Tarp went up as a wind shield, it was really quite blustery up on the top.

The smaller, lightweight, non-hooped bivvy bags are miserbale in the rain so the extra 300g of tarp and pegs is worth it ime. It also offers somewhere to cook, get changed etc for when the weather is foul.

My Med is sized fairly loose if that helps.

Ive had mine about a year and it has been a great jacket. Nothing flash, just a good simple jacket with all the essentials and subtle enough to wear off the bike.

338g for the M if that helps with the WRT loading 🙂

Oh, it’s ok though as its not going to rain.

Have you had Beth slim down the stuff sack yet? You could claw back a gram or two there!

I use the stuff sack from the vest instead which is a perfect size. If they do actually colour code them, the sleeping bag was neon green/black and the vest one is red/black?

360g in it’s stuff sack? 😉

I found the £10 postage hard to swallow on a vest that is only just over the weight a first class stamp should cover!!

I’m looking forward to seeing the Wildcat kit in the flesh, I’ll have to look you out to say hi. I’ll be on a tatty Lynskey 26″ SS if you spot me (the white titus has been rebuilt for something with a little more load space!).

In order to keep this thread alive, here is last Thursday nights trip out into the Dark Peak. The grouse were very vocal overnight!

I see you have been gained a few your PHD loyalty points then Ian 😉 Did you buy the sleeping bag then use the discount buying the vest?!

The 900 down is pretty special eh.

DNFatal, I’ve yet to make myself a revelate style seat bag so I have to rely on my big Topeak saddle pouch, with another stuff sack strapped underneath it! Well spotted. Hats off to your kit collection, I’m suprised your not using one of the lighter TN tents though?

I have just done my food list, its not pretty! I’m hoping to be self sufficient so I’m running at about 1kg per day even using 200g Expedition main meals.

The kit faffage is half the fun 🙂

Nick, pump carried by riding partener 😉

Didnothingfatal, sorry it does feel like I have found someone who is on exactly the same wavelength and we are arguing over the same wonderful things:-) In the interest of fairness, to let you pick holes in my list here we go-

Underseat Sack complete weight= 793g
Terra Nova Bivvy Bag 190g
Neoair 260g
Integral Designs Tarp 199g
Ti wire & Y-Pegs inc. guys 101g
Stuff Sac 43g

3L drybag 1 complete weight= 520g
PHD Sleeping Bag 345g
Lifa Long Johns 117g
3L Exped Drybag 58g

3L drybag 2 complete weight= 699g
PHD Down vest 246g
Ti mug 131g
Lifa LS Top 182g
Fleece Beanie 26g
Merino Socks 56g
Exped 3L Dry Bag 58g

Pace Event waterproof jacket in stuff sack= 346g

Straps for all 3 above circa 80g

Sundries in plastic bag= 99g
Spork
Headtorch
Matches
Spare Batteries

Bike spares/tools in pouch= 419g
Chain Tool
Brake Pads
Chain links
Gaffa tape
Zip ties
Patch kit

saddle bag complete weight= 770g
250ml Meths 230g
2x innner tubes 190g
Wind Sheild 28g
Medical kit
Emergency polycro groundsheet (52g)
Toilet roll
Stove 9g
Topeak waterproof saddle bag

Water filter bottle 157g

Camelbak Octane 18x exc. bladder = 458g

Food TBW (to be weighed)

Weight so far (exc. water, food and maps) = 4.341kg it soon mounts up!

Yup but your still listing 2kg+ of shelter/sleeping, 1kg+ of night clothing/waterproofs, at least 0.6kg of luggage, 0.2kg meths, 0.3kg+ bike spares.

Your over 4kg without any food just there, not including sundries like first aid?

I’m sorry I’m being pedantic, its just that I got excited that there may be a way of doing a 2-night trip with food, all under 4kg 🙂

Thats a seriously tasty kit list Didnothingfatal, the 4kg total inc. food you were aiming for isn’t a complete weight though; to include food and fuel if your buying stuff on route.

Taking the 2kg you listed above (shelter/sleeping/cooking) and allowing a rough rule of thumb of 1kg of food per day thats 4kg just for your food, shelter and cooking kit.

Add your bags, evening clothing you listed, fuel, bike spares etc. I suspect your nearing on 6-7kg. Still mighty impressive though.

If didnothingfatal’s 4kg inc. tent and food is anything to go by (page6), not very much!

Seriously, can we have your kit breakdown with weights that’s pretty amazing!

Does that include fuel, bike spares, rucksack, drybags, straps etc or is it just the sceleton weight of the camping kit?

[Tightarseicon]

😯

Looks great John and a respectable weight all up. Photo looks ace, if you hadn’t put the neoair in there I would have struggled to get a sense of scale with those mahoosive wheels!

