Outdoor Research Mithril Stormshell Jacket - Men's - 2007 BCS

Good weight, stretchy and comfortable, extremely storm proof. I can beat this jacket up in some gnarly conditions and it keeps on ticking, and keeps me dry and warm

I am 5'8" and 170 pounds. I have a stocky athletic build and ordered a medium in this jacket. The width and arms fit great but the length of the jacket was way too short. It barely made it down to my waist and I'm only 5'8"!!! Seemed like a sweet jacket but was so short.

Two years of backcountry and ski mountaineering abuse and this jacket is still holding strong!
Very durable!

These jackets are awesome - shower-proof, downpour resistant (still warm on the inside), chewing gum resistant, style faux pas-proof...list goes on. Sizing is consistent with other brands, I'm 6'3/180lb with long torso/arms and the XL fits nice. Still going strong and as new after 3 years of service, and know a lot of others who I've spruiked it to have had similar experiences. Would make an awesome multi-function backpacking jacket, but is just as happy in technical surrounds. Dig it.

I'm 5'10", 150lb. Ordered a small, and it fits perfect for a light duty spring jacket. With a t-shirt or light button-up shirt underneath, I can comfortably move around. Cinch the bottom drawstrings tight and pull the hood up and I've had no problems keeping dry in driving rains.
On the flip side, it's still very breathable even with full seam sealing and the whole nine yards.

I've been skiing in this jacket a few times in both heavy snow and bitter cold. Overall, it's very weatherproof and breathable, but it's not as windproof as my old hard shell. I'm 5' 11", 170 lbs and got a large -- the fit is great. Plenty of room for layers without being bulky. Also, it looks good, which is nice.

i was outside just now in a icebreaker woolbaselayer 200g/m2 weight a cheap cotton tshirt and the OR mithril in 18degrees f i was walking the dog then went to a dog park and was still i then unstuck the gate with a pick axe. The mthril did a good job throughout i was warm and did not overheat untill the wind came. The jacket does breathwell but the wind gets though moderately. I should also mention i wore no hat or gloves but was wearing cheap cotton khakis with 200 weight cotton polartech fleece pants underneath, alpaca socks and "waterproof" nubuck leather goretex boots. after 2 years the boots stoped being water proof but when its this cold the snow doesnt melt into the boots. having propper insulation in the pants makes a world of difference. but the mithril worked well with minimal layering even in really cold weather for a short period. But the wind does become a problem, it is not windproof and if your outside for extended periods and it is really cold I.E freezing or below, there is wind and you spend any amount of time sedentary you will lose your core heat and this will drain your energy and weaken you. the mitrhil does not layer well with a middle wight fleece. But I am going to try a more windproof insulation layer and see how that goes. Just to note OR does not claim for it be windproof but it is nearly waterproof in all but the most torrential of downpoors. Perhaps the right way to layer this piece exists and I intend to find out before i return. again the mithril is amazing for urbanites who want to look sleek, classy and outdoorsy but not bulky. Who do not go outside for too long when it is freezing or below and windy except for brief periods as this is its main weakness.

i've owned this jacket for over two years and unless these issues have been addressed its a deal breaker for me! It did moderately well in many conditions i can afford it that much. I lived for months at a time in it in the pacific northwest outside... and it served quite well there nearly water proof in torrential rain for months at a time, but not quite.
I spent a month outside in new york city selling christmass trees with this jacket. I would sleep in a cold van next to the stand 6 hours from 8 am-2pm in the bronx in a valley between two rivers, so it turns out to be one of the coldest windiest places in the city. I would twice a week at night receieve loads of trees frozen packed in ice hundreds at a time often tied in bundles. this is where it didn't make the cut. It doesn't allow layers very well. and exposes your midsection when you raise your arms. so when its wet out so is the bottom of your shirt. and when its cold out it exposes your core to sharp cold winds. Also the movement in the arms is not good for working. this jacket is cumbersome in a harness and is difficult to access the pockets. In the end i favored the versitility of my other cheaper layers over this most of the time. it is good for hard physical activity in hard cold windy heavy rain conditions with proper layering and if you dont need to move your arms around too much and your going inside when your done to change. other than that my 60 dollar ems precip jacket with pit zips and 7 dollar fleece quarter zip are a better combination and are more versitile. If it gets really cold i can add more layers to the latter combination and the fleece with precip is actually warmer. I was never truely warm in this jacket at night below 37 degrees because it wouldnt allow me to layer for it and if you did it will constantly ride up and expose your midsection.--- all in all its a good townie jacket because it looks nice and has some nice technical features, but the design is flawed for anything much more than that... its designed to go inside after a few hours. it needs pit zips or venting fabric, and a completely redesigned freedom of arm movement without riding up factor. and the pockets need to be placed higher for harness use. Also the hood adjustments must constantly be attended to,they suck; so they need to be redone, also it needs to be a little longer particularly in the rear.some sort of windflap for the front zipper would be nice... after a year it starts to let the water in a bit more.-- the bottom line is its extra weight. but nice for in town use if the weather never hits any extremes.

Been meaning to write this review for a while. I cannot say enough good things about the Mithril. It is my everyday winter jacket in NYC. Absolutely wind and waterproof and on super cold days I pop the fleece lined hood up and it's as good as wearing a hat. I wouldn't want to wear it while doing any kind of winter aerobic activity as there are better breathable jackets out there.
If you're looking for something that will protect you as well as Frodo's Mithril shirt protected him, you won't go wrong with this jacket. Cheers.

Looks nice. The problem is it is too wide and too short so it looks like you are wearing a good looking box with a hood.
The box does repel water very nicely and comes is some sexy colors.
I would choose a furio before the Mithril for any backpacking venture. Mithril is for around town. Too bad they don't make them in a Tall.

