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Down Jackets

Contents

  • Features
  • Overview
  • Alternatives
  • See also

It's getting below 0 °C in Munich again and I'm looking for cloths for Nepal. So it is about time to get a good jacket. In this article I'll have a look at Down jackets. Down Jackets are a second layer.

The three layers are:

  1. Underwear: A T-Shirt or something similar that is directly on your skin. Merino wool, microfibre or mixtures are common choices.
  2. Isolation and Humidity transport: Down jacket or fleece for keeping you warm.
  3. Weather Layer: Keeping wind / rain away. A softshell or a hardshell, depending on the climate.

One of their quality measures is the fill power. It measures the fluffiness in cuib. The fluffier, the more insulating a given amount is. One online source (Globetrotter) recommended 500-700 cuin for every day purposes and 650-900 cuin for expeditions and very cold temperatures.

Another quality measure of down filling is the misture. The same Globetrotter YouTube video recommended 80/20 for everyday usage and 96/4 or 95/5 for sports.

A synthetic alternative to down is PrimaLoft. It comes in 3 shapes: Gold, Silver, Black where Gold is the best and black is the worst. The weight per square meter determines how warm it is. 100 g/m² is for normal insualtion jackets; 200 g / m² is for super warm winter jackets.

Then have a look at the sewing. If it is sewed through ("durchgesteppt") or ("Boxkammer") might make a differece.

Some jackets you can package it really well where the chest pocket doubles as a stuffsack.

Features

  • Buttons to close: nice for ventilation and as an alternative in case the zipper breaks
  • Pockets: Front-hip, front-breast, inside - especially the inside one might be important for water or electronic devices!
  • Draw chords: At the bottom of the jacket to prevent cold air from comming in
  • Elastic part at the hand to make sure it closes well

Overview

The ones with green background color were recommended for Nepal.

Self-Stowing Pocket = Self-pocketing: Some jackets come with an inner pocket in which you can pack itself. Some, like the Arc'teryx Jackets, are meant to be self-pocketed into the arms.

Product Price↓ Stars↑ Ratings↑ Weight↓ Fill power↑ Filling
Arc'teryx Cerium LT 336 EUR 5 2 310g 850 cuin - has thumb strap (Daumenschlaufe); Camp-Jacket
Arc'teryx Cerium SV 450 EUR 5 2 410g (M) 850 cuin Coreloft; Gänsedaune
Haglöfs Essens Down Hood 203 EUR - - 335 (L) 800 cuin 90/10 Down; 20D; 36 g/m²
Montane - Quattro Fusion 270 EUR - - 472g 800 cuin 90/10 Down; bad review for cold
FJÄLLRÄVEN - Keb Expedition Down 770 EUR - - 1240g 800 cuin Down
FJÄLLRÄVEN - Keb Touring Down Jacket 460 EUR - - 600g 800 cuin Down
Mountain Hardwear - Ghost Whisperer 300 EUR - - 197g 800 cuin Down; Good cold review at -15°C
Patagonia - Down Sweater 155 EUR - 0 359g 800 cuin Down
VAUDE - Kabru Hooded Jacket III 250 EUR - - 380g 800 cuin Down
Rab Neutrino Endurance 340 EUR 4.4 24 585g 800 cuin Gänsedaune; Good review for cold
Black Yak - Bakosi Jacket 500 EUR - - 483 g 750 cuin Primaloft Gold, Goose Down; water proof
Black Diamond - Forge Hoody 180 EUR - - 430g 700 cuin Down
Jack Wolfskin - Zenon Storm 160 EUR - - 435g 700 cuin Down
Salomon - Haloes Down Hoodie 250 EUR - - 480g 700 cuin 90/10 Down, 80 g/m²
Outdoor Research Transcendent 220 EUR 4.4 193 621g 650 cuin
Columbia Frost-Fighter 360 EUR 4.5 670 900g
Patagonia - Nano Puff Jacket 210 EUR - - 337g PrimaLoft Gold; 60 g/ m²
North Face Tonnerro 200 EUR - 0 ?
Yeti Virtue 250 EUR 5 2 998 g

Alternatives

Product Price Weight Filling
Haglöfs Essens Mimic Hood (2) 141 EUR 285g (L) 48 g/m²; 30D
Arc'teryx Atom AR 252 EUR 476g Core loft; Midlayern
Bergtagen Insulation Jaket M 390 EUR 798g (M) 100 g/m² G-Loft Supreme; Self-pocketing
Bergtagen Lite Insulation Jaket M 330 EUR 430g (M) 60 g/m² G-Loft Supreme

Notes for Arc'terxy:

  • SL: Good review - super light
  • LT might be "light weight" (more breathable / lass wind resistant) - see review
  • FL - "Fast and Light"
  • AR is for All- ARound
  • SV is for Severe Conditions
  • Fission SV
  • ZETA AR

Notes for FJÄLLRÄVEN:

  • Bergtagen is the new collection, Keb is the old one.

Comments (source):

  • Atom LT is a midlayer. I heard it best described as an ice climbing jacket.
  • Cerium LT is a camp jacket.

See also

  • See what down is suggested for
  • https://www.packliste-reise.de/reise-equipment-test/beste-daunenjacke/
  • https://www.outdoor-magazin.com/test/jacken/daunenjacken-kunstfaserjacken-test-2017.1640170.3.htm
  • https://www.bergfreunde.de/basislager/test-patagonia-micro-puff/

Published

Nov 19, 2018
by Martin Thoma

Category

My bits and bytes

Tags

  • Gear 7
  • Hiking 10
  • Trekking 9

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