Tandem sleeping bag recs

I'm looking for a nice tandem sleep setup for car camping (in the car sometimes) and casual backpacking objectives.

For bags I'm considering the Big Agnes/Nemo tandem systems and also considering just zipping two Nemo bags together (since we both want new main bags).

For pads I have a double-wide Cosmo 3D (got it yesterday and haven't tried it yet) but would be down to donate it to my parents if it's not going to be the right thing for me.

Please let me know what your experience has been with these things or shoot me recs.

My wife and I swear by tandem bags even on climbs.  We started with a Big Agnes King Solomon which was rated to 15F and weighed just over 4 pounds which was equivalent to 2x our normal bags that had the same rating.  That meant no weight savings overall but way more comfort as a double bag sleeps a lot warmer and has way more room to wear puffy coats to sleep in if it's cold.  Now we use a Feathered Friends Flicker as a quilt down to about 20F.  This has cut 2.5# out of our sleep system but requires a little more care to sleep warm.

I have an Enlightenment Equipment Accomplice double quilt. It’s pricey but will last a very long time, and it has pad straps so there are no gaps between the pads. Plenty warm and you get mutual heat with your sleeping buddy. Weighs about the same amount as a single bag because it’s a quilt. 

Honestly a zipper of any type would wake my wife up and is not worth the weight or complexity 

I've had good luck with the goose down bags from aliexpress.

Search for "lmr sleeping bag", choose how much filling you want (600 grams is a good starting point), request in the order comments to have one zipper on the left and one on the right. While you are at it, order a couple large mesh laundry bags for storage.

Take the money you save and buy more cams.

A girlfriend and I had zip together bags, I think they were both REI or North Face.  Gave us the option of using them together or separately.  We both had old style Thermarest pads and we bought a strap that was designed to keep them together.  I also would buy the anti-slip shelf padding material and cut a couple of small squares to toss under the pads and under the bags to keep it all from slipping around too much.

The system worked well and was nice and warm.

Keep an eye on ebay for an EE accomplice, that's how I got one for about 20-25% off a while back. Awesome for backpacking, along with the Exped UL double pad. I think their temp ratings are inline with most manu's - i.e. you'll want additional insulation if pushing the temp rating. I think ours is 10/15* ? Works great down to upper 20's. Great BP setup, though - light and compact, and comfy. Pad could be better, but I've yet to find an inflatable LW pad that's as comfy as a foam-filled self-inflating style (heavy and bulky). 

For car camping, the Big Agnes bags are great. We use the Dream Island and it is super warm and comfy, combined with another Exped mat - the Simcomfort Duo, I think. 3-3.5" thick, fits in the BA sleeve perfectly. As comfortable as sleeping at home, if not better. Much preferred over friends/hotel room beds. The DI is big - look at the specs - comforter style. You might want the smaller one, Cabin Creek (I think) if you have a smaller tent. 

Watch for closeout deals on these - we grabbed them from Campsaver/REI on sale + coupon and scored deals a few years back. I saw the same Dream Island (brown/orange) on ebay recently for a steal. 

SinRopa wrote:

Hey Jon - have you pushed the temp rating on that quilt at all?  I just picked one up and am curious how far I can stretch the temp rating when curled up with the wife.

Unfortunately I haven’t, we had a baby recently and have not been intending to get out in cold conditions. I do think you can estimate getting down 10-20 degrees  colder than a single person quilt of the same thickness with the shared mutual heat. 

My main climbing partner and I now share an Enlightened Equipment Accomplice and an Exped Duo for most of our Alpine objectives. It's a great sleep system, comfortable for two people, and warm as a pizza oven. Plus, the setup weighs about half what both of our individual setups would weigh, and it's honestly super comfortable.

We've pushed my 20 degree Accomplice down to somewhere in the single digits on an open bivy  while doing a silly ice-climbing trip; both of us had light puffies and we spent most of the night shivering but surviving. Would not want to repeat that night again, but the quilt still performed remarkably well, all things considered.

Thomas G. wrote: My main climbing partner and I now share an Enlightened Equipment Accomplice and an Exped Duo for most of our Alpine objectives. It's a great sleep system, comfortable for two people, and warm as a pizza oven. Plus, the setup weighs about half what both of our individual setups would weigh, and it's honestly super comfortable.

We've pushed my 20 degree Accomplice down to somewhere in the single digits on an open bivy  while doing a silly ice-climbing trip; both of us had light puffies and we spent most of the night shivering but surviving. Would not want to repeat that night again, but the quilt still performed remarkably well, all things considered.

10/10 would spoon again

10/10 would spoon again

WYD this weekend bae?

My wife and I each gave a north face cats meow.  Mine is a left zip hers is a right.  They work great apart and zip together nicely as well. I think it is the best way to go.

Matt N wrote: Keep an eye on ebay for an EE accomplice, that's how I got one for about 20-25% off a while back. Awesome for backpacking, along with the Exped UL double pad. I think their temp ratings are inline with most manu's - i.e. you'll want additional insulation if pushing the temp rating. I think ours is 10/15* ? Works great down to upper 20's. Great BP setup, though - light and compact, and comfy. Pad could be better, but I've yet to find an inflatable LW pad that's as comfy as a foam-filled self-inflating style (heavy and bulky).

My wife and I have the Enlightened Equipment Accomplice and use the Exped Synmat HL Duo Winter. Killer combo. Need to wear a beanie if pushing temps as there is no hood, but body warmyh keeps it feeling nice and toasty in the 20's with our 20 degree quilt. Its a pricey setup for sure but its great if saving weight and space are primary goals. FYI the long pad is both wider and longer. It did not fit in our Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2 or our Subaru outback. We downsized to the regular length and both fit/work great. 

My girlfriend and I have the big Agnes Lone Ranger and Roxyann bags that zip together and if you don’t have the same length bags there a gap at the top where they don’t close. I think they’re 15 degree bags and they have the sleeping pad sleeve. If you don’t have a pad there’s no insulation underneath you. Not the best design imo. She gets cold easily and I sleep super hot so we don’t ever use it together unless it’s early in the morning. With the AAC 40% discount it’s not a completely bad setup up but we generally don’t use them as much as we thought we would. She says the bag is to cold and I can’t zip mine without waking up sweating. I’d recommend getting something at rei and test it out, if you don’t like the setup just return it and move on.