Layering your outdoor clothing used to be a lot simpler. You had your base layer, a fleece, a waterproof and something warm jammed into your rucksack for pulling on at lunch stops or camp. But apparently we were all suffering terribly with this basic equipment and so all sorts of new clothing came along to fill the gaps in our mountain cupboard that we didn’t even know were there until marketing departments pointed them out to us. The cynic in me can’t help but admit to just how useful some of these developments have been however; softshell has all but killed fleece and is a great go-to outdoor concept, windproof-shelled pile took on new life and lighter weight with fabric advances and the old “extra insulation” has evolved from something living at the bottom of your pack to a much more usable and versatile bit of kit.
Specifically I’m talking about lightweight insulation here, big down jackets to keep us warm on winter summits are fine just as they are but they’re more than we need in summer and can be bulky to carry. Lighter weight insulation is also a good basis for a system. A personal favourite of mine is a combination of a synthetic jacket plus a down vest, either of which is useful on its own but worn together can be very warm with the added bonus of mobility in the cramped one-person tents I usually find myself in. So flexibility and maybe a chance to get your money’s worth through more use is one factor to think about when looking at lightweight insulation. The wide range of samples sent for review shows just how broad the scope of lightweight insulation is.
Berghaus Mount Asgard Hybrid
£200.00
436g (Men’s Large) – all weights taken by me
The Mount Asgard Hybrid comes from Berghaus’ MtnHaus range where all the kit is designed for life on the high tops. For you and me this means we get the best of features and materials as well as some unusual thinking which starts with the “hybrid” in the title. The baffled body section is down filled and the arms, hood and hem are filled with synthetic Primaloft. This is all about keeping the jacket functional when it gets wet, synthetic insulation keeps its thermal qualities far better when wet than down does so the Primaloft is where the jacket is liable to get wet first. The down is positioned at your core where you need warmth most and it’s also “Hydrodown” – treated to help it better stand up to the effects of moisture.
Add in a Pertex shell for for windproofing and added water resistance and it is a jacket that has been caught in rain and snow and has come out very well. The features are good too, adjustable protective hood with a stiffened peak, two mid-height outer pockets, internal pocket, a scooped tail and a cut that’s neat enough to be worn over a base layer and not flap around. It’s good on the move too, you can swing an ice axe unhindered and without lifting the hem up.
Fjallraven Keb Loft
£180.00
436g (Men’s Large)
The Keb is a simple all-round outdoor jacket filled with G-Loft, a synthetic fibre insulation. This fill is very soft and light, which with the soft polyester shell material makes the Keb very packable and comfortable to wear. Simple doesn’t mean lacking though, there’s a lot of detailing on the keb. There’s two big outer hand warmer pockets and two big inner stretchy poachers pockets which would indeed take a salmon or a big trout. The main zip has a poppered storm flap and there’s G-1000 reinforcing on the high wear areas around the hem and zips.
Fjallraven feel very much like an outdoor brand rather than an alpine brand and little touches like the leather logo and zip pulls reinforce that. It’s totally functional with nice long body, a slightly relaxed cut which is good for layering and those understated looks make it perfect for every day cold weather use.
Montane Alpha Guide
£140.00
536g (Men’s Large)
Insulation, softshell, midlayer? All of those I think, which makes for a jacket perfect for winter Munro ascents or cool summer camp evenings. Alpha insulation comes from Polartec and is a synthetic weave sandwiched between outer layers, here stretch Pertex Microlight on the outside and Montane’s own Peaq on the inside. The Alpha is only around the torso to boost core warmth with the arms and hood being a stretchy fleece fabric.
The hybrid design feels good when worn, the difference in fabrics isn’t obvious other than any windchill being stopped dead on your torso by the Pertex. The Alpha works well here, the last samples I tested had a layer of Pertex inside and out and here the inner fabric helps the Alpha to wick and dry much faster, so I think I’m now sold on the technology. Warmth wise, it’s a little like what you get from a microfleece and a windshirt which has been an all-day combo for me many times over the years, so it’s very usable. Montane have a slightly relaxed active cut on the Alpha Guide, good length on the body and arms, thumbloops, two big outer pockets and a plain hood in the stretch fabric that layers well under a shell jacket. It’s the heaviest jacket in the review, but it packs small and to me it’s an all-day winter jacket worn over a base layer, so the grams don’t worry me.
