UKC

I’m getting one my sons a down sleeping bag as a present . It’s ages since I bought a down bag and I’m inclined to go for rab simply because I’ve had mine 20 plus years and it’s still performs well. Always been stored dry and uncompressed etc . However old it is ( might be more than 20 years ) it was made in Sheffield and was ftom the.more expensive range of the two  they did . Firstly I’m guessing they are all made in China / Asia now as will all but very expensive ones ( phd etc ) ? Do rab bags still represent value ? Could anybody give a brief overview/ review ? ( mostly cost vs value , are the more expensive bags worth  it ? I suppose finally are thier other brands that represent better  value for money ? 

In reply to mike123:

I can't speak for Rab but my old Mountain Equipment bag that was my autumn/not so cold winter bag was great.

The PHD bags are light and great bags depending on how you customise them which was posted in another thread somewhere. My winter bag from PHD lacks some of the features on heavier bags from other brands. 

You could argue that feathers are feathers if they are all sourcing this Polish down at roughly 850 fill power unless you have deep pockets. Neck baffles, reflective materials, breathability and so forth all matter. The game changer for me was more the mat, using the winter thermarest changed the performance. My tent mattered as some tents condensate terribly, mine vents very well.

A Rab bag will perform very well. Other brands may in certain conditions perform slightly better by small margins but a Western Mountaineering bag at a similar spec I wouldn't have thought would keep your son any happier in his tent compared to a Rab..

In reply to mike123:

I've always found mountain equipment offers lightweight warm bags for reasonable price.

Check out

https://ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk/sleeping-bags-and-accessories/

for an extensive choice and good reviews.

In reply to mike123:

Mountain Equipment easily surpass Rab on quality these days. Plus their new shoulder baffle design is very very good.

There are other high end, small manufacturers such as PHD (Uk made), feathered friends & western mountaineering  (USA) ect but they are relatively much more expensive.

I don’t know what supply is like these days as Russia did produce alot of high quality down to the market, that’s now (rightly) unavailable due to sanctions.

In reply to mike123:

Thanks all . Will take a look at the ME range 

In reply to mike123:

Another recommendation for Mountain Equipment. I have three ME bags, the newest is a couple of years old, and the oldest I've had for 25+ years. They've all been good quality and reliable.

In reply to mike123:

Hi Mike

I can’t comment on RAB bags as I’ve never had one, always buying Mountain Equipment.

Last month I bought my daughter the helium 600 and a sea to summit plus mat.

The combination coped very well with a minus 4 camp on the hills.

Comparing it to my 25 year old Snowline, the shell fabric wasn’t quite as robust as the drilite on the snowline, but they’re different spec bags.

She was very happy with it and the Matt.

In reply to olddirtydoggy:

Most bags won't be as much as 850 fill power (more like 650) and I noticed a while back that Rab had started using a higher feather to down ratio in their cheaper bags. 5% used to be standard but now 10% is. Feather is cheaper, more bulky, less insulating. Also, many now use duck down rather than goose.

The game changer for me was more the mat, using the winter thermarest changed the performance.

Very true, down bags are poor for keeping you warm from the floor, a bag with a synthetic base and down filled top is a good idea.

Sadly, for the more affordable end of the market at least, I think Rab are now living on their name/reputation developed 30+ years ago.

In reply to gethin_allen:

 

True for a lot of their kit now, sadly the durability is terrible.

In reply to gethin_allen:

My Mountain Equipment Helium brought in the last couple of years is duck rather than goose down, but at nearly 750 European fill power with 6% feather. Whether it will last as long as goose down is an unknown, but 750 power was regarded as good for goose down not that long ago. Sourced from Germany, but later dropped by ME due to audit transparency concerns.

Down sorting has obviously improved massively, hence high spec 1000 for goose, or getting towards 800 for duck.

In reply to ScraggyGoat:

One thing to consider is if the fill power stated is the American standard or the European standard. The eu one is lower (by maybe 100) for the same down measured by the American system.

In reply to olddirtydoggy:

Whilst I'd agree about some of the comments about other bits of rab kit, I've found my neutrino 200 am absolutely superb, reliable and faultless bit of kit over the last few years.

