Walking and Climbing

They sell only the black version but there is a photo of a green version

I've not sold my Summit Hoodie, dispite it never finding a role, in my mind its handy to own a waterproof fleece (very breathable) but I've in last winter not found a use, waiting to see if next winter it finds a use.

What gets most used is a single waterproof insulated layer (e.g. Quito), warmer weather waterproof non-insulated layer (e.g. Marmot Mica) and just showerproof windproofs (Fuera, Litespeed). I much prefer to overlayer (Torres) for insulation than mid-layer to add waterproofness to a windproof. However I was reminded of the SH idea recently because I've been using a Marmot Mica all this week in continual rain and its beginning to get some wear holes showing and it won't last as a waterproof if used regularly (I bought it just for emergency use).

Its interesting Paramo is pushing this combo so much, they've been doing it for a few months now, so someone must be getting use from this idea?

about town use, in/out of home use, yes I agree theoretically. A fleece you can wear at home and it happens to shed water was what I was thinking would be the most use. However, its not til you wear such items do you realize really the lack of wicking can lead to sweaty-back, e.g get indoors after active and sit down - wet back. I get more use of say my Trekker Hoodie for about-town which wicks. I've been using all week, comfy to sleep in too.

These P waterproof fleeces, well heavy if you were ever to consider carrying, that's one reason my SH isn't getting used. If I were wanted to pack something, I can do waterproof smaller and insulation smaller.

Just odd, some items which really suit outdoors active situations well and yet these P waterproof fleeces just never seem to fit that, solution looking for a problem which never arises? No photos of people walking around town in P fleeces....

Warning

I had the Summit Hoodie from Nov '10 and wore it very few times, probably less than 10 times. The SH is designed to be worn by itself and becomes fully waterproof when layered over with a windproof, the matching one offered being the Fuera Ascent. The concept is the inner layer resists water coming in but doesn't resist water going out. The outer layer blunts the force of rain so it can't overcome the outward resisting force so becomes waterproof in rain, and obviously very breathable.

The warning is the SH itself. The outside face of the SH is able to be touched, indeed has to be touched to be be put on/off, unlike say the outer face of an Analogy jacket which has the inner layer sewn to the windproof outlayer and so can never be touched, it can only get dirty from the liquid forced from the inside containing some grease. This means the SH becomes contaminated much quicker.

I did a test recently to see how waterproof the SH was by itself. From new it was very waterproof but in just a few wears it had lost all its waterproofness, water leaking very easily from the outside-in.

The fleece soaks up a lot of liquid during cleaning. To reproof it took a whole 330ml of Techwash, it then took 3 caps of TXdirect (2 caps not enough) til the soaking looked the fleece could not take any more TXDirect. So that's roughly a $10 cost to reproof mostly of TechWash.

Its now wateproof again. I did the my DIY bucket test, placing over sink and filling with water, it was holding back a heavy few inches of static water without a drop getting through.  Good . It took 2 days for the fleece to dry, one overnighter dripping over bath then half day in sunshine and still a bit damp in the creases and another day til fully dry.

If anyone is thinking of (now heavily promoted by Paramo) SH+FA combo, reproof the SH often, more often than you'd need to reproof the equivalent Analogy jacket, and factor in the higher Nikwax cost to keep it reproofed in any decisions. As the SH+FA is about the same purchase cost as Analogy but being marketed as more flexible, but if that flexibility comes with it basically becoming not waterproof then becomes dumb.

I'm glad I had done the test at home and not had a cold sodden experience outdoors.

This is the first time I've had Paramo fail, and I think separating pump liner from windproof is a bad idea. Better get a thin less-insulating Analogy like a Quito which is simiular length and venting and a Torres or a windproof overlayer.  The Quito is about the same insulation as a SH + a Pertex, perhaps a tad less and a Quito and say a Torres gilet is warmer, and slightly lighter than the SH+FA combo.

Children, don't do this at home. Severe danger of gear-geek disease which is fatal for your wallet.

Hood outside face of fabric used as a bucket over sink.

nope its just fleece material no other material. There are two layers of the fleece in 3 sections. One strip on the top of the back in a line parallel to nape of neck, presumably where pack straps would have pressure, and a squarish section on shoulder (but not the arm) also where pack would have pressure and the almost entire front via the chest pockets of the fleece inside and outside. These 3 sections so add extra resistance where maximum force applies.  There isn't double-lining where any hipbelt would be, but this is a very short-cut top and I guess the fleece would be above the hipbelt pack line and the hipbelt resting on a high-belt waterproof trews such as the Velez trews.

There is also a stitch of what looks windproof fabric just  on the inside face of a fairly dry stow pocket.

The FA is longer than the SH so if you can figure it out the FA would have its tough fabric immediately under the hipbelt, the SH not under the FA and the FA on the Velez trews which at belt height have the lighter less-tough fabric.

I also add, because the fleecy side is outward, its not actually trapping much heat, when you consider it weighs more than say a Quito for roughly the same amount of zip. You can view that as either good or bad. Good in that its producing waterproofing for the least insulation, bad because you're talking a waterproof system about 1Kg and still short in both torso and sleeve. I've not sold mine as its not a "bad" system just it isn't getting real-world use from me in now 2 winters.