Arc'terryx for a soft shell?

[qed]

This is totally incorrect. Arc'teryx makes some of the most form fitting clothes on the market. It's what they are known for.

Climbers dont wear baggy clothes.

Not baggy in the sence of big hiphop pants, but baggy as in easy to move arms/legs in strange positions. Thats extra weight and extra material to drag along if u are not actually climbing. This is a typical fit on a arc-jacket:





Notice the big arms, and the big waist. If you go down a size, its to short. Its supposed to be what I call baggy. If u are not a climber, I would choose something with a bether fit that looks bether, and is lighter because of less material. Like this (not me):

[bjucko@gmail.com]

Arc'terryx are great, i have one. You should also look inteo swedich brand haglöfs

[upsidedown]

Its crap. no longer and for some time to a serious contender .Its a fashion house for bar stool climbers . You want the very best waterproof ? then you buy Paramo .
Far to many so called" outdoor companies" are just focused on brand image and cool adverts . The company has been sold more times than a illegal chinese prostitute . Buy it if you think it gives you "cred" but a typical jacket costs less than $40 to make
I know this for a fact as i was married to one of the biggest textile "buyers" in the world and she knows her **** .
For all other stuff. REI is good and i love Mountain Hardwear . Goretex is dead in the water these days .
Also i doubt any jacket other than a Paramo will last more than 2 full seasons

fill your boots if you want to look like a hooker on a mountain, but the real men dont touch the stuff

[pamman207a]

Its crap. no longer and for some time to a serious contender .Its a fashion house for bar stool climbers . You want the very best waterproof ? then you buy Paramo .
Far to many so called" outdoor companies" are just focused on brand image and cool adverts . The company has been sold more times than a illegal chinese prostitute . Buy it if you think it gives you "cred" but a typical jacket costs less than $40 to make
I know this for a fact as i was married to one of the biggest textile "buyers" in the world and she knows her **** .
For all other stuff. REI is good and i love Mountain Hardwear . Goretex is dead in the water these days .
Also i doubt any jacket other than a Paramo will last more than 2 full seasons

fill your boots if you want to look like a hooker on a mountain, but the real men dont touch the stuff

I would like to respectfully disagree.

Arc'teryx jackets have been in hard-use for more than the last five years throughout the world. I have an arcteryx alpha jacket and its about 4 years old, worn it through thunderstorms, snow storms, amongst other things and not just in and out of the house/car. So far so good, I cannot say I am the only one who feels this way either.

Other companies have good jackets as well.

[pamman207a]

Its crap. no longer and for some time to a serious contender .Its a fashion house for bar stool climbers . You want the very best waterproof ? then you buy Paramo .
Far to many so called" outdoor companies" are just focused on brand image and cool adverts . The company has been sold more times than a illegal chinese prostitute . Buy it if you think it gives you "cred" but a typical jacket costs less than $40 to make
I know this for a fact as i was married to one of the biggest textile "buyers" in the world and she knows her **** .
For all other stuff. REI is good and i love Mountain Hardwear . Goretex is dead in the water these days .
Also i doubt any jacket other than a Paramo will last more than 2 full seasons

fill your boots if you want to look like a hooker on a mountain, but the real men dont touch the stuff

I would like to respectfully disagree.

Arc'teryx jackets have been in hard-use for more than the last five years throughout the world. I have an arcteryx alpha jacket and its about 4 years old, worn it through thunderstorms, snow storms, amongst other things and not just in and out of the house/car. So far so good, I cannot say I am the only one who feels this way either.

Other companies have good jackets as well.

[upsidedown]

At first they made ok jackets etc.Nothing better than any other brand ..Then as it moved along a new selection of owners, the company very quickly went from a specialist company to a designer brand product . I have friends still working in the business and they say they are getting higher levels of returns Arc'teryx Jackets due to zip and seam sealing issues . People have a desire to buy it as its marketed well and sold as a high end "Expensive" jacket
by buying it they feel part of a "club"

[upsidedown]

At first they made ok jackets etc.Nothing better than any other brand ..Then as it moved along a new selection of owners, the company very quickly went from a specialist company to a designer brand product . I have friends still working in the business and they say they are getting higher levels of returns Arc'teryx Jackets due to zip and seam sealing issues . People have a desire to buy it as its marketed well and sold as a high end "Expensive" jacket
by buying it they feel part of a "club"

[rek001]

I googled Paramo, interesting.
What is this "Nikwax" textile they use?

