Golite Ether vs Patagonia Houdini vs Montbell UL wind Parka

I am a big fan of MontBell bags and insulation wear. However, I avoided the MB windshirts as they are close to non-breathable. I recall Ryan Jordan calling them sauna fabric!

I used to have a similar sauna jacket — aka GoLite Helios. The bad thing is that if you are active at all (like hiking), it's hard to keep the thing on. The good thing is that when you are at rest and strong cold winds are blowing, the thing blocks out the wind amazingly.

My current wind jacket is the Marmot Ion — a 2007 version which is a completely different animal — and much improved in terms of breathability — from the 2006 Ion. I find it a very good compromise between breathability and wind blocking. When hiking, it's quite breathable; and when at rest, it blocks most of the wind — but not quite as much as my old, non-breathable Golite Helios.

The Houdini is even more breathable than my 2007 Marmot Ion. However, a hiking friend who has both commented that the Houdini lets in still more wind than the Marmot.

IMO, when selecting a windshirt, it's all about striking a balance between breathability and wind blocking. A windshirt that breathes lousy is hard to keep on and thus hard to use. But a wind jacket that lets in too much wind is also suboptimal when you are at rest and cold!

I wasn't even looking at the Marmot Ion. $50 ain't bad! especially if the performance is as good or better than the Houdini…but 5 ounces is almost unacceptable for a windshirt, in my mind. I own a driclime and I do like the shell material for breathability and water repellency, though. How small does the Ion pack down to, if I may ask?

Patagonia Houdini

Based on my experience, it blocks wind well. I got it on sale for half price so it ended up being a good value in my opinion.

Before the Houdini, I used a Marmot Precip (rain jacket) for wind so I did not have a good basis for comparison. Maybe this is why I love the Houdini. If one of the others would have been on sale, then maybe I'd be writing about it now instead.

Hi Robert,
you might also check out the OR Ion windshirt, it's a pullover style with a nice long zipper (similar to your montane). It's kind of a sleeper of windshirts, you don't hear too much about it but's it's really nice. It especially has an excellent hood with good adjustments. It's breathability seems pretty good and the water repelancy is good too.

Dan

I'd recommend getting the Liberty Ridge kit from thru-hiker and sewing the whole jacket how you like it. I've done 2, one with 1.1oz dwr with a #3 molded full length zipper and hood, and the same with 1.1oz teflon. Now that I've tried Momentum on my Minima vest, I want to make one from that too…..
If you have some basic sewing experience, it would be doable. just do a mock up especially for the hood.

Robert, I agree with Ben, and Im also a fan of MB bags; and insulation layers for that matter. But take any of those windhshirts you are considering, hold up a single layer to your mouth, and attempt to breathe throught the fabric. This is a good test of vapor (such as H20) permeability. The MBs dont breathe.
I have the Houdini, and recommend it.

Can someone who owns the Marmot Ion (2007 version) verify its weight, if you know it off hand? The Marmot website says 5 ounces, but Backcountry Gear says 3 ounces.

The actual weight of my size L 2007 Ion is 5 oz. on the dot. These jackets run a bit on the small side. I normally wear a Medium, but in this case, size L fits me better.

Marmot makes good stuff, but they tend to be DISHONEST in their specs: 'shrinking' sizes, understating gear weight, overstating pack volume, and sometimes overly optimistic on their bag warmth.

So there, you've got both the good and the bad. I still recommend the wind jacket though, if you can get over the 5 oz. weight.

My brother has the 30 degree hydrogen and he claims he is comfortable to 30 degrees in it (and he is skinny). I also have a friend who has their 40 and 15 degree bag and he also claims they are comfortable to their stated ratings(he is also a skinny guy, unlike me) That said, the 40 degree is listed at 16 oz. but actually weighs 18 oz.

I have tried all three of these Own the houdini and ether worn a MB wind parka for a short bit too. The houdini IMO is by far the best in breathability and seems to be a little tougher. However I think the hood on the ether stays on better. I agree with others statements about breathability on the MB. The houdini and MB windshirts have much better DWRs than the ether. However you can always get good deals on the ether. Prolite has all three on sale.

I'll put in another vote for the OR Ion windshirt. I have one and I love it. My wife also has one now. As the previous poster said, this is the closet windshirt of the industry. Mine weights 3.7oz.

prolitegear.com

It's actually listed in two places… one only has black XXL, the other has some other colors in other sizes.