UGQ Outdoor Bandit Top Quilt

In April 2019 I bought a UGQ Outdoor Bandit top quilt

What's a Quilt?

Not to be confused with what your grandmother knit. Here’s a brief overview of why you may want a quilt over a traditional sleeping bag.

Why?

I had been reading about how everybody loved them in various ultralight backpacking forums. My previous sleeping bag was the Marmot Angel Fire that I bought in 2013 and while it did the job, I found it was on the heavier/bulkier side than what I needed. Plus I didn’t always get the best sleep in it–either too cold or too sweaty or both! My body’s poor circulation has always given me issues. I bought it when I was first developing an interest in the outdoors so I didn’t do any research and just asked a Sports Basement staff member for a quick recommendation. 

Why UGQ?

They had great reviews, were a small company, comparatively affordable, able to ship within the time frame I needed, had customization options that suited me.

Technical Specs

I’m pretty petite so I ordered the smallest sizing. Sizing for a quilt was a tough call. I like to move around when I sleep so I wanted something with extra space but too much space can be detrimental to the insulation and let in too much of a draft on cold nights. Below are my measurements and I am widest at my shoulders.

  • Height: 62″
  • Weight: 105lbs
  • Shoulder to Shoulder (across): approx 17″
  • Hip to Hip (across): approx 14″

The one I ordered was as follows:

  • Actual Weight (measured on my own scale): 1.22lbs (19.47oz)
  • Weight (estimated online during purchase): 1.25lbs (20oz)
  • Fill Power: 800
  • Temperature Rating: 20*F/-6*C
  • Width: 50″ (127cm)
  • Length: 66″ (168cm)
  • 800 Overstuff: None
  • 800 Overstuff Footbox ($7.00): 1oz 800 Overstuff
  • Inner Shell Color: M10 DARK OLIVE
  • Outer Shell Fabric: MRS20 FABRICS
  • MRS20: MRS20 FOLIAGE GREEN
  • Taper Style: FULL TAPER
  • DRAFT COLLAR – NECK LINE: NO
  • FOOT BOX STYLE ($10.00): BOXED FLAT SEWN
  • SPARE PAD STRAP (1) ($3.00): YES PLEASE
  • 24X36 MESH STORAGE SACK: NO
  • Cost: $214.95 + $21.16 Shipping
Top of the bag. Two sets of buttons to snap it closed. A drawstring cord to cinch. No draft collar.
Overstuffed footbox sewn shut. Two sets of buttons to close it if needed.

Thoughts

  • I’ve now used this 4+ times on overnight trips (the longest was a 7 day bikepacking trip through Utah in October) and it is holding up wonderfully!
  • The coldest night was 25*F and I was still very warm. I’m sure it would keep me warm down to 20*F.
  • If my head is cold, I use a beanie or I wrap a down jacket around my head.
  • I used to cover my face in the hood of my old sleeping bag because my nose is sensitive to the cold air. The quilt doesn’t have a hood so now I have to rig something up with my down jacket and it doesn’t work as well. Next time, I may order a slightly longer size so I can pull the sleeping bag farther up to cover more of my face.
  • The width was a perfect size for me.
  • Most of the time I am not in freezing conditions so I prefer not to attach it to the sleeping pad as I like to move around, but it is well worth attaching it on really cold nights as it is noticeably warmer.
  • I have notoriously bad circulation to my feet and even with the sewn and overstuffed footbox, my feet still get chilly (but not freezing). Sometimes I still need wool socks.

    • I use a Women’s Therm-A-Rest NeoAir XLite sleeping pad and the combination is super warm. If I’m being really picky, I’ll say that I don’t love the feeling of the thermarest against my bare skin. I prefer to sleep in long sleeves. Also the NeoAir XLite sounds like a trashbag whenever I move.

    Quilt on the right compared to an Ortlieb Backroller classic.

     The quilt is stuffed into a Sea to Summit E-Vent compression sack size Small (10L). Lengthwise, I measured it to be about 11″. This is about how much I compress it but it could be packed even smaller.

    Overall I LOVE this quilt. It is so light and fluffy and can pack down so small. I would wholeheartedly recommend UGQ and quilts in general. It was not any more expensive than a backpacking sleeping bag and being able to customize it alone is well worth the money. I get cold really easily but found the temperature control from the quilt design and quality to be better than my old mummy bag. But don’t just take my word for it, there are so many resources online with detailed reviews to see if it’s for you. Have fun!

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