I've been looking into sleeping bags and was wondering if anyone has any experience with Alpkit bags and if they are any good? I’ve had my OEX Fathom for around six months now, but haven’t shared my review until now because the summer has been so incredibly warm. It’s a three-season sleeping bag, and as such, the first week I used it I slept on top of it rather than in it, and until the last couple of months I hadn’t zipped it up all the way. Hooray for a proper summer! The nights in September and October have been much cooler, as you might expect, and so I’ve now had opportunity to give some real consideration to my opinion. OEX Fathom EV 300 Sleeping Bag

Rated at -3*C (I'm a warm sleeper) it seems to me to be OK - particularly if you use a quality 'warm' mattress (most of your body heat is lost to the ground so the mattress is an important element of the 'sleep system') It is a tapered bag BUT not a severe taper - I am a 6-foot, fourteen and a half stone, restless 'side-sleeper' and even in a bed at home can wake up in a panic if I get 'wrapped' up in a sheet. It has never yet happened with my OEX.One option I was considering was getting an Alpkit Skyehigh 900 + Hunka XL + Thermarest NeoAir Xtreme + Alpkit Masson sleeping bag liner, would this work? It might seem overkill but I don't want to get cold or wet.

Does anyone have a better option for me that they could point me to (I am researching, not wanting folks to do it for me but it's always good to have differing perspectives to draw on).

Chinese sleeping bag.

I guess I’ll never really know if my choice was 100% the best I could make, because I am only able to buy one sleeping bag (I only need one!). But, overall, I am very happy to report that I am quite content with my OEX Fathom EV 300 sleeping bag. It fits the specification I had in mind, didn’t break the bank, and has been keeping me happy at night this summer and autumn so far. As always, if my opinion changes over time I’ll be sure to let you know. The OEX Fathom EV 300 Sleeping Bag is a synthetic, fully-lined mummy-style sleeping bag that is designed to be suitable for spring through to autumn. It is rated as comfortable down to temperatures as low as 1 degree Celsius (limit -5, extreme -22), which should mean it’s good for frosty mornings in remote areas. One reason that down is so expensive is the welfare standards required in the EU, and I'm in little doubt that to keep the price down, your Chinese made bag simply won't meet those standards. It's up to you and your conscience whether you think that's a problem. I had used it a couple of time before (although in more temperate conditions) and it seemed fine. However whilst using on WHW with temperature through night dropping to zero (maybe slightly lower) I found every sleep in this bag uncomfortable and not very warm at all. Every morning when waking up I was noticing feathers coming loose from the baffled sections. I never found this bag easy to fluff up in an evening and it just felt like a very thin, flimsy cloth.

Towards the end of the trip I also noticed the eyelet at the drawcord had also come loose and disappeared (despite never using it) and this again was causing more feathers to come loose. Two things I was looking for specifically were both in comparison with the sleeping bag I was replacing – I wanted it to be the same or lighter in weight, and rated a little warmer so I could more comfortably camp in spring and autumn. When choosing my bag I had the West Highland Way in mind – that was my benchmark in terms of what I needed this bag to do for me in terms of be light enough to carry and warm enough for camping in Scotland. Just to throw my tuppence worth in here. Apologies I don't have any experience of the Chineses bags you ask, however I do have experience of the OEX Helios. Jon and Jen has(have) already stated “Not overly concerned about the welfare issue.” In other words they don’t seem to give a whatever with respect to the welfare of the animals.Combine it with an Exped Down Mat and you have the 'perfect 3-season' system (possibly push it to 4-seasons in an emergency) I have to admit to being very, very disappointed with this bag. I bought this bag mainly due to its weight and the fact it is 3 season. I intended it mainly for WHW which I done this year late March/early April. Only concern I have is that it's a tapered mummy, I rumble around a lot.....an awful lot when I sleep so even the biggest bags will be restrictive for me. Quilts don't meet the weight restrictions so they are a no no. I daresay I'll get used to using a bag mind you.