With lots of nice bubbles on show at eVENT demos it looks highly breathable; BUT two Qs: 1. if its that breathable is it windproof and 2. those who`ve actually used the stuff how does it compare to say Paclite? Thinking of buying a Rab Alpine Latok in eVENT (Rab loyalty dies hard, and apparently super new fabric)

its completely windproof.
its heavier than paclite, but tougher. more similar to xcr than paclite really.
its a good jacket, and i would reccomend. only slight problem with it is the pockets are on the small side for maps.

one slight warning about event, however, and that is that it noticeably colder than goretex.

Coldness doesn`t worry me too much, I have a Paramo Cuzco jacket (new version) and can`t really wear it in temps of >12C when MTBing as I cook even with a light base top. In winter I will use the excellent, but ten years old and still working well, RAb Guide Downpour..hence my Rab loyalty.
I`d hope to use an Alpine Latok for the out of winmter months over, eg a Rab Vapour Trail Smock (another brilliant Rab piece of kit)

Ohh don't get me started on eVent. I think it's wonderful. I have a Rab Latok jacket and it's the mutt's nuts, I love it. Much toucher than paclite, extremely breathable, totally windproof too.
I wanted the standard Latok because of the extra pockets (mmmm, thermal fleece lined for warm hands). The Alpine is cut shorter to make it easier with a harness, but I have no problem just tightening the waist cord of mine (which really isn't much longer than the Alpine, and have had no harness problems.
I find the breathability so good that I would rather wear the shell and a baselayer in cold windy conditions, than base plus fleece / windproof microfleece. I'm sure I've said loads of similar things about it in the past, just search the threads :)

I have a Montane Superfly.Excellent fabric and style IMHO.Used for MTB,running and wet hill days.I have Paclite and XCR garments, which are now redundant....

Yes I agree on the Latok pockets, saw it at the Outdoors show on the eVENT stand and it was lovely....biggest sad thing being no-one was there selling them! lots of cheap paclite etc but no good Rab stuff

James, yes, one stand was selling the Latoks for £200 as opposed to rrp £240. I think it was Outside. I got mine for £200 as well back in November by using various discount offers.

Ditto the Superfly.

got my Rab corrie for xmas, cheers wifey! similar to the alpine latok but longer cut and larger pockets meant it was the one for me. hood is excellent if, like me, your not using a helmet thing! I was a bit put off by its black finish (get too hot in the sunny south when its shower season) but hasn't proved a problem yet (always cloudy or misty)

eVent:

Its completely wind/waterproof and is much lighter than xcr but heavier than paclite. However it its more breatherble than both of those and alot more durable than paclite.

I have a pair of Lowe alpine event trousers which worked so well. Shame they got shreaded by crampons this winter.

Time to sort out your crampon technique Ben ;-)

I'd say that eVENT is the most breathable conventional waterproof breathable fabric out there. One caveat is that some people find that they cool down faster in eVENT than in a comparable Gore-Tex fabric. Paclite is also good, but works in a different way, viz, the internal grey scrim forms a sort of buffering layer which means it's effective for varied effort activities, but can be overwhelmed by constant hard effort, eg when running.

The weight of eVENT depends on the face and scrim fabrics, Montane, for example, have a very lightweight eVENT fabric in one of their jackets this spring.

I think Paclite and EVent are designed for two different purposes, My paclite is light and flimsy and I love it for its light weight and small pac size in summer when I dont need the warmth,I would never wear it for scrambling, EVent I havent got but Its more of a tough all round fabric for general/winter use which I would not recomend paclite for.

Most eVENT jackets are more for tough all round use but that's because the eVENT membrane has been laminated to durable fabrics. It can be laminated to lighter less durable fabrics to make lighter garments. The Montane Air jacket is made from lightweight eVENT and weighs 354 grams in the Large size.

Paclite can be laminated to different face fabrics too, though the inner remains the same.Berghaus' Paclite Pro has heavy duty panels at wear points.

I didnt shread them. A mate stepped backwards off the ice and crampon went straight through the knee! only hole i put in them was on the other knee when drytooling.

Event is an interesting fabric but the concern about it is that it is like the very early Goretex that was more breathable but leaked like a sieve !!

I've just reproofed mine after having it for a year. Went out last weekend in it, driving rain in the valley, sleet and snow higher up. No leakage at all :)
Before re-proofing, I wasn't sure if some of the proofing was failing on the back of hte neck, so reproofed to be sure. Still highly recommend it.

I vaguely remember a forum item about after washing an event jacket that it then leaked,; I`ve just come back from the frozen wastes of Kielder where a few days ago I was SOAKED (before the snow when it was drizzle and sleet) on my arms whilst MTBing on the Border Ridge in my Superfly jacket that had been washed, as instructions stated, in Techwash. Prior to this the jacket had been superb.

Can anyone direct me to the forum thread whilst I gather info for discussion with Montane and Eventfabrics?

thanks and Happy New Year!

James

Thanks! that is the one; isn`t the washing procedure just so complicated??? I`ve contacted Montane

Cara-Lyn, Event is a membrane so by "re-proofing" I assume you are referring to restoring the outer fabric's water repellant properties? This stops the water wetting out the outer fabric which inhibits breathability but it has no affect on the ability of the membrane to keep water out.