Anyone tried the berghous compact ? 3/4 length model. Got the solar CH08 and just looking at trying a sim out. Thank you

In reply to Post #1
OK mate,have you heard of multimat ?

I use a multimat 25,adventure, it's a full length tapered SIM.It self inflates,then a few small puffs to suit to your liking, I find it very good,plus it's a nice dull green colour as well..

I also use ,on the deck a therma rest,which is thicker,but more suited to sleeping on the floor,I have a few now over the years,but so far I find the multimat best for me ,especially on a Avid RT bedchair...

I don't think you'll gain any advantage buying 3/4 SIM for carping on a bedchair,they are mainly for the thru hiking or minimalist sections..

In reply to Post #2
Agh ok thank you. Skipping through posts I read a few saying there more comfortable on bed chairs.

I'll check out the one mentioned

In reply to Post #3
Put it this way,using a shorter Sim,or other on a bedchair which is big enough to lug around is not going to make you more comfy especially if your looking for full length bodily insulation..

If you was walking a trail ,or wildcamping and having to pack up at first light to shift off quick I'd say OK,I don't know if many know but sleeping bags are becoming old hat in some quarters, it's now all about light quilts,you wait n see,it'll transfer over to angling...

In reply to Post #4
Looks very similar to the helium 3.8 ? I guess it's the weight and thickness that's different between the two

In reply to Post #5
OK mate I'm not familiar with the Helium ,but some say it's good so it must be sound,but multimat is good too,..think I paid 30 quid for my one ,and I leave it folded up.in that cheapo Avid bedchair all the time,...its worth a look anyway for sure,I mean it was my main cliff mat ,but I got a Thermarest so I don't have keep messing about,I might be camping afterword, then next evening I might go carping or something..I don't like being indoors..lol

Cheers

In reply to Post #6
Thanks for the advice. I'll defiantly check them out

In reply to Post #7
Hope you get sorted to your satisfaction, the camping,bushcraft,wildcamping world is similar to angling your head starts hurting, info overloads..lol

Best W1

In reply to Post #7
Picked up a Helium 3.8 based on the good reviews on this site, tried it out for the first time this week and have to say very impressed with it. Can be picked up for £40-£50.

In reply to Post #1
I've got a Helium 3.8 as it fits my compact bedchair perfectly - however is it any more comfy than the £20 Amazon jobby I've got on my larger bedchair?- not noticeably! Time will of course tell in terms of quality etc - I keep both permanently on and folded up with the sleeping bag also intact etc and rarely if ever top up with air etc

Seen one in Aldi today for £12 , 150x51x3cm almost took a punt

In reply to Post #11
I gotta be honest ,when lidl did the camping gear section,I bought an orange Crivit blow up mat,it was really ,really comfy,lasted two years of use,more than most might use it,...then one day it lost its firmness.

In reply to Post #11
150 a tad short unless you are 8yrs old?

In reply to Post #13
I sleep like an 8 year old Does that count

In reply to Post #14
You may get cold feet!

In reply to Post #10
Hi Belch

What's your amazon one please.?
I have the standard whycwood and finding it's bit to firm
The 3.8 looks a bit.narrow.

In reply to Post #16
RE The 3.8 looks a bit.narrow.
IMO thats one of its GOOD points !
the reason being beds have a border and the 3.8 fits perfectly inside it so it helps keep it in place when I bought mine I had a Trakker ELS ( W88cm) and I have a 50" chest so not skinny lol and it was perfection great when folding up the bedchair too

In reply to Post #17
Cheers Jerry.my beds 85 wide. So it should be fine then

In reply to Post #2
A 3/4 simply is definitely an advantage as a full length one means your main body mass pushes the air down to the foot end so there is no support for the body and the feet are floating on a thicker bed of air.

A quarter fill a balloon and press some weight down on it and see what happens

In reply to Post #19
Game changer. A little bit of extra comfort for my bad back, but not too thick so it feels like you're on a bouncy castle.

In reply to Post #19
Ive never noticed anything like that with my full length one, prefer the extra length for my legs and feet to rest on as well. A balloon is nothing like a sim so you cant compare them.

