Reader Reviews

Rating: 2 / 5

Very poor breathability. If I'm wearing this and active, it becomes pretty wet and clammy inside. Every other windshirt I've tried has been much more breathable which is what I prefer.

Rating: 4 / 5

Own both the hoodless & the hooded. Top-notch craftsmanship. Can't even find a loose thread. Zippers have operated flawlessly with no fabric snags. Depending upon the conditions intended for use this may or may not be the best choice for a windshirt. Pick the right tool for the task. If hiking in relatively dry climates or only in light rain, then choose a DWR type of windshirt, e.g. Montane Aero, or GoLite Wisp/Ether. If a windshirt with more rain resistance is req'd, then they would NOT be good choices. Choose instead, one made of Epic fabric, such as these two windshirts from Wild Things. Have kept me dry in heavier rain over longer periods of time than the aforementioned DWR windshirts. Zippers on the Wild Things windshirts provide good ventilation capability. So, until they come up with a "miracle" fabric that breathes like naked skin and protects like rubberized canvas, I will give these windshirts a 4. Same score I would give the DWR windshirts. Each excels at what it is good at and is somewhat deficient otherwise. The yet to be invented "miracle" fabric would be the 5...perhaps some day...

Edit:
Fully agree with all comments of the next reviewer who gave an excellent, insightful review - IMHO. Additionally, I also had considered giving a 5 based upon my use of this windshirt and its performance, but decided against it, merely because others may prefer a more breathable windshirt. In fact, I rarely pack a DWR windshirt, instead opting for one of the WT Epic Windshirts.

Edited by pj on 08/26/2005 19:09:15 MDT.

Rating: 5 / 5

I should reiterate what the above reviewer has stressed-- this is not exactly a windshirt nor is it a rainshell-- but it will work amazingly well at blocking wind, venting water vapor, and keeping rain out (especially if you take the time to seal a few
crucial seams.

This is a no BS, minimal bells and whistles, mtneering version of an Epic shell. It uses a more durable form of Epic than the beloved Feathered Friends Jackorack. I recently used this unpretentious wonder on an 8 day backpack in
the Wallowas. It served very well at blocking the wind on the ridge routes I was travelling w/o causing me to overheat and easily handled a couple of Summer Thunderstorms without getting me wet.

I'm beginning to like this form of shell better than relying on a W/B jacket for both wind and rain protection and better than carrying both a dedicated windshell and seperate rainshell.

Would a pertex windshell breathe better ? Yep.
Would a Goretex or eVENT shell had given me more insurance if a deluge had continued several hours?
No question. But for 95% of conditions in the Western half of the lower 48 faced by the committed ultralight backpacker, it works and it works well.

Sometimes the jack of all trades is better than a specialist.

Edited by kdesign on 08/27/2005 10:00:07 MDT.

Rating: 4 / 5

This shell is a great winter piece because it sheds snow and wet percipitation very well and cuts the wind exceptionally. I agree with the two folks above.
The only complaint I have is that it is cut a bit roomy in the torso.

Rating: 4 / 5

Note: this is for the non-hooded partial-zip pullover model.

The downsides:
- Heavy by BPL standards, although then again, we’re talking just a few ounces of excess over my Helly Hanson Mars or Montane windshirts.
- Breathability is very good, although under certain conditions condensation will form (e.g., overheating while xc skate skiing in very cold weather), so definitely not excellent breathability as compared to some windshirts.
- Fit is not very well tapered, and pulling it over your body can be a bit tricky sometimes.

The upsides:
- Durability is outstanding. I’ve worn it for all sorts of activities (ski mountaineering, xc skiing, hiking, mtn biking, road biking) over many years, washed it a zillion times (and just regular detergent, since Nextec claims that’s fine), with no noticeable wear or degradation in performance.
- Water resistance is excellent for a windshirt. I’ve gotten away with this windshirt while others around me have been putting on their massive gore-tex parkas.

So bottomline, I tend to take this for trips where are few extra ounces are no big deal, or when I know I’m going to be wearing it all the time (in which cases wearing a few extra ounces doesn’t seem a big a deal as packing a few extra ounces). I know making a big deal about a few extra ounces in any context seems ridiculous, but then again, this BPL, right?