The good: it's a very, very warm jacket. It seems to keep you at a very comfortable temperature in a wide variety of conditions. It's also very windproof but feels quite breathable. The outside isn't a horrible shiny nylon eyesore either, it's tastefully matte-ish finished.
The OK: the fit is pretty good. This jacket is one of the few 'outdoor' jackets that doesn't have a ridiculous sleeve length, they've got it about right. The hem IS slightly scooped at the back and goes two or three inches lower than the front. You can see this in the picture above. The length is a decent waist length in M for someone about 6ft. It doesn't cover any of your legs, but you should be using them anyway!
The handwarmer pockets extend about half way up your chest, and all of this area is double thickness jacket, i.e. in front of and behind the pockets. Which means that you keep your hands very warm but it bulges out at the belly a lot. DON'T wear this jacket if you've got a pot belly! 
The bad: The collar isn't a stand-up collar, it gets pushed down by your neck too easily. It should've been lined on the outside by the fabric in the windflap, for example. The pits are 'athletic', by which I mean they're a bit too tight. It's a bit of a faff to get on/off because of this but feels comfortable once it's on, then it's not particularly noticeable.
In summary, it's an excellent thermal jacket that's highly windproof and comfortable. My only major gripe is the collar being only the same material as the body so it just gets compacted when moving your head around, leaving you with a cold neck. I'd take some extra weight for a warm neck any day.
Posted: 05/02/2010 at 00:16
