windproof fleece jacket/pants effectiveness

Well…

what wil you be needing it for?
the fleece will be an insulation layer. If all you want is the wind resistance,I would go for a windshirt. I mean they only weigh 3 or so oz.

one problem with just a windshirt is that even though it prevents convective heat loss form the wind. the wind will blow the nylon against your skin causing conductive heat loss. making it basically useless. So what I do if there are high winds is just layer a long sleeve base layer under my Golite windshell, and it protects me from the wind.

The only experience I have with windproof fleece is in my outdoor research peruvian hat. I works great. but the wind shirt will be more versatile. if you need more warmth, just layer an insulation jacket underneath.

I would stay away from windproof fleece. Most are a fleece with a gore-tex or PU membrane for windblocking. You will find most are no more breathable than modestly breatable hardshells. My experience is that they aren’t warm enough in cold when you are inactive, and too warm if you are working hard.

A good softshell will be *much* more breathable, slight air permable, and a less warm than windproof fleece. For high aerobic activity, it’s really hard to beat the performance of something like Schoeller Dryskin. If you keep your eyes open at sierra trading post, you will often find Cloudveil, Marmot, or Mammut softshells pop-up from time to time at reasonable (sub $100) prices.

A good windshirt made out of pertex quantum, microlight, or the equiv (e.g. one that doesn’t have a PU coating) will be more breathable than any currently made WPB jacket (including eVENT). At least that has been my experience as has been the results from every lab test I have seen.

You might find an early posting by Colin to this forum (info from patagonia about their testing methodology) to be interesting. I stashed away a copy with the graphics at:

http://www.verber.com/mark/outdoors/stash/patagonia-testing.html

A good unlined windshirt is really hard to beat. Put it over a base layer and you have a surprisingly large effective comfort range.

–Mark

I live in the Pacific NW where I have ruled out everything else for extended trips except well ventilated hardshells because it can rain here for weeks.
I have settled on woolbase + fleece mid + ventilated hard shell here in the NW. If anyone has alot of experience hiking in the rain in the NW, I am open to new ideas.
The trip I am currently planning however, is the sierra high route. So less rain, more wind and sun and showers.

So back to softshell vs. windjacket. I guess I’m leaning towards a windshirt and I assuming one made of pertex quantum since that has been well received at this site.

> What does windproof mean exactly?

I take it to mean that it doesn’t let wind convect heat away from your body. When you get hit by a 50mph gust of wind you might have to brace yourself, but you won’t feel any colder. Although, as mentioned in another post, you might lose heat through conduction to the fabric if you don’t have any insulation between a windshirt and your skin.

> How does windproof fleece compare to softshells and pertex?

My windproof fleeces (various; 25-27 oz) don’t let any wind in or much moisture out, my Arc’teryx softshell (Schoeller Dryskin; 20.7 oz) is just barely wind permeable and somewhat breathable, and my Montane Aero windshirt (Pertex Quantum; 3.2 oz) is completely windproof and very breathable.

>…the breathability of wind shirts can be matched with a well ventilated hardshell.

While the breathability of a windshirt might be matched by completely unzipping and venting a hardshell, your vented hardshell will no longer be windproof.

>I am looking for the best compromise between wind resistance and breathability.

A lightweight windshirt would then seem to be the best compromise in that it is both completely windproof and more breathable than any other sort of shell.

I was out the week before last in +35F/calm to +15F/50mph blizzard wearing a wicking tee, 100-wt fleece shirt and the Montane Aero windshirt. I was working hard (ski-backpacking up to a local peak) and had no moisture buildup at either end of the climate range, and I noticed no change in skin temperature when getting hit by gusts of driven snow. I’ve been out in similar conditions at various other times this winter wearing windproof fleece or softshell and always had moisture/frost buildup inside the shell, so the windshirt had noticeably better breathability.

Does anyone here know how breathable the new hardface jackets are when compared to their non-hardface peers?

Jason writes:

>> Does anyone here know how breathable the new hardface jackets are when compared to their non-hardface peers?

I like Polartec Windpro Hardface a lot. I’ve got mitts and gloves (REI), a balaclava (Outdoor Research), and a hooded jacket (Cabelas) made of the stuff. (Note that the jacket is way too heavy for backpacking, but it’s great around town in the 25-45 degree range.)

I’d rate Hardface’s air permeability, excellent snow-shedding ability, and water resistance roughly similar to Dryskin. Though, due to its fleece interior, it is considerably warmer and is useful in different applications than Dryskin.

I’d rate its air permeability somewhat lower than standard Polartec Windpro. But, you’ll still feel the wind cut through it above 20mph or so.

Finally, unlike its cousin Powerstretch, it doesn’t wick up external moisture like crazy. Also, its lack of Lycra makes it relatively quick drying.

Cheers,

-Mike