Belay jacket review part 1

[dbconlin]

I have to say I have long wondered why, and been frustrated by, the FF Volant coming only with a detachable hood. I will not consider a jacket with a detachable hood. Permanent fixed hood is the only way to go IMHO.

[featheredfriends]

It's actually been a selling point for that jacket since you'll likely have a warm hat anyways. As a belay piece it will stuff smaller into a stuff sack without it, and a permanent hood turns into a "snow catcher" if you don't use it.

 

There are many good options out there like Dane pointed out. Ours simply offers a removable hood.

[spionin]

so i think i looked through the comments fairly carefully - please let me know if these points has been addressed already...

 

since it's a belay jacket, i'd expect to know how it works with a harness on, in a belay stance. no extensive testing required. maybe i'm just overly picky, but when i'm standing and belaying, i want 1) to put on the insulating jacket over a few existing layers (my softshell, ligh insulating layer), and yet to be able to fuss with the belay loop, adjust my footing, coil rope, etc. without forcing my jacket up and having it bunch up too much, and 2) to protect my ass, because it gets cold.

 

to me, this generally means that a nice jacket will have a dropped tail, and/or a 2-way zipper that will allow access to the front of the harness. yes, details, but it's a climbing jacket after all...

[Pilchuck71]

I personally, if not using the hood on my belay jacket roll it down into the jacket so as to not have the aforementioned snow catcher on my back.

 

[featheredfriends]

"I understand what you mean about double zips on a belay jacket. I have a Rock & Ice and with the double zip, it is not something that I would want to be taking off and on all day. Double zips are for parkas that get put on and stay on."

 

since it's a belay jacket...

 

..this generally means that a nice jacket will have ...a 2-way zipper that will allow access to the front of the harness. yes, details, but it's a climbing jacket after all...

 

We should just make down booties. Just kidding!

 

[spionin]

"I understand what you mean about double zips on a belay jacket. I have a Rock & Ice and with the double zip, it is not something that I would want to be taking off and on all day. Double zips are for parkas that get put on and stay on."

 

since it's a belay jacket...

 

..this generally means that a nice jacket will have ...a 2-way zipper that will allow access to the front of the harness. yes, details, but it's a climbing jacket after all...

 

We should just make down booties. Just kidding!

 

i know, sorry. i'll settle for a dropped tail then, how's that?

my point was that if you look at the pictures, and then imagine a harness under that jacket, with an anchor/rope going up, you can pretty much guess what the front of the jacket will be doing. some coats have a cinched bottom, and some don't. the former pretty much guarantees that the jacket will end up sitting at the waist in a big bunch. i don't want that, mmmkay?

[featheredfriends]

Ha - don't even worry about it.

 

That's the deal: your opinion counts just as much as everyone else's. At the end of the day it's your jacket that you have to wear. It's lucky for consumers that there are so many good choices out there. Some with permanent hoods...some with double zippers...etc.

[trainwreck]

2 way zipper is an absolute must imo. as is an integrated hood.

Edited March 11, 2010 by trainwreck

[dbconlin]

Patagonia DAS has a two way - don't know about the others.

[Dane]

The MEC Tango, the DAS, the Mammut, the Arcteryx and the MT Hardware all have dbl sliders on the zippers. The others did not.

 

I found fit/design much more important than the zipper being dbl sided. Good design and fit eliminated the need for a dbl zipper for my own use with a harness. YMMV

 

Both the EB and Narrona were cut trim in front specifically to use the simpler single zipper design.

[John Frieh]

Arcteryx Dually has a two zipper to go along with all the awards it won

[Dane]

At $500 retail and $300 on a pro deal the Duelly should give you a shave and shower and come in something besides basic black. By far @ $100+...the most expensive jacket I looked at in this group.

 

Both the DAS and the Tango can both be had for less than $300.

 

I found the cuffs once wet hard to dry out and hard to get a gloved hand through. But Arcteryx's hydrophobic insulation (it is exceptional) and superb fit may be, almost, worth dbl the price.

 

Compared to the best hoods available...the Duelly's comes up lacking.

[spionin]

Arcteryx Dually has a two zipper to go along with all the awards it won

 

ooh! oooh! just looked at the picture, and it's got a drop tail! imagine that - i'm not alone (even though it's unisex)

 

...just sayin'

[RafalA]

I wore the Dually for a couple of hours during a cold hanging belay a few weeks back, and have to say it was like a personal furnace.

 

Arcteryx costs a lot, but I have yet to be disappointed in any of their pieces. The fit, features, design and materials are exceptional, and usually way above anyone else's. Just buy it on sale.

