A freezing chilly night time’s sleep could be one of many worst experiences somebody can have tenting. You already know the one I’m speaking about — the place you roll over to a special aspect each hour, considering when the dang solar will come up so this horrible night time’s sleep could be over.
That’s what first crossed my thoughts when REI informed me it was ditching the gendered sizes in its Magma line of backpacking sleeping baggage in favor of common sizing and building.
As a result of I as soon as labored for a significant outside model on the product group — serving to design sleeping baggage, tents, and backpacks — I had critical doubts about REI’s transfer.
I do know males’s and ladies’s sleeping baggage aren’t created the identical approach. For a girls’s sleeping bag to achieve the identical temperature score as a males’s, it wants roughly 10-20% extra insulation. So the brand new Magma sleeping baggage eschewing gendered temperature rankings set off some alarms for me.
Briefly: The Magma sleeping bag is without doubt one of the bestselling backpacking baggage in the marketplace, so this marks a giant leap for REI. For testing, GearJunkie acquired two sleeping baggage, one for a male and one other for a feminine to check out. Collectively, we examined match and performance of the Magma 15-degree sleeping bag. The 2024 Magma sleeping bag performs very properly for an 850-fill-down mummy bag, and the wide selection of sizes ensures the vast majority of consumers will get a bag that matches them. There are just a few cons, although.
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Supplies
Bluesign-approved recycled ripstop nylon, goose down -
Insulation
850-fill RDS-certified goose down -
Zipper
Left aspect -
Verified weight
2 lbs., 3.6 oz. for the Medium -
Compressed quantity
6-9 L -
Top vary
4’11” to six’5″ -
Sizing
Unisex, 9 complete choices with 3 lengths and three widths
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9 sizes -
Nice worth ($430 for an 850-fill down bag) -
Low weight -
Full-length zipper -
Nice draft collar and hood
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Included stuff sack is not compressible -
Mummy design could really feel too tight -
Solely accessible in 15- and 30-degree fashions
REI Magma 15 Unisex Sleeping Bag Overview
No Genders, Extra Sizes
Conventional sleeping baggage usually have two to 3 sizes. For males, common and lengthy, generally additional lengthy. And for girls, brief, common, and lengthy. And generally, manufacturers embody a “left-handed” variant.
In an effort to accommodate a fair wider array of customers, REI launched not simply three or 4 — however 9 sizes for the redesigned Magma sleeping bag. Sizing choices for Magma are Brief-Slim, Brief, Brief-Vast, Medium-Slim, Medium, Medium-Vast, Lengthy-Slim, Lengthy, and Lengthy-Vast.
A part of the rationale REI shifted from gendered sizing to a wider array of dimension choices owes to the sleeping bag’s operate. The insulation in a sleeping bag works most successfully when there are fewer air gaps for warmth to flee.
If a sleeping bag (or down jacket) suits you properly, it would stop your physique warmth from escaping. Some warmth will escape naturally as a result of insulation and the materials are air-permeable. When you had been to design a sleeping bag made with non-air-permeable cloth, it might be very heat — and approach too sweaty.
The Magma affords each 15– and 30-degree temperature rankings, has a mummy form, scuba hood that cinches, a single-side anti-snag zipper, vaulted foot field, and a draft tube and collar — all of the makings of a well-designed, three-season backpacking sleeping bag. The most important variations between the earlier iteration and this one is the design and sizes, and the shortage of a 10-degree score choice.
It’s designed to be very light-weight and compressible, with 850-fill, Bluesign-approved water resistant goose down. Just like the earlier model, the zipper slides properly, and the hood and draft collar are wonderful for heat.
Male Testing: First Impressions
I examined the Lengthy bag (medium-width), whereas my co-tester, GearJunkie editor Mary Murphy, tried out the Medium bag (additionally medium-width). Apart from the sizes and genderless design, the Magma Sleeping bag intently resembles the earlier iteration.
I camped within the windy desert exterior of Cañon Metropolis, Colo., for a weekend of climbing at Shelf Street. As those that have camped within the desert know, chilly temps come on quick. After a balmy day of climbing in sunny, 60-degree circumstances, the temperature began to plummet proper after sundown. The primary night time I examined the bag, the temperature hit the mid-30s.
My first impression of the Magma was how properly it match (learn: how tight it felt). That is most likely as a result of I spend most of my time in a large bag designed for automobile tenting. Nevertheless, I think about most individuals will share an identical first impression of the Magma — it’s a mummy bag, in spite of everything.
After I channeled my internal Brendan Fraser and took on The Mummy (tip your servers), I discovered the bag snug and heat. If something, I used to be too heat within the bag. However I run scorching, and like my sleeping circumstances to be on the chilly aspect.
All in, the sleeping bag carried out as anticipated. It saved me heat and match me properly with out having any stress factors or areas the place my physique was pushing too onerous up in opposition to the insulation. On the entire, I slept pretty properly.
By way of slot in my Lengthy bag, it was comfortable, however I might nonetheless wiggle my legs and arms round a little bit bit. Keep in mind, it is a bag meant for backpacking, and it shaves weight the place it could possibly. It match like many mummy baggage I’ve tried previously.
There was loads of room within the ft, and REI actually packed insulation into the footbox. In my testing, my ft had been most likely the warmest a part of my physique via the night time (I even went sockless).