[rek001]

I googled Paramo, interesting.
What is this "Nikwax" textile they use?

[G. Willikers]

I wore an Arc'teryx Theta AR for 7 or 8 years primarily for pedestrian downtown office commute in all all seasons. It held up really well in that time- by the 7th year it was showing some wear. Then some woman drove a truck into me on a crosswalk and destroyed it. So... I'd recommend them to anyone.

[upsidedown]

Its very interesting. Just about most mountain rescue teams and Search and rescue teams ( UK) use them. very very "quiet" material . no issues with seam seals etc as they dont use them ! Incredible fast drying times . Used mine in Iceland for 6 months and it was perfect . I feel far more secure using it than a top of the range Northface , berghaus etc etc . They also are so superior than the others for breathing

[Bicismith]

Would be interested in trying the paramo but probably not worth it. The waterproof jackets are more than triple the weight of what I use, for one thing. Also, saying they are more breathable than the other stuff out there doesnt really endorse it very well, in my eyes, since those goretex products and the likes are something like 3% better than wearing a plastic trashbag. So in other words, you can save a few hundred bucks and wear a plastic rain coat and be just as wet or dry inside.

[upsidedown]

well ...guess the navy/airforce search and rescue teams dont know jack **** ... They dont buy kit to look good. They buy it to keep them alive . Goretex is almost 60 years old now . it was cutting edge, but not anymore .Ventile stuff is also excellent .

[Bicismith]

Fortunately I'm not in the service, and I suspect the majority here are not as well. I'd look to guys setting speed records up Everest before I look at some monkey being told what to wear.

[timtime]

For branding I think Arcteryx is great, but honestly I trash bag will keep you just as dry.

I snowboard a lot and need something breathable. I have three shells: Arcteryx Sidewinder, Burton Gore Tex Cyclic 2L, and a Columbia Omni.
The Omni was $30 at the outlet, and is probably the one I wear the most because I can treat it like crap and it still stands up.

If you're concerned about warmth and staying dry, then get yourself a good fleece midlayer.

If all you want is a softshell and not a hardshell I recommend OR and REI. For the price point its on par with everything else that sells as double the price. If you want to shop online then check our Lowe Alpine off of Sierratradingpost. A lot of great deals.

[upsidedown]

Fortunately I'm not in the service, and I suspect the majority here are not as well. I'd look to guys setting speed records up Everest before I look at some monkey being told what to wear.

They buy them themselves rather than a fully sponsored climber who wears what his master tells him

Check mate....

[Bicismith]

They buy them themselves rather than a fully sponsored climber who wears what his master tells him

Check mate....

I never would've guessed people in the military buy their own clothing. Why do they all wear the same thing then? Still doesnt change what I said though.

I'll take my own personal experience, and from guys far more knowledgeable than pretty much anyone on the planet first....check out the forum backpacking light.

[beepbeepimajeep]

I highly suggest you try on Westcomb. From the og founders of Arcteryx, they are not exclusively locked into using only goretex fabric and are currently being manufactured in Canada (arcteryx has moved manufacturing to China for a few years already).

[Kleen]

+1 on the GoreTex craze - it is not worth its salt.

Many years back I bought into the hype and bought everything I could get my hands on that had GoreTex in it - for skiing, roadracing and hiking. BIG MISTAKE. It is just not worth it, it clogs up or 'cracks' - especially in gloves and boots it's proven to be even counter-effective and doesn't last a very long time.

Whenever I'm in doubt, I now always revert to the tried and proven old-school 'dress in layers' method. Cheap and efficient...

[mrroey]

.

[demize!]

Most definitely yes!! I have a Sidewinder that is absolutely bombproof and amazing looking. Water will not penetrate at all you can stand under a waterfall. Now disclaimer at least this model runs a size large and I bought mine preowned on ebay so saved about $500 it was barely worn. If you have any questions please ask I havent been around in a while and not sure if this is an old thread.

[umblackbear359]

if it's raining go with gore-tex pro. that stuff is worth every penny and it lasts forever. good american company too. if it's not raining i go with windstopper.