SOL Escape Bivvy Vs. Sea to Summit Thermolite Reactor Series
Vložit
- čas přidán 9. 09. 2024
- At $50 and only 8 oz the SOL Escape Bivvy simply out performs the Sea to Summit Reactor Series ranging fro $60-$85 and 8 oz - 13.4 oz. Though crinkly the material is very breathable. For those who can't stand the noise and feel of the material then the Reactor Fleece is worth looking at.
Solid honest review from someone who has used multiple liners, thank you
Ok this is only a size review. I thought it might be one showing them each. Not leaving them in the sacks lol.
Thank you so much for making this! There's not a lot of anecdotal info out there on the Reactor fleece liner (even in 2018!) and I was trying to decide between it and the Compact Plus so thanks for helping me make the decision.
I just ordered a fleece one from REI's used gear program. It was about $50 instead of $89. Someone thought it too expensive and I get a huge discount. Thanks, whoever it was.
Thanks for the weights and the run down on the three bags. Good to know the Thermorest liner doesn't add much warmth. Really wanted to see the products out of the bags.
Someone else had brought that up as well, and I will be posting a video with the three bags soon. Thank you for watching.
I have all the bags you're reviewing. I love the fleece and do think it makes an incredible difference when added to my bag. My next plan is to put it inside the Sol bivvy, I think I really have a sweet system there. I bought the fleece on the discount Shelf for $30, I would have never shelled out the $80 they wanted.
Best is to use the fleece one Sea to Summit inside the Sol Escape for summer/spring seasons ;-)
They do work well together. Tried it out in the backyard and was warm down to 45 F with Under Armour Base 2.0
Love the SOL Escape Bivvy.
We compared the regular Escape and Escape Lite version in one of our past videos.
Would love to try the different Reactor liners.
Thanks for this video.
The the bivvy is dope this is the limits of modern technology
this is a wrong topic~
Liner use inside the sleeping bag, SOL use outside cover the sleeping bag...
Thanks for you perspective, I'm using the SOL with a -5 sleeping bag. Night temps in Alberta Canada get down to near 32F 0C my bag is -5C
Yes I got a marmont hydrogen 30". I'll get the sol now and that covers the bases
Is it me or anyone else think the same. Comparing a sleeping bag liner to bivy bag. Of course the bivy will be better. I have a bivy bag and tbe thermolite and they work well together for where I live. You need to match it for the climate you are in.
You are absolutely right, it all depends on the climate in your area. You can also just carry both, which is what my wife does during colder months.
The reason for my comparison is bang for your buck, and weight penalty in your pack. Some people prefer to hike the lightest way possible, I myself was in the ounce counting camp for a few years, but have recently calmed down.
you carry the fleece liner with the escape bivie. the fleece can then be washed.
Hot and cold is very subjective based on where you live. Cold to a person from the Gulf Coast and a person from Manitoba are worlds apart. For sleeping I use a Modular Sleep System based on the MSS developed by the militaries of all the cold weather armies. The Sleep systems are all based on layering. The base layer is the Bivvy bag. Inside the Bivvy I can uses any combinations that will keep me warm, but not overheating. # Skivvies #l poly long sleeve top and bottoms
The ebivy is my favorite piece of cheap gear. Saved my butt a few times when temps dropped to -20
i want you guys to realize how privileged you are for being in a warm place. when i go out past October i use my 0 degree sleeping bag, the bivy, a fleece liner, and a wool blanket. even with that your only good down too -30 ish before you get cold
The best part of the video - not getting the sacks out.
John McLean - Hey John, check out the re do for this video where I take them out of the sacks. Hope that one is better. Thanks for watching.
I turned a pair of the SOL escape bags into a mummy, using velcro seams, that comes up around my neck. It was not nearly wide enough to do so. I'm 6ft and 220 lbs. I added a drawstring at the neck, as well as a velcroed on hood (with its own drawstrings) It now performs much better than the stock option.