Cheers Paul, yup I had thought of that but because of my design it’s kept as a loose strap to thread underneath after. It couldn’t be sewn on or it meant taking the stem faceplate off in order to feed the main straps round the bars. I’m tempted to add on a small camera type pouch to the front for quick access kit, like sweets 🙂

For 2 Wales novices would it be unwise to decide on a rough plan on the drive over? Should there be a little more research involved?

I’m loving the little cave you have created that’s ace. I’m bored having been stuck at home this weekend; what’s your full kit list?

Paul that all looks lovely and streamline. The Singular still looks remarkably fast even fully loaded!

My 40yr old Bernina sewing-machine has been out again 🙂 This time a bar-harness, again made from recycled bits and pieces I had knocking around.

It’s designed to hold 2 seperate 3L drybags as I found this to the best use of storage space and it allows the cables to pass nicely between the two. It also includes some stabiliser straps underneath to stop it bouncing around.

Looks fine john, the dpm is only on one side so you can always use it the other way up if you dont like the colour. Its just polythene rather than a coated nylon hence the low price. It’s a good weight for its size and price. Have fun rigging it up:)

Do I take it the wrt grid refs are out in time for the 4 day weekend?

Good find, although somewhat large for bike duties!

Ian, they are indeed 26″ wheels but I suspect a 29er would still allow enough fabric to play with. It’s actually really easy to rig up, it takes 1 to 2 mins tops and uses 10 pegs as some guys are shared. Once you have got all the guys fixed there is no real danger of wheel slippage unless you boot it by accident.

Here is my different take on the Siltarp set-up. Rain coverage is excellent and provides a nice shape from head to toe. One side goes to the floor for wind protection, the other is raised about a foot for greater coverage and a better view of the surroundings. The fabric is nice and taught which creates a very stable shape.

Like Ian’s, weight is around the 300g mark including decent pegs. With the 2g Terra Nova pegs from my laser comp tent it would be around 230g but useless in anything other than lawn turf!

Where did you get the material?

At £13 I’m tempted to buy one, but I’m always up for a bit of MOYG

If your using a tarp them a bivi bag isn’t necessary

…unless the ground is already wet from rain! The bag I was using at the time also happened to be a Survival Zone but I never really suffered with excessive condensation at other times.

Great pictures Matty and thanks for the inclusion of the weights 🙂 Did you make the pot cosy?

Another thing to note is that for longer trips the drier you can keep waterproof breathable fabric the better it performs. The last time I slept out during a wet night with the lower part of my bag out of a very small tarp my sleeping bag was soaked due to condensation as it couldn’t breathe efficiently through the film of water. For trips of longer than a couple of nights an exposed bivvy bag isn’t really practical especially with very lightweight down sleeping bags.

You could argue that a full on goretex/event hooped bivvy bag used with a shared tarp would work but then the bivvybag on its own is heavier than many of the lightweight solo set ups shown here.

Ian, with a Moonlite bivvybag, PHD Minim Ultra bag and a Balloon bed you could get another 500g+ off that list 😉

From Tuesday nights outing on Cut-Gate, Derbys-

It was absolutely beautiful. I was testing my full C2C kit (exc. food) if anyone wonders why I seem to have a lot of kit for a one nighter.

I had a great session on the sewing machine last night and made my first frame bag. Really pleased, its nice and secure and should hold all the bits and pieces I had previously just zip-tied to the frame. The great thing is I managed to butcher and old fishing rod carrybag for the cordura so it only cost me £2.50 for the zip.

We are having our WRT kit practice session on Monday so I’ll report back with final weights and photos!! How exciting 🙂

That’s ace, looks like a perfect job well done.

That looks interesting can you show the close up of how the bracket works. Is it still waterproof?

Ian, it fits in the tarp stuff sac with the tarp at the same time!

Did you put any sealant on the central loop’s stitches?

Siltarp arrived, what a day 🙂 I’m using a wheel to create a tunnel design with mine. It’s a slippery little thing eh Ian?

Both my new bivvy bag and tarp fit in the tarp’s stuff sack which is not much bigger than a tin of soup!

If anyone is after some cheap, light, strong cord for tarp use Taunton Leisure sell 2mm Mammut cord for 30p per metre and free delivery that weighs 2g per M. The quality is spot on and will be more than strong enough. Found in ‘climbing accessories’.

Stu, I just laid it over my Survival Zone and it’s identical only about 6″ shorter. It is however box section at the end which should help a little.

I wouldn’t have any concerns over putting my PD800 in it. A down jacket as well might be too snug.

The nice thing about the Moonlite will be that being such light fabric it will also help my summer bag to achieve it’s full loft.

