Haglofs New Stuff Scoop

Swedish company Haglofs make some of the nicest technical clothing and equipment on the market, we've been impressed with all of the Haglofs kit we've tested in the past, so we were keen to see what's on the menu both for this autumn and early next year.

We weren't disppointed either, they've some really nice new kit and some interesting developments in existing stuff. First, the autumn / winter 2005 kit that'll be in the shops towards the end of this summer.

Last year's Haglofs Gore Windstopper soft shell technical top was called the Shark. It was a nice jacket, but the fabric had a stiff, slightly boardlike feel that improved with use, but was still tended to take the 'soft' out of softshell.

For this winter, there are two major improvements in the Sharkfin, which replaces the old Shark. First, the fabric is much, much softer - a 'softer handle' to fabric jargon freaks - and feels much more like a non-membrane fabric and hangs more nicely too. Secondly, the company has introduced a hooded-version of the jacket.

The shoulders are reinforced with a tougher Trango soft shell fabric, but the rest of the jacket feels really nice and soft. You also get vented chest pockets, a full-length water-resistant main zip, a laminated stretch exterior chest pocket for awkward-shaped choccy bars and the like and a wicking lining with fleece backing.

Even better though is the Sharkfin Hood, which as you might have guessed, has a hood. It's always struck us as a nonsense that a top designed to replace a full-on technical shell should be hoodless - you wouldn't make a hoodless waterproof, so why waste time with a hoodless softshell.

Anyway, the hooded version looks seriously nice. Same fabric but with a multi-adjustable technical hood on top. It also has a peak which had been cunningly designed with a rear gutter to encourage water to run off to the sides rather than down the front of your face. Neat.

Also available will be the matching Sharkfin Pant, again it uses Windstopper Softshell fabric, but there are also touches like tough Keprotech anti-scuff crampon reinforcement patches in the insides of the ankles, detachable braces, articulated knees and lots more.

Also new is Haglofs own-brand range of softshell. Whereas Windstopper is a completely windproof PTFE membrane fabric, Flexane uses something called Flexable, which is a woven fabric, so should be wind and water resistant thanks to a decent DWR, but significantly more breathable. So similar to some of the Schoeller fabrics.

Flexable has a poluamide face, which should be good for wear and abrasion resistance backed with a polyester lining for rapid wicking and comfort. In the fabric flesh, it's lovely and soft and the time-honoured blow test suggests that it's very wind resistant as well as being stretchy for good fit and mobilitty.

Detailing is nice too with neat recessed zips, articulated sleeves, single-handed collar adjustment and so on. We like the look of the Lizard Jacket which has reinforced shoulders for durability. Also, like all Haglofs garment, the Flexable stuff is designed for pack use, with seams tucked out of harm's way in the shoulder area for example.

Again, you won't be surprised to learn that there are two different Flexable pants to match. The Ibex which is a non-technical all-round pant and the more technical Omni Pant below, which has braces and crampon patches along with cord adjustable ankle closures and hip-to-knee side zips with water-resistant zippers.

On the baselayer front, Hagloffs has a cunning plan. Their light and mid-weight baselayers - 010 and 020 to you - go on as before, but the new Actives 030 range uses two different fabric weights to make sure you have insulation where you need it, but not where you don't.

The fabrics are both Polartec Powerdry, but the heavier weight feels close to Powerstretch and should be significantly warmer than the normal weights of the fabric. The long john variants, for example, use the heavier fabric at the crotch, seat, and knee area for added warmth.

We also whisked through the new Haglofs clothing coming our way early next year and there's some nice stuff there for sure. More about it later in the year though :-)

For more Haglofs informations see www.haglofs.se