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Reviews > Hydration Systems > Bottles > Sigg Classic 1L Bottle > Test Report by Patrick McNeilly

SIGG Classic 1 L Bottle
Tested By Pat McNeilly

Initial Report: December 13, 2007
Field Report: March 2, 2008
Long-Term Report: May 2, 2008

Name: Pat McNeilly
Age: 45
Gender: Male
Height: 5’ 8” (1.7 m)
Weight: 155 lb (70 kg)
Email address: mcne4752 at yahoo dot com.
City, State, Country: Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA

Backpacking Background:
I have been hiking for at least 20 years but backpacking for only the last four years.  Most of my backpacking is done as overnight trips and occasional weekend and weeklong trips.  My typical packweight is approximately 18 to 20 lb (8 to 9 kg) before food or water.  Most of my backpacking is the three season variety in the mountains of Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.  In addition to backpacking, I also fish, hunt, and have been involved in disaster relief.  As a result, some of my backpacking equipment gets used in a number of different venues.
SIGG 1L Classic Bottle
Product Information:

Product: Classic 1L Bottle
Manufacturer: SIGG
Year of Manufacture: 2007
Color: Red
Size: 1 Liter (1 qt)
Weight (bottle + stopper; listed):  5.2 oz (147 g)

Weight (bottle + stopper; measured):  5.2 oz (147 g)
Weight (stopper only; measured):  0.4 oz (11 g)

URL:  http://www.mysigg.com/. 
MSRP: $19.99 USD


Initial Report
Report Date: December 13, 2007

Product Description:
SIGG Bottle StopperThe SIGG 1L Classic Bottle is a multi-use bottle which can handle a variety of liquids and made from a single extruded piece of aluminum.  The bottle is 10 1/4 in (26 cm) tall (with the stopper) and has a diameter of 3 1/4 in (8 cm).  The bottle has a 3/4 in (2 cm) threaded neck with an internal diameter of 1 in (2.5 cm).  The SIGG Classic Bottle has a red threaded stopper which measures 1 3/4 in (4 cm) tall and has a hole with a 3/4 in (2 cm) diameter for removing the stopper.  The stopper also has a 1/16 in (2 mm) white gasket.  The inside of the bottle is lined with a proprietary coating which gives the interior a gold colored appearance.  The manufacturer indicates that the Classic Bottle is durable and leak-proof.  The interior coating will not leach into or impart any taste to the liquids contained in the bottle.

The manufacturer’s literature which accompanies the bottle indicates that it is acceptable to use fruit juices and isotonic drinks in the bottle.  It is also fine to use carbonated and alcoholic beverages as well but there are cautions that these products could cause excessive pressure build-ups inside the bottle.  It is also notes that the bottle can be placed in the refrigerator but is not suitable for a deep freezer, microwave, or for cooking. 

The manufacturer also recommends that the bottle and stopper be cleaned by hand in hot water after each use.  Placing the bottle in a dishwasher is not recommended.

Product Review:
The first thing that I noticed, aside from the color of the bottle, was that it appears to be very well made product and of high quality.  I also noticed was how light it is.  The SIGG Classic Bottle simply feels lighter than any of the Lexan bottles I normally use.  The outer surface of the bottle is very smooth and appears as if it is coated with fine enamel.  It fits easily in my hand but I have some initial concerns that the bottle could be slippery especially under wet conditions.  I will also be on the look out for chipping of the finish, particularly if the bottle gets dented.

SIGG Bottle threads and interiorThe stopper is threaded and appears to seam firmly.  The stopper’s hole is large enough to easily insert a finger or a carabiner but I will explore whether this can be accomplished with gloved hands.  Since the threads on the neck of the bottle are aluminum while those of the stopper are plastic, I am interested to see if cross-threading will cause excessive wear on the threads of the stopper.  I have noticed already that the stopper sometimes needs to be seated carefully to ensure that the threads don’t get crossed. 

One thing that concerns me to a certain extent is that there is no tether attaching the stopper to the neck of the bottle.  I am interested to see if I have issues with misplacing the stopper.  Since the hole in the stopper easily fits on my finger, my initial feeling is that I will simply hold onto the stopper until it is time to recap the bottle.

One interesting thing that I notice is that since the bottle is round and has smooth straight sides, when it tips over, the bottle has a tendency to roll easily.  I have already had it rolling across the top of a table and on the floor.  I’m not sure if this will cause any problems but it will be in the back of my mind to make sure I set it down where it won’t roll away.

Field Report
Report Date: March 2, 2008

Field Conditions:
I have taken the SIGG Classic Bottle along on seven separate single day hikes in Maryland or northern Virginia area which ranged from 4 to 10 miles (6 to 16 km).  These hikes were on maintained trails at elevations of 300 to1350 ft (100 to 400 m).  I encountered temperatures of 25 to 65 F (-4 to 18 C) on these hikes and mostly dry conditions, although one hike was done with light snow falling. 

