Mountain Hardwear Pinole 20 Review

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The Mountain Hardwear Pinole 20 is the best value three-season synthetic sleeping bag we’ve reviewed. The primary characteristic that differentiates the Pinole from other inexpensive entry-level bags is its weight and compressibility. Thermic MX insulation and a simple exterior make the Pinole the third lightest bag in its class and also one of the most compressible. Therefore, this bag is fit for both car camping and multi-day backpacking trips.
The Pinole’s construction and materials are simple and of reasonable quality. On the whole, the bag is very basic and has few unnecessary features. It does include differentiated pull cords (one round, one flat), which allow you to distinguish the cords by feel in the middle or the night. The Pinole also has Mountain Hardwear’s best anti-snag zipper. It’s identical to that of the company’s higher end bags, such as the Phantom and Ultralamina, except it lacks two nylon wings on the inside of the zipper. These wings seal out cold air, but are also extremely prone to getting caught in the zipper. Without them, the zipper flows more freely than any other Mountain Hardwear bag we’ve tested. Thank you cost savings.

The best part about the Pinole is not actually on the Pinole. It’s the fleece lined stuff sack that doubles as a fleece pillow. We think this is brilliant. Simply flip the stuff sack inside-out, fill it with a layer of your choice, and you have a warm and comfortable pillow.

The Pinole’s $80 price tag makes this our top choice for budget camping. The bag is so affordable we recommend it no only to people looking for their first sleeping bag, but also to experienced backpackers and climbers. To the more advanced audience we suggest: buy a Pinole for car camping and save your $400 down bag for multi-day trips, alpine pursuits, and big walls.
While the Pinole is inexpensive it should not be compared to the low quality sleeping bags found in big box stores such as Wal-Mart. These very cheap bags ($20-$50) are not at all warm (40-50 degrees) and are generally both heavy and gargantuan in size. The Pinole is leagues above these Wal-Mart style bags.
Get one for yourself, your friends, your children, whomever. This is a bargain.

Dislikes
While the Pinole employs offset quilt construction (to avoid sewn-through seams and cold spots), we found its temperature rating to be rather optimistic. Out testers agree that a rating closer to 28 or 30 degrees is more accurate. This doesn’t necessarily detract from the bag- it’s made for summer use- but we do recommend layering up when sleeping in near freezing temps.

Best Application
Budget backpacking and car camping.

Value
Exceptional value. The only other competitor is the REI Polar Pod 25, but only if you can get it at a 30% off sale. Even then, this is a better bag.