Next in our round-up of neat stuff for spring 2011 from the recent OutDoor show in Germany is Montane, the specialist lightweight, Nortumberland-based outfit and they have some interesting stuff coming your way early next year.
Look Ma, No Zips...
Montane has always been known for minimalism, but the new Spektr Smock takes things a stage further with the elimination of zips and adjusters. The rationale is that zips don't pack down well, so contribute to bulk. As an alternative, Montane has come up with an intriguing dry bag-type closure system called 'Tornado' which relies on rolling over fabric then fastening with loops and hooks.
It's a bit of a departure from the familiar zip fastener, but we're looking forward to trying it. The jacket itself is made from a lightweight, three-layer eVent waterproof fabric and is a slim-fitting, neat sort of thing. Other innnovations include the absence of a peak on the hood – instead it's compatible with one of Montane's waterproof caps, which in turn can be tabbed into the inside of the hood.
Finally the waist is pre-elasticated, so no adjusters there, the same's true of cuff and hem. The damage to the scales is just a smidgeon over 200 grammes, so one of the lightest eVent shells out there. Price? We're not sure yet.
A 65g Windproof Jacket
Carrying on the long tradition of Montane minimalism is the new Slipstream GL Jacket, which Montane says is the world's lightest windproof jacket. It uses the new Pertex Quantum GL fabric – GL stands from Gossamer Light – and has elasticated hem and cuff, drop tail, slim fit, articulated arms and a full-length zip with anti-snag baffle. Very light, very small and it will retail for £80 once available early in 2011.
Mohawk Jacket
Last but not least, there's a new shell jacket in the Montane range, the Mohawk Jacket. It's a lightweight alpine shell made from three-layer eVent and has a RIRI AQUAZIP – a mechanically, highly water-resistant zip that we first saw on Crux shell jackets and is notw being used more widely. It has a back-up storm flap as well.
The jacket is bi-zoned with the lightweight eVent main fabric supplemented with stretchy Entrant reinforcements, which also feature on the stretch, helmet-compatible hood with reinforced wired peak and volume adjuster. Two large Napoleon pockets and an internal zipped one give storage options. Looks good and will sell for £280. Weight is around 405g.
Super-Fly Returns
Finally the iconic Super-Fly Jacket returns after a year in the wilderness and some serious tweaks. Gone are the snot-look shoulder reinforcements, instead the jacket is 3-layer eVent throughout with twin pockets, a helmet hood with wired peak and an additional map-sized chest pocket.
Weight is just below 400 grammes and it looks like it should make a good, lightweight, all-round mountain shell jacket, just like the original Super-Fly in fact.
All the above will be in the shops early in 2011. For the latest Montane range and more see www.montane.co.uk.