In reply to Post #21
No I have never had that with my sim either

In reply to Post #19
sorry Dave

but thats just not how it happens with a quality SIM !
yes maybe with a cheap air bed but no way does it happen with my 3.8 Helium

In reply to Post #17
I also thought the Helium 3.8 seemed narrow for my needs.
In my wisdom I wanted a lighter weight bedchair for shorter sessions under a smaller shelter as my original FOX FX Flatliner is great, but bulky and heavy. I opted for a Trakker RLX Flat-6 Superlite Bed, but found it hopelessly uncomfortable after the Flatliner. I have some damaged discs in my neck and back so comfort is important for me. I therefore looked at the Helium SIM, but really wanted something full width as I always find sitting on the edges of bedchairs can be really uncomfortable and I'm also a restless sleeper so like to splay out as much as I can in my bag. I went for a Thermarest basecamp in XL size which is 760mm wide and therefore same width as the bedchair. It has been a total gamechanger for comfort. I also have a Trakker bedchair mattress topper which pulls tightly over the whole thing so it all stays permanently on the bedchair and folds up nicely. I'm not sure the mattress topper is available now though?
The SIM and topper It haven't added much weight and its all still much lighter and easier to manoeuvre etc than my Flatliner.
Overall it is a costly package and I probably should have just tried to find a very comfortable lighter-weight bedchair in the first place, but then the SIM is removeable so handy for transferring to my Flatliner too if I wish.

https://www.thermarest.com/ie/sleeping-pads/camp-and-comfort/basecamp-sleeping-pad/basecamp.html

Thought i would bump this thread instead of starting a new one.

I have just purchased a helium 3.8 SIM as was finding my bedchair too firm.

Do people put lots of air in the helium 3.8 or just minimal? I have tried both and cant decide which is more comfortable

In reply to Post #25
Before Gerry loses his **** I just let it do its thing.

I did, at first when brand new have to give it some help with a few puffs of air.
I suppose it will be down to you in the end to what is comfortable.

When I get to the lake, I open the bedchair (I leave the SIM on the bedchair when folded) and deal with everything else. Once done, I close the valve and it is ready, for me.

EDIT: I'm a side sleeper

In reply to Post #25
Some have said they add air after it self expands and other say don't do that

It is personal preference and likely depends on if you are a back or side sleeper

In reply to Post #26
Ditto my process; although I'm currently minus SIM on my s****y solar!

In reply to Post #26
And thats how I do mine and how the makers tell you to do it

blowing into it turns it into an air bed totally defeating the idea of it in my opinion

In reply to Post #27
I always add a few blows as it hardly inflates on its own

"It can help to breathe a couple of puffs into the mat after giving it time to self-inflate; however, don't do this too often as moisture blown into the mat can reduce its durability"

I give mine 3 or 4 blows, mostly because I'm impatient and cba to wait for it to inflate on it's own

Appreciate some will disagree with this but each to their own.

Enjoy the extra warmth it offers though. Huge improvement for me.

In reply to Post #25
On my first use I left it open for half an hour but it didn't seem
To be much different. So I added a good few puffs. That seemed about right
With a 'press it with your hand' test.

But when I laid on it it was like being on an airbed. So I gradually let air out
Until it was spot on. When I looked it was almost flat again.

I figured when your laying on it you are increasing the air pressure
When pressing it you aren't.

Anyway I find no added air works great for me and has turned one of the worst beds I've ever owned into a comfy bed.

i had no idea you weren't supposed to blow it up this thread it very helpful!

In reply to Post #34
The thicker sim's have more foam, and the better ones have better foam with more "bounce back" so will self inflate more easily.
My thin thermarest mat needs some help but it's no problem. .

The best thing you can do with a SIM, especially the "Helium" is leave it stored unrolled with the valve open. I store mine down the back of the wardrobe at home and it is out of sight and when I go fishing, just bend it over once or twice and lay it on top of my tackle still with the valve open.

What I find is, if I have left it unrolled for a very long period of time, I only have to close the valve and its good to lay on. But if I have had to roll it up for a period of time, even after leaving it for an hour or two unrolled back of the bivvy or the car, I need to put some air into it.

I never leave it on the bed when I pack up as it is easy if your not careful to "nip it" and put a small hole in it in the hinges on the bed. But, I am a clumsy sod anyway.

Which sim would be best for a trakker ovalite sleep system

A helium 3.8 but it's quite thin or maybe the thermarest xl that's been posted below?

In reply to Post #33
yes exactly right
and for it to work the way its designed its got to have space for the air to move around bit like a water bed too much air and it cant so its then just an air bed and you miss out on the comfort of a SIM it really does work better if you follow what the people who make it tell you to do as you have found out mate

as to the thickness debate the popular Helium 3.8 is designed to lay on the ground !!!

not on a bedchair so it is perfectly fine and unlike some of the cheap ones I find I can use mine in the summer without sweating like a rapist IMO you get what you pay for

In reply to Post #37
>>>A helium 3.8 but it's quite thin<<<

Last week I slept on mine on a wooden floor in a village hall with nothing else underneath and a poncho liner over top to keep warm. Just a couple of puffs of air to top it up and it was good for the night to lay on and I weigh 222 lbs.

In reply to Post #39
When I said thin I meant narrow.