Macpac clothing is relatively new to the UK, but if this neatly cut Powershield jacket's anything to go by, it's every bit as good as their bombproof tents and packs
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Macpac Stealth Jacket - First
Look
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Price:
£150.00
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Weight: 454 grammes (men's
medium)
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Features: Alpine
softshell jacket made from Polartec Powershield, 98 per-cent
windproof fabric, stretch ripstop reinforcements at
shoulders, Powerstretch panels under arms, high zipped
collar with roll-away softshell hood, two chest pockets one
of which is large mesh version, adjustable cuffs with
laminated Velcro cuff tabs.
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Cut, fabric, breathability all excellent.
The cut if you're a bi tof a bloater, price relative to
shelled microfleece.
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The Concept The Stealth is Macpac's alpine softshell. Okay,
the whole idea of softshell can be a bit confusing, so let's just say
it's a technical mountain jacket that's supposed to be able to
protect you across a wide range of weather conditions, until it's
really lashing down, at which point you pull on a lightweight
waterproof shell.
The jacket should, however, be able to handle everything from
wind, through light drizzle, to snow, without blinking and, this is
important, be much more breathable than a waterproof jacket. It also
needs to be warm enough to keep you warm in cool weather, but not so
warm that you boil in the bag as soon as you start working hard. A
tough cookie to crack eh? And on top of that, the cut and features
have to work for technical mountain use
Features Polartec's
Powershield
is rapidly becoming one of our fave fabrics. Unlike Gore's
Windstopper, which is 100 per-cent windproof, Powershield is slightly
porous. Technically it's 98 per-cent windproof, but the idea is that
the extra 2 per-cent of permeability allows just enough air to flow
through the fabric to significantly increase breathability over
totally windproof membrane fabrics - did anyone say Windstopper?
Shhhhh....
The version used by Macpac has a soft, polyester velour back and a
tough feeling densely knitted face for anti-abrasion qualities. It's
also stretchy for a close, technical fit. On top of that you get a
zip-away soft shell hood, two chest pockets including a big mesh one
over your left tit, and neat laminated, easy to use wrist cuffs. Oh,
and stretch fleece panels under the armpits for added breathability
in this crucial area...
In Action The first thing we loved about the Stealth is the
neat, close, athletic cut. The only other brand that's prepared to be
as uncompromising with their tailoring is Arc'Teryx and, as with the
premium Canadian label, the result is a close, neat
thermally-efficient fit designed to maximise wicking, insulation and
breathability performance. Top marks.
The fabric's great too. For many mountaineers, the real problem
when moving isn't keeping the heat in, it's dissipating it. The light
fleece backing makes it just right for active use in cool mountain
conditions, but the real key to Powershield is that it does seem to
be significantly more breathable than totally windproof softshells,
while giving up very little in terms of protection from wind and
rain.
When things get really blowy, you can, just about feel a slight
chill through the fabric - 30-40 mph cycling downhill for example -
but it's not a major problem. It's good in damp conditions too,
shedding water until rain gets serious, when you'll finally need a
waterproof. Overall the balance between protection and breathability
is pretty much spot-on. It's no coincidence that this is a fabric
that several industry insiders have raved about to us over the last
year or so.
Of course having a good fabric would be useless if the design let
the side down, but it doesn't. We've already covered the excellent
cut, with sleek, body-hugging fit and slight drop tail. You also get
a soft shell hood that rolls into the snug, high collar and, while
it's not technical in the sense of being peaked and adjustable, is
great for belay stance protection and thin enough to be worn under a
climbing helmet. Nice.
The two chest pockets are well clear of a harness or pack belt and
while the big mesh one on the left is dead handy - it just about
takes an OS Landranger map - aesthetically it's a bit of a acquired
taste, with the result that Macpac is dropping it this autumn/winter
in favour of a more conventional chest pocket. The simple laminated
cuff tabs with Velcro do a simple, dependable sort of gig around your
wrists.
If you're being fussy and have a particularly small butt, then you
might want a hem cord down below, though the stretch fit was fine for
us.
We wore the Stealth for walking, mountain biking and some gentle
mountaineering and we like it a lot. The tapered, close-fitting cut
and features are great - as is mobility - and what you'd expect from a brand with
Macpac's hardcore reputation for good technical kit. The hood is a
nice touch and still pretty unobtrusive when its rolled down and the
jacket overall feels like a nice thing.
Just as importantly, the Powershield fabric offers a good balance
between warmth, protection and breathability, better we think, than
Windtopper, which we find isn't always breathable enough in damp UK
conditions. That's not to say that you can't push things over the
redline, but it happens less often.
The only downside, as far as we can see, is that the close,
tapered cut may mean that it doesn't fit everyone and the same is
true of the absence of a hem cord. And of course, at £150 it's
not cheap, then again, you won't need a heavyweight waterproof shell
jacket to throw over the top of it. A cheaper, streamlined,
lightweight item should do the job.
The only reason this is a first look rather than a full test by
the way, is that we haven't had the chance to use the Stealth in full
winter conditions. As soon as we have, we'll update and upgrade this
to full test level.
Know more or want to?
If you'd like to add your own experiences of this product check
out our user review system and post your opinions to the world. If
you have questions you can mail
us direct, ask
Richard Gear or try a posting to our gear
forum.
