Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/1281650
might be deceiving. Same goes with Carinthia, so even in their military catalog, the ranges provided for the same bags are different than in outdoor catalog, where ISO 23537- 1/EN 13537 values are provided. In the past, manufacturers usually provided three temperatures. First value was comfort for "standard" female sleeping on the back without feeling cold. Second was a "standard" male sleeping in the fetal position without feeling cold. Third, extreme one, was the temperature where a "standard" female in the fetal position could spend 6 hours without serious symptoms of hypothermia and frostbite. Well, pretty useless for the user and maybe optimistic "survival time" before SAR will save us. What's more for comfortable sleep, only the first value should be considered but in reality it was usually 4C degrees lower in reality. And again, remember what I wrote before – it is also important what we are sleeping on. Quality insulated inflatable sleeping pad will increase the comfort temperature by 5C. Bivy bag or tent will add another couple degrees. Also, feeling of cold is very individual and depens on the sex, age, fatigue and physical condition. Experienced hikers will always eat before sleep and will change the underwear for a fresh one. This improves the comfort. That's why the numbers provided by manufacturers are only to give some brief idea about the sleeping bag. In the outdoor catalog Carinthia provides specs according to the ISO 23537-1/EN 13537 standard. For Defence 4 the female comfort is -8.8°C, male comfort is -15°C and extreme is -35°C. For Tropen these are +9.4°C/+5.1°C/-7.9°C respectively. In the military catalog numbers are different. Defence 4 lower comfort temperature is -12°C and extreme is -32°C. For Tropen it is +5°C and -7°C respectively. And now something from my experience. I was using the Defence 4 in winter time in the Izery Mountains combined with the Observer Plus. The temperature outside was -10°C (-15°C wind-chill) and even though I had a mediocre sleeping pad, I felt warm and cozy. I guess the shelter was improving the general comfort. When I changed the sleeping pad for quality one, during the night when the temperature was around 0°C, it was too warm and I had to open the vents in the bivy. I think that night even in the extreme temperature might be spent comfortably with a quality pad and after a hot good meal just before sleep. If you have a worse sleeping pad and just a basic tent, I wouldn't recommend you to spend a night in extreme temperature. The values for Defence 4 combined with Tropen are completely different. Comfort is -18°C and extreme is -40°C. And finally, some brief summary after nine months of use. Both Carinthia sleeping bags are warm, comfortable and quite compact even though they are synthetic insulated. Positive feedback only. Definitely, that's the reason why the Carinthia brand was trusted by multiple military forces in Europe. Regarding the price to quality ratio, it seems that both Defence 4 and Tropen are best bang for a buck. Fully recommended! EQUIPMENT