Although down is still considered the premier sleeping bag insulation by the majority of the hardcore outside crowd, retailers report that improvements in new synthetic insulations have begun to chase the goose's feathers even in the luxury of the market.High-tech insulations, including 3M's Lite Loft, DuPont's Micro-loft, Albany International's Primaloft and Hoechst Celanese's Polarguard HV, have allegedly helped to create new need from the bag market for quality options to down at competitive prices.
"DuPont and Celanese have invested a great deal of cash in promoting the fact that synthetics are much better than down when wet. And Albany International's Prima Loft is even attempting to sell the oxymoron of 'synthetic down,'" states Jerry Watt, sleeping bag product manager and purchaser, Recreational Equipment, Inc (https://github.com/campinglife/Sleeping ... or-Camping). "However, synthetics are getting a whole lot closer to down--they are about 90 percent of their way there."In some cases, higher recognition of high-performance synthetic fills are cutting into the sales of products down. "From the outdoor sector, we have gone up to now in promoting the worth of synthetic insulation to the customer, that it is getting more difficult to sell down," states David Wallace, camping buyer for Blue Ridge Mountain Sports. "Down bags are now out there for only the client with the most specific of needs."WHAT'S INSIDE?While comparable in their pursuit of imitating the very best qualities of down, artificial insulation manufacturers differ on their strategy.
Products such as Polarguard HV, the Micro-loft of DuPont and 3M's Lite Loft have awakened a debate over which ratio is the most effective.Lite Loft, a combination of polyester and olefin fibers, touts its high-warmth-to-low-weight ratio, in addition to a high amount of loft. On the flip side, Micro-loft, a micro-denier polyester fiber, claims a high degree of operation and a higher ratio of compressability-to-loft-retention, while sacrificing a degree of loft.Hoescht Celanese takes another tact with Polarguard HV, a high-void update of its Polarguard continuous filament fiber, which can be positioned to compete on price, durability and loft resiliency.
Albany International's Primaloft, made of .5 denier synthetic fibers, is marketed as being as warm as down and warmer than other synthetics at equal weights and densities.BAGGING SALESAlthough the gaps between the new fills are often subtle, retailers say they're changing the way sleeping bags are being sold. "We have trained the consumer in the past that the loft of a tote is your best variable for determining temperature evaluation," says Rich Amodio, sleeping bag purchaser, Eastern Mountain Sports. "But that concept has changed with the newest fills on the marketplace."He adds that until synthetics can match all the qualities of down, a good deal of confusion will remain in the market. "Most clients seem to be comfortable going with synthetics over down, but there is the prospect of a whole lot of confusion with the assortment of new lawsuits out there. A well-trained
staff will be key to the sale."DuPont is willing to discuss some of the blame for the confusion at retail. Account manager for the DuPont Fiber Fill Group, Robert Van Dyke, worries that because the fill has a thinner profile, the benefits of Micro-loft -- compressability warmth and loft retention -- have to get worried on the sales floor."The teachers around the ground have to understand that Micro-loft provides better heat, even though it's not taller. This implies more work in the point of sale," says Van Dyke. "The theory about the high-tech level is that attic is the most significant, but merchants now have to rethink this issue.
"But, some retailers believe that trying to market the purpose of reduced attic with greater heat isn't going to be easy. "Attic remains the primary driver on the market," says REI's Watt. "How a bag looks and hangs off the shelf is still the primary element on the market. What gives Lite Loft a border is loft. With Micro-loft, people don't understand the less-loft-with-more-warmth ratio."Building a DecisionOn the production end, sellers are choosing insulations based on a mixture of price, functionality and the way its bags are positioned in the industry. Sierra Designs, for instance, has introduced six luggage such as also a 650 fill down bag and Polarguard HV models. Overall the company has gained a reputation because of its use of Lite Loft in its bags."When Lite Loft came on the market for clothing, Sierra Designs forced 3M to get a sleeping bag version, because the insulation was lighter and more compressible than others available on the marketplace," says Paige Springer, advertising director, Sierra Designs. "We utilize Lite Loft as our higher-end material. Polarguard never fell, but we adopted HV. It still has a place as a very durable product and is fantastic for the lower-end camping market. - https://github.com/campinglife/Sleeping ... d-I-Get%3F
"Instead of classifying fills strictly as large- or low-end products, many manufacturers are choosing insulations based on how well they fit their construction methods. The North Face, by way of example, uses Polarguard HV, which costs nearly half the cost of Lite Loft or Micro-loft, in its own bags. The business says the shingle structure of the insulation provides the most durable, lightweight bags on the market.
Marmot, which has introduced a whopping 25 new bags for 1994, utilizes a combination of Lite Loft and Primaloft in many luggage, citing the insulations' warmth-to-weight compatibility. In accordance with Marmot, Primaloft appears too thin to the consumer to endure so the company decided to utilize a insulation in the majority of its synthetic luggage.
MZH's Expedition Trails lineup remains utilizing DuPont's seven-hole, high-loft Qualofil in the majority of its luggage, but intends to include more Micro-loft into future versions. The company is manufacturing multi-layer bags on the outside coating for loft on the interior and Qualofil with Microloft.
According to Geila Hocherman, MZH's vice president, Micro-loft is a high performing insulation that needs special attention. "The problem with Micro-loft is the fact that it can't stand alone on its own--it depends upon the bag's construction," says Hocherman. "A lot of organizations are out to create the cheapest Micro-loft merchandise as you can. But that's like saying you want to use silk to make a baseball cap.
"Manufacturers assert that there are a number of problems with Lite Loft, as well. By using both polyester and olefin fibers, manufacturers warn that Lite Loft has a lower melting point than polyester insulations, for mistreating a Lite Loft tote, and so a chance exists. "You need to be cautious about heat when storing the bag in the trunk of a car, because the outer layer of insulating material has a lower melting temperature than the inner layer," says Sierra Designs' Springer. "But just like any bit of technical equipment, you have to treat it right."And while most of the news in sleeping bags has been dominated by synthetic insulations of late, down is far from dead. Manufacturers are introducing better-performing down luggage with greater minimal fill forces (from the 700's and 800's), in addition to higher down-to-feather content: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-typ ... ave-stenie
Additionally, the recent debut of DryLoft fabric from W.L. Gore & Assoc. was made to enhance down totes by keeping out moisture, while allowing
moisture from inside to escape.Many retailers expect the luxury techy consumer to go directly for the DryLoft down tote as the businesses' next standard of functionality.
