SOFTIE 3 MERLIN by SNUGPAK
(A Brett Harris Ltd. Brand)
 
TWO SEASON LIGHTWEIGHT SLEEPING BAG
Field Test Report - January 6, 2004

"Have you seen my new sleeping bag?"

"You have a bag that sleeps?  Amazing..."

SPECIFICATIONS

The Softie 3 Merlin, two season lightweight sleeping bag, is manufactured in the UK by: 
Brett Harris, Ltd. under the Snugpak brand.  

Year of Manufacture: 2003

Web: http://www.snugpakusa.com
International: http://www.snugpak.com

ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS

I have slept with the Snugpak Softie 3 Merlin every night since receiving it.  Admittedly, half of the time this was in the comfort of my bedroom, but I spent a total of 30 nights outdoors with the Merlin (although I normally just call it (him) 'Merlin').  About half these nights were in the back yard under varying conditions.  On hikes, terrain was variable, and included sandy beaches, river sandbars, bottomland hardwoods, and Cypress swamps.  Temperatures ranged from 85 F (29.4 C) to 34 F (1.1 C).  Humidity ranged from 80% to 50%, with the average running to the damp side.  

The Merlin was used in a variety of shelters, including the Tarptent Virga by Henry Shires, a Hennessy Hammock, my open garage, and on a few occasions nothing but the canopy of trees above me.  The same pad was used for all temperature rating measurements, this being two blue closed-cell foam pads stacked on top of one another.  Ground temperatures never dropped below 50 F (10 C).

PACKING AND UNPACKING

I have gotten somewhat proficient at rolling Merlin and putting him into the compression sack.  Unfortunately, it still isn't all that easy.  Merlin must be folded correctly then rolled very tight in order to get it into the stuff sack.  Even with my strong hands, this is a chore.  It takes me almost four minutes to roll it then work it into the stuff sack.  If the stuff sack were just a little larger, this wouldn't be as difficult or time consuming.

TEMPERATURE RATING

I sleep nude; not because I've bought into the fallacy that, "You'll be warmer if you sleep naked in your bag", but because I'm more comfortable that way.  Besides, only animals sleep in their clothes.  I will from time to time use a silk liner, or if I'm feeling greedy, a fleece liner - but only if it is necessary due to the temperature.  On even rarer occasion, I will sleep in silk tights, but for that the weather would have to be desperately cold or very damp.  The rarest of all occasions will see me wearing all my clothes inside the bag, but only if I'm going to freeze to death without them.  My sleep in that case is by no means sound.  Why am I telling you all of this?  So that you understand that for the data presented, I am rating the bag and the bag alone.  I have thoroughly charted the bag's comfort in a variety of temperatures, and I don't want clothing to interfere with that charting.  A bag's rating, after all, is a bag's rating.  Not the bag's rating when you're wearing a down parka.  

I do not usually zip a sleeping bag, even in the coldest weather for a few reasons.  One, I don't like to be confined.  I wouldn't define this as any kind of claustrophobia - I just like to be able to move freely.  Secondly, I have found that any part of the sleeping bag under me compresses, and so loses its insulative value.  I prefer, for those reasons, to use any sleeping bag as a quilt.  During the test I did use the Merlin both ways and no appreciable difference in the temperature rating was noticed.  

Rather than file a series of mini trip reports, I have decided to summarize my findings on comfort as far as temperature was concerned in the following chart:

I was pleased that the published temperature rating matched my findings closely.  By adding clothing, I am sure that this bag would be adequate to an even lower - if undetermined - temperature.  I will be curious to see if the rating is maintained over the long term or if there will be any loss of insulating properties with use.  To be truthful, if I expected to use this bag under normal conditions I would definitely carry my silk liner.  I prefer to be warm when sleeping than even a little cool.  This is simply a preference and I do consider that the bag is adequate for the published range.

Temperature rating can be affected by many things.   Humidity is one of them.  During times of high humidity I have often woken up to a decidedly damp sleeping bag - but this was never true with the Snugpak Softie 3 Merlin.  Every morning the bag was perfectly dry, having absorbed no moisture whatsoever!  I could not believe this was true at first, and did some controlled tests, weighing the bag before going to sleep, and then immediately upon waking.  The measured weight gain from humidity never exceeded 2 ounces (57 grams)!  Thirty minutes later, the measured weight gain was zero.  The bag had completely dried.  I consider this to be only one sandwich short of miraculous.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

The outer shell is quite soft, but the inner shell is exquisite.  The very fine quality of the Pertex Infin8T material continues to be wonderfully comfortable.    The 'profiling' or 'no stitch through' construction means that there are no stitch lines to irritate my sensitive skin.  I just love the way it feels.  The only irritant is the large triple tag. I will definitely cut this out after the test period. 

The fit is decent.  I am 56 in (142 cm) around my arms, however,  and the 59 in (150 cm) fit is rather confining around my shoulders.  It is, however, ample below the waist and above my shoulders.  The hood cinches nicely and I am quite cozy.  When used as a quilt, the Snugpak Softie 3 Merlin is more than adequate.  

The product poster included with the Merlin states, "Due to the ultra fine 'down like' nature of our filling and the ultralight fabrics we use, some percolation of the fibre through the casing is inevitable."  I have not observed any such percolation.  

Moisture did not prove to be a problem.  I never allowed the bag to become wet.  During the Long-Term Test period I will be wetting the bag to report on its performance when wet.  (Alas!)

I have not yet washed the bag, but I am nearing the necessity of that eventuality.  

The anti-snag zipper is definitely not anti-snag.  If the nylon webbing ribbon used to reduce the chance of snagging were a little wider, it might be anti-snag.  Admittedly, I have not snagged it badly, nor have I damaged the Pertex or the zipper, but it isn't as good as it could be.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE STUFF SACK.

The Snugpak Softie 3 Merlin is light and small.  That's good.  It replaced a synthetic bag that is considerably bulkier with the same rating (read cheaper), it has allowed me to carry less in both weight and volume - the goal, really of any backpacker.  While running through the woods on night maneuvers this did prove especially beneficial.  Coupled with the Tarptent Virga, it has provided a much lighter and smaller sleep system than I previously used.

What's better is that it is luxuriously comfortable.  I caught my wife using it during a nap!  My daughter snuggles under it with me on the sofa, and frequently demands, "Daddy!  Cover me!", and by that she means with the Merlin and not with the knit blanket we used to use.   My emotional attachment to Merlin isn't as strong as with some other bags I have had, but it is growing on me steadily, and is my current bag of choice for the published temperature ranges.

What's bad?  Very little.  It's a little confining for my girth, but that's the fault of Southern cooking, I suppose.  The anti-snag zipper isn't very anti-snag in my limited experience.

I expected that it would be very difficult to get the Merlin back into the compression stuff sack.  To be fair, it isn't as hard as I thought it would be, and it has gotten faster with practice, but it is still not easy.

TESTING STRATEGY

During the Long-Term Test I will use the Snugpak Softie 3 Merlin as my sleeping bag when out and about, as a quilt every night, and as a blankie while snuggling on the sofa with my family.   I will recheck the temperature rating, and test the temperature rating when wet.

SUMMARY

THINGS I LIKE

1.  Small
2.  Light
3.  The Pertex material is more comfortable than any other synthetic material I have had against my skin.

THINGS I DON'T LIKE

1.  Moderately difficult to get into compression stack.
2.  A little confining for my girth.
3.  Anti-snag zipper isn't anti-snag.

***

Thank you for your time.

Shane Steinkamp
shane@theplacewithnoname.com
www.theplacewithnoname.com/hiking