SectionHiker.com Backpacking Gear Reviews and FAQs 
The Featherstone Moondance 25 is an off-the-shelf 850 fill power down-insulated backpacking quilt with a zippered/drawstring footbox, draft collar, and pad attachment system that’s affordably priced and available for purchase on Amazon. It has a box baffled construction used by higher quality quilts and the temperature rating has been verified by an independent ISO-certified test lab. I’ve been very impressed with it and think it’s a great find if you’re looking for a quality backpacking quilt that’s more affordable and has a better feature set than many of the in-stock, “economy” models offered by cottage quilt manufacturers. Featherstone Outdoor Products is a US-based company founded in 2017 that designs its gear in the US but manufactures it in China to keeps its consumer prices low.
Specs at a Glance
- Weight: 23.7 oz (the actual weight of our review quilt is 25.5 oz)
- Size: Regular (a size long is also available)
- Fill Power: 850 fill power RDS-certified, PFC-free grey duck down
- Fill weight: 450 g
- Water-Resistant Down: (Yes) Downtek
- ISO 25337-1 Temperature Rating: 26°F/-3°C (T-Limit), 36°F/2°C (T-Comfort)
- Construction: Box baffles
- Draft Collar: Yes
- Zippered Footbox with Drawstring Vent: Yes
- Pad Attachment Straps: (2)
- Length: 75.6 in (192 cm)
- Shoulder Width: 53.9 in (137 cm)
- Leg circumference: 39.8 in (101 cm)
- Packed size: 13 x 4 in / 33 x 10 cm
- Inner: 10-denier calendered Nylon (Orange)
- Outer: 10-denier DWR Nylon (Black
Quilt Temperature Rating
The Featherstone Moondance 25 can be used for sleeping in a hammock or on the ground using the included sleeping pad attachment straps. It has also been temperature tested for ISO 23537-1 by an independent testing lab. This is a big deal in terms of credibility for consumers because a lot of quilt manufacturers don’t send their standard quilts out to be rated similarly.
The 25-degree temperature rating (called the T-Limit rating in ISO 23537) represents the average temperature for someone who is a warm sleeper to sleep comfortably and correlates well with men. Women tend to sleep colder than men because, on average, they have less body mass. For women and other colder sleepers, the Moondance is rated to 36F/2C. These temperature ratings assume that you’re wearing an insulated cap, a long underwear layer, thermal socks, and that you’re sleeping on a sleeping pad, if on the ground.
Features
The Featherstone Moondance 25 includes a couple of features that I view as must-haves on quilts rated for three-season use down to 20-30 degrees or lower. First off, it has box baffle construction combined with vertical baffling over the torso and horizontal baffles over the foot to eliminate cold spots and prevent the down from shifting as the result of repeated stuffing. These are premium features found on the best backpacking quilts.
In addition, the Moondance 25 comes with a draft collar, a zippered, drawstring footbox, and pad attachment straps that you can use when sleeping on a sleeping pad to help block side drafts, particularly in cold weather.
Draft Collar
A quilt draft collar is a tube of insulation that can be tightened around your neck and upper shoulders to prevent cold air from escaping through the top when you move around inside. The Moondance has a 2″ draft collar that closes behind your neck with a snap: you snap it closed and stick your head through the opening if you want the top of the quilt closed. This is very standard. The draft collar has an easy-to-reach drawstring cord over the chest to tighten it.
Zippered Footbox w/ Drawstring Vent
The Moondance 25 footbox is zippered, so you can open the quilt and use it like a blanket, which is an important temperature regulation feature in hot weather. A webbing strap at the top of the footbox also helps take pressure off the YKK zipper.
There’s a drawstring closure at the bottom of the quilt that lets you vent your feet if they’re too warm. The Moondance’s drawstring footbox pulls very tight and includes a snap to close off any possible leakage of cold air. It’s basically identical to the footbox designs you find on premium quilts from cottage manufacturers.
