We've already told you about the new Rabdown
clothing for this autumn, but the company's design team has
also been hard at work on the rest of their clothing range for this
season.
Highlights include a new hardcore Scottish winter mountain shell
using a seriously heavy grade eVENT fabric, a Primaloft insulated
smock that should have lightweight freaks drooling over their
dehydrated muffins and an interesting waterproof/softshell hybrid. On
with the show...
Neil McAdie models the new
Rab Suilven for us - click pic for bigger version
The new Generator Smock,
insulation with minimal weight and bulk - click pic for
bigger version
Crunchy and chewy, the new
Fusion jacket - click pic for bigger version
PowerStretch Top in men's
and women's versions - click pic for bigger
version
eVENT Gets Rugged...
We reckon the new Suilven Jacket is going to strike a real
chord with anyone looking for a seriously tough winter mountaineering
jacket that doesn't sacrifice breathability and lightness for
protection.
The Suilven uses eVENT three-ply fabric but in a heavier duty
guise than previous Rab eVENT jackets. The main body fabric, the
blue bit in the photos, is just slightly heavier than, say the Latok,
but the shoulders, arms and hip areas - the bits that take real
punishment - use a seriously tough-feeling version that should shrug
off heavy pack use, mixed thrutching and the odd sandstorm too...
The jacket's cut slightly over-sized to allow layering underneath,
has a redesigned and very capable full mountain, helmet-compatible
hood with wired peak, plus two big chest pockets for easy
stowage.
Despite all this it only weighs a claimed 660 grammes which
would have been pretty much in the lightweight ballpark just five
years ago. Price is £230.
Insulation Gets Light...
If you were lusting after the new ultra-lightweight Neutrino
Lite smock but wanted something more useable in UK conditions
then the Generator Smock could be right up your street.
Weighing in at a measly 340 grammes - claimed - it's
lighter than the down equivalent, but packs a high tech punch. Both
inner and outer fabric is lightweight Pertex Quantum, but the filling
is top of the range 60-gramme Primaloft 1.
It's a siliconised synthetic filling which means it shrugs off
water, but it also feels luxuriously soft and downlike particularly
in combination with the fine Quantum fabric. Stuffs small, doesn't
need to be pampered in wet conditions like down and is easy to wash
too. Oh, and it's windproof and water resistant as well.
Pack and forget until needed, price to you, £80 and
it's in the shops shortly.
It's Like Jazz Fusion...
It's sort of a soft shell and a hard shell in one garment, erm,
crunchy but chewy, if you see what we mean. The new Rab Fusion
Alpine Jacket and Alpine Pants combine waterproof eVENT
fabric in strategic areas with a more breathable, stretchy,
wind-resistant softshell fabric in others.
The jacket, for example, has eVENT shoulders, sleeves and hood
plus seat but a softshell torso for a softer, stretchier feel. It's
not intended as a substitute for a waterproof shell, more aimed at
ski mountaineers and ice climbers, for example, who may have to cope
with drips and drops but want a softshell feel.
It's more of an alpine than a UK garment, but we reckon it might
also appeal to a few people who don't quite trust the full-on
softshell concept in Britain. The jacket weighs a claimed 520
grammes and will retail for £150. It looks good too,
not that we're shallow or owt.
We have high hopes for the Fusion Alpine Pants. Our
experience is that softshell fabrics work really well for UK winter
legwear allowing you to manage without bulky overtrousers but still
keep a decent level of protection.
The Fusions take that to another level with waterproof areas at
the knees and seat along with reinforced crampon patches and welcome
zipped thigh vents for ventilation when things get warm. At 550
grammes they're actually lighter than the jacket and retail for
£120. Watch out for an OM test this winter.
Powerstretch With A Twist...
Powerstretch eh? Big deal I hear you say. Well, that's what Rab
thought as well, so the new Powerstretch Top in both men's and
women's versions has moved things on a stage.
The tops actually use three different fabrics. The black bits in
the pic are standard, proven Powerstretch fabric, but it's augmented
with Polartec PowerStretch Grid fabric which uses a grid pattern for
added breathability and lower bulk in the torso area. Finally the
shoulders have small panels of WindPro Stretch with Hardface
Technology to improve durability when used with a pack.
Neat idea and both the men's and women's versions retail for
£70 though the women's top uses standard PowerStretch in
the back section to up the insulation value. Apparently gurlz like
warmth. Weights are 375 grammes and 360 grammes for the
men's and women's versions respectively and that includes thumb
slits...
More Information
More details of the Rab autumn/winter '06 range at www.rab.uk.com
All the above in the shops shortly.
Rab Neutrino Endurance Women's Jacket Reviewed As snow reaches even the sub-tropical counties of southern England, it's time to start thinking insulation, and where better to start than with a Rab down jacket?
Christmas Cracker Eleven - Down Booties If the outdoors person in your life is a cold-footed reptile creature from the planet icicle then Rab has the answer with their down-filled Expedition Boots. Think slippers on steroids :-)
Rab Suilven Jacket - First Look We check out Rab's new for this winter, bombproof mountaineering jacket. Just the job for the frozen apocalypse that is full-on Scottish winter mountaineering we reckon.
Rab Generator Smock Tested Light, warm, windproof and small-packing with it, Rab's new Generator Smock uses Primaloft and Quantum to up the warmth and minimise weight and bulk.
New Kit Round-Up We've had a load of new kit news recently and now you can catch up with everything from the super light to super bright in one place...
Rab Women's Quantum 600 Sleeping Bag Tested The women's-specific member of Rab's super-lightweight down sleeping bag family went to the Alps with us last month and here's how it stood up to the test ...
Rab's New Autumn Down Range Revealed Fresh from sunny Alfreton, we take a sneak peek at the new insulated Rab clothing that's appearing in a shop near you right about now. Blimey, is it winter already...
Rab's New eVENT Gloves Launched In the shops right about now is Rab's new range of gloves including two eVENT-lined heavyweights plus three Polartec versions. Plus Rab announces the UK's first eVENT gaiter.
Rab Baltoro Lite Tested We take a look at Rab's 400-gramme odd summer weight softshell jacket with an interesting mix of Polartec fabrics promising a good combination of protection and breathability.
Rab Vapour-Rise Trail Smock Tested We take a look at Rab's shelled microfleece with a difference - the outer is wind-resistant Pertex Equilibrium giving much better breathability than similar fully windproof equivalents.
Rab's New Sleeping Bags Preview Both the Rab Quantum lightweight bags and the full-on mountaineering Summit series have had a serious makeover for this spring with some interesting new features, here's what's happening...
New From Rab Scoop! We've had a quick sneak preview of the kit from Rab that's appearing in the shops right now including a very light eVENT jacket, a neat new PowerShield top and at last, VR for women :-)
Rab Gets Bivvies, outdoordesigns Gets eVENT It's all change for Rab and sister company outdoordesigns as eVENT replaces Gore-Tex across the board and bivvy bags and tents are now produced under the Rab label.
Rab Belay Jacket Tested We check out Rab's rather neat-looking Primaloft-filled insulated jacket and ask whether it's functionally as effective as it is aesthetically.
Michel Can yaska