Bigface, you have options 🙂

All these are only a few quid more-

Cleats.co.uk for Y pegs and guys
Hike-lite.co.uk for Vargo Ti-lite mug (virtually identical)
Ewetsuits.com for Lomo drybags and iirc rucksac
Georgefisher.co.uk for Siltarp1

Behold, I have nipped home and my Terra Nova moonlite bivvy bag has turned up YAY. 186g on the scales and half price :-). At 6′ I wouldn’t want to be any taller, but then under a tarp I’m unlikely to want to fully draw it closed anyway. Good old Field and Trek 🙂

Mau, that £120 Black Diamond bivvy is 300g and only water resistant? Rab Survival Zone-Lite and Terra Nova Moonlite are both considerably lighter and cheaper, not sure on the sizing but the standard Survival Zone is huge compared to my sleeping bag.

Ian, to wet your appetite for the phd kit further, I bivvied last night in the Lincs Wolds. Car temp when I returned was 3’C (5′ below their recommendation of 8′) and I was toasty enough to do away with the silk liner-

Tarp,
Balloon bed,
Rab Survival Zone,
PHD Ultra bag,
Silk Liner,
PHD Minimus vest,
Lifa Base layers,
M&S Merino socks,
Wool beanie.

Was a glorious kit and bike-loading test for my WRT set-up, 8.30pm start- 3 hrs riding on dusty fast trails riding mostly by moonlight, solo bivvy, breakfast then home by 6.30am. I’m just sat catching my breath having a cuppa then off to work. It’s lovely making the most of this beautiful weather we have been having.

I also managed to stumble on the 200g Moonlite bivvy on F&T for £50! but with their reputation I don’t hold my breath 🙁 It was showing as 1 in stock so fingers crossed.

I hope this doesn’t annoy Ian too much, but George Fisher are selling Siltarp 1’s for £45 with free delivery.

I may have indulged and it’s showing as being dispatched 🙂

Boblo, which goretex bivvy bag weighs 250g?

Liking the home-made balloon bed well done. I have often thought it could do with being 8 rather than 7 wide, virtually no weight penalty for extra comfort.

Ian,

The PHD sleeping bags are slim. The Ultra bag for example would fit perfectly inside the Alpkit PD800 and still have plenty of room to loft, probably not dissimilar to the design and intention of their Combi bags.

The vests are sized to go over a base layer and fleece so are quite roomy. I was similar to you in that I’m a measly 38″ chest but 6′ tall and went for the Med based on chest size. The fit is perfect, it certainly isn’t too short and chest size is spot on. It has loads of loft though so even in just a base layer it fills the voids to stop heat loss and the pits are slightly elaticated too.

The Minimus vest always seems to appear in their sales for £89 (keep in mind their £10 delivery!) although IMO at £125 it’s still worth the money compared with the similar spec. OMM Finch. Also it looks a lot nicer than in the photos. The Rab Microlight is similar weight and packsize but certainly won’t be as warm, but then it’s cheaper.

I suspect the 900-fill Ultra vest if anything like the sleeping bag won’t ‘feel’ as warm or cosy due to the lack of sheer bulk. More of a performance layer than a cosy cuddly down warmer 🙂

I notice Terra Nova have more lovely new kit this year, I’m interested to know if their 900fill bag is EU or US measured down, it’s still colder and more expensive than the PHD Ultra!

The Laser is the 2man, the lighter Laser Comp is the 1+ and very cosy indeed for 2. They are a very popular lightweight tent for good reason.

I love mine and I’m still undecided whether to tarp or tent for the WRT. The tent is only 300g more and offers substantial comfort but pack size is greater and is less social!

Ian, Re. the PHD kit,

I only bought the Ultra sleeping bag mid-March so have only used it once to date, initial impressions are good though and as a modular sleeping system I’m happy with my choice. The combination of this, an Alpkit PD800 bag, a balloon bed and a neoair give me lightweight 4-season coverage depending on what combinations I take.

The Ultra sleeping bag feels incredibly thin but it is held in very high regard by those that have used it in temperatures below the ‘8C they recommend. PHD are one of the few companies I trust regarding the quality of their down.

When I used it, we were sleeping on bare rock with only a short balloon bed for ground protection (+Rab bivvy bag). I used a 100g silk liner, Lifa base layers and my 450g 800-fill Montane jacket and was perfectly warm and cosy. Temperatures were 3-4’C before windchill.

The vest is absolutely stunning, it has a huge loft for such a tiny pack size. PHD are very conservative with their stuff sacks. The Ultra sleeping bag fits in the vest stuffsack (0.8L ish) and the vest fits into a spare tent peg bag at around 0.4L. The sleeping bag, vest and silk liner fit in a 3L dry bag without any effort.

I’ll be using the Ultra bag and Minimus vest on the WRT.

Shoes – Summer race shoes with WoolieBoolie’s. Spare merino socks for evening wear and plastic bags to keep them dry inside the wet shoes. If it rains!!

Slugwash, you must mean Ian’s, my MYOG I’ve pictured is far from being a winner where craftmanship and aesthetics are concerned!

Back to Big-face, as a vessel only (ie not for cooking too) 60g isn’t ‘that’ light. Just use a disposable cup from a Klix machine at 5g.