In reply to mike123:

What about alpkit? I've two of their bags and am very happy with them. 

Or Snugpacks which do have uk made bags(https://snugpak.com/collections/sleeping-bags-uk-made). I've a non uk synthetic one for the van and huts you can drive to and the quality is excellent.

In reply to mike123:

Cumulus out of Poland makes superb down gear at very reasonable prices.  

I have a Cumulus bag, and a friend has 3 of them.  

They are equal in quality to the specialty manufacturers (Feathered Friends, Western Mountaineering, PHD, etc.) at a fraction of the price.  

Certain of their bags are also customizable for length, girth, fabric, fill, etc.

https://cumulus.equipment/us_en/sleeping-bags/down.html

In reply to mike123:

Another brand to consider? 

https://www.valandre.com

French, old established manufacturer. I've had two of their down bags, both bought second hand. Very happy with their performance, down to -10°c in a tent on a so-so foam pad. 

Their site has an English language version; I expect their customer service folks can tell you if there is an UK distributor. 

'Byke and Hyke' are also pretty good as are North Face. 

In reply to mike123:

I’ve a fairly new Rab winter bag for the van and roadside/campsite camping in winter, really impressed with its warmth which I’ve taken close to its comfort limit and still slept warm (not often the case with advertised temperature ratings!).  It was fairly reasonable too on sale (not very packable, but it’s not really designed to be).  
 

it feels great quality and pretty robust, so if that’s reflective of their general construction quality in recent years I’d imagine it’d be a good choice.  There are oh so many bags to choose from now though! 

In reply to mike123: Thanks all for helpful input . Been shopping around and reading up about ME vs Rab and of course looking for deals . First thing to report Rab sleeping bags are still made in Derbyshire , very close to where I grew up . We found a rab mythic 600 at very good price ( a bit more than we wanted to spend ) but I’m hoping it will last him a good few years. He has woken up cold on our last couple of winter nights out. I’m a sucker for a good bit of PR and this sold it

youtube.com/watch?v=IZ_00WvwQGo&

:

In reply to mike123:

Are you sure? That wasn't the case a decade ago when I visited them in Alfreton  for an article I was writing on the company. They only filled their very top of the range bags there. 

In reply to mike123:

I can't comment on RAB bags as I currently use a Snugpak. I can comment of the quality of some of their clothing which has been pretty ropey. I had a top that the seams came apart on the first wash and a Vapour Rise which the material went bobbly from a Deuter rucksack around the shoulders on its first wearing. 

They seem to have gone the same way as North Face manufacturing cheap for the label contious high street wearer.

In reply to TobyA: we looked at several bags today . All the rab bags said made in the untied kingdom on the labels . I’ve no idea wether all thier bags are made in uk , probably not . However The one we just bought is and that makes me happy . I doubt very much that the video I link to above would say the bag was made in Derbyshire if it wasn’t . But what what  would I know .

In reply to mike123:

The shell of your bag, the bulk of the work because of the complex baffling etc, is manufactured in Asia. It's only filled in the UK, a relatively quick process. The 'made in the UK' label is a grey area allowed because the majority of the material value of the bag is in the down and that's added here, the main part of the work takes place abroad.

In reply to MattG1:

Nice write up here:

https://www.tauntonleisure.com/blog/2025/01/30/why-does-rab-still-fill-its-...

In reply to MattG1:

That's interesting! Cheers for that. I've maybe misremembered what they told and showed me when I went to Rab HQ - perhaps it was clothing that they only filled a few specialist items in the UK - remember seeing one of the yellow 8000 mtr one-piece suits that was being done. I guess they've always filled their down bags here then. The shells of particularly performance sleeping bags are very impressive and complicated constructions, real craftsmanship regardless of where that cutting and sewing is being done. When I review sleeping bags I always try to keep that in mind, along with the price of the down, when commenting on the inevitably rather high costs.

In reply to MattG1:

Ok . After asking for thought and advice on here  We bought a sleeping bag . I was pleasantly surprised  to find that it says made in the UK on the label . Even if only some  of the work is done in the uk that , IMHO , is better than not . Now where are my scales …….

https://youtu.be/liIlW-ovx0Y?si=x4wIRvyJVpD6ToO7