bam2565953

Excellent for cold windy conditions.

Fits a little looser than the Apex Bionics. Slightly warmer as well due to the high collar and slightly thicker fleece lining.

Very Pleased. Love the Blue Ink. Everyone around here has the black or black and grey north face jackets. Haven't ran into anyone else yet thats also sporting this bad boy.

Technical, Functional, Versatile.

Looks as good as it performs.

Warmer than one would think.

My wife loves it. Wears it constantly.

Extremely soft and comfy. Looks great as well.

The Good:
For my main purpose and wants from this shirt i am very satisfied. From a performance and technical standpoint its outstanding....comfy....warm....sheds rain nicely....etc...etc. I do agree with the user about the neck guard looking awkward when unzipped but to me thats no big deal because i wear it between 80-100% zipped and as long as you do so it doesn't look peculiar (excess material on one collar that kind of just hangs out making collar look uneven if unzipped more than around 20% of the way). If you are getting this for hiking, running, outdoor adventure as did i you will be happy with its comfort and performance.

The Bad:
The quality of the shirt materials itself is good in regard to the wool, polartec, and the useful monkey thumb sleeves. My biggest gripe with this product is that the branding stickers/emblems or whatever you want to call them. If you look in the photos you see the recognizable Backcountry trademark mountain goat and on the right sleeve near wrist a smaller version with the reflective lettering spelling backcountry. The Problem....both were done poorly/cheaply. My experience....my first wear of the shirt was the day after i got it and it was casual...i wore it on a trip to two retail stores and dinner. By the end of dinner i noticed that 4 of the letters on the sleeve had fallen off with it now reading "Ba kcou t y" rather than "Backcountry". When i got home and took the shirt off and looked it over it appears this isn't just a problem with the lettering/branding of the sleeve but also with the chest emblem....as the bottom portion (legs) of the bc goat have started to peel from the shirt material. I imagine 2-3 wears and washed ans all letters and trademark emblems will have followed suit and fallen off of the shirt leaving it "non-branded" and non-distinguished.

Summary:
for me the flaw with the "stickers/emblems" isn't huge because i bought it more for performance than look. If you are doing the same i recommend it however....if you are buying it hoping to show off your new BackCountry gear or casual use and thought the Logos are part of what make it look good then stay away. In hindsight i am happy overall.....but somewhat disappointed. Had this item been cheaper i wouldn't even grips about the cheap logo stickers/branding falling off....but at the premium price one would expect better all around quality to include the branding/logos. Has anyone ever paid $60+ for a northface product only to have the logo fall off on your first wear (or ever for that matter). If the logo quality issue isn't resolved BC should seriously consider another price reduction.