I’m an advocate of ‘stay with the vehicle’ for those times when you wind up, for whatever reason, unable to proceed any further…could be snow, vehicle malfunction, bad gas, whatever…if you’re in the middle of nowhere and your vehicle cannot proceed the thing to do is stay with the vehicle. Don’t believe me? Search the blog using the tag ‘strandings’ and read what comes up.
Staying with the vehicle is easier if you have the necessary gear, and I like to think I keep the vehicle stocked with the necessary gear. So, when its 0-degrees out and the wind is howling, is that surplus military sleeping bag really going to keep you from losing toes, ears, fingers , and nose to frostbite? Assuming you survive?
Let’s find out.
I keep a military sleep system in the vehicle year-round. Its an okay system and the price is right – free at most military standdowns. I have a half dozen in storage. Are they actually warm down to 0 degrees? Well, last night was at zero so I decided to test it out. I rolled out the GI sleeping mat, laid out the sleep system..inner bag, out bag, bivvy sack…stripped down to socks, shorts and a t-shirt, and climbed in. First off all, that transition of several seconds from ‘fully dressed while standing outside in 0 degree weather’ to ‘partially dressed but huddled in a sleeping bag’ was…intense. Once in the bag it was huddle in a ball until things warmed up. And then….not bad. I basically cinched everything up so my nose and mouth poked through the hood of the bag and left it at that. I’m not going to say it was toasty, but it was warm enough I could fall asleep and it was, without a doubt, warm enough that I wouldnt lose body parts to frostbite.
While I was cocooned in the bag, I used my phone to entertain myself and see what the official weather was.. -1 with winds around 12-15mph. And there were gusts that I could feel rippling across the bivvy sack, which did a nice job of being windproof.
I suspected that the military sleep system would be adequate and it was. This was laying on the ground in an unprotected and open area. Used in a vehicle, which would offer some material benefits in terms of protection from the weather, the MSS should be pretty much ideal. Better bags out there? Absolutely..but the MSS come out cheap enough that you can have a couple in a vehicle and not break the bank.
Drawbacks? A tad snug. Bulky as hell, but since it’s just sitting in the truckbox that isn’t really an issue. but, more importantly, experiments like these give me faith in a piece of gear and thats got quite a value all on its own.
So, if all you keep in your rig is a couple blankets, or, worse, a ‘space blanket’, I invite you to wait for a nice, clear, bitterly cold night and try them out for a few hours. Its the kinds of experiment that costs nothing but can pay off some big dividends…especially next time you get stuck in your vehicle in the dead of winter.
I recommend the Wiggy’s Casualty Bag… scored mine in Iraq… needs a bivvy sack (not waterproof) but OMFG warm, comfy and a LOT of room, (I’m 6’4-5 and 329 pounds.. 78 inch chest.. BIG boi) But in Affy when I was there, in tents, no heat, no light, for 2 weeks, the Wiggy’s was the bomb
“✩✩✩✩✩”, “A+”!
That’s how you do it!
Well-played sir, and thanks.
There’s B.S., and there’s actually trying it, under actual field conditions.
No surprises, no corner-cutting, no “close enough”.
Your gear either works real world, or it doesn’t.
The only thing I’d add, for pure scientific accuracy, would be simultaneous thermometer temperature readings from inside the bag, and outside the bag. The CZ YouTube video of it would go viral.
Good equipment testing post. Too often casual preppers are just gear queers and only serve as quartermaster warehouse facilities for untested stuff. The trends of more crew cab pick up and hatch backed suv type of vehicles helps with cargo stowage of a more robust survival kit. I need to fund a snug top outback camper shell with barn door type rear access to have the truck configured to a defacto hobo encampment set up. No towing r.v.s or added costs or wilderness accessibility restrictions. Motels have bed bugs and spying smart t.v.s, sleep in your truck at truck stops to guard your gear anyway. Include the propane camp stove to cook up some canned bacon and rehydrated eggs in the morning whilst awaiting the snowplow guys.
My south Texas daily driver is a 2000 GMC SLE extended cab pick-up so my car kit reflects that. Very rarely freezes even overnight so long term cold like you Yankees isn’t required. A canvas tarp for covering truck bed (plastic is far too noisy in the wind) with bungee corded pre strung in grommets. A bivy sack with wool blanket is plenty warm under cover described above. The bivy sack alone with blanket underneath as pad in warmer weather would be more common – just too damn hot otherwise.
A canvas surplus ruck sack in case I have to walk out and need to carry valuables out. I’ve slept out in various weather conditions – this works for where I live.
Thanks for the real world review. That looks cold as hell !
Two suggestions – one, if space/weight aren’t huge considerations, the old GI wool blanket is a huge assistance to both the initial ‘get in the bag’ chill, as well as the ‘insulate any cold parts’ of the body over night. Also, cardboard will insulate you from cold surfaces better than you’d suspect. Sleeping in tactical vehicles – the metal will suck every bit of heat out of you if you don’t insulate your sleeping bag from the vehicle. DAMHIK. This would be an easy addition to the back of your vehicle, at no cost… The Israeli wool surplus blankets out there now are a good buy, if you don’t mind washing them a couple of times..
I keep a couple of the old Canadian 3 piece sleeping bags around for those times. I’ll admit, I don’t carry one in my vehicle, because they are just too bulky. And I haven’t taken one out and tested it recently – I’m getting to old for that shit unless it’s a necessity. Having said that, 30 some years ago, while in the military, I slept outside, numerous times when it was 25 below zero – the system works.
Used same 3 part system in cold survival training (72 hrs no cover/tent,-10F,northern Wi,no fires(Artillery unit open powder+explosives),2 hot meals). FYI that is meant to be used partially clothed (long underwear/shirt+pants),absolutely necessary to insulate from ground. Vehicle provides good shelter carry a candle or crisco lamp and it can be fairly comfortable.
a space blanket inside an inadequate sleeping bag works really well!
