SloBo

For sure it has a great value for the price but if we just compare it qualitywise, the fabric it looks worse than in the jacket I compared it against. You can see the difference with your plain eye and easily. In general, a similar fabric with higher yarn count and density is thought to have higher quality. Of course, loose fabric may serve some purpose, like being more breathable, but I don't believe that fabric is even close to the limit where these issues start to arise. Of course, this only explains a portion of the price. Another factor is probably the salaries and working conditions of the actual workers and then there is branding and company strategy too. Yes, it for sure is great, but if I had to find one thing to nag about, the fabric could probably be it.

This is an ages old topic, but I just bought my EB FA Peak XV and will share my first impressions about the jacket. I'm not a climber (well, I do indoor climbing) but I live just a bit south of arctic circle in Finland and winters can be quite bitter around here. Therefore I was looking for a very warm jacket to keep me comfy when the temperature drops near -40. So, I did some (actually quite many) comparisons online and in the end there was only two: Peak XV and Marmot 8000M. Because of great sales I could get them for virtually equal price and about $200 less than other competitors in the same league. Eventually I chose Peak XV (tall) because it was not only a bit cheaper (even after customs and taxes) but also because somebody complained about Marmot having some fill problems around wrists and it also seemed to have shorter sleeves (I have gorilla length arms). First of all, do you think I did wisely? Has anyone made comparisons between these two and can say something about their pros and cons against each other? Would the Marmot have been warmer and more durable? (Actually, I got Marmot 8000M pants too and laughed my *** off after noticing how silly they looked - but probably can't complain about their warmth.) I can't say a lot about Peak XV's quality yet, but it feels warm, which is the main point. However, it has spewn out a couple of "feathers" or whatever a single down pieces are called. I inspected the lining and the fabric seemed a bit loose for the purpose. I also happened to order a Marmot Guide's down hoody at the same time for milder weathers and checked out its fabrics for comparison. The lining was a lot denser (like twice) than Peak XV's even though this jacket is also very competively priced (and on top of that I got it from 40% sale). Anyways my guess is that the price of Eddie Bauer Peak XV is low because the fabrics are cheap and of lower quality. However, I'm planning to use it gently and I suspect it will last long enough, but next time I will probably push a few more bucks in to get a "nuclear war proof" jacket. In general I want my gear and wear to last forever and to be "infintely" repairable.