Montbell Extremely Light Down Jacket

there is a thread called ul madness a couple pages back where it is discussed ad nauseam. I own it and love it, others prefer the pockets. I miss them sometimes but the truth is that it is lighter and the report is out on weather or not it is warmer.

i found the jacket finally on montbell.

Its under a different name:

http://www.montbell.us/products/disp.php?cat_id=70&p_id=2301344

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=18075&disable_pagination=1

Very interesting stuff. 8)

I don't have this jacket, but i do have the old style with the snaps instead of a zipper and no pockets. Yeah, I kinda miss the pockets with that jacket. I have thought about getting the extra light to use as a summer piece.

I had been looking into this issue as well prior to this post and actually contacted Montbell to see which was warmer. Montbell replied with the following:

"There is not going to be any real difference as far as warmth with those two jackets. What it really comes down to is pockets and fabric. The Ex Light does not have any pockets and the fabric is 7-denier nylon, so it is very
delicate. The UL Down does have pockets and the fabric is 15-denier nylon so it is slightly more durable. As far as the fill power, we use slightly less down in the Ex Light which is 900 fill power. That means that 1.8 ounces of 900 fill power (the amount in the Ex Light) is going to provide roughly the same amount of warmth as 2 ounces of 800 fill power (the amount in the UL Down Inner). The benefit of 900 fill power is it takes less of it to achieve the same amount of warmth, which in turn reduces weight."

Hope that helps everyone understand the two jackets.

I tested both for BackpackGearTest.org; you may read my detailed reviews at that site. I found the EX Light noticably warmer, perhaps because of a snugger fit. Both are great alternatives to fleece.