Beats the pants off TNF Pamir

By Jay Simpson Ranked #1384 - Men's Fleece Jackets April 21, 2009

In my search for a good Windstopper fleece I must have looked at at least two dozen different jackets from all the major companies (and some small ones). The Pamir was on sale so I ended up buying it. Big mistake. The construction was quite good, but the fit was ridiculous. I got the large and though it was long enough the sleeves came down below my knuckles and the chest area billowed around me (I'm 6' 160). I reluctantly sent it back to BC and kept looking.

My quandary was that I wanted a warm, wind-proof/resistant jacket that I could wear on those nasty 40 degree days in November and under a shell in January. The Marmot M1 sofshell material might have worked, but the jackets built with it were all too expensive. There were deals to be had on some Arcteryx jackets, but I wanted to be able to wear it even in non-outdoorsy setting without feeling like a complete ass (Marmot/TNF/Etc. are bad enough).

The problem with most of the softshells and technical fleeces I found was that they were designed for aerobic activity. Great if you're running or climbing, but not so good for strolling around town. After my failure with TNF I decided to look at other brands. The ubiquitous MH windstopper jacket looked nice but it was too pricey. I decided to stick with Marmot (in my comfort zone). The Superhero, Leadville, Torrid, Afterburner, and Sharp Point were all tempting. The Leadville was too softshell-ish and wouldn't have been warm enough. The Torrid was really tempting but lacked the warmth and wind resistance I wanted. The Superhero was too expensive as was the Sharp Point. The Afterburner seemed perfect. I like my clothes to have as little flash as possible, so I got it in black--and it's great.

It has the gray "Marmot" on the left side of the chest, but other than that there are no logos on the back or arm--something I appreciate when companies like TNF like to plaster their name all over their products. The Afterburner is fairly thick for a windstopper jacket, but it's also really warm. The inside of the jacket is all soft fleece, same with the two hand pockets. There's an inner pocket not mentioned in the listing that's quite nice (very roomy).

Fit: I am, as I said, 6' 160. I'm fairly lean and the jacket fits nicely. It's not a super trim athletic cut but it fits pretty close and I don't think I could layer a whole lot underneath. Probably not more than a Patagonia C3 or wool base layer. Certainly not another fleece unless I sized up. It's a tiny bit shorter than I'd like, but it's not bad.

View Details: Marmot Afterburner Fleece Jacket - Men's

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