Aldi super thread

You've met Peter and his Pinnie, or just generally?

His right hand drive gearshift is a thing of beauty, as is the power steering conversion.

No, never met him......just in awe of the method they use in the drive train........central tube chassis....everything hangs from the tube, portal axles ala Unimog.

Almost bought one in the 70's but at $26,000 at the time, mypockets were not that deep.

Looking at it on You Tube, I thoroughly concur. What a work of engineering art

First heard of Peter thru a friend, then someone else gave me a vid of them (2x Pini's and a V8 Landrover) going thru Rabbit Patch. We tried the same track and only got a few hundred metres along it!
Have a look at Peters web pages, and while I would like a Pinzgauer, I really wanted a Haflinger! First saw one of these in the early 80's in a factory next to where I worked in North Melbourne.

Aldi have got these for $100.00 next weekend.

Are they as good value as it seems to me?

Outer shell; 290T Polyester with water repellent finish.

Filling; 600g grey duck down (80% down, 20% feather).

Extreme temperature rating to -15C.

Compressible to one third its original size; 225 x 80/50cm.

Total weight; 1.2kg (including bag)

you just need to make sure that it is long enough and roomy enough.As a general rule you will be comfotable at 10 dgrees above the minimum temp.You wont die at -15 but you will be to cold to sleep.. with duck you always shove it back into the outer case you never roll it because if you do it creates gaps in the sleeping bag.

Mate, in queensland, I reckon you might find nights cold enough to use a -15c bag without cooking your arse few and far between, I have a compact 0c bag and it's too hot for just about anywhere except Stanthorpe in Winter.

If you do get it, +1 on the stuffing instead of rolling. Rolling kills down bags.

-15c in real terms is a NZ mountaineering bag, so unless you wanna cook in australia 0 to -5c is fine.
I've climbed in NZ, bivvied at 2900M in my -5c bag and was toasty all night (exhaustion may have played a part :eek1)

It depends on whether they have actually tested the bag correctly or are just using the -15 as a marketing ploy.

At any rate $100 for a down/feather combo aint bad.

Thanks gents. I suppose I just thought they sounded cheap and assumed the rating was a bit overstated. Never really considered it being too hot.

Anyway I might brave the hordes at Aldi on Saturday and check it out at least.

Thanks again.

Posters are correct with temperature ratings. Cheaper bags often make dubious claims about their bags performance. You'll survive the night above the snow line (maybe not comfortably) in an Aldi -15'. In a $500 down bag you'll most likely be more comfortable.

Having said that, a -15 bag would be more than enough for most Qld conditions. You can always sleep in thermals (or even your clothes) to help improve the bag's relative rating. You could also use a liner to help thermal efficiency so that your -15' bag becomes a -20 etc.

The other thing to consider is your sleeping mat. Some of these have tricky thermal properties that reflect body heat back to keep you warmer. Nice

The last thing with a down bag is storage. It's not a good idea to store them in the supplied "stuff" bag, for the same reasons you don't roll them. Some down bags come with a second storage bag for long term storage. For a hundred bucks from Aldi, you may only get the stuff bag. If that's the case, a pillow case would do nicely.

Sleeping bags usually have a temp range of about 10degrees within there stated rating, ie -5 to -15 degrees. This depends on whether you are warm or cold sleeper. Male or female. Your normal climatization. They also used to be rated for wearing minimal clothes or none at all.
Goose down is better than duck due to a higher loft rating (which helps in retaining heat). 80/20 down to feather is low. IMO too low for a -15degree bag with only 600g fill. Even with a 90/10 or 95/5 ratio with 600g I think you would struggle to get a real -15 rating IMO. You could also look at the hiking shops online for clearance items to compare.

Just my 2c.

Depends on the person, my minus 10 bag just handles some of the frosty mornings of about -5 c It was $150 on special 5 years ago. Its better to unzip the bag if your hot than to lie awake shivering.

Does the aldi bag zip open all the way like a doona? Cant tell by the pics.

The missus bought me this from Aldi.on sale today $70.
sure looks the goods!..........2 entry,all weather,waterproof,
compact..............backyard testing now.

For some light reading :eek1 on sleeping bags...

http://tiny.cc/76bshw & http://tiny.cc/pmcshw

I picked up another set of their screwdrivers yesterday, They are brilliant, in that they actually have a decent profile and fit most screw heads. Sure, if you are running a professional business and they are being used all the time, maybe look elsewhere, but for just tinkering in the shed at $9, saves me walking to the ute.

My Dearly Beloved bought me both the tent and the sleeping bag .....wonder if she's trying to give me the hint

She is a keeper , mine just buys stuff for the house and hands me a list of things to do around here , I know which I'd prefer !

The tent has "dual entry", I'd say buy it just for that, but wait ! there's more! it also comes with a green dog kennel out the front for guarding one of those entries ! An absolute Bargain !!

That still leaves your rear entry exposed and vulnerable.....:eek1:eek1