I do it every year, over a weekend that’s damn cold.
Drive up the mountain, ditch the truck at a friend’s place, and hike a couple hundred miles into an area with snowdrifts (if I’m lucky).
If there’s drifts, I’ll dig a snow cave and set up in it (took my 8 yo nephew a couple years ago and he asked me if we were going to die…I reassured him with Mountain House oatmeal with blueberries). No drifts, I’ll lay down a tarp and sleep on it like I’m in a burrito.
The MSS works flawlessly, although it’s a little tight for me too.
But it gets me through the night.
I wish I could hike a couple hundred miles over a weekend.
Maybe riding Babe, your blue ox…?
Sounds like Paratus Long Range Recon
I’m a fan of wool blankets but since I have moved towards the belt and suspenders attitude (thanks CZ), also picked up the MSS with the gore-tex bivy on sale for $75. Was up in the cold country once elk hunting and the bag I was in wasn’t cutting it so I put the wool blanket on top and was warm.
They can also be used as a casualty blanket for those in need and are fire resistant to a degree, unlike nylon and other synthetics. Long ago Cheaperthandirt had the Military Italian officers blankets for $10 (!) so I loaded up. I bought a couple of these a while back and they are pretty nice.
https://colemans.com/vintage-italian-navy-100-wool-blanket
Keep this to yourselves so the unwashed masses don’t all flood the site and drive up prices, shopgoodwill.com has nice wool blankets cheap sometimes.(and binoculars, knives, holsters, etc.)
Having used both the Military Sleep System and the Extreme Cold sleeping bag I prefer the EC for cold weather. I’m not saying that the MSS is a bad system, just the EC was preferred for winter in my old unit.
I do have few of each type around.
For vehicle winter kits I want the critical gear inside with me vs in the truck, toolbox etc. Trunks can freeze shut or could be blocked if you go in the ditch badly.
Currently half the back seat of my four door sedan is cold weather gear. My Suburban has even more gear in it as I’m more likely to be in it if the weather is ugly.
Steelheart
Steelheart, most cars these days have the ability to enter the trunk from inside the vehicle. The back of the rear seat has releases that allow it to hinge down to access the trunk. My outside trunk lid release tends to give trouble in cold weather, but the seat back release still works just fine.
Back in 1980 when I had to live in my car in November and December, I had an old station wagon. I got a damaged piece of foil backed 1″ foam wall sheathing (for free since it was damaged) and put it on the floor of the rear area. I also put a couple of pieces in the windows. This made a huge difference. You could do the same thing in a pickup topper to help keep the heat inside.
Yes, many cars do have the access However, my Buick does not. Nor did my Corolla. As a result I adjusted accordingly.
Steelheart
The system you tried out came out when I was still on active duty. To compare the difference between this system and the old feather filled extreme cold weather bag of old, I had the old bag on my first tour of Korea in the late 80s and the new system on my second Korea tour in the late 90s. Korea is a cold son of a bitch. First tour averaged around d 18 below and the second tour was about freezing but there was snow on the ground from Christmas eve until the beginning of April. The old bag sucks and is heavy and bulky and moreso when they got wet. So much so that the running joke was to ask if we had to get a trailer to haul the thing. The new system is quite immune to moisture and remains featherweight compared to the old. All that to say this, if your budget only allows a marginal price point, aka military surplus, the sleep system is one of the best options. Yea, they are tight but that is due to the fact that the military doesn’t like a fat body. Now don’t get offended. A fat body is anyone that only has a slim amount, or more of body fat. For the money the system can’t be beat.
I have several of the older feather-filled bags as well and they are unbelievably warm. The tadeoff is, as you noted, they are bulky and heavy. For a static emplacement, like being kept in a vehicle, theyre great. The newer system has the advanatge of being modular so that in the summer you can simply use one of the bags instead off two at the same time when its warmer.
RE: below-the-bag insulation. Home centers have 4X8 ft 25 and 30 PSI rated rigid styrofoam panels, about R5 per inch. A 1 inch layer prevents metal truck beds from sucking the heat out (also smooths out the metal ribs) and the 25 PSI rating avoids compressing the panel down to nothing, and if 4X8 doesn’t work for you it’s easily trimmed to size or shape.
USMC newer ground barrier is exactly this but in foldable form
To go along with those winter sleeping bags, consider using brand 32*Degrees Heat base layer pants and shirts. Costco has been carrying the brand this winter. Form fitting, very thin, stretchy, and comfortable long johns. I notice that if I sleep in them, my bedding doesn’t get as warm as it normally would, so it seems to have some insulating properties. I suspect that if you get sweaty while working in the cold, it would help keep your skin drier, which is important.
Stuff is easy to fit under normal clothing, so it extends your functional time outside a bit longer than usual, regarding time or temperature.
Tried this product and found it mostly useless,minimal insulation ,may be as a warm weather wicking layer but not in cold.
So, it isn’t really offensive, in my opinion, to say that survivalism is about protecting you…your life, your family, your property, your interests.
That just sounds so Selllfish…
Nice acquisition!
I’ve slept in a shipping container (so out of the wind but not much else) in the full military sleep system in low single digits and I was fine but cold all night. In fairness I get cold easy, I have very little body fat and while everyone gives me a hard time in the winter I can run all day in 85 degree weather barely sweating so there’s that.
The biggest mistake I see people do is the order of putting it all together when needed. The cold weather bag (i.e. the warmest bag on its own) goes INSIDE the warmer weather bag when you put them all together. It makes sense when you think about it, the bag designed to lose the least amount of heat goes closest to your skin but LOTS of people do this backwards.