Australian Cycling Forums - Bicycles Network Australia

In one or two forums I hang out there is a Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS) thread where folks share their recent purchases. Nothing like a bit of simulation to spend more money

To get the ball rolling ...

My replacement sleeping mat arrived today; a Sea to Summit Ultralight Insulated mat, size small. It replaces my now dead Exped Synmat UL 7S and also brings to an end my experiment with Exped gear.

The other piece of gear was an Outdoor Research Helium II Jacket from Massdrop to replace the RAB Flashpoint Jacket I managed to loose at the end (literally on the last few kilometres to home) of my last bikepacking trip.

Aushiker wrote: My replacement sleeping mat arrived today; a Sea to Summit Ultralight Insulated mat, size small. It replaces my now dead Exped Synmat UL 7S and also brings to an end my experiment with Exped gear.

I was a little disappointed to go so far backwards with bulk and weight with the Sea To Summit mat.
My Synmat UL7 M is positively diminutive compared to its insulated replacement (in R) and it burns even more due to my elderly (now) UL7 not having (yet) suffered the inner delamination issue despite all the feedback of other owners mats having suffered this calamity.

Yeah, yeah, I'm sure its failure is somewhat immanent and given that my UL7 is older than many of the units mentioned in the various forums I read, it would have been short sighted to have ignored the Sea To Summit sale pointed out by RonK last year but it did come at a particularly cash strapped week when announced as per Murphys Law.

Andrew, how will you be inflating your new mat.
I've just remembered I'd bought a Exped Pump Pillow for the UL7.
I've not yet had the new mat out of its bag which will be rectified tonight now that my curiosity has been aroused.
Planning a night or two away this weekend to iron out any issues with my camping gear.
Some of which is untried and untested and I don't want any surprises for my next tour.

Not this week - but a couple of weeks ago I bought a Sea to Summit Ultralight Insulated mat to replace the Exped Synmat UL7 LW which inconveniently failed on me during my tour in NZ last year.

By chance I discovered that Snowys (which has the best price online) has a store here so I visited to inspect the S2S mat and size it up. I had already decided not to get another large mat, as the Synmat UL7 LW is too big for my tent.

As it happens, the large S2S mat is bulky indeed when packed, but the regular S2S mat is virtually identical in size edit: (to the Synmat UL7 LW).

And a bonus is the stuff sack for the S2S also works as a pump.

RonK wrote:Not this week - but a couple of weeks ago I bought a Sea to Summit Ultralight Insulated mat to replace the Exped Synmat UL7 LW which inconveniently failed on me during my tour in NZ last year.

By chance I discovered that Snowys (which has the best price online) has a store here so I visited to inspect the S2S mat and size it up. I had already decided not to get another large mat, as the Synmat UL7 LW is too big for my tent.

As it happens, the large S2S mat is bulky indeed when packed, but the regular S2S mat is virtually identical in size.

And a bonus is the stuff sack for the S2S also works as a pump.

I find that interesting.
I bought my UL7 in medium, taking your advice on avoiding the oversized L.
I bought my S2S from your link some time ago now and chose R which they stated was Regular.
Not the best pic by any means but it does indicate my finding that my S2S is in the vicinity of 1/3 bulkier(?)

http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa4 ... suhncm.jpg
http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa4 ... ossd57.jpg

Apologies to anyone who can't get the above links to work.
After an initial easy opening even I now can't.

Perhaps given the difference in time frame of purchase, yours might be a new and improved version?

Edit. I got sidetracked last night and didn't manage to pull out the S2S from its bag.

Your description of the stuff sack pump ability doesn't at all gell with mine, however, I've just this minute pulled out of the stuff sack my S2S and I think I've just been able to confirm my Exped Pump Pillow appears to be compatible with the S2S, so I've no complaint.

Edit 2:

I've just created a huge mess looking for the original box the S2S came in but it appears it was disposed of in my last clean up.
I've just closely examined the stuff sack and can confirm it is Sea To Summit, Ultralight, Insulated, R.
Thats embossed on the bottom panel of the sack and I've found a small tag on the side which says "Thermolite".
I can see nothing to suggest pumping ability in any shape or form.

Its my contention you've acquired a new and improved version RonK.

Yes, the stock I bought was in new packaging. They did have older stock on the shelves in S and L sizes, but I had to ask for an R and the salesperson had to retrieve newly arrived stock from the adjoining warehouse.

However I don't think the size of the S2S mat has changed. Remember I'm comparing a size R S2S to a size long/wide Exped, and the packed size is virtually identical, so no doubt a size R S2S would pack larger than an size M Exped.

RonK wrote:Yes, the stock I bought was in new packaging. They did have older stock on the shelves in S and L sizes, but I had to ask for an R and the salesperson had to retrieve newly arrived stock from the adjoining warehouse.

However I don't think the size of the S2S mat has changed. Remember I'm comparing a size R S2S to a size long/wide Exped, and the packed size is virtually identical, so no doubt a size R S2S would pack larger than an size M Exped.

Oh I'm just whingeing.
I'd much rather put up the small amount of extra weight and bulk of the S2S than head homeward due to a de-laminated Synmat 7UL.

I can't even really give a decent complaint about the 7UL as mine seems to have out lasted many others and has been very comfortable for my side-sleeping self.
It was in fact money well spent compared to my last mat which was simply way too heavy and bulky due to a lack of research on my part (I couldn't bring myself to type ignorance).

I was in need of some retail therapy this week and eBay was offering a targeted $20 off for purchases over $150.

Seemed like a good enough excuse to add a propriety Garmin battery power pack for my 1030

Its been a particularly wet winter these last couple of months so I'm hopeful adding a little extra utility to my bike might see me garner a little enthusiasm to get out and do some riding.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-29/p ... s/10178884

Not to be outdone by all the enthusiastic postings in this thread, and a little over the accumulating soot on my trangia pans this week, I've decided to give a genuine trangia gas burner a twirl.
I went with eBay for the supposed buyers protection.

Some time ago I trailed the Trangia multi fuel burner which was the one produced by Primus based on the Omnifuel burner if my research was correct.
I found it simply too weighty to be practical and so parted with it.

Whilst the Trangia butane burner has yet to clear customs, a forgotten order for a screen protector for my Garmin Edge showed up.

Just a cheap Chinese eBay purchase:

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/9H-Hardness ... 2580328513

but I think it will do a turn going some of the way to make up for any clumsiness on my part.

The sizing was pretty spot on and it went on well with no lifting manifesting thus far.

I had managed to mark the screen of an earlier Edge unit I owned and I am determined to make a better effort protecting this one.

Fingers crossed this will do the trick.

decided to try the little trangia triangle,well the chitanium knockoff anyway,should arrive in a week or 2

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Argos-T ... 4c4dG7a7qz