Gear

My current sleeping bag takes up virtually a full pannier when I'm cycle touring, rubbish.

So recommend me a decent sleeping bag which packs down to nowt.

Cheers.

i cannot recommend the RAB Q250 highly enough, depends on what your willing to pay mind. Packs really small.

The Mountain Hardwear Phantom ones are really small packing. Depends on what temp rating you need as well. 

Need to know: temperature rating and cost.

Big Agnes Horse Thief (and mat) is interesting, shaving packed size by eliminating the down from the bottom. I like curling up, though, so prefer my Montbell (pick a temperature, but they ain't cheap).

I have to go with PHD again as above. Their lightweight bags are the most basic of designs, but that really is all you need: a layer of insulation.
But you're body size and shape might make your choice for you as well.
Buy the best sleep mat you can, even the best bag gets crushed flat under you and has zero insulation.

How durable are the PHD bags? They are very light and the fabrics used are very light. My question is for someone who can't get a new bag every few years but has to make each one last will the minim range last say as long as the lighter Rabs? I know PH is considered THE expert in all things sleeping bags but has he gone too light with the fabrics? Also I heard they get a low weight by having a lower volume inside the bags. If you are a big fella then you could be reducing the space for the down to loft fully so the bags will feel cold for their rating.

These things are worth considering not just the total bag weight. It is easy to create a light bag, just make it smaller. The trick is to make a light bag that is useable and durable. I'm not saying PHD bags such as the UL Minim range aren't good quality and well designed but perhaps not the answer for everyone.

I like the idea of quilts (as opposed to topbags which still have a bag design) as they allow you to adjust the volume formed by your quilt / mat combination by tightening the straps. This would cater for more body shapes.

Also, if you are tall (even if you are at the top end of a standard bag length) I would look at an XL sleeping bag. From experience, stuffing yourself into a small bag means the insulation is compressed and you get cold at those spots. For me it was always my feet. In fact it was worse when you put layers of socks on as this made it worse. Similarly with a narrow bag in the body it is often better to wear nothing than add a fleece due to loft minimisation.

The PHD bags are no less duarble than any of the manufcaturers using Pertex, Toray or similar fabrics. In fact, the M.E. Xero bags have such a lighte inner fabric that they advise using a liner so you don't damage it.
PHD do regular style bags that are much heavier, the weight savings on the Minims etc come from having no zips or no sholder baffles. The cut is slim, but not overly so, no different really to the average modern mummy shape. Bigger-cut bags that come to mind include TNF and Marmot. I've just got a Golite Adrenaline bag in for test that's so narrow it fells like I'm being shrink-wrapped, so PHD are kinda in the middle.
But the zipless/baffle-less design maybe does need a little more thought to use well, you rely on your hood to keep the heat in more. I love getting right in the bag and pulling the drawcord tight, and some folk would be screaming with cluastrophobia doing that! But warmth for weight, you can't beat that style of bag.

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated. Sorry, completely forgotten I'd posted here as I don't visit this site too much (must pop in more, very informative).

Need to know: temperature rating and cost.

Temp rating, -5ish.

Cost, I know these things can get expensive so £100ish? £150 tops. Can I get anything for decent for that price?

One thing I've never owned is a sleeping bag liner, what would be the benefits of using one, added warmth for less money?

You might be pushing it to get a PHD or Rab with a -5 rating for that price. An alternative might be an Alpkit Pipedream 400 which is rated to -3. The only thing is that the Pipedreams are cut quite narrow to keep the size and weight down, so depending on your build you might find it a bit restrictive.

A liner will add a small amount of warmth but the primary reason people use them is to keep the bag itself clean. Cleaning a sleeping bag which is filled with down is a horrible, horrible job so usually involves taking it to a specialist which then obviously costs money.

Ah right, thanks or that. Looks like I may have to stretch my budget then!

I'm 6'1" and 80kg and I don't particularly like being inside a sleeping bag as it is, so a narrow one would do my head in. Also, I've not been very impressed with the Alpkit items that I already own, though I suppose they are ok for what you pay.

If you can stretch your budget, don't bother with a sleeping bag liner.  They twist around you and you wake up feeling like you're in a strait jacket.

Instead get a spare base layer and sleep in that.  It costs and weighs bit more but is far more comfortable and versatile. 

I think Alpkit's sleeping bags are generally considered to be one of their best products. I have the pipedream 400 and have been pretty pleased with it so far.

If you're after something less restrictive then you can try the SkyeHigh 600 which is rated to -5. What's the difference? Lower quality down, so they need more of it making it larger and heavier. The upside is it's only £90 and it's also a wider fit than the Pipedreams.

According to the SkyeHigh product info page (about halfway down on the right) it packs down to 25cm x 23cm which is about 10.5 litres.

The rab Ascent series are supposed to be a bit more relaxed in their cut the ascent 500 would seem to be about right for your needs £144 from tower ridge.

Steve D