Montbell U.L. Down Inner Half Sleeve Jacket

My experience with the MB U.L. Down Inner series is that the warmth is comparable to a very heavy weight fleece, but without all of the bulky feeling. There were plenty of nights in the Rockies that it dipped close to freezing, but I was comfortable with shorts (knee length), Smartwool microweight tee, watch cap, and the MB UL Down Inner w/Long sleeve.

As far as fit, the Montbell clothing line is the most varied that I have ever tried on. I have tried on ALL of the UL Down Inner series (Normal, Short Sleeve, and Hooded Parka) and can say the fit is different between them all in the exact same sizes. Belly would be tight on the LS, but not the short. Chest restrictive in the Parka, but not the others etc. I ended up staying with the old snap style of '06 instead of getting a newer model because of the inconsistent fits. This holds true with their other clothing as well. Their pants are probably the most consistent for sizing. I've spent many hours in the flagship store in Boulder mulling over my options!

So my only advice would be to double check the return policy of wherever you get them from and try to order multiple sizes and then return them if they don't work for you. Or try them on in person if possible.

I hope this helps a little.

Thanks for the insight. I'll be moving to Denver soon (yay!), does the flagship store in Boulder ever give discounts or have good deals?

Congratulations on your future move to Denver! You won't regret it IMO. Montbell and Northface both have stand alone stores in Boulder. Golite, Mountain Hardwear and Sierra Designs also have corporate headquarters here also, although MH is just a design studio. And the fact that Backpacker Magazine finally moved to Boulder says a lot about the town and the countryside that can be utilized. The REI flagship is also in Denver and is sight to behold!

The Montbell Boulder store does not offer discounts regularly, but they will mark down a couple of items here and there. They do however have a great sale area in the store with older models, overstock, returns etc. So you can really pick up some good deals there. I picked up a first generation #5 Stretch Bag for $90 a year or so ago, before they moved into their newest location. This particular store also gets a few goody's from Japan that cannot be ordered, such as the Moonlight tents, MB trekking poles and the Zelts among other things.

I have the half sleeve jacket in size xl. I am 6' with a 41 inch chest and the fit is roomy around the chest and just about right in length. Its an interesting piece of equipment. I use it for summer backpacking and usually find it to be just warm enough. With a windshell over it my torso stays warm down to about the mid 30s. I would say it has about 1 inch of single layer loft. Your arms do tend to get a little chilly and occasionally I do wish I had long sleeves. It does pack up awfully small and puff up quite nicely.

Eric,
I have the Half Sleeve in a size large. I am 6'3" and weigh about 180 lbs. An XL would be too big for me. I also have a large in the MB UL Down Parka and the fit is spot on aswell.
As for warmth, when I compare the HS to the Parka, there is a substantial loft difference. My HS is bursting at the seams with down, whereas the Parka seems to be "underfilled" – I assume this is how they are made. The HS is much warmer then a fleece and a great piece of gear. I use mine with a set of arm warmers (check the bike section of the store) for a very versatile set up. I also used this setup for sleeping with the Arc AT. If you are really interested, I had a post in the Multi-use gear section about it. HTH

Search "modular sleep setup"

That's a fantastic idea. I love bicycling, and I've been wanting to get some arm warmers, I just never made the jump mentally and thought of using them for backpacking. I've even seen some wool ones, although I'm sure polypro will do. Thanks for the suggestion! By the way, I noticed your post said the arm warmers were 2.5 ounces. I imagine that's typical, or did you search for something that was lightweight? If so, what brand is it?

That's interesting about the size, I might try to order both and return the one that doesn't fit the best. I'm 6'5", but weigh around 215 and have a long torso and wide shoulders. It's hard finding things that fit me well.

Hello. I'm 6'2" and a slim 205 with big shoulders and usally wear a size large in other brands. I bought a size large in the half sleeve a while back and it barely fits over just a base layer. It has just a bit of restriction in the shoulders but otherwise fits fine. I wish I had gone with the XL. If you want to wear more than just a thin baselayer you may want to size up. Hope that helps.

Eric, I did do some weighing in a few stores and found that the "Defeet Coldout Arm Warmers" were the lightest (2.5 oz for the pair) pair with a nice feel. There are some lighter ones but they seemed to offer more wind/rain protection than insulative values. Check some out – that was my first time seeing them up close up I'm no expert.
It's a good system though…you can wear a t-shirt, and if you get a chill, throw the arm warmers on, and if you still get chilly, throw the HS on – and vice versa. It eliminates the need to bring a long sleeve shirt aswell.
Let us know how which route you take.
Steve