Pad Attachment System
The Moondance has easy-to-use wafer-style buckles (same as those used by Enlightened Equipment and others) sewn along the interior edges of the quilt that you can attach to their pad attachment straps. You don’t have to use the pad attachment system when sleeping on a pad, but it does come in handy when temperatures drop to freezing to block cold drafts. When attaching a pad, you want those wafer buckles on the sides or top of your pad, so they’re easily reachable at night.
While the Moondance does use wafer-style buckles, the strap itself is made with non-elastic webbing. It works fine, but I find that having an elastic strap is a bit easier to use. This is an easy enough thing to replace: Enlightened Equipment sells elastic pad attachment straps with compatible wafer clips for $5.
Comparable “Economy” Top Quilts
Here’s a price x weight x feature comparison between the economy quilt models offered by Featherstone vs ones sold by Enlightened Equipment, Hammock Gear, UGQ Outdoor, and Warbonnet, all best-in-class-quilt manufacturers. Their economy quilts are lower-priced than their custom quilts because they have fixed feature sets so they can be built in advance and stored as ready-to-ship inventory with a very fast turnaround time.
| Make / Model | Fill Power | Weight | Draft Collar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Featherstone Moondance 25 | 850 | 23.7 oz | Y |
| Enlightened Equipment Revelation 20 Stock | 850 | 22.54 oz | N |
| Enlightened Equipment Revelation 30 Stock | 850 | 19.18 oz | N |
| Hammock Gear Econ Burrow 20 | 800 | 26.7 oz | N |
| Hammock Gear Econ Burrow 30 | 800 | 23 oz | N |
| UGQ Fast Track Bandit 20 | 800 | 27.33 oz | Y |
| Warbonnet Stock Diamondback 20 | 850 | 24.5 oz | Y |
For purposes of comparison, I’ve sized these quilts wide for ground use since the Moondance has a shoulder width of 53.9″ compared to the 55″ used by these other manufacturers. Since the Moondance’s 25-degree temperature falls between the 20 and 30 economy quilts offered by some of these manufacturers, I’ve listed both for comparison.
The biggest differences between these economy quilts are weight, price, and whether they include a draft collar. I think it’s notable that Enlightened Equipment and Hammock Gear do not include draft collars on the economy quilts, while the Featherstone does. Otherwise, they all have zippered footboxes with drawstring venting, box baffling, pad attachment systems, and comparable down fill-power ratings.
Recommendation
The Featherstone Moondance 25 is a high-quality, affordable down quilt for backpacking and camping. I’ve found it to be exceptionally warm and comfortable to use, although I prefer a slightly different pad attachment system for ground use. The construction and sewing are impeccable, it’s made with quality components, and the feature set is extremely competitive. If you want a backpacking quilt that can span a three-season temperature range, I think it’s a great option.
This quilt caught my attention because there’s a crying need for more affordable, high-quality gear in the backpacking gear market. With few exceptions, backpacking quilts are still priced for the elite few who can afford them. Most small quilt manufacturers don’t have the wherewithal or desire to produce quilts in high enough volumes to bring the prices down and the sales channel/price structure of retail backpacking gear (think REI) is one of the reasons backpacking gear prices remain so high.
Featherstone Moondance 25 Quilt
Warmth
Weight
Comfort
Features
Versatility
High Quality Quilt
The Featherstone Moondance 25 is a high-quality, affordable down quilt for backpacking and camping. The construction and sewing are impeccable, it's made with quality components, and the feature set is extremely competitive. If you want a backpacking quilt that can span a three-season temperature range, I think it's a great option.
Disclosure: The author received this product in exchange for an honest review.
Wow. Great find. Thanks for the review. Very instructive.
Nice review. Good option. But I would hate to buy an imported quilt when there’s a good close-in-price domestic option available. At first glance, the Warbonnet doesn’t look too far off in terms of quality and price.
