phd should i consider them

Fri, Jun 12, 2009

Not really sure on this. The Minimus is 465g and rated to 5C, which is pretty chilly but I can expect that sort of temp in the mountains on a summer’s night. They say it’s actually warmer than most 0C rated bags, which Andy Howell seems to back up. The biggest problem is the lack of a zip so I know I’ll overheat in it. Going for the 900 fill power down and a full length zip takes the price to 212.00, which is a lot. The Cumulus has 870 down and is about 180.00, so there’s prolly not much between them. The extra price of the PHD prolly reflects the 900 down in it.

Then I gave their Design Your Own service a go, with these options:

  • 200g of 900 fill power (4C)
  • Short left zip + Single draft tube
  • MX outer
  • Mummy hood
  • Collar
  • Side baffles (they stop the down working its way from the top to the bottom of the bag)
that came out at 565g and 267.00. That is a lot. It is a lot of faff too and the more you faff the more expensive it gets. I could bin a few of those features and starting again, with nothing else tweaked I went for 250g of 900 down. That gave 490g and rated to 1C. That is a good compromise I think but it starts at 220.00. Then I do need at last a half length zip, decent hood... so the price just spirals again. I think a realistic price for me would be around 230 - 250 quid. Considering I can get the Rab for about 150 (with Pertex Endurance outer, which is handy for bivvying) and the Cumulus for about 160, can I justify another 100 quid on top of that?

The PHD bags are also much shorter than the Rabs. Interestingly, they’re offering a 10% discount on other purchases if you spend more than 130.00 in a calendar year. You get the discount for the rest of that year and the whole of the next. Considering I’ve got my eye on a PHD down jacket, well, I wonder.

One final blast of the design your own with the same options but 250g of 900 down gave 652g, rated to 1C, costing 278.00. Ouch! Using 200g of 900 down takes it down to 594g, rated to 4C and 261.00. 100g heavier than the Cumulus and 50g lighter than the Rab but 100 quid dearer than both.

I imagine that would be a really good bag. A good compromise on temperature. 4 is cold. I’d prolly be using the big Rab by then anyway. Then again, it was just below freezing on Cairngorm yesterday. Also, it takes 3 weeks to get the bag. Can I wait that long? It’ll be almost August by then. I’d be using the big Rab by end of October so that’s 3 months use for the PHD.

I must consider this option carefully. It’s the Rolls Royce option but I’m sure it would be worth it if I can justify the cost. Alan Sloman and Andy Howell both swear by PHD and they should know.