Scratches on SIGG bottleI also brought the bottle along on a weekend trip with my local Boy Scout troop to the George Washington National Forest in West Virginia.  This trip involved car camping but I did do some day hiking of approximately 2 to 3 total miles (3 to 5 km) at elevations of 1100 to 2100 ft (300 to 600 m).  The temperatures on this trip ranged from 4 to 35 F (-16 to 2 C) and the conditions involved snowy, icy trails.

Product Review:
My testing of the SIGG Classic Bottle over the past couple months has me questioning a couple things about the product.  I have not had any major problems with it but there are a few things worth noting. 

The bottle is very sleek looking with a nicely polished finish.  The smooth finish does make it easy to slip in and out of a pack or its pockets.  However, the finish does make the bottle a bit slippery with bare hands when it is wet.  I also found that the bottle was slippery when wearing knit gloves, which are the type I typically wear when hiking.  The finish also does not seem to be very durable.  I found that it scratches easily which was not particularly unexpected.  During one hike I was carrying the bottle in an external mesh pocket of a lumbar pack.  After about 20 minutes of hiking, I went to adjust something on the pack and noticed that the bottle was rubbing against a plastic buckle on the pack.  The rubbing had worn through the bottle’s finish right down to the bare metal in one spot.  I thought that the finish would have lasted a bit longer than that. 

Dent in SIGG bottleAs with all metal containers, the SIGG Classic Bottle has a tendency to dent when it is dropped.  This is not too much of a problem when the bottle is empty but of there is liquid in the bottle I found that it was much more likely to dent.  I dropped the bottle when it was almost completely full on a concrete floor and it produced a dent near the top of the bottle which measures approximately 1 ¼ in  x 1 in (3 cm x 2.5 cm).  The dent did not affect the neck and threads but does appear to produce a handy point to rest my thumb.  The dent is not a big problem but is not something I would expect from a plastic bottle.

Aluminum is a good conductor of heat and I feel that I should mention that the SIGG Classic Bottle is not an insulated product (and the manufacturer does not claim it to be one).  If I put something cold in it, it I found it to be cold to the touch.  If I put something very hot in it, I found that I had better be very careful when handling the bottle. 

I have not had any real problems with the bottle’s cap.  It seems to screw on easily and once seated, stays that way.  As I mentioned above, I usually wear knit gloves and have not had a problem opening the cap.  I did try to open the cap while wearing thicker gloves on one occasion and found that my finger would not fit into the hole in the stopper.  During my first few uses of the SIGG Classic Bottle, I had some trouble with cross threading when screwing the cap tight.  This gave me some concern because the stopper is plastic and I thought the metal threads on the bottle would continue to create problems.  This has not been the case and after a few outings, I don’t notice any problems with cross threading.

I have not noticed any unusual taste imparted on water stored in the bottle, even after a few days.  I have tried a few different drink mixes in the bottle.  I did note that after using an orange flavored drink mix that an orange odor could be detected even after washing the bottle with soap and water (but not scrubbing the inside).  The manufacturer indicates that carbonated beverages can be used in the SIGG Classic Bottle.  I filled the bottle about ¾ full with a well known cola product and stored it at room temperature for approximately 3 hours.  Upon opening the stopper, my hands did get some spray from the cola, as I expected.  I then resealed the bottle and let it sit overnight in a refrigerator.  I was again greeted with some cola spray when opening the bottle.  The cola tasted fine but was a bit flat.  I would not normally drink this type of product on the trail and I would not want to be the one opening the bottle after walking down a trail even after a short distance.  Although, this does give me confidence in the reliability of the seal.

It was cold during my trip to West Virginia and I did leave the bottle approximately 2/3 full outside overnight.  The manufacturer does not recommend putting the SIGG Classic Bottle into the freezer but I felt that this would be a realistic use of the product.  In the morning, I had a solid block of ice in the bottle.  This did not cause any problems that I could see (e.g., cracking) and the bottle has been fine since.  On the other hand, I would not want to try this with a full bottle

One thing that I find a bit annoying about the SIGG Classic Bottle is that I can’t tell how much liquid is in it without picking up the bottle.  It is not difficult to judge once I have it in my hand but I do find myself having to make a conscious effort to see how much I have in the bottle.  This also becomes an issue when drying out the bottle after use.  I find it somewhat difficult to see if there is any water left in the bottle.  I find that the interior finish of the bottle makes it difficult to see water at the bottom of the bottle.