Edited March 11, 2010 by RafalA

[zeroforhire]

I wore the Dually for a couple of hours during a cold hanging belay a few weeks back, and have to say it was like a personal furnace.

 

Arcteryx costs a lot, but I have yet to be disappointed in any of their pieces. The fit, features, design and materials are exceptional, and usually way above anyone else's. Just buy it on sale.

 

if you can find it on sale....

[John Frieh]

I wore the Dually for a couple of hours during a cold hanging belay a few weeks back, and have to say it was like a personal furnace.

 

Arcteryx costs a lot, but I have yet to be disappointed in any of their pieces. The fit, features, design and materials are exceptional, and usually way above anyone else's. Just buy it on sale.

 

if you can find it on sale....

 

on sale

[RafalA]

I wore the Dually for a couple of hours during a cold hanging belay a few weeks back, and have to say it was like a personal furnace.

 

Arcteryx costs a lot, but I have yet to be disappointed in any of their pieces. The fit, features, design and materials are exceptional, and usually way above anyone else's. Just buy it on sale.

 

if you can find it on sale....

 

Check out the Arcteryx Factory Store in North Vancouver. They occasionally have those jackets, and often for a great price. And I've yet to find an Arcteryx 'second' that has issues major enough not to be used...

 

The jacket was borrowed: kind of wishing I had bought one when they last had them in the outlet. (I think they were around the 250-300 mark).

[Nitrox]

It bums me out to say this but my brand new MH Compressor Hoodie is falling apart after only three light uses. The stitching is coming out in a bunch of places. I'm debating whether or not to have my wife just fix it but after looking at every stitch I get the sinking feeling I'm going to be dealing with this for the rest of the jacket's life. Aside from where the stitching has flat out split there are obvious gaps in the rest.

 

 

[Dane]

FWIW Mountain Hardware offers a life time guarantee and stands behind their gear with easy replacement from my experience (gloves). Getting yours replaced at no cost with a new one shouldn't be an issue. My Compressor Hoodie is 3 seasons old now and besides a few holes in the shell from climbing in it on mixed seems to be holding up well. I've used it on dozens of winter pitches to date.

 

The MH Compressor Hoody was a best buy imo for a lwt belay jacket and a weight most will find more useful than the other jackets I listed. "Was" because it is now made of Primaloft Eco and not Primaloft 1.

 

-18 a couple weeks ago in Canada.

[Nitrox]

You make an excellent point and in all fairness I have not yet given MH a chance to fix the jacket. Just bummed, that's all.

 

 

 

[Vickster]

For down jackets, I still love my eVent FF Volant. Also love my Icefall parka. FF parkas are all I have ever known. All the mass produced down parkas do not have long enough sleeves for my arms so I had to go custom.

 

Regarding durability... I remember seeing a Rainier ranger using a volant one trip, he told me that it was donated by FF 4 years ago and that it had seen constant use. While it was on the grungy side, it looked to be holding up great.

 

For synthetic, I use a Hooded Mammut Stratus jacket. It has a good long sleeve on it, toasty warm, and was dirt cheap too.

[trainwreck]

I rock a Marmot Flurry and it is wicked. I have abused it beyond what I thought it could take and it is still nice and warm. Lots of holes and still kicking.

 

Normally I wouldn't even consider Marmot clothing but it was riducheap.

[dbconlin]

Looking forward to your review of the lwt parkas, Dane!

[Nitrox]

FWIW Mountain Hardware offers a life time guarantee and stands behind their gear with easy replacement from my experience (gloves). Getting yours replaced at no cost with a new one shouldn't be an issue. My Compressor Hoodie is 3 seasons old now and besides a few holes in the shell from climbing in it on mixed seems to be holding up well. I've used it on dozens of winter pitches to date.

 

The MH Compressor Hoody was a best buy imo for a lwt belay jacket and a weight most will find more useful than the other jackets I listed. "Was" because it is now made of Primaloft Eco and not Primaloft 1.

 

-18 a couple weeks ago in Canada.

 

Well MH was very helpful on the phone and the jacket is rocketing back to them as we speak. I have some plans that were to include the jacket toward the end of this month and MH said they would try to get the jacket back in time. They gave me specific instructions in order to give the repair/return priority in order to accommodate me.

 

So far so good and judging by the stitching on the jacket I received I think someone had a really bad day in production.

 

 

[Nitrox]

I shipped MH the jacket last Friday and I got it back today. It looks like they restitched the whole jacket. Not a gap anywhere and all seams are perfect. You can not tell any work was even done and they overnighted it back to me.