WM Antelope SMF

[Jay H]

Knowing the opinion of WM via the Down bag thread and since I do own an WM Iroquois, I found a discontinued '03 Antelope SMF on "sale" for $324 that is rated for 5°F.

I'm sort of considering it as I'd like to get a better winter bag for backpacking and ski touring.... I don't know if I can take parting with that kind of cash but I think I have been a good boy this year... hello santa!

Heh... forgot my question. Anybody compare this to the current Antelope SMF, which appears only $40 more or so but just a bit lighter and a different shell covering.

Or how about a MH Phantom 0 which is rated colder and roughly the same weight for slightly more...?

Jay

 

[Warren]

I can't answer your question about the difference tween the two years- WM has a toll free number I would just call them.

I do think the antelope is the more roomy model since you're small framed you might find the bag too roomy, that is difficult to heat up due to the extra space

 

[Jay H]

The Antelope is more roomy...

Phantom 0 5'6" is 58/55/37
Antelope SMF 5'6" is 62/53/39

Both are 2lb 6oz.
The Phantom is rated to 0 while the Ant. SMF is rated to +5
The Phantom packs an inch smaller in length at 8x16 vrs 8x17

If I wasn't so fond of my Iroquois.... My friend has a Phantom 32 which is nice but I haven't actually tried it. I don't mind the 2/3rds zipper and frankly, I sleep like a mummy, so as long as my small frame fits, I'm very easy to fit.

Ack, can't find any Phantom sales but I have seen some ;03 Antelopes on sale. I saw one for $245 too at northern lites..... Didn't say it was an older model but I emailed them and got a reply saying it is indeed an old model. They had the '04 for basically MSRP, a tipoff that the one on sale is old. But that's a great price though... very tempting.

Jay

 

[erd]

I have the WM Antelope in Microfiber. I was out camping on Sunday and Monday this past week using it. It was down around -10 to -15 Monday AM, perhaps five degrees in the tent, and I was cozy and happy.

I do generally wear a Stephenson VB shirt (prefer VB clothing to VB bag liners) and with that and a bit of clothing I can take the Antelope even colder. Another tactic is to use a down top liner of the kind Moonstone used to make (they are hard to find though). I use mine often and it adds fifteen to twenty degrees to the bag rating.

I should say that I paid $270 for my Puma, "used" but apparently never taken into the field. I also have an old NF bag (from when NF was a real mountaineering outfitter) which is good to at least -15.

A good bag combined with creative tactics can take you down into seriously low temperatures, sometimes well below bag rating, but I should, in good conscience, recommend working out slowly and carefully what works for you. Also keep in mind that some folks are just congenitally cold sleepers and need extra insulation. Also, even a warm sleeper can get dehydrated or underfed and have a cold might. And (finally) almost as important as the bag is the insulation underneath. Having a toasty topside is no good if you are on a pad that's letting you freeze from the bottom up.

Enjoy!!

Ted.