Tough decision between UL Down Jackets – hELP!

I wear the Ex Light Anorak for warmth when stationary usually not while hiking so the “breathability” patches are moot to me. Also, the lack of hood pretty much exes the Crux jacket for me.  I find an integrated hood to be worth more than its weight in terms of warmth.

That being said, I like the idea of moving the down from an area that is going to be squished anyway to an area that it can do some good, assuming the down free area is confined to the armpit and does not extend down the side. The Crux has 5 grams more potentially loftier fill (900 vs. 970?) and no hood which should make it somewhat warmer in the torso.

Don’t get an ultralight down jacket. Especially if you’ll have to ‘supplement” it with layers. Get a warm, puffy down jacket and leave behind a layer. The down will be lighter and more compact than any layer.

I do like an anorak though. and a hood.

Naw, get an ultralight down jacket lol,

In some situations I would agree with Jeffrey.  At those times I take my WM Flight jacket.  However, in Summer, even at 10000 feet in the Sierras, I usually find my Ex Light to be sufficiently warm without having to bring any layers I wouldn’t otherwise.

True enough; I wore a down vest or ultralight down jacket for years in the summers in the Sierra. I just started taking my shoulder season full on (but still light!) down jacket all year and never looked back. And what a pillow! Weighs maybe four ounces more than my ultralight.

“no hood and a panel under the armpit with no down at all to help breathability which sounds good to me. ”

So somehow someone decided that my armpits don’t need insulation? When I’m throwing on my down jacket, its usually when I want to either warm up, or slow down the cooling precess. Since my armpits contain some of my larger arteries in my body, I’d think I would want those areas to stay warm first and foremost. This ain’t a “wbp” rain jacket. If I’m that hot & sweaty, why not only use a vest instead?

They may be onto something, but kind of sounds gimmicky to me. Personally, I’d be a little skeptical of that & really see how that feature works out for a few seasons.

Its a down jacket. Keep it simple.

To the extent down anoraks are similar, I really like mine (hadron) and would go that route.

Great and thought provoking feedback. Thanks.

To give some context most of my hiking is done in Australia and New Zealand (so not proper cold) and if I am going to winter hike I have a Rab <span class=”st”>Neutrino</span> and a Crux Plasma for below freezing. Also I’m not actually planing on wearing the jacket whilst hiking, more as part of my pack contents and layering system whilst on hiking trips.

I am leaning towards the Crux but it appears that most of the advice is favoring the Ex Light. I guess it boils down to Hood vs No Hood, Cost and assumed durability…

The attached hood does seem like a compelling reason considering I’d otherwise have to carry a beanie which would be a little heaver…

I just don’t understand anoraks. A zippered jacket offers so much more layer temperature modulation.

Most people don’t wear their down jacket while hiking in the summer, so temperature modulation isn’t a big concern. While standing around at camp, or in the cold morning, I just want warmth.

Anyway, the front zip on an anorak provides a lot of modulation.

I just don’t like hassling with zippers. Especially with cold fingers.

Never had any durability issues with Montbell’s Ext. UL down jacket (version of the jacket without the hood).  Used it for 7 years in 3 season backpacking for hundreds of nights.  Great pillow and nice to use around camp.  I can’t imagine anyone hiking in it for very long for summer use.  I never lasted more than 15 minutes in the morning (even when it was snowing) before I was already pulling it off.

Well Ok. I do in fact use my ex light when hiking in the early am, and when going into late September-mid October I also sometimes use if for late day/night hiking. I seem to go through severe shifts of cold and hot more than most people, so zippers and pit zips are important to me. I also appreciate that the unzipped jacket gives me more area coverage in my bag at night. YMMV.

Arrggghhh, I still can’t decide. I’m now leaning toward the Ex-Light… However I’d really love to talk to someone who has the Crux.

Lawrie

Today EMS has their “EMS Feather Pack Down” jackets for about $100.

They aren’t particularly light at 15.5oz for the hooded but they have a pretty high fill weight (5oz of 800-fill DownTek) vs. the 1.8oz of fill in the Ex-Light or 2.8oz of fill in the Ghost Whisperer.

If you need warm, it seems like it’d be a good option. If you do winter stuff, lighter jackets can often be too light.

double post

While the hood is definitely warmer and preferred by the majority of the community. I own and like a no hoody jacket. Here’s why:

1) my backpack stacks pretty high behind my head. This means it can get annoying to wear large cowbow hats or hoody’s off my head.

2) With connected hoodies I find that when I look left and right, the hoody doesn’t move with my head as well as a hat, so it obscures my vision. For this reason I prefer a neck gaitor/beanie combo.

Mesh armpits- I have and like. I use my jacket for: camp, first 15 minutes of hiking in the morning, and skiing. The mesh really comes in handy for the second two activities. With the mesh armpits, even if I wear this jacket jogging or walking into a warm office, my armpits never get sweaty.

I’d say you want to try them both on and go with whatever fits your body type better. Fit = more warmth than the spec sheet.