I have the Thermolite Reactor Extreme....It is crap for its price and weight. The SOL is the way to go since it is warmer, lighter and cheaper. Good for the mid to high 50s inside a tent while wearing a t-shirt and Columbia nylon fishing pants. Plus if you want, you can cut one of these and make it into a quilt. Instead of the Thermolite Reactor fleece liner, buy a light fleece jacket(Mountain Hardwear Men's Large at 9 oz) and pants (REI/Nike at around 11 oz), which you can also wear during your hike (meaning double purpose, all, including the SOL, at 1.5 lbs) if it gets too cold. Then you can slide into the SOL at night inside your tent knowing you will be able to sleep into the high 40s without feeling cold. I am 5'11", 200 lbs, 34 waist 44 chest dude for reference.
How are the two at all comparable? One is a liner meant to keep your bag clean and increase comfort and make your bag a bit warmer, the other is a bivy. They are literally unrelated products.
@@SpaghettiToasterYou can buy any bag liner for $15 to keep your bag clean. The 'added' benefit of temp lowering at a higher price and higher weight of the Thermolite? That is where the crap part comes in. It just doesn't do anything for me...The SOL Bivy? A Bivy? Not really, just in name. Try fitting anything inside from a sleeping bag to a thin mattress and tell me that it is a bivy once again, more so if you are of a rather average US Male sized....It is more an emergency sleeping bag that works out pretty well for its price as a 1 season, warm weather bag, and its water-resistant (but not waterproof) which, in addition to the warmth provided by it and the low weight, makes the mere existence of the Thermolite totally useless and therefore crap.
A comfortable good pair of thermal underwear beats all of them
Indeed, same exact conclusion I have come to. Thanks for watching and sharing.
Thanks
I used the fleece down to 50° you wake up at 6 am then ad a Wookie blanket then dose off again but your not going to die.
I am looking for a solution for a winter vehicle bag for emergencies. And was thinking using the bivvy as the outer layer and the reactor as the inner. And if there were two persons in the vehicle we could use one each. I am looking on saving space but maximizing utility. Does that have any draw backs?
Hey Mike, it would depend on what temps winters are in your area. There is a “Redux” version of this video which also show a down throw which is $20 bucks at costco. Eddue Bauer sells one in primaloft. The combination of the fleece liner (my preferred liner) and the bivvy will probably only keep you warm down to arounf 35 F to 45 F. I hope this helps
@@kaisermojica4216 I live in Canada so it does get brisk now and then. :) Thanks for your input.
I really hate Fahrenheit. Good video tho. I'm putting a cold weather system together now but I'm thinking about using a non breathable liner to act as a vapour barrier. Not something I see people doing very much
Mostly because if it does not breathe then you will get condensation and then you’ll get wet and cold.
Hey Kaiser, so I'm looking for something that can extend the rating of my bag a little. I was really looking at getting the SOL escape bivvy but after looking at reviews people said that it created alot of condinsation on the inside. Is this because they were using the escape bivvy on the outside and not on the inside?
Nathan w2803 - nathan as far as I’ve experience condensation will occur in a tent in freezing temps from ones breath regardless of use of the escape bivvy or not, myself, my wife and my cousin have all used the escape bivvy and prefer it inside the sleeping bag since it will compress the down if you try and cram you down bag or quilt inside the bivvy anyway, I hope this helps
@@kaisermojica4216 I'm sorry. I meant people were having issues the condinsation build up inside the sol escape bivvy. My bag is comfort rated at 25F and I was looking to get 5-10 degrees more with the bivvy. However when I saw that people were saying that the condensation build up on the inside of the bivvy was bad it turned me away. I guess my question is in freezing conditions with the bivvy inside your sleeping bag will there be condensation in the bivvy bag
@@kaisermojica4216 That's why I was highly considering the fleece liner because no one complained about condinsation. However if I can put the sol bivvy in my bag with no condinsation ile be happy and wont have to spend the extra 50 bucks on the reactor fleece
Nathan w2803 @nathan w2803 did not notice any inside with my usage, there is redone version of this review with the inclusion of the Themolite Reactor Fleece it is breathable and might be a good idea.
