PHD Mountain Software

New product!

Get year-round performance from your Ultralight bag!

We often get asked by marathon and lightweight enthusiasts about doubling up our Ultralight bags for winter use, like putting a Minimus inside a Minim 400. With the standard bags it is not a good idea—the outer bag would not be wide enough to let the inner expand and you would lose a lot of insulation. Hence the Combi.

"Sitting there in a maelstrom of weather and tent horror and I was the comfiest I’ve ever been in a sleeping bag in winter." Peter McFarlane, a.k.a 'Petesy', using PHD Combi with a PHD Ultra.

The Combi is basically a Minim 400, cut wider than usual and a little longer, to accommodate a Minimus, Ultra or Piqolo bag inside. At 780gm it is still a very light bag. Combined with a Minimus it makes a package of about 1245gm which will cope with around –15C. At the same time you will have two independent bags for warmer conditions: your Minimus or Ultra for above zero and your Combi for a few degrees below.

The versatility and the economies of combining bags need no explanation. Just two other points:

1. The Combi bag used on its own will not be quite as efficient as a normal Minim 400 because of its extra width.
2. It is very comfortable at less than minimum temperatures to bring the inner bag only up to the top of the chest, leaving your arms out of the inner bag, but inside the larger space of the Combi.

We are making two versions - the standard one with an M1 outer; and an option with Drishell outer. Both have MX inners and 800 quality down.

The Combi offers a great opportunity to use your lightweight gear all year.

The Drishell version is around 20gm (1oz) heavier than the standard bag.

Photo shows combi bag in red Drishell with a Minim 400 in Blue Drishell inside (Minim sold separately).

• Small box spacing to minimise down shift
• Enlarged oval footpiece
• Hood with drawcord
• Stuff sac
• Pack size: 17 x 28cm†
• Inner: MX microfibre (black)
• Down: 450gm (16oz) of 800 down.
• Set options
• Drishell Outer
• Full length zip (left or right) +£25
• Short zip (left or right) +£14
• Long (add 7.5% to price) and short versions available

†Please note: we make our stuff sacs big enough to allow fairly easy stuffing rather than reducing the bag to the tightest minimum. What air is left in the packed item will easily be compressed out of it, if you are squashing it into a small space in your rucksack. Tiny stuff sacs look impressive: but unless you are a sac-wrestling fan, fighting the gear into them day after day can be an unnecessary chore.

"The fit is very good, no crushing of the inner bag . . . and the loft is very good. . . The fabrics are all excellent, the Drishell used on the Combi outer is very good indeed. Water resistant enough to cope with spills, drips and a user daft enough to keep dragging snow into the tent. . .the Combi + Minim has been a revelation. Warm enough for me to abandon all clothing bar my coating of 190 weight merino, and although slim cut, I don’t feel restricted in it. The two bags interact very well, there is no sensation of multiple layers. . . The two bags feel like one, but it’s some how cosier. I dare say it’s one of those things that you have to try, but I have to say I have been warm, comfortable even delighted using these bags. . . I think it’s good to look at the two bags as a system and as individual bits of kit. That way it does kinda cover the whole year, does that mean it’s all you need?" Peter McFarlane, a.k.a 'Petesy', using PHD Combi with a PHD Ultra.

"Just back from an 18 day trek in the region around Everest. I knew the conditions were going to be pretty cold, camping for quite a few nights at around 5000m - night temperatures fell well below minus 15c. Just before I left I purchased the synthetic Combi bag to go with my Minim 400. The combination worked a treat and - with my Ultra down vest - I never once felt cold during the long nights - even without the hood done up fully. Everything else froze - condensation from my breath turned to ice on the inside of the tent! I was the only one to have such luxury and my trekking companions were just a little envious of my warm glow!" Gordon G