However the true take a look at of REI’s sizing and gender-neutral overhaul is how properly it fits each males and girls. Enter our second tester, Mary Murphy.
Feminine Testing: Magma 15 Impressions
At 5’8″, I’m taller than the typical girl. However I’m additionally very skinny. My measurements for testing fell squarely within the medium-height vary of 5’5″ to five’11”. And by way of slender, medium, or vast width, my hips measure 39 inches. This put me on the cusp of two dimension choices — however the medium bag felt higher as soon as I used to be inside.
The medium bag proved nice by way of match and size, and pretty good by way of width. I had sufficient room within the hips and shoulder areas, and it didn’t really feel overly slender. I additionally just lately switched to aspect sleeping. For that motive, I opted for the medium-width bag, and although I did side-sleep within the bag for one night time, it wasn’t probably the most snug.
In comparison with different mummy baggage I’ve owned, the Magma was nonetheless comfortable and lends itself higher to again sleepers. I might not have wished a narrower dimension.
I examined this bag on a protracted weekend getaway in southern Colorado, a hut journey, and some winter mountaineering journeys (a chance to push the temperature score in testing). I additionally examined it paired with two completely different sleeping pads.
I used to be pleased to find the heat of this 850-fill bag was similar to, if not higher than, different baggage of the identical score. I are inclined to run heat, however I additionally don’t have a ton of physique fats, so being chilly backpacking is typically a difficulty. In comparison with gendered girls’s baggage that usually have extra insulation, I couldn’t inform the distinction.
Prior complaints from previous Magma house owners and testers had been that the 15-degree bag didn’t fairly carry out right down to its ISO temperature score. I examined my bag (alongside a 5.1 R-value sleeping pad) down to fifteen levels throughout my hut journey, and located it loads heat. After testing, I’d say Magma’s marketed consolation score of 21 levels F is spot on. (I didn’t take a look at it to its ISO decrease restrict, which for the brand new Magma 15 is 9 diploma F.)
As a lefty, I appreciated the benefit of use of each the zipper and the hood’s cinch wire. Additionally, the “worm-like” draft tube could look odd and flop round, nevertheless it did an incredible job at blocking wind and chilly.
Lastly, the Magma’s footbox, although very properly insulated, is a bit cumbersome. Even for a mummy bag, it felt slender. Fortunately, my ft had been by no means chilly, even once I examined this bag down to fifteen levels (slightly below the consolation score).
Will This Bag Match Me?
As a result of there aren’t genders related to the Magma sleeping bag, some prospects could also be a little bit confused at first. Each our testers agreed on this: the sheer variety of sizes is nice, when you study to decipher them. The very last thing somebody desires is a bag that’s too tight or too unfastened, or not heat sufficient.
Every REI retailer is barely completely different, however Denver’s flagship location has a devoted space to lie in a sleeping bag. As a part of this take a look at, Nate went via a typical in-store becoming with a gross sales specialist. This permits prospects to attempt zipping the bag up, wiggling round, and follow rolling over.
REI has provided this “attempt it out” service for years, nevertheless it’s maybe by no means been as vital, given the vary of sizes the Magma now affords.
Drawbacks
The important thing disadvantage to the Magma baggage is the stuffsack. An 850-fill-down sleeping bag ought to do a superb job compressing down to almost nothing. However the stuffsack REI ships with the Magma bag doesn’t have any compression straps.
If packability is a significant necessity for you, you’ll be greatest off buying an extra compression bag to accompany this bag for backpacking journeys. That is pretty annoying particularly contemplating how properly it could possibly compress, and contemplating the $429 buy worth.
However it is a minor criticism to a high-performing sleeping bag that pushes the business’s sizing conventions.
The one different disadvantage, mockingly, is expounded to suit. Particularly, the form of the luggage. As a result of these baggage work off the identical silhouette, they could not match each physique or form completely.
Sometimes, if a model manufactures a sleeping bag that may get ISO examined, it would design the form of the bag in response to males’s and ladies’s typical physiques. Males’s baggage could have wider shoulders and be taller. Ladies’s baggage could have wider hips and narrower shoulders.
So, a priority of ours was that REI’s Magma could possibly be ill-fitting within the hips or shoulders relying on one’s physique sort, due to the unisex match. Whereas each testers discovered the match acceptable on this overview, each agreed their baggage fell a little bit on the comfortable aspect. Concentrate on the only silhouette when selecting, and (once more) check out the bag’s numerous sizes if you happen to can.
REI Magma 15 Sleeping Bag: Remaining Ideas
GearJunkie had two folks (female and male) and two sizes in testing, although wanting on the vary of sizes provided, that is nonetheless restricted suggestions. In our temporary testing of the bag, the Magma carried out very well. Its spectacular low weight, 850-fill heat, and worth level make it a contender for probably the greatest baggage for backpacking.
All in all, there was sufficient insulation for each our male tester and our feminine tester to get sleep between the 15-degree and 21-degree consolation score (and above towards the 30-degree mark).
However the important thing to this piece of drugs lies within the match. Whereas possibly a tad comfortable within the medium-width choices, total the match was higher than different “commonplace” baggage.
When you’re contemplating buying a Magma sleeping bag, go to an REI retailer to search out which of the 9 sizes most closely fits you.
