Contributions by Magkjeld (7)

I've had this jacket for more than three years now. It bothers me that it is always listed as highly water resistant because it's pretty far from it. Rain will bead off during the first month or less but anyone caught in a lasting shower will know that it seeps through pretty fast. I bought it with intentions of replacing my GoreTex on day trips ski mountaineering and touring but because you can't rely on it as your only shell, I ended up carrying my Goretex with me anyway. Using it on the climb up it retains sweat from your body and can become quite wet. When on exposed ridges or at the summmit and the wind starts to pick up, the jacket chills you down quite fast since it is not entirely windproof, especially if a little wet. Same goes for resort skiing if you're pushing your body or get wet from the snow. Bone chilling if it gets wet. Hence I stopped using it for skiing. for climbing it is much better. Amazing abrasion resistance and windproof enough to climb in most conditions. Quality is good and there is only real sign of wear on the wrists and a couple of seams on one arm. The plastic chin guard is not so good as it curled up during the first few months and never really stays in place. The fit is athletic and XL fits me perfectly, although it could be slimmer(although I suspect they make it baggier in the XL). I'm 6'5 and 90 kg's whatever that is in pounds. Oh, and the hood of course is amazing. Fits perfectly with or without helmet.

I've been using this for sport climbing a lot and it simply makes things easier. Use it as described in Climb2love's answer below. The small loop in the middle is brilliant for abseiling off instead of using the central loop on your harness. I'm a tall guy (6,5) and use the 90cm. Great length that fit my range. Smaller guy's anf girls might consider using the shorter one.

Material and quality are all good. My only gripe is that what looks like an athletic fit was not.. Certainly not in XL. I'm 6.5 tall and use Xl in most Arcteryx clothing which this jacket was compared to in relation to fit. There's a lot of room for a beer belly and man-boobs. So I wouldn't say it's a slim fit. I like the pockets, zippers and hood, all very well done. A minor detail is that the seams (attaching the chinguard)on the chin part scratches my chin and neck quite a bit, even though it has a chin guard.

well, after using this pack for a good while (refer to my earlier review for additional pros and cons)I have to say I not too impressed. The major annoyance is the lack of proper compression straps. They are located to high and low which leaves a big gap in the middle. My pack, which is the 42L always ends up with a huge bulge in the middle. If your shovel compartment is full that leaves you with an even stranger (and impractical) looking pack. They also made this pack bigger than most 40-54L packs I've seen so be aware of that. All in all, good features and comfortable carry. But the downsides are so many that I'm thinking of returning it.

It seems like a good quality pack and has some essential features for a backcountry pack. Especially the external pocket for shovel, probe and other on the fly gear. The hipbelt is great by the way and has two small attachment points which I guess is for creating gear loops with 6 mm rope. pretty ingenius. Would work very well as an allround pack for mountaineering. the insulated shoulder strap for bladder hose look very well done and the pack seems more sturdy than most - yet lightweight. It will take a lot of abuse for sure. Only cons is that it's a pretty tall pack, I'm 6"4 (mostly legs though but still) and the back above the shoulder straps seems a little too high. wonder if it will conflict with my helmet while skiing when I'm leaning forward tilting my head back. Most ski packs are low on the back to avoid such situations. Could have created a helmet 'groove' in the top as many other packs have. Otherwise the pocket where the helmet cover is, is only protected by velcro and it opens upwards so that rain can rinse straight through the velcro. pretty stupid as it is not designed as a 'wet gear pocket' with rinsing holes at the bottom. Also the protection of the main compartment has only one drawcord, not the usual additional 'extension body' with extra drawcord. This makes it less complicated (faster) to access the compartment but also makes it easier for snow or rain to enter the compartment if it's blowing a bit (which it usually does). could therefore be extra useful with a waterproof liner or packsack. Otherwise great pack for ski touring and mountaineering