Ultralight Three-Season Down Jackets State of the Market Report 2010 Part 2

Seriously lightweight down jackets – those most suitable for ultralight backpacking and other lightweight pursuits. Our evaluation includes comparative specifications, calculated parameters, warmth testing, ratings, and identifying the standouts for different situations, needs, and preferences.

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This State-of-the-Market report on ultralight three-season down jackets is divided into three parts:

Part 1 presents an overview and state-of-the-art analysis of these versatile jackets.
Part 2 (this article) focuses on seriously lightweight jackets – those that provide the most warmth for their weight and are best suited for ultralight backpacking and other pursuits where minimal weight and a high warmth-to-weight ratio are top priorities.
Part 3 focuses on multi-purpose three-season down jackets - those that balance light weight, warmth, and features to make them as versatile as possible so they appeal to a wider range of people and activities.

This State-of-the-Market Report on ultralight down jackets is the last of three coordinated articles reviewing the insulated components of an ultralight sleeping system, consisting of an ultralight three-season down mummy bag, down pants, and a three-season down jacket.

The complete set of articles in this series is:

Ultralight Three-Season Down Mummy-Style Sleeping Bags: State of the Market Report 2010
Ultralight Down Pants: Light, Warm, and Versatile
Ultralight Three-Season Down Jackets State of the Market Report 2010 – Part 1: Overview and State-of-the-Art Analysis
Ultralight Three-Season Down Jackets State of the Market Report 2010 – Part 2: Seriously Lightweight Down Jackets (this article)
Ultralight Three-Season Down Jackets State of the Market Report 2010 – Part 3: Multi-Purpose Three-Season Down Jackets

ARTICLE OUTLINE

Overview
What's a Seriously Lightweight Down Jacket?
Selection Criteria
The Jackets
Comparative Specifications - Manufacturer Data
Comparative Specifications - Measured and Calculated Data
Specifications Discussion
Jacket Warmth
Evaluation Criteria
Ratings for Seriously Lightweight Down Jackets
Standouts Based on Functional Design
Standouts Based on Individual Situations and Needs
Backpacking Light Ratings
Overview of Individual Jackets
Future Prognosis
Preview of Part 3: Multi-Purpose Three-Season Down Jackets
Acknowledgements

# WORDS: 8400
# PHOTOS: 24

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Viewing 11 posts - 1 through 11 (of 11 total)

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Jun 22, 2010 at 1:55 pm #1260431

Addie Bedford
BPL Member

@addiebedford
Locale: Montana

Companion forum thread to:

Ultralight Three-Season Down Jackets State of the Market Report 2010 Part 2

Jun 24, 2010 at 7:39 pm #1623165

Tony Fleming
BPL Member

@tonyfleming
Locale: Midwest

I do not see the Patagonia Down Sweater in the "state of the market report". Did it not meet the fill weight:jacket weight ratio of 35 or more, OR a loft:weight ratio of 0.1 or higher?

Great report!

Thanks,

Tony

Jun 26, 2010 at 8:35 am #1623564

James Schipper
BPL Member

@monospot

As Bradley stated heat loss through the head is variable depending on temperature and a persons state of hypothermia/compensatory mechanisms. Here's a link to the rest of the discussion at Wilderness Medicine.

http://wildernessmedicinenewsletter.wordpress.com/2007/02/14/heat-loss-through-the-head-and-hypothermia/

A hypothermic person and loss about 50% of their heat through their head. Also in cold conditions if you dress appropriately and neglect to cover you head you will lose a high percentage of heat through your head relative to the rest of you body (which is covered). This is were the 80% statistic from old military experiment came from.

Since most people cover their head in some way, subtracting the weight of the hood from hooded garments or adding the weight of the alternative to the other garments would probably be the easist method of comparison.

Jun 26, 2010 at 10:13 pm #1623728

nanook ofthenorth
BPL Member

@nanookofthenorth

Is the MEC Down Sweater going to be in the next report?
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442623467&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302699049&bmUID=1277615628683
I was just looking at it in stores and @170CDN and supper puffy, it looks like it hits a nice price/weight/warmth point

Jun 30, 2010 at 4:25 am #1624801

Fred eric
BPL Member

@fre49
Locale: France, vallée de la Loire

I own an epic size M Skaha + with 1oz overfill, and my wife an S with 2 oz overfill.

Even if the down is a bit compressed when doing this i found that wearing it under my MP+ vest ( MP+ breathability is the same as event , its less waterproof but also lighter ) was warmer than without.
And my wife had the same conclusion under a rab virga vest ( event ).

So even with already a semi heavy shell ( epic ) and with some down compression, adding a windprotection helped.
As for breathability no idea, even at -10°C i wouldnt be able to hike or move much in a skaha + with 1 oz overfill it would be soon too hot. We only use them when we are static.

Aug 8, 2010 at 2:13 am #1635772

Stephen M
BPL Member

@stephen-m
Locale: Way up North

Hi folks,

From reading on this report the Montbell EX Light loft measurement is 2.0" for double layer but Wills review below from 2008 gives it as only 1.5" for double, anyone have one they could measure.

Cheers,
Stephen

http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews/Clothing/Jackets/MontBell%20EX%20Lite%20Down%20Jacket/Test%20Report%20by%20Will%20Rietveld/

Aug 8, 2010 at 2:12 pm #1635841

Nick Truax
BPL Member

@nicktruax
Locale: SW Montana

My men's med is looking to be right about 1.5" double layer loft.

Aug 9, 2010 at 10:48 am #1636010

Stephen M
BPL Member

@stephen-m
Locale: Way up North

Hi Nicholas,
Thanks for the measuring the jacket.
Cheers,
Stephen

Sep 23, 2010 at 10:03 pm #1648394

Jerry Adams
BPL Member

@retiredjerry
Locale: Oregon and Washington

Sorry I didn't read this earlier

When I plotted warmth vs loft, there was some correlation

It seems inutuitive that loft would be the main determination of warmth and the data seems to verify this

Oct 7, 2010 at 3:42 pm #1652428

David Stapleton
BPL Member

@earmuffs
Locale: DC/VA/MD

Will's reviews are what initially drew me to BPL and what convinced me to purchase a lifetime membership. His, and the other informative articles on this site are absolutely the best source of lightweight backpacking information on the web. Thank you!

Now to figure out how I'm going to afford a new down jacket… blast!

-Dave

Dec 7, 2010 at 2:27 pm #1671889

Mark Primack
BPL Member

@bufa
Locale: Cape Cod and Northern Newfoundland

The Feathered Friends jacket tested is with the heavier weight Epic fabric, putting this great jacket at an unfair disadvantage in the ratings, particularly in the Light weight ranks as well as in both ratios and possibly in the lightweight features ranks. Since all of the other jackets were compared using light fabrics, why not the FF?
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