I suspect the down insulation and nylon used in all of these quilts comes from China. Don’t fool yourself into thinking that sewn in the USA is the same as made in the USA.
Fair enough. But domestic sewing is a big part of the value added. A Ripstop by the Roll synthetic summer quilt kit is about $60. The cheapest fully manufactured comparable quilts I can find are in the low $120s.
Echo Midwest Mike
The Warbonnet is just a better quilt. Look carefully at the features and you’ll quickly see that. Globalist does have a point though about made in the USA.
I think the main advantage that the Moondance has over all these other quilts is availability. You can order it today and get it delivered without having to wait weeks or months to have it made by the smaller quilt vendors. It really is a nice quilt, so there’s little downside and you get the returns/dispute protection offered by Amazon, which is certainly one of the reason I buy stuff there.
It also costs a lot more.
In this global economy it’s a challenging decision/argument to make. I recently bought a feathered friends bag. I read somewhere – website or packed with the bag? – that the down was sourced somewhere overseas (Hungary possibly). I suspect that the shell material they’re using also comes from overseas. So the bags seem to be mostly assembled in America. Doesn’t make it NOT an American company and I would always prefer to support those but $$ go to them and then some of those $$’s go overseas. Not unlike many domestic companies.
That was a most informative article, esp. for those new to quilts. As for standards, Featherstone does use RSC certification. Try to check the down sources on some popular US sewn quilts. A few well known do not state the source, only RSC (not going to name names, they all have good warranties. So Featherstone is no different.
As for coutry of origin, it often depends on the quality and consistency. Henry tried to find DCF sewn to a high standard. He wound up using the same hi-tech mfg. that other high-end tent makers use. REI used a high-end factory for its Magma series of bags and quilt, which get wonderful reviews. The reality is that for specialized gear not many are willling to risk mfg. with an unproven sewer. That is why the retail markup on hardgoods like tents, bags and stoves is far, far lower that softgoods with their creative profit margin.
Bought the Large, and generally happy, though there are some small opportunities for improvement:
The wafer clips use an extremely over-specced strap on the bag, and the attachment straps. They’re overkill, rough and stiff.
The bottom clip takes no pressure off the foot box zip, as it has 2inches of slack. Similarly, the bottom snaps have far too much slack, preventing a tight closure of the foot box.
Finally, the draw cord and barrel lock at the top of the quilt is right in the middle, where it is guaranteed to hang in your face.
These are small design details, but disappointing when they’ve got the overall construction and material quality so right.
4/5 from me, and great value.
I think you’ll find most premium quilt makers put the drawstring and barrel lock in the middle. They shouldn’t be above your face, but below it to seal in your body heat. Like I said in the review, I’d replace the strap with an elastic version from EE or UGQ or Hammock Gear.
Awesome review… very thorough and helpful.
The Enlightened Equipment pad straps don’t actually work with this quilt — the wafer clips are slightly smaller than the ones Featherstone uses, so the strap’s male end is too small to engage with the quilt’s female, and the strap’s female is too small to fit the quilt’s male
unfortunately the EE elastic straps are not compatible. They may be wafer style, but they do not actually click together. That being said, it looks like elastic straps are not available for purchase on the featherstone website.
Here’s the link on the Featherstone site to purchase their elastic straps. Seems pretty easy to find under parts and accessories.
https://www.featherstoneoutdoor.com/products/elastic-pad-straps-for-moondance-top-quilt
Has anyone tried this quilt long term term, and if so do you feel that it’s worth the money?
I suggest you click through to the manufacturer website and read the customer reviews. The quilt has been in production for two years. There are 88 reviews with an average of 4.5 stars.
My wife has used this since May of 2023, and I’ve used it a few times myself as an alternative to my EE revelation, on approximately 22 trips. It’s been excellent and I honestly don’t see an obvious quality difference between my revelation and the moondance. Another way of stating that is, unless I were purchasing custom options, I would not re-purchase the revelation over the moondance.