Domex are pleased to be associated with Richard Campbell and Geoff Booth and their ‘One Year Expedition’. In order to complete this expedition, Richard has chosen to use our Bushlite Endurance 900 sleeping bags and will carry essential supplies in DMH 80 litre rucksacks.

During their one day trips they will use the DMH Kangaroo 33 litre daypack. We intend to have regular updates on their progress on this site and more details of this exciting expedition can be found on their website.

www.bluestreamsafaris.orcon.net.nz.

The following is a report they have written for the Rod and Rifle magazine.

Domex Bushlite Endurance 900 Sleeping Bag

By Richard Campbell and Geoff Booth

When it comes to purchasing hunting equipment most of us trail off thinking about equipment that is related to the sport we love – thoughts of the finest firearms, European optics, and endless accessories such as rangefinders and spotting scopes that all lead to more success within the field, are continually added to our list of needs that we must purchase at some stage.   As important as these items are within the hunting arena, there is one piece of equipment that requires as much research into prior to purchasing as you would do with any of the above products.   After all it establishes your level of comfort from day one on your hunting trips and ultimately in extreme cases maybe the one piece of equipment that could potentially save your life, this of course being the trusty sleeping bag.   Domex is a New owned company based on Aucklands North Shore.   They have been producing both down and synthetic sleeping bags for New Zealand and overseas consumers since 1979.   During this time they have kept their company philosophy simple, produce a top quality product that the consumer wants.   Through the fundamentals of this philosophy and a combination of their continuing product development and quality control Domex has been appointed suppliers of the New Zealand , Australian and Singapore armies

The sleeping bag that we are currently using throughout our expedition is the 900-gram Bushlite Endurance.   Domex recommend the use of this bag for mountaineers, climbers and outdoor enthusiasts that find themselves subject to year round weather variables.  The bag size is 215cm x 80cm with a foot size of 45cm and has been given a temperature rating of –17 to –22.   The composition of down within this bag is 95% washed white goose down and 5% feather fill that is sealed within 37 separate compartments and gives a minimum of 700 loft.

There are two styles of compartments used in the construction of these bags that have a 57%, 43% split between upper and lower body providing the user warmth and comfort in the areas most needed.  The V tube compartment uses vertically aligned compartments to eliminate any gravity induced down to shift off the chest onto the sides of the body.   An overlay of down layers also eliminates pressure points creating cold spots.   The slant wall design works in a similar fashion.   Compartment walls lie at an angle of 45 this creates an overlap in down layers and prevents accidental cold spots through baffle sew lines being compressed together.   The outer shell of the Bushlite is made from a unique fabric called pertex endurance.   This fabric is based on a hydrophobic coating that retains excellent breathing properties while providing the user with a windproof and nearly fully waterproof outer coating that improves heat retention within the sleeping bag.   I say nearly waterproof because there is potential for water to seep through stitch holes and seams into any sleeping bag.   As a matter of interest the pertex endurance fabric was last year voted the most breathable and waterproof by the American Backpackers Magazine.   The hood region contains a 360 neck muff that allows the user to maintain and control a comfortable temperature through the use of integrated self-folding Velcro tabs and a draw cord that allows the flow of air in and out of the bag as required.   When not in use these Velcro tabs fold back on themselves so they don't become an irritant.   The final product has an appearance of class and is a blue/black combination with a white fern that embellishes the chest region of the bag.   The bag weight is 1.7kg and comes with an optional compression bag.   The retail price of these bags is around $715.

