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Arc'Teryx MX Gamma Hoody
Tested
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Price:
£260.00
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Weight: 543 grammes (men's
medium)
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Features:Polartec
Powershield fabric and Scoeller Dynamic fabrics, breathable
and water resistant, full front zip wiht wind-proof inner
flap, gussetted underarms, laminated hem, moulded zipper
garages, single laminated sleeve pocket, two handwarmer
pockets, two chest pockets with laminated zips, storm hood
with laminated peak, soft brushed lined collar.
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Beautifully, designed, and exectuted, superb fit, good
weather protection with decent breathability.
Hideously expensive.
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The Concept Outdoors clothing is many things - functional,
utiliatrian, durable and so on - but it's rarely beautiful. And when
it is, it's almost never simultaneously effective. Except when it's
has that strange Arc'teryx fossil logo stamped across it that is.
Arc'teryx
is, if you like, the Porsche of outdoor clothing. Virtually every
technological clothing advance from water-resistant zips to
lamination started with the Canadian company and it's an open secret
that other manufacturers prowl the Arc'teryx stand at trade shows in
search of next year's hot idea.
The pay-off is that the brand's kit is ruinously expensive. 'If
you have to ask th price' and all that jazz, which means that testing
it is a bit like being tossed the keys to a flash sports car. Nice
but vaguely guilt filled.
Anyway... The ruinously expensive MX Gamma Hoody is a softshell
jacket designed to offer protection and some warmth in harsh mixed
conditions, but still be breathable enough to cope with high exertion
or warmer temperatures. The hood's there to be thrown on for warmth
at belays or extra protection when the weather breaks.
The idea is that you won't need a full, technical waterproof shell
jacket unless it really starts bucketing down as the fabric should
cope with snow, wind and light rain.
Features Let's start with the fabric, which is our favourite
four-way stretch Polartec Powershield. It's a PU-based laminate
that's '98 per-cent windproof' on the basis that the extra air flow
ups breathability significantly while having minimal impact on
weather protection. A light fleece inner gives it some, but not too
much, insulation value as well.
The detailing is pure Arc'teryx, with reversed zips, neat zipper
garages on the main hand pockets, laminated hem cord area, hem cord
tensioner concealed in handwarmer pockets, inegral hood with
adjustment and a laminated stiffened peak, etc, etc, etc. You also
get a comfy collar and a cheeky little welded zipped-pocket on the
upper arm.
Oh, and you get pockets too. A couple of decent-sized chest ones
made from Schoeller Dynamic stretch fabric and well away from a
harness and twin handwarmers as well.
In Action The four-way stretch of the lightweight Powershield
fabric has allowed Arc'teryx to cut the Gamma wonderfully close
without it becoming restrictive. The fit is tapered and tailored, no
gaps, no flapping fabric, it's a bit like a second skin. It just
feels right with a short, neat, North American cut.
We used the Gamma for walking, climbing, scrambling and even
mountain biking and it worked well across the board. Like we said,
mobility if fine thanks to the stretch fabric, but it also offers a
great combination of weather protection and breathability.
For most users, the real problem in active use is dissipating heat
rather than retaining it, even in cold conditions, and the 98
per-cent windproof specification of the Powershield makes it
appreciably more breathable than 100 per-cent windproof equivalents
we've used, notably Windstopper.
Water resistance was good and the only time we really felt the
tiniest chill through the fabric was on a 40 mph mountain bike
descent in near zero conditions. The 'fuzz'y' fleece lining gives
just enough extra warmth to cope with active use in cold conditions,
though for sitting around, most people will need extra warmth.
We liked having the hood too, great for pulling on for extra
warmth when stopped and close fitting. If you were going to be
critical, you could point out that the peak is a little soft, but
it's not really intended for full storm use.
We didn't use the minimalist sleeve pocket for anything.
We're not even going to start to try to justify the price of the MX
Gamma Hoody. It's vaguely bonkers, but it's a beautifully made and
superbly cut jacket that's designed to fit active outdoors
people.
The Powerstretch fabric is our fave softshell, particularly in UK
conditions, and makes for a good combination of protection and
breathability for everything from climbing to biking. The stretch
allows that lovely close fit without compromising mobility which is
good.
The hood works well as flip-over protection and there's enough
pocket space to satisfy most users. RTeally quite lovely and you can
wear it 90 per-cent of the time without resorting to a lightweight
waterproof. Nuff said.
Sex on a coat hanger... that price though, ouch! The Macpac equivalent,
which is maybe 80 per-cent as good, retails for around £100
less, which is quite a lot.
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Performance
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Value
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Pushed for time:
Beautifully made, beautifully functional, protective
and breathable, stretchy and comfy, second skin for
outdoors people in our favourite softshell fabric,
Powershield. Insanely expensive though...
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forum.
John Thompson 7
