my amazement is to single needle the perimeter of each section and then the sections are joined. This construction method leaves a lot to be desired. As the bag is used the fabric moves and raveling starts to occur. After a while the raveling will go back to the seam and the layers separate. Seam separation is the end result. See the picture below. Not long ago a company that makes very cheap slumber bags that is sold in K-Mart and Wal-Mart to name two retailers for $8.00 to $12.00 each sent me one of the shells they import from China. Single needle sewing around the perimeter, the same construction that is used for the sleeping bags sold by MH for $175.00, i.e. the bag I bought. I have been told by an employee of REI that one of the major reasons for sleeping bag returns at REI happens to be seams opening up. When I started my first sleeping bag company Olam Outdoor Sports in N.C. in 1975 I had a partner who was capable of making any sewn product and he taught me that serging (over-locking) the perimeter of any nylon fabric was necessary to keep the yarns from raveling. See picture below.

If you read the hangtag booklet that comes with these bags there is a section titled "CARE & FEEDING OF YOUR SYNTHETIC BAG". The "drying" instructions start out normal use a large tumble dryer low heat etc. then they say to my amazement and I quote; "As the bag dries, and massage gently to redistribute any clumps of fill". MH obviously knows from their own washing trials that the chopped staple fiberfill is going to deteriorate as a result of laundering the bags filled with Thermic Micro chopped staple polyester fiberfill, knowledge I have had for 50 years and written about for years. Actually the fiberfill structure is stretching so what you feel in the way of lumps is the fiberfill now too large for the space it is in. as the fiberfill stretches it gets thinner, loss of loft. Due to their lack of knowledge they don't recognize what is happening or why. The chopped staple fiberfill must be quilted to stabilize it versus continuous filament fiberfill that quilting is unnecessary. Additional information in the FEATURES section of the hangtag states "THERMIC MICRO FILL IS SOFT, LOFTY, AND DURABLE", durable it is not. My observation is that they have no idea now nor from the get go the life expectancy of these bags, but it is minuscule. I still can't figure out what to feed it.

The last component of the bag that I consider substandard is the zipper. It is a number 5 (millimeters wide) coil zipper. This zipper is historically known to deteriorate quickly. When I had my first company I used these zippers because they were lighter in weight than the number 10 molded tooth zipper that I now use and have used for 25 years. The problem I had was the fact that they broke quickly and returns were high so I changed to the number 10 YKK molded tooth zipper. I guess some companies employees in charge just don't have the capacity to learn or care too learn about the various components required to make a good product.

I did write via e mail to MH asking if they had documentation showing that the bag has been used when the temperature was zero degrees. Keep in mind that I was who I am, Jerry Wigutow so they can't say I was doing this in a sneaky manner. They knew who they were responding too. Of course they didn't connect the dots as to the fact I own Wiggy's Inc. in any event the following is their response in its entirety.

"Hi Jerry,

Thanks for contacting us!

We sometimes get this query regarding our sleeping bag temperature rating, and here is an FAQ that we formulated that we hope will answer your concern. If it doesn't, please let us know and we will do our best to provide the information you are seeking."

Actually I did call after receiving this e mail but all I received from the person I spoke with was more gibberish as you will see this response was.

Mountain Hardwear conducts thermal mannequin testing at Kansas State University. There are currently two standards for such testing, ASTM and EN 13537 standard. Mountain Hardwear tests for both standards. So they get the same results. American Society for Testing and Materials ASTM and the EN is European Normal. These are testing procedures that do not give results that can be used for anything other than conversation. The same holds true for KSU, all talk and nothing more. I have written about these procedures and that information can also be read in past newsletters in the archives. The methodologies are nearly identical; the main difference is how the data is expressed. As I said all talk. If you research the EN test itself you will learn that below -18 C ( 0 degrees F) the results are very unreliable at best and not very useful at all when testing extreme cold weather bags. Actually the tests are completely unreliable at any temperature.