Field Test -  We have been using these bags continuously for the last 250 days with the exception of ten days where we washed and dried our bags at about the way mark in our trip.   As we write this we have just experienced our coldest day of the trip of -6 not taking into account wind chill.   There is currently around 5 inches of snow around camp and it is still continuing to fall.   Throughout our trip we've experienced most of the four seasons of weather that New Zealand s remote environments and climate can bring.   Our underlying insulation has been from 7mm compressed bedrolls so the results can only be attributed to the bags themselves.   We are both of average height 174cm and weight 75kg and are currently at our leanest and most physically fit part of our lives.   We though it was important to outline our build as we all differ physiologically and our ability to generate body heat can be affected by many variables ranging from fitness levels, to what and when we last ate, and more directly to the weather variables we are likely to encounter in our various hunting environments.   For those of you who are of a bigger build you will be glad to know Domex caters for extra large sized bags throughout their product range.   We have found that the bags have retained their loft well while providing immense warmth and comfort and have not had an evening where either of us has awoken cold.   On one evening the pertex endurance fabric proved to us really how good it is.   On this particular evening we found ourselves in the Alps, in the middle of a nasty Northwest storm that bought with it 190mm of rain in fifteen hours, and wind that was expected to reach speeds of 150km plus.   All of this proved too much for one of our alpine tents and the wind and rain proceeded to flatten it.   Luckily we had prepacked in case of complete chaos and although this helped, moving the gear to the remaining tent in driving rain wasn't the easiest of tasks.   By the time we had finished everything was quite wet.   We climbed back into the sleeping bags and the water could be seen running off the bags and onto the floor.   Within three hours the bags were dry to touch and during this time retained their heat remarkably.   The pertex fabric also proved how breathable it is on two of our month long trips into Fiordland and Stewart Island .   While there our tents formed mildew from our damp environments yet our sleeping bags showed no effects from the same conditions.   As an interesting note we mentioned earlier that it is possible for water to enter the interior of a sleeping bag through stitch holes and seams yet we found difficulty in getting the bags to absorb water while we were washing them, showing that the waterproof qualities of these bags truly are good.

Conclusion -  In today's world where many manufacturers are moving offshore to produce their product it is good to see the New Zealand made label.   You can clearly see from the recognizable emblem of the fern that these bags display that Domex takes pride in producing a New Zealand made quality product that both New Zealand and overseas users will show off wherever their travels take them.   In evaluating this bag, we would have no qualms in recommending this bag to serious outdoor enthusiasts who venture into the elements in all four seasons.   It would also be a suitable bag for those whose physiology tends to make them a cold sleeper.   Geoff would go as far to say that his Domex sleeping bag is the best piece of equipment that he is using this year.   The reason I would recommend this bag is simple, it keeps proving itself over and over, and if it came crunch time I believe that this bag would potentially save your life!

Excerts from their website:

Trip 3  Chamois - West Coast
29th Nov - 12th Dec
The One Year Expedition team is proud to be associated with Domex sleeping bags and outdoor products. After one particular night on this trip I would have no hesitation in recommending other outdoor enthusiasts to purchase a Domex bag.

The bags themselves are a 900-gram down bag that is comprised of 95/5% down. Their optimum comfort zone is between –17 thru –22 degrees. The construction of the down cells within the bags is designed on a V tube and slant box design. Both of these systems are used so it reduces the chances of colder spots by overlaying down layers both horizontally and vertically. This improves containment of the down so it reduces cold spots through baffle lines.

The night in question we received 290mm of rain in fifteen hours in association with this we had winds that would be getting close to 160 170km. A whole night of this proved a little too much for Geoffs tent and at about 4am a tent pole snapped. After throwing gear from tent to tent in the driving rain it all to an extent was damp so much so you could actually watch the water run off the Domex bags. After a change of clothes it was back into the sleeping bags and within a couple of hours the bags were dry. Both prior to and after the tent exploding the Domex bags created immense warmth – primo really when everything else was turning to custard! As the year progresses we will keep you informed on the performance of the Domex bags.

Trip 10 - Chamois - Nelson Lakes Region
Feb 16th - March 3rd
We thought we'd let you know how the Domex sleeping bags had performed over summer and coming into the autumn season. The bags have now had daily use for the past four months and are holding together well. During December and the start of January we found the 900gm probably a tad excessive when the nights weren’t any colder than 24 degrees. On these nights we found that the Domex liners were just as comfortable to sleep in as the sleeping bags. Ideally one of the Domex lightweight bags would have been perfect.

Every sleeping bag owner should consider a liner as a must as they add life to your bag by not allowing direct body sweat into the bag material, which later leads to the material rotting. Domex are starting to produce new liners that accompany the hood department so keep an eye out for these on the market shortly.

As we moved into late January and February we were hit with a patch of colder weather that saw us back inside the Domex bags and zipped right up. So far we haven't woken with any feeling of coldness seeping through from the ground layer, which is a great sign for the approaching winter! This is attributed to the different down compartments designed within the bag, undoubtedly the biggest test for these bags will be in the next few months that lie ahead. We will keep you informed on how they perform.