I also found that the opening of the bottle is too narrow to fit the bottle adapter of my Katadyn water filter.  This requires a little more effort on my part when filtering water into the SIGG Classic Bottle.

Long-Term Report
Report Date: May 2, 2008

Field Conditions:
Since reporting last, I brought the SIGG Classic Bottle on four single day hikes.  These hikes all took place in central or western Maryland and ranged anywhere from 4 to10 miles (6 to 16 km) with elevations of 300 to 1100 ft (91 to 335 m).  I encountered temperatures of 25 to 50 F (-4 to 10 C) on these hikes.  Two of the hikes were done in clear conditions; I encountered snow on one hike in western Maryland; and the last hike was done in light to moderate rain.   

I also used the bottle on a weekend backpacking trip with my Boy Scout Troop to the Green Ridge State Forest in Maryland.  This was an introductory backpacking outing and thus mileage was limited to approximately six miles (10 km).  The elevation on this trip ranged from approximately 900 to 1100 ft (274 to 335 m).  During the trip, I encountered temperatures ranging from 45 to 75 F (7 to 24 C).  Weather conditions included sunny conditions interspersed with multiple rounds of thunderstorms.

Product Review:
With continued use of the SIGG Classic Bottle, I have found that the smooth sleek finish will not last long if using the bottle for any serious hiking.  The bottle has continued to receive multiple dents and scratches from being dropped or slipping out of a pocket.  I feel that the smooth finish has contributed to this to some extent.  I find myself being very cautious when bending over with a pack on to ensure that the bottle doesn’t slip out of the pockets.  On the other hand, I don’t usually have any problem sliding the bottle into or out of the pocket of my pack.

One aspect of the bottle I like is the shape of the neck and opening.  The neck is curved which, when combined with the smooth finish, provides a very comfortable feel when sipping from the bottle.  In addition, the mouth is narrow enough that I don’t feel I am going to spill the contents all over myself. 

I typically use a water filter when backpacking but on my trip to the Green Ridge State Forest I used both iodine and chlorine dioxide tablets for water purification.  I did not see that either of the formulations reacted in any way with the bottle’s interior finish.  Although the iodine imparts a taste to the water (yuk), I did not find that the bottle retained the taste when I rinsed the bottle and switched to chlorine dioxide.  Water treated with chlorine dioxide tasted just as I would have expected (i.e., like tap water).

At the beginning of the test, I had concerns about losing the stopper because it was not attached to the bottle.  At this point, I can say that I have not had problems with this.  In fact, I can’t remember a time when I even misplaced the stopper.  Typically, I will slide the stopper onto my little finger and hold it while drinking or filling.  The only problems I had with the stopper were noted in my Field Report. 

I have found cleaning the inside of the bottle to be somewhat of a challenge.  Although the bottle doesn’t normally retain odors, I have found myself washing the bottle in soapy water.  The narrow neck does make it difficult to remove all the suds (not a terrible hardship, by any means).  The neck does present a problem if there is need to actually scrub anything from the inside walls or bottom.  Typical of a narrow mouthed bottle, there is not an easy way to scrub the inside without a bottle brush of some type.   I have also rinsed the SIGG bottle with a mild bleach solution, as I occasionally do with my other bottles to ensure there aren’t too many unwanted creatures.  I did not see that this caused any problems with the interior finish and found that the bleach smell could easily be rinsed out.

After four months I have put the SIGG Classic Bottle through some fairly rough times.  It has been heated, frozen, exposed to various chemical water treatments and dropped repeatedly.  I have not seen that it has leaked a single drop.  However, the ease at which the bottle can dent and scratch annoys me.  I could look at these blemishes as battle scars but I find myself looking at the bottle and wanting to throw it in the recycle bin like any other aluminum can. 

Summary:
The SIGG 1L Classic Bottle is a simple water bottle made from extruded aluminum and has a smooth coated finish.  The bottle has a narrow threaded neck and is fitted with a separate plastic threaded stopper.  The bottle is lightweight but the finish tends to wear easily and the bottle can dent if dropped.  The bottle easily slips into a pack but can be a little slippery in wet conditions.  The bottle seals well and does not impart any unusual taste to liquids but can retain odors to a certain degree.  Cleaning the bottle can be somewhat difficult without a bottle brush.

Things I like:
1. Light weight
2. Slides easily into pockets
3.
Attractive finish

Things I don’t like:
1. Finish wears easily
2. Slippery when wet
3. Opening doesn’t fit my water filter
4. Can’t see inside

This concludes my testing of the SIGG 1L Classic Bottle.  I would like to thank SIGG and BackpackGearTest.org for the opportunity to test this item.



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Reviews > Hydration Systems > Bottles > Sigg Classic 1L Bottle > Test Report by Patrick McNeilly



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