just recently bought a feathered friends hyperion jacket. i was quoted a weight of 9.4 oz over email and when it arrived, the weight on my scale was 12.1 oz -- great looking jacket and generally seems pretty bomber. but the reason i bought it was to upgrade from my marmot zues and decrease base pack weight by what i thought would be 6 oz -- it's hard for me to justify spending $250 to decrease my BPW by only 3 oz. anyway, i'd love to have something similar, but with a sub-10 oz weight. thoughts? montbell? western mountaineering?

Does it have more loft than your marmot zues? If it's also loftier/warmer then you're getting something for your $250 and 3 extra ounces.

But I agree, if I buy something I want it to have the optimum lightness. More warmth than I need isn't very useful. I don't want to then be thinking about buying something else in the future that's lighter.

yes -- it's lighter and seems a bit warmer, but that wasn't the point of the purchase. i don't need something warmer. i'm buying a couple things this year in an attempt to get my base pack weight down an additional pound.

Down jackets can be very light. Mine /is an Eddie Bauer and weighs about 11oz total. The down jackets bring about a small cascade of events in your pack.

By buying one I found it immediatly apparent thet you can use it for sleeping. So, I got a lighter 40F bag and saved several ounces between the two of them, with no loss of comfort. (I seem to remember about 3-4 ounces on the sleeping bag.)

Having one on sleeping, means I get up without getting cold at night. It is just about right for balancing between no exertion (sleeping) in the bag, and walking/moving about camp in the dark after getting out of the sleeping bag.

I try to keep it dry, so, it packs up after breakfast, with my sleeping bag. I really don't notice the volume.

I *have* been caught in snow, and/or cold weather. I avoid winter conditions, generally, but three or four years ago I was out in October and the temp went down to about 10F one night. I needed to wear it for a good part of the next day...till the weather front moved through. So, it also acts as "emergency" gear, along with sleeping long johns and socks as mittens.

The jacket does double duty, generally. Extending the range of my bag (5-10F), and, as camp clothing, reducing the amount of clothing I need (a camp jacket 16-18oz was used around camp.) I am generally as warm or warmer sleeping and in camp, so my comfort was higher. In warmer conditions, I don't *need* to wear it so my bag is cooler to sleep in, it increases the temp range I am comfortable at. I wear it as needed, but this is more emergency use which I did not have at all. Overall, it reduced my pack weight by about a half pound (between the savings on the bag and dropping the older jacket,) comfortably. Well worth it in my estimation.

The down side is down is not real great wet. But, I always have a rain jacket, anyway. Water and clothing is something that becomes more important to think of, if you get one. And, if you do get one, you need to get another lighter bag to realize any weight savings. This can be expensive.

james -- thanks for your insight. the jacket/sleeping bag combo is something i've been doing for a couple years now and i love the versatility and lightness this combination provides. i've been tweeking my set-up over the past year and thinking about ways to continue to lighten my pack. i sold a bunch of gear and invested in a new jacket, a new sleeping bag and new shelter set-up. these new purchases will lower my pack weight by just over a pound. the down jacket is a key component to this weight loss. the new feathered friends jacket is sweet. but given the unexpected weight, it's not what i'm looking for.

i would welcome suggestions for down jackets in the sub-10 oz range that people have been happy with.

try the stoic down cardigan. it weighs 7 oz., has 850 fill down, and is on sale for 55 bucks w/free shipping at backcountry.com

i bought 2. great for sierra summer or layering during winter. shoulder season i use a .m.h. nitrous and love it. i think it's about 10 oz

Edited by mailesdad on 07/16/2012 11:12:29 MDT.

I think the 9.4 ounces quoted by email or their website is low. I think that is more likely the true weight of the daybreak jacket - you might want to exchange for this model.

I have a Montbell alpine light down parka and it is 14.9 (w/ stuff sack). Take about an ounce off that for the non-hooded jacket. So, the only Montbell in your weight range is the more lightweight jacket (forgot the same, but its the one with about 2 ounces of fill).

The Hyperion should be much warmer than another else near its weight. BUT if you want lighter, again suggest you check out FF daybreak.

Edited by ejhayes on 07/16/2012 13:04:02 MDT.

I also recently got a hyperion jacket from FF. Mine came in at 11.4oz for a medium. I talked to someone at FF, and he said (after going back and forth a couple of times) that all the medium hyperion jackets (in Pertex UL) are about 11oz. The listed weights on the website are for smalls (quite unusual...).

I ended up returning the hyperion and getting a daybreak jacket (8.35oz for medium). The hyperion jacket was too close in thickness to my helios jacket, and really wasn't appropriate for summer hiking in the sierras. I also liked the construction of the daybreak and helios. The hyperion is missing some chambers that the other two jackets have under the arms. It just didn't seem designed as well.

Steve

daybreak jacket is a great suggestion. i wasn't even aware that existed.

I really like my Western Mountaineering Flash hooded jacket. Came in over spec by like .25 oz...

I just got a daybreak in large. 9.5oz on my scale for the hooded version. pairs well with my revelation 40 quilt for summer in the northwest.

the more i look at the hooded daybreak, the more i think that's the direction i'm gonna go. thanks for the suggestions.

is about 9 oz. I believe that's the weight of my medium with a hood. Love it. that said, get a size up from normal, they run small a size for sure.

What about this system

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=66240
I sold my Daybreak to do this, lighter weight and a whole lot more down and loft.

Edited by forest. on 07/17/2012 19:22:47 MDT.

Dud link? :/

Sorry, yep that link was a dud.....

Sorted now.

I love my Montbell short sleeve down vest. It is like a down filled tshirt. "UL down tee" on their site. You can wear it under a windshirt or shell or over a real tshirt. Or both.