As I said in my other review I loved this jacket, for another idea of it's waterproofing it kept my head dry in the hood as the back of my head was in a creek for about forty minutes. No water got through, I was very heartbroken when the EMTs in the ambulance had to cut it off me. But I love the look so much I kept it and will stitch it up again. The external taping is an awesome look.

I got this jacket last summer and it worked amazingly well. It let no wind through on my motorcycle at 70mph, it held out a driving rain in New England, even standing under a drain from the roof. This jacket is amazingly comfortable, and does offer some warmth. In extreme cold layers underneath would be necessary. The only downside to this jacket would be the length. It is a little short so if you're ice climbing I would go with the mentor or a longer jacket. But for hiking, skiing, and very rainy weather it is great.

The Mithril is just an awesome softshell jacket. I've worn it in snow storms on Mt Baker to pouring rain in San Francisco and it's provided great wind and wetness protection every time. The material does soak up h2o a bit when things get really wet, but it stays dry and toasty on the inside. The sleeves are a bit shorter than you might see on many hardshells but that's probably b/c it would suck to have the thick (as compared to a hardshell) material bunching up too much. Hood could be made a little larger - although it will squeeze over a skihelmet. OR could consider adding pitzips (which would add weight) but it vents through the chest pockets if open. Must be one of the best deals out there...

Bottom line - this jacket gets the job done. While there are a few "bells and whistles" that could take this jacket to the next level it does a great job of keeping wind out. The seams are tight and taped to provide more wind and water protection. I had mine out skiing in -17 degree days and I had a baselayer + fleece and it was just fine. The features that could take this to the next level are; powder skirt, slightly higher neck/face portion, longer sleeves as they ride up when you move you arms overhead.Otherwise, this coat is a great deal.

This jacket performed exactly as OR said it would during my last outing in the lower Cascades. I brought this jacket for a back-up and I'm glad I did. We had strong winds and rain/sleet. I stayed dry, the wind didn't get through. Price - a little high, but I got it on sale. Fit - a little small. I usually wear a medium, had to get a large to have other layers on beyond a t-shirt.

This thing is great - it breathes really quite well, I run with it if it's cold (<10deg.F) and I'm going less than 8-10miles(it'll soak up some sweat after an hour at high intensity)... Blocks the wind like a bastard, and for how thin it is, it insulates well. With a dual short/long sleeve base layer I'm comfortable if active at zero degrees. If I stop I have to throw on another layer. Once washed the waterproofing goes out the window a bit, and will soak up some moisture if it's sleeting for example, but you bring a gore tex shell for that anyway, right?

I love OR products. They make some of the best outdoor merchandise you can buy today. I purchased this jacket several weeks ago, and I have already used it for snowmobiling and skiing. It has held up great! Its waterproof yet breathable. It warm enough for those cold wind chills on the snowy mountains, and works great as a shell. It has plenty of draw strings to keep the elements out, and has a plethora of pockets for all of your essentials.

I live in North Carolina - we're not exactly talking the frozen tundra here. In fact, it's rare if the temp dips below 20. Beside that, it hardly every snows. As such, I was looking for a durable, water / wind proof soft shell that would keep me warm in the fairly mild NC winter but that could also be a transition jacket during the fall and spring. I also wanted something that could handle rougher elemeents when needed. I've only had the Mithril jacket for a few weeks, but no complaints thus far. It's excelled in rain, colder weather (wearing a light fleece underneath) and temps between 40-60 (wearing just a tee underneath). I have a feeling that it might be too uncomfortable for warmer climates as there's not much ventilation other than the pockets. Still, anything above sixty and I probably wouldn't be wearing a jacket anyway. I haven't tested it in super-harsh elements, but the material and contstruction appear to be top notch. I'll be in Minnesota for Christmas, so we'll see. As for the sizing, it's definitely not as form-fitting as a soft shell from North Face, Marmot or Mountain Hardware, but I don't find it too boxy or loose either. Again, it's just the right size for layering. The look is very sharp and stylish; I got the blue color and it actually looked much cooler in person than on the web. Overall, I'm quite happy with my choice (believe me, I did a lot of research) and I'd do it again. The only reason I'm going four stars is because the jacket hasn't been fully tested.

I wore the jacket yesterday in moderate rain fall and stayed completely dry. The jacket has a soft lining that also makes it fairly warm in comparison to just a shell. I haven't had a chance to go skiing yet, but I am pretty sure that it could withstand wind, snow, and cold just as well. Really happy with this purchase.

Aside from the cuff/hood combo which chafes my neck, and the lack of pit zips, this is a really good softshell for the buck. Extrememly waterproof and very warm for its weight.

I had not owned a waterproof soft shell before purchasing this jacket. Where my old hard shell would transfer the temperatures quickly (especially in a soaking rain), this jacket from OR kept me both dry and warm! I wore it in a driving Florida storm and stayed perfectly dry. Yet it breathed well enough that I wasn't roasting when I kept in on indoors. I love this product!

I am a student at Michigan Tech in the Keweenaw Penninsula. Had the jacket on today as my geological engineering class went out to Lake Superior in the rain. Kept the rain out flawlessly, and the wind. Standing on a rock face not really paying attention, got NAILED by a sweet crushing wave, jeans were soaked, shoes were soaked, head and torso completely dry. Awesome.

I'm only 5'8" but i've got big arms and a big gut. I got the xxl and it fits great. I have a Northface softshell that gets "all up in my pits." Wore this to Yosemite "In March" and also to explore the windy coast near San Fran and It was great. The vents worked well but there needs to be pockets separate from the vents. Had to pull cold hands into sleeves.