Two sleeping bags worth lining up side by side. They score within a hair of each other, so it comes down to the details below.
| Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 | Mountain Hardwear Specter 15F | |
|---|---|---|
| GearScore | 87✓ | 85 |
| Comfort rating | 26 °F | 25 °F✓ |
| Weight | 2 lb 0.6 oz✓ | 2 lb 4.4 oz |
| Warmth-to-weight | 4.8 /100g✓ | 4.4 /100g |
| Packed size | 5.7 L✓ | 6.5 L |
| Fill power | 800 FP | 800 FP |
| Price | $680✓ | $720 |
| Fill | Down | Down |
| Style | Bag | Bag |
| Shape | Mummy | Mummy |
Highlighted cells mark the better spec: Phantom 15 in blue, Specter 15F in amber. A blank spec is never counted as a win. A lower comfort rating in °F means a warmer bag, so the warmer bag takes that row. GearScore is the overall rating (0 to 100); re-weight it on the full bag comparison. Prices are current MSRP.
The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15 and Mountain Hardwear Specter 15F take different routes to the same job. They are close enough that this really is about which handful of specs you weight most.
The Phantom 15 is 4 oz lighter, stronger on warmth-to-weight, and more packable (5.7 L vs 6.5 L). The Specter 15F is warmer (rated 25°F vs 26°F). Their GearScores land within a couple of points (87 vs 85), so neither runs away with it.
Pick the Phantom 15 if you care most about low weight and warmth-to-weight, which makes it the better call for counting grams on long miles. Pick the Specter 15F if warmth matter more to you, or you are focused on colder nights and shoulder-season trips.
The Mountain Hardwear Phantom 15. It is 4 oz lighter than the Specter 15F.
The Mountain Hardwear Specter 15F. It is warmer (rated 25°F vs 26°F) than the Phantom 15.
They are nearly tied at 87 and 85 on the default algorithm, so re-weight the score to your own priorities to break the tie.
It depends on your priorities. Go with the Phantom 15 for low weight, or the Specter 15F for warmth. The spec table above shows exactly where each wins.