Ibex Aire/wool insulation

ya .. who has one of these ?
i just dropped a note to Ibex query the weight of the Hoody and Aire Sweater.
are these the Next Great Thing ?

Inquiring minds .. etc.

cheers,
v.

ok, i bought one. actually i bought another one last year and the fit was so hideous that i tossed it back at them.
how bad ? it was " there is no excuse for this … " bad.

so just yesterday the new version arrived. i was really hoping this would be the sweetest thing i have ever seen. i wanted it to be great. i dreamed that ibex would fix the multiple problems of the last version. i was excited and prepared to be floored by Just How Great ibex had improved it.
but all that … was the ravings of a delusioned fool.

at $350 marked down 20% to about $280, there is some logic to expect that a garment should fit. especially one hyped to outdoor folks and active people. perhaps the kind that on occasion lift maybe an arm up over their head.
is the severe "arm lifting the hem " problem as bad as before ? no, it is not. the situation is much less bad now.
ibex calls this cut "semi fitted" . such is prophetic accuracy, as it semi fits.

in an XL, which is what it takes in an ibex garment to get sleeves log enough, there is enough extra space in the chest that i could put a six pack in there and still zip it up.
just HOW fat a people are we marketing to here ???
i mean, body wise … i'm a fairly prosperous fellow , and it's still ridiculous in girth.

then there is the hood. oh, where to start…
modeled after those trendy looking and quasi dysfunctional tunnel hood designs we see on a lot of parkas these days, it sticks straight out over the forehead and leaves large areas of the head uninsulated and open to the breeze. it is quite a cavernous thing this ibex hood. being generously overample in all dimensions except the one needed to come down far enough in front, where it a bit shy.
they rigged an elaborate lattice of elastic into the front and sides of the hood in an effort to render it managable. but the adjusting elastic starts in the back, runs up both sides, and pulls backwards on a loop of elastic that encircles the face.
it is an interesting idea, but as deployed it is farcical.
by the time the elastic is pulled tight enough to do any good reeling in the hood front's excessive circumference, it is so tightly tensioned against the ears that it makes itself constantly annoying.
additionally, the large and annoying rear toggle makes itself known when trying to sleep.
if one is so interested in how it works, they can gently work the elastic junctions out the rear of the hood, to discover that the weak and pithy little thing they used to hold the junction together is already fraying and about to fail.

i have a hooded indie from ibex. i wear it a lot for what it is, and it works fine. but it is not a very good fitting, it is just a merino box with a hood and long enough sleeves, so that lets it pay it's way.
i wonder if ibex is all along quite happy with the way their stuff fits, and simply going about their own way making clothes for posers.
because it seems to me that they have lost their way, and in the realm of making useful garments, floundering badly.

(later on a bit)
i wore the Ibex AIre Wool garment for several hours and i noticed is was there every moment.
a bit ago i changed to an Eddie Bauer Ascent puffy, and in about 30 seconds noticed that "i was warm", but nothing else.
the sleeves don't pull the hem, there is not tightness across the back, the armpits area is not cramped or anything else going on.
and the zipper isn't getting stuck now and then.

that Ibex fits like it was bought from Sears.

v.

I was, in my life before retirement an award winning clothing designer and every time I pick one of these products up in the stores I am amazed these people even have jobs. Especially the outer layers. Yep it's kind of sad, every product from Ibex I have bought has been a major fail for me also. Only took me two pairs of the base layer bottoms to turn me away. I thought the first time I might have gotten a fluke, but after the second time I'll never buy from them again. The lightweight wool base layer bottoms from Ibex always get these mysterious holes after only a few days….and I take care of all of my wool and wash in cashmere soap and dry flat, so it's not like I abuse the stuff. Ibex is just not getting it. You might be right, it's fashion for posers or manniquins cause it certainly does not work on people who move. For the money invested Smartwool is much better and lasts and lasts. All of my Smartwool is years in the running, why waste your money on anything else?

I've noticed holes in many Smartwool items, especially socks. I have yet to wear through any ibex pieces- my oldest is a 1.5 year old pair of Ibex bottoms.

I always tout the opposite advice- go with Ibex and avoid Smartwool. I guess everyone's definition of fit is different.

Icebreaker is also a lot better than smartwool imo.

I must be very unlucky: on my JMT hike this summer, I used products from Icebreaker (tee shirt), Smartwool (undies), and Ibex (socks).

I had problems with two out of three, and sent them back under warranty. The Smartwool developed tiny holes within 2 days, and so did the Icebreaker… BUT I had 3 identical pairs of Smartwool undies, and 2/3 wore very well.

So now I think it's a crapshoot, and some merino fabrics seem to have weaker areas in the weave. If a merino garment lasts through the first few days of wear, it'll probably be fine.

Valerie, many people find that 150 weight merino wears out quickly while 200 weight lasts quite a bit longer.
It sucks because 200 weight is really too much for warm 3 season weather.

I agree that Icebreaker is probably better than Smartwool as smartwool's midweight tops are much thinner than Icrebreaker's 260 and 320 tops. And my SW's have several wear holes. My standard winter load (midlayer) is Icebreaker zip neck tops with the neato thumbholes. (Though the thumbholes wear out fast which needs an engineering rethink). See pic—