Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 Review
How did this cold-weather bag stand up to our testing in the field?
YOUR EXPERT
Lexi is a hiker, backpacker, and outdoor enthusiast born and raised in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Read More
Mountain Hardwear makes some of the best backpacking sleeping bags available. They are well known for manufacturing their sleeping bags with high-quality materials. I couldn't wait to try this bag once I made my purchase!
It is an excellent choice for the cold season because of its great insulation properties. They use the best technology to make their bags, such as advanced warmth technology. Mountain Hardwear gear products are truly worth your money.
If you want a sleeping bag that will give you more climbing and less dragging, the Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 will do an excellent job for you. This sleeping bag is light weight and will cut down your load significantly.
Overview
The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 is a down bag that is versatile and accommodates many functions. Whether you adore mountain climbing, skiing, or backpacking, this sleeping bag will be your ideal companion for all your adventures.
I don't particularly appreciate carrying heavy backpacks for my mountain climbing trips, but I got more than I expected with this bag. If you count grams for your outdoor gear, this lightweight sleeping bag is ideal.
Features
If you are a cold sleeper, Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 will keep you warm and comfortable. You don't need to add extra layers to get warm. This sleeping bag has a draft collar and hood that aid in keeping warm air in the bag.
This sleeping bag has a tuck stitching pattern to protect the baffle stitches from scraping off. The tuck stitching pattern enhances the durability of the bag. You, therefore, don't have to worry about repairs or constantly replacing your sleeping bag. The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 saves you MONEY with its durability.
It has an ANTI SNAG two-way zipper to enable easy access to the bag and for proper ventilation. You can open the zipper to release the warm air if you are a warm sleeper.
The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 sleeping bag has a 3D foot box that contours to the natural foot position to provide comfort. The contoured foot box has space to pack some extra layers around your feet and allows your feet to assume a natural position when sleeping.
It has draft collars for insulation to prevent the escape of warm air from inside the bag during cold nights. These draft collars are filled with down which also adds to your comfort.
The sleeping bag has a 4 chamber hood design that keeps a uniform loft around your head. The hood ensures you stay warm inside the bag.
The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 sleeping bag also comes with a lightweight nylon compression sack and a mesh storage sack. The compression sack packs the sleeping bag into a small package, saving you more space.
Another fascinating feature is the face gasket that traps warm air inside the bag and blocks cold air. I also found out that this sleeping bag has a glow-in-the-dark zipper. Glowing in the dark helps you quickly locate the zipper at night. Now that's an interesting feature, right?
Looking for something to spread out under? Check out our comparison of the relative benefits of sleeping bags vs quilts
Material
The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 sleeping bag is made with high-quality materials. It has a 10 denier recycled ripstop nylon shell. This material is light and highly compressible so it's easy to fit in your backpack.
This sleeping bag is made with a lofty 850 fill goose down fill that is certified to provide excellent warmth to weight ratio.
It has a gore wind stopper fabric that is windproof, and water-resistant. The water-repellent feature helps moisture bead up on the surface and keeps the bag dry.
My Phantom 15 sleeping bag got damp a couple of times during my trail, but I never felt cold at night. It maintained its insulation properties even after getting exposed to moisture. This is a plus for me.
Temperature Rating
Comfort rating is the lowest temperature at which the bag can keep an average cold sleeper comfortable. For Mountain Hardwear, the EN comfort rating of this sleeping bag is 23 degrees F.
The lower limit rating is the lowest temperature at which the bag will keep the average warm sleeper comfortable. For this bag, the lower limit rating is 11 degrees F.
The temperature rating is at 15 degrees F and -9 degrees C.
Shape and Design
The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 has a mummy-cut design that impressively maximizes the warmth to weight ratio by efficiently trapping necessary heat to keep you warm.
Weight
This excellent quality sleeping bag comes in men's regular and long.
Regular size weighs 2 lbs. 1.oz(about 940g)
The long one weighs 2lbs. 4oz(about 1020g)
The fill weight for the men's regular is 1lb. 4 oz (about 567g)and 1lb . 6 oz (about 64g)for the long sleeping bags.
The women's regular weighs 2lb 0oz (about 910g) and 2lb 3oz (about 990g) for the long version. The fill weight for regular size is 1lb 4oz (about 567g) and 1lb 6oz ( about 624g) for the long size.
Among all the sleep bags I've used, I found the weight of this one to be the best. More so it packed down to a minimal size and gave me more room to carry other stuff.
Size
This sleeping bag is convenient and comes in two versions: the women's version and the men's version.
The bag comes with a stuff sack in size 38 cm by 43cm.
Women's Sleeping Bag
The maximum user height for the regular is 165cm and 178cm for the long version. Shoulder girth is 142cm for regular and 147cm for long. Hip girth is 142cm for regular and 147cm for long. Foot girth is 9cm for regular and 97cm for long.
Men's Sleeping Bag
The maximum user height for the regular sleeping bags is 180cm and 200cm for the long ones. Shoulder girth for the regular one is 152cm and 157cm for the long one. Hip girth is 142cm for the regular bad and 147cm for the long version. Foot girth is 97cm for regular and 102cm for long.
- It is a lightweight bag
- It is compressible
- It is significantly warm
- It is compact enough and will not take up a lot of space in your backpack
- Has draft collars
- It would help if you kept it dry
- It is on the higher end for most budgets
Take away
What I appreciate most about this bag is the warmth-to-weight ratio—the ability to keep me warm and cozy even on the coldest nights. The price is worth it, and I would purchase it again and again. The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 sleeping bag is essential for any backpacker among all my gear reviews. Buy yours today and have a wonderful experience.
If you're interested in a bag for slightly warmer weather, head over to our review of the Marmot Nanowave 55
