Arc'teryx Maverick SV Jacket - Men's - 2006 BCS

I have owned this Maverick SV for several years now; and honestly, winter weather in Colorado at 10,000 ft altitude is nothing to this jacket... I was always comfortable, that's why I bought another one!!!

I only review products that I've owned for at least one full season. With that in mind, I think the Maverick SV is a fantastic jacket, but there are a few caveats. First the good: The material (Polartec Thermal Pro) is fantastically warm and shows no signs of wear or pilling. The plush, fuzzy pile liner holds a lot of heat, even down to 35 degrees. The wind-blocking/breathability compromise is nearly perfect. It's allegedly four times more windproof than regular fleece and 85% as breathable. It's body-hugging form layers well and it's perfect for snowboarding if worn under a thin Gore-Tex shell. Now for the bad parts: The sleeves are absurdly thin at the forearm and cuff. I have a small wrist for a 6ft 1in guy and it's perfect for me. Were I any thicker in the wrist, I think it could dig in to me. I also think it could use pit zips. It does have a thinner, non-insulated material in the pit area, but nothing beats opening up zippers after a long ride down the mountain. Finally, I wish it had a neck cinch. It gets a bit drafty in the neck on very windy days. And the pockets. They are the largest, most mysterious pockets I have ever seen. They are the entire front side of the jacket on both the left and the right side. Not bad, just weird. Overall, I'd give the jacket an A-. It’s insanely versatile, but not perfect.

I was surprised to find that the quality of this jacket was not up to Arc's usual very high standard. Could it be that Salomon ownership of Arc'teryx is having an influence? The back horizontal seam, scapula level, was not smooth but rather had 4 or five ridges or waves along its length preventing it from lying flat!
Then I have a question about why the sleeve forearms have to be so snug/tight that it is inconvenient/uncomfortable/impractical to wear other layers beneath. Finally I wonder why the inside of the front pockets go all the way up the chest.
The fabric of the jacket, Polartec WindPro Reverse Shag and its design with breathable schoeller on the shoulders and pits make this jacket potentially a superior alternative to the very popular North face Denali jacket, once the bugs are ironed out. Oh yes, one other small thing, the reverse shag the inner collar might look a bit frumpy; perhaps this area could be made with a more discreet but fairly warm alternate fleece; extremely warm shag fleece is not really a good idea in the neck area anyway because the neck heats up rapidly during exertion.