I once read that for the weight extra clothing also works when worn underneath and I have also done this as well. I have worn fleece or insulated midlayers as part of the sleeping system, with extra pairs of socks as well
That should certainly add the 10 degrees if not more. I will probably make a video on it one of these. I got the idea from one of the old Prolitegear videos they wear down pants and their down jackets inside their sleeping bags when the temp drops. I think fleece or synthetic though usually heavier than down has an advantage since they do keep you warm even with the condensation which develops inside the tent or under tarps.
Usually like with most people breath turns to droplets on the tent walls and gradually come down the sides of the tent. Some trips we wound up with our own little snow flakes from breath alone. Most articles I read simply talk about ways to mitigate these with use of double wall tents in winter time and carrying a spare towel to wipe up moisture in the tent.
@@kaisermojica4216 Okay thank you. This really helped alot
the SOL one did not work, for me....caused me to sweat, and all my clothing got wet.....and really not durable enough to be used for any length of time...
Philip Buckley - sorry to hear about your experience, were you able to get your money back from the manufacturer? could you share more details about the temp as well as the rest of your set up. Also with regards to durability, can you share more about this as well would sure like to learn more about the limitations you have discovered on this product since mine has held up well for a few years now. Thank you for sharing looking forward to hearing more about your camping trip experience.
And also usually like most outdoor enthusiasts always recommend testing things in the backyard before taking new gear into the back country, especially things you plan to use in freezing to subfreezing temps since like you said sweat and moisture are a huge factor. Thanks again and best of luck.
I thought of using a silk liner inside of the SOL Bivvy? I was thinking for comfort and added warmth. I'm considering a purchase but geez it doesn't look comfortable at all.
It's not - there are cold pockets. I just did a test for you in Vermont, 38 degrees, in a tent on a Thermarest, fleece pants, long sleeved T, down vest, wool balaklava, 4 hand warmers with a silk liner, which helped a lot actually. I was fine for about half an hour, but my legs were chilly, then my feet, arms. I still think they are a great idea if you're a smaller person, certainly for a hiking emergency, car breakdown etc. For camping, for me at least, not unless it's 50 degrees. Just my opinion. It might save your life, but comfortable it is not. Hope it helps.
I've read similar reviews and I had the same thought with a silk liner.
the extreme liner is a waste of money. they say it's for a "liner" and inside a sleeping bag I'm sure it works fine but it is ineffectual when used as a sheet or blanket. air just passes straight thru. I also have to coolmax with insect shield (living in Florida land of bugs and heat).... also a waste. Both might work in conjunction with the SOL bivy.
The liner is a waste of money because it is a liner?
the bivvy isnt even the same product category, its a completely different arena, its a bivvy not a sleeping bag liner, its just a mylar bag.
Hey there, some people including myself use the escape (breathable bivvy) to increase tempearture range of our sleep systems. I find the bivvy does a better job than the reactor liners. But you are absolutely right it’s not a liner.
There is also a second version of this video, some people have also used liners, and sol bivvy’s for their summer bags to save on weight.
Thanks for watching lots of great videos on liners out there.
Cool. I review that's not a review. Couldn't be bothered to even take them out.
czcams.com/video/Jrbs29GEAfY/video.html @colvindl1 here’s the bags out I re did the review to address the comments hope this is helpful
Packed size of each one please
@3:10 “I’m not going to be taking out the bags”. I stopped watching right then. 👎🏼
Matthew Lawrence - there is another version of this which has the bags out. I remade it due to the feedback hope you find that helpful.
czcams.com/video/Jrbs29GEAfY/video.html
Yap yap ....For God's sake what are you blathering about? Never opened any bag..I can get the info you yap about by going to REI and window shopping what a waste of time...have you ever been camping?
Been meaning to post the revised video, but just didn't get a chance to upload until this weekend. Check out the new video with the bags all out of their sacks, less hate though next time. This isn't a fulltime gig for me, just trying to help consumers like you and I with honest reviews.
What, a half a year later and no link to your rivised video,,, looked on your page and did not see it.