Sierra Designs Chockstone Jacket - Men's - 2010 BCS

I work outside all year, this jacket has been a God send this winter. In negative wind chill weather I was in a base layer t-shirt underneath. The hood cinches down nice and tight with good vision unlike most hoods. All the zippers are heavily guarded with wind and water proofing. I've yet to use it in other seasons but so far so good. Got it for a steal on S&C. Wish it had a little more ventilation but overall a nice quality "winter" jacket. I'm 5"10" 180#'s bought a large fit was fine but I'm not full of muscles by any means.

I saw this on SAC and thought it would be a great shell for the price, but after wearing it for a week in everything from the mid-50's to the mid-20's with wet snow and a nasty wind chill, I'm returning it.

First, let me list some pro's this jacket has before I get to the negatives. The jacket will provide you great protection from inclement weather and is very windproof. It kept me kept me very dry while I was outside in the recent snow "storm" we had. It also packs down to about the size of a football in its own hood and is very light. The double main zipper is good for dumping heat while keeping the jacket on as a poncho and also when sitting down, and the extra long sleeves are good at keeping your hands warm and dry.

Now the negative - The fit of this jacket is odd. I'm 6', 210lbs with a long torso and bit of a belly, and the large is tight in the chest with a poly t-shirt and 300w fleece on, but was very baggy in the abdomen.

The jacket doesn't breathe well and dumping heat and moisture can be a problem if you sweat a lot (like I tend to do) during periods of high activity. While the double zip is good for a quick cool down, it really sucked having wet snow blowing onto my base-layer when the wind kicked up (I had removed my fleece) while I was shoveling the driveway. Also, the double zipper is finicky getting started and unclasped when it's time to take the jacket off, and finally jumped a tooth which made it all but impossible to unclasp.

Finally, the hood cinches down nicely, but it's very hard to loosen up without taking the jacket off, and makes it even harder to remove the hood for quick heat dumping. The hem cinches are similarly hard to loosen, with the locking clasp attached inside the jacket instead of in the pockets with the draw cords.

Overall, I'd say this jacket would be great in above freezing, windy and rainy conditions for moderate to low activity levels, but that's too narrow of a range for me.

Cliff notes: It doesn't breathe well enough for high activity levels, and isn't insulated well enough for low activity levels in the cold without needing multiple layers (which causes the fit to suffer).

I've been using this jacket in the Himalaya (Makalu, Nanga Parbat and K2), the Andes and all around the States. There are a lot of synthetic insulated jackets on the market, but few have weather proof outershells, which seems absurd to me. Hanging on a belay, fighting through a blizzard, wallowing through snow, I do not want the wind blowing through sewn through seams, or wet snow soaking through the shell into my insulation. This jacket, especially in it's current iteration is a superb jacket for technical climbers and skiers. And as part of a limited arsenal of gear, high on a huge peak, it is irreplaceable. I've used it as part of my sleeping system, sticking my feet in it to let me get by with a lighter sleeping bag. I've used it as part of my layering system, allowing me to ditch the Water Proof Breathable jacket, and allowing me to wear an even lighter down jacket to the summit of K2. If you play in extreme conditions (NorthEast, Rockies, Alaska or above 6000 meters) this is the very best synthetic insulated layer available.