Outdoor Research Deviator Hoody
£TBC-2015 Model
318g (Men’s Large)
The Deviator Hoody will be out in spring next year but I thought it worth including to show how minimalist the thinking behind insulating jackets is heading, plus it’s a great bit of kit and worth looking out for. In some ways it’s a trimmed down version of the Montane Guide – no zips on the hand pockets although there is a small zipped napoleon pocket, very light grid-backed fleece on the arms, back and hood and Alpha insulation just on the front torso and the shoulders.
It’s built for ascents on cool days and for winter runners. It’s a slim fit too, better leave off the pies, especially in this colour. It’s a mix of base layer, mid layer and windshirt, is that useful or confusing? I like it, the cynic in the opening paragraph is learning all the time.
PHD Wafer Down Trousers
£189.00
148g (Men’s Large)
PHD Waferlite Down Shirt
£185.00
146g (Men’s Large)
PHD keep pushing weight down and performance up and all from an old Victorian mill here in the UK. The Wafer collection sees the first 1000 fill power down gear which means the fill is ultra-fine and should give the best possible warmth to weight. It’s used to insulate the simplest of designs all sewn together using 10X which is an ultralight down and windproof fabric.
It’s insulation at its purest, both trousers and shirt offer enough features to allow you get them on and seal them up. The trousers have a drawcord waist and elastic ankles, the shirt has a half zip and elastic hem and wrists. The fit is slightly relaxed so they layer well but the fabric is very soft so this combo is perfect for sleeping in against bare skin as a sleeping bag booster system.
The shirt is an all year round go-to insulator but in winter the trousers really make a place for themselves if you camp in the mountains. Sitting on an iced 4000ft summit star-gazing at 2am on a February night down trousers don’t feel like a luxury and the light weight of the Wafer kit means you really don’t feel it on your back. In winter I do tend to boost the Wafer shirt with a down vest or similar though, which is going back to my modular concept again, always a good way to approach insulation.
The North Face Thermoball Hooded Jacket
£170.00
382g (Men’s Medium)
Thermoball is a Primaloft technology aiming replicate down using synthetic fibres. Down comes in fuzzy clusters, synthetic in continuous filaments – Thermoball goes a long way to bridging the gap.
If you hold a Thermoball jacket up to the light, it looks a lot like down inside the baffles, the jacket has the general feel of a down with a little more general stiffness to it. It’s not as warm as down for the weight, but it has less vulnerability to moisture and costs a lot less too. I’ve tested The North Face’s Thermoball Jacket in the past and the new version here is much the same apart from the brilliant 70s retro look in this orange colour.
The Hoody is a neat fit with a long body and good arm length. The hood is non-adjustable but pre-shaped and fits me well. The two deep outer pocket have the hem adjusters inside and the cuffs have a clever inner seal that works great with gloves. The outer fabric is a tough ripstop nylon, so the pretty looks are only skin deep. Thermoball does need careful washing and drying but it’s a good concept and The North Face are making good models with it. Hopefully we’ll see heavier weight winter jackets with the technology somewhere down the line.
The North Face Quince Pro Gilet
£160.00
254g (Men’s Medium)
The down vest, or gilet if you’re feeling bohemian, should be everyone’s best friend. It packs a mighty punch of insulation, boosts any other insulating jacket and will fill a cold spot in your sleeping bag as well as being perfect for pulling on to nip across to the shop for a pint of milk on a cold morning. The Quince is a Summit Series vest putting it at TNF’s top-end with good quality down in high-lofting mini-baffles, soft lightweight fabrics and neat construction.
Features are minimal as you’d expect, a main zip and two zipped pockets which hide the hem adjusters inside. Fit is neat with good length, the Quince layers well under a shell jacket. The arm holes are neat which is good, always check that when you’re trying on a vest, loose arm holes waft all the heat straight out.
The Quince packs into its own pocket and hide in your pack no problem.
Conclusion
It turns out that lightweight insulation is about as diverse a group of outdoor kit as you could think of, but each one is still seen as insulation by its manufacturer. Berghaus have the most regular feeling jacket in the test, one which is warm enough for winter and light enough for year round use. Fjallraven hit plenty of targets with simple usable outdoor warmth and classy looks that mean you can wear it every day without looking like an alpinist and get your money’s worth. The North Face hoody looks retro but is warm and mountain ready and their down vest represents a bit of kit that everyone should have. Montane and Outdoor Research blur the line between softshell and insulation with Alpha technology and PHD’s simplicity takes warmth and low weight to new limits.
What might be best for you depends on what you want the most, low weight, warmth, the notion of perhaps ditching a layer and carrying something more flexible, weather resistance and of course – fit and budget.