New MEC Primaloft Jacket

So I visited MEC yesterday to check out the Uplink jacket. First up was checking the weights, I weighed the medium jacket at 265g and the large at 271g, so their claim of 274g is seemingly based on the large.

The weight seems to change by about 5-9g per size. In the ladies sizing I weighed the XS at 231g and the small at 237g. I was pleased to see MEC is accurate with their weights for this item. Unfortunately they didn't have the ladies pullover version in stock. My wife is planning to order one of those.

The sizing of the jacket is generous. I usually wear a medium and in this case, I bought a medium but it is a little big which I guess is good for layering. I can easily wear this over a hoody. I'm 5'11" and 160lbs and I would have tried on the small if they had it in stock. I still likely would have got the medium though. As the Uplink video says, the jacket is longer in the sleeves and overall length which is nice.

One thing about the coat that disappointed me is how thin it is. This jacket is very thin. It almost feels like there is no insulation in it. I would say the loft of the jacket is about 1/4". I haven't done any scientifc testing, but it seems similarly warm to a medium weight fleece.

One other aspect of the jacket that I wasn't thrilled with is the neck. When you zip it up all the way, the neck is pretty loose so the neck insulation isn't doing anything. I can fit my fist inside the neck of the jacket when it's fully zipped up.

I've already trimmed a few things off this jacket to save grams. I cut off the inner tags (2g), removed the wind flap behind the main zip (5.2g) and cut off some excess white fabric from behind the breast pocket. My size medium now weighs 257g (9.065 oz).

I wore this jacket last night under my rain shell (which are the two jackets I take hiking) for a 20 minute walk. It was 9 C outside (45 F?). I was adequately warm but I suspect I was nearing the limits of this setup. I'd probably want to bring along an insulation vest for colder trips.

Stuffing the jacket into it's breast pocket for storage is a simple process. The pocket is an appropriate size so it's easy to stuff in. The stuffed package is probaly about 1-1.5 litres in volume.

Overall, I'm happy with the jacket but I do wish it was warmer so I could get more use out of it. This is probably just a jacket for summer nights….not early spring or fall. For comparison, the Western Mountainering Flash jacket weighs about the same as this jacket but it has a hood and a ton of loft thanks to the 850fp down. This makes that coat good to below freezing according to the BPL review. So it seems that a similarly heavy down jacket will be much warmer, but also more expensive and like all down garments, suffer when wet.

I've decided to return my Uplink Jacket to MEC. Ultimately it just isn't warm enough for 3 season use. You can hardly tell there's any insualtion in it. I don't think it's much warmer than a thin fleece, so for spring and fall use I'd probably want to carry a insulated vest too.

I couldn't stop thinking about the Montbell U.L. Down Inner Parka which weighs 1.5 – 2 oz less (7.4oz in medium), has a hood and should be significantly warmer. The hood is important and so it the extra warmth so for just another $45 (and you can get them on sale) it made a lot of sense. If you're just sitting around camp, I don't think the Uplink will keep you comfortable below about 45F (+ 10 C).

This jacket is priced well ($115) so I can see it being a good fit for some people who only get out in the summer, but I have hikes planned well into october this year and I know I would be cold sitting around camp in this at that time of year. For most people it's probably worth spending a bit more money (or weight) on a warmer jacket.

Again, take a look at the Montbell Thermawrap Ultralite, the synthetic version. It weighs around 9 oz. and I wore mine, outside, over a cotton short sleeved T shirt last January when we had all the snow and cold here in Vancity and I was just fine. Now, I am a "warm" person and often shovel snow in a T shirt, but, this jacket REALLY impresses me.

I bought mine from the USA and Prolite has had some pretty nice deals on these that I have seen. With an Icebreaker zipT and this jacket, I am fine at 10*F and it is very well made.

I don't know what size you are but I'm going to post a Montbell Thermawrap Parka (hooded) Men's Medium Blue for sale in the gear sale forum, in excellent condition (my wife used very lightly as a belay jacket but then got a women's version so we didn't have to look like twins in the same jacket same color).

I have the same jacket in a size XL (I'm 6 ft 42 in chest and 185-190 lbs depending on season) because I like to wear it over my shell and all for rest stops; also use as part of sleep system. Love this jacket. Absolutely love it and use it for travel as well.

I had a look at the UL Thermawrap Parka. I like how they've used less shiny and 'quieter' shell material, but the 12.8oz weight is a deal killer.

Oh I just had a look at the jacket and noticed that it's spec'd at 8.8oz. That's wierd because the hood shouldn't add 50% more weight. I wonder which is correct, or perhaps the parka is more heavily insulated?

I really want a hood because I'm quilt user, so unless that 12.8oz weight is wrong, the down version is a lot more appealing. I've never had too much trouble keeping down dry, so I'm not willing to take a 5oz weight penalty for going to synthetic.

E J,

Have you weighed this parka? That would settle the confusion I mentioned above about the jacket being spec'd at 8.8oz and the parka at 12.8oz. I am a size medium and I'd consider this if it's around 9oz, but not at 12.8oz.

I just got a Montbell Thermawrap in XL and on my scale its coming up 14.4oz and 14.7 with the stuff sack. Im tempted to send mine back and go with the down.

EJ, I'm interested in the parka. Shoot me a PM or email at steven.m.inge at dom dot com.

The weights of the jacket and parka are correct (approximately). The jacket uses 50g insulation where the parka adds the hood and uses 80g insulation.

Chris is correct with the insulation weights. I have the syn Parka and love it.

Chris: "The jacket uses 50g insulation where the parka adds the hood and uses 80g insulation."

Thanks, this is great to know. That makes a lot of sense.

Anyone know how the warmth of the Thermawrap parka compares to the U.L. Down parka? Are they similar and the Thermawrap is just 5oz heavier because it's synth?

See this post http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=18950

Thanks that was really helpful.

Wow, the MB U.L. Down inner is much warmer than both the MEC jacket and the MB Thermawraps. Good to know.