three interesting testimonials and additional information

RESPONSE TO SATURDAY’S ARTICLE

Dear Wiggy,

I always enjoy reading your comments on the state of the outdoor clothing industry, although it is pretty sad overall. Apparently from their perverted viewpoint I am a member of your cult. I’d argue that people wearing logos advertising clothing that doesn’t work are the cultists. I’m just a happy camper so to speak.

That aside, I thought I would mention that I heard of Wiggy’s by a personal recommendation. I’ve been active as an adult leader in Boy Scouts as my son was a member before he turned 18 (and an Eagle scout proudly), graduated high school and joined the Army. On a camping trip another adult leader who was a retired Air Force veteran asked me if I had heard of Wiggy’s and told me he and his son were both in Wiggy’s sleeping bags. I had to admit I hadn’t heard of Wiggy’s but promptly checked out your website after that trip and ordered a super light. I had bad experiences with down that had gotten wet that were scary in some cases so I was glad to know about your products. I've loved that bag since I got it. A good story is that I was in it one night in what turned out to be a leaky tent in the Gila and a rain storm came and went that night. I woke up that morning just fine and was shocked to find I was sleeping in a puddle and my pad kept me from being submerged and my super light was soaking where it wasn’t in contact with me. I never knew until I woke up. At this point I think I may have lost count of Wiggy’s items I have picked up but they are all great. I got my son a super light and he loves it too. He (6'4") is taller than I am so your sizing options are wonderful.

Lastly I just got my new all-purpose lightweight jacket on Thursday and wore it to work on Friday figuring in southern NM my days for needing a jacket in the morning were numbered. It was great as expected. Down here in Las Cruces, NM our winters are pretty mild so this lighter weight jacket is likely my new go to. To be honest I’m hoping to wear it out in a rain storm to see if I repeat my super light experience even without the Ducksback fabric. I suspect I will.

Thank you so much for your wonderful products, Mark McClure

Jerry,

I could not agree with you more. I have one of Richard's (Sierra Madre Research) hammock systems and so I subscribe to his company's YouTube channel in order to stay current on product updates. When I watched his demonstration video of the Hot Pocket product I was not impressed enough to commit any money. Anyone can be uncomfortable for one night, or worst case, two nights when out on a front country weekend camping trip. But his product is a stop gap solution to so many failed sleeping bag designs. In a life or death survival situation, where life may hang in the balance, I will depend on gear that does not need a "life support" system like the Hot Pocket to make the base/original product only bearable. That Hot Pocket can only produce 6 hours of heat without recharging. What I see in his Hot Pocket is consumer money that should be spent on gear that works as designed/intended - from the start, and for the life of the bag. So everyone just ought to Buy Wiggy's sleep systems from the start!

As I type this email to you, I am lying on top of one of two of the Wiggy's bags that I bought from you during my visit to your office/store/factory/warehouse in Grand Junction in April 2017. The one that I am sleeping on tonight is the Super Light; the other bag of yours that I own is an Ultra-Light. Both bags are Wide Body, Long Length, Right-side Zip, and both are olive green exterior with a silver/grey interior. I love them both equally and feel confident that I will have a comfortable night's sleep in either one of them. Using your prescribed care instructions I've washed these bags in an industrial size washer and dryer at a local laundromat multiple times and I am impressed by your bags' durability because neither bag shows any sign of wear-n-tear as a result of any abuse by these oversized industrial washer and dryers. I use the "normal" wash cycle which is just warm water and I only use the "low heat" dryer setting. I also love the ultra- durable and large molded tooth #10 YKK zippers - they have never snagged and never failed.

In the future, I plan to buy both: your over-bags for my two current bags, and/or your Ultima Thule and your Antarctic bags to expand my operating temperature range for both sleeping comfort and for survival.

Thank you for making the best and most reliable sleeping bag on the planet. And thank you for making them in America.

Dale

Jerry,

Why not just get a sleeping bag that is rated for the temperatures you will or may be exposed too, and not made from Down? Batteries die, especially in the cold. I had a REI Down bag, still have it, but the first time I tried to use it in the Winter, it let me down. I did use it successfully, but in MUCH milder conditions than it was rated for and with a GI cover on it. I learned and tested my next bag, an Eagle Peak you told me that had Hollow Fill (?) outside my quarters in Winter conditions, before we went to the field. We had your bags when we went to Kandahar in April 2002, plus your sleeping pads, so we had no problems.

John

I have received for many years testimonials from many, many customers expressing the same sentiments. They never fall on deaf ears because I cannot be out there everywhere having all of the experiences my customers have. So I am always grateful when I receive letters in the form of e mails these days. It makes it easy for me to cut and paste so I can share them with whoever reads my articles.

I am constantly asked by guys who are of the ultra-light backpacking crowd wanting to know if I can make lighter weight sleeping bags for 20 degree temperatures and higher. Maybe but I have 32 years of experience with the weights I have been using so I have no intention of changing.

The other companies out there cower to the request by potential customers and the end result happens to be “no sleep sleeping bags”.

ALL of the companies that make the false claim that they make sleeping bags should read ALL of the testimonials I have been receiving for 30 years and they will more than likely read that their bags have failed. Those who write to me have no problem naming the brands of bags that have failed them.

Those companies who claim to be in the sleeping bag business have them made in Asia mostly China and as I have reported use waste polyester fiber for their fiberfill. Why because it is as cheap as they can buy. They seemingly chose to boycott the continuous filament fiberfill Climashield which is only and I mean the only fiberfill product that is only made as a first quality product. I have been buying continuous filament fiberfill first as Polar Guard and then as Climashield and I never ever had the first problem with substandard quality. That means I have been buying continuous filament fiberfill since the 1968 when it was first produced. I would call that consistency remarkable.

With chopped staple you cannot tell the difference between first quality and waste quality. But if continuous filament fiberfill were ever made as a second it would be a surprise to the Climashield company. Their equipment is so sophisticated they just cannot make off quality product. Because of Climashield’s consistency I never have any concerns about the quality that shows up with each semi-truck load I receive.

ALL of the companies that get their “no sleep sleeping bags” from Asia send representatives over there and I suspect they never ask about the quality of the fiberfill stuffed in the “no sleep sleeping bags” that are shipped to the USA to then be sent to the stores to sell to the unsuspecting members of the general public. Of course these representatives have zero knowledge of what they would be looking at anyway.

If these companies are so fixated on always having waste fiberfill used as the supposed insulation in their sleeping bags what suggests to you that they will not do the same with the shell and lining fabrics? They ALL use coil zippers that are guaranteed to fail as has been the case for over 30 years. There have been outfitter companies that bought Wiggy’s bags for one primary reason the number 10 YKK molded tooth zippers do not break. Coil zippers from all suppliers do break.

As for the ultra-light backpackers they can and do spend their money on bags that fit in their backpacks and they find that even if they wear all of their clothing in these bags they do not sleep so they then learn that they have purchased an expensive “no sleep sleeping bag”!!!