Keep in mind lab testing is a tool and is one factor we use when determining temperature ratings for our bags. We consider three things when assigning a temperature rating to our bags. First is historical knowledge, then field testing and the last consideration is lab test. The end user is not a copper mannequin but a living breathing person that is affected by many aspects of the environment besides the sleeping bag and temperature. Historical knowledge and field testing are possibly of greater value to the sleeping bag designers and end user than lab testing. I have never understood why someone is designated a "sleeping bag designer". A mummy shaped bag is a mummy shaped bag and a rectangular shaped bag is a rectangular shaped bag. While I manufacture sleeping bags, I have never thought of redesigning them. Whoever realized years ago that a cocoon shape was the best shape to contain heat and I haven't given any thought to changing the shape nor have I given thought to changing any other shape that has preceded me as a manufacturer of sleeping bags! In all of my years of working with companies that used to make sleeping bags I have never met a person who actually designed a sleeping bag.

As for historical knowledge they have none and as far as field testing I am very suspicious since from what I am seeing in this bag it is not possible for it to keep one warm at the designated temperature of 0 degrees. I did question one of their representatives as too whether or not the temperature rating was based upon use in a tent or not. The answer was avoided and the representative said if you use the bag out of a tent wind movement would be a factor. That is accurate but he still avoided testing in a tent. More reason for me to believe they did no testing in the outdoors. They already admit that lab testing is "not very useful at all" so why even mention it. And finally I wonder what the "many aspects of the environment" they are referring too.

Our sleeping bag designers (as Ronald Regan once said there you go again) suggest that ratings should be a single data point and when considering a bag you pay equal or more attention to loft and fill weight. If a sleeping bag is accurately rated, and if you find that to be the truth then the loft and fill weight will have meaning. The loft and test outputs are not linear. So the loft and test outputs are not in line with each other, if I understand the sentence correctly. The test becomes less accurate as you approach 0 degrees F and useless below. Therefore am I to assume the 0 degree bag I purchased is not a 0 degree bag? After all the closer we get to 0 degrees when testing the test is useless according to MH. There is diminishing return on insulation in the test. This sentence I agree with. The material they are using for insulation does diminish as the temperature drops. However, it diminishes quickly once the temperature drops below 32 degrees. Your comfort will have more to do with your body type and metabolism than a lab test output. Here is a lack of understanding of a sleeping bag; your comfort will depend upon the ability of the sleeping bag to retain the heat that your body is generating!!! They would be shocked to know the number of bags sold by Wiggy's for use in temperatures from 0 degrees F to - 80 degrees F is in the thousands each year which is probably more bags than they sell for all categories regardless if the perform or not.

For MH the EN temperature rating of each style is a guideline to help the consumer compare between different manufacturers' (aside from Wiggy's who are they referring too. MH, Northface, Marmot, Big Agnes etc.do not manufacture anything, their bags and clothing and whatever else they sell is made mostly in China in factories they contract with) bags. Listed with the sleeping bag style name is the temperature at which MH "feels" most people will be comfortable in the sleeping bag. MH has earned a reputation as a reputable supplier of expedition grade equipment. I do not know if that is true with respect to the other products they sell although I am suspicious of the statement, but I do know sleeping bags are not included.

Best regards,

Amy


Customer Care Product Specialist

Pictured is a new Lamina 0 bag

Pictured is the single needle sewing of the Lamina 0 bag. Note fraying or raveling of fabric after the two launderings.

This picture shows specifically the fraying or raveling of fabric along the seam.

This picture shows how the fiberfill has stretched so it would appear on the outside of the bag as if bunching has occurred.

This picture shows the over lock or serge sewing we do at Wiggy's on all of our components.

This picture shows how uniform the Lamilite insulation is before or after laundering.

This picture shows the difference between the Lamina 0 #5 coil zipper and the #10 molded tooth zipper we use at Wiggy's.