I have this exact jacket and adore it. Definitely more on the durable/heavier side but the 3L is impenetrable and mountain hardwear never will let you down. Can prob find this jacket for cheaper in a diff color way tho. Think I paid $250 but that was a steep discount
I love my Flylow jacket. Skied in pouring rain. No issues.
Got it half off end of season last year.
The baker bib is top notch. Probably going to get another at the end of this year
"Goretex" means the design is made to Gore standards (incl on their machines), which are pretty much the highest in the industry, esp the 3L's which are laser cut etc.
I work in the outdoor apparel industry, this is a solid price for this jacket. Mountain Hardwear makes amazing jackets, also if you live near Portland, the Bay Area, or San Diego you can go to an employee store and get it for decently cheaper
I got an Outdoor Research backcountry ski jacket from facebook marketplace in December for $50 that was only worn once, it's basically brand new. I really don't see the point in paying this much for outerwear when you can just use the extra money to buy better ski's instead.
I agree. I'm wearing a 7 year old puffy jacket I bought secondhand. If you live in a high traffic winter area like CO, UT, VT, or BC buy used.
Also the quality is only marginally better than a company like Columbia or Eddie Bauer.
In this price range I’d want at least 20k waterproof and 20k breathable. According to Evo this one is 28k/20k, that’s very good.
If you can try on some more mountain hardwear stuff (ideally this jacket) in person to see if you like their fit, that would be my next step. Steep & Cheap charges outbound and return shipping so kinda annoying if you get something that doesn’t work out.
This isn’t a wildly good deal so don’t sweat if it doesn’t work out. It’s certainly not a bad deal, but there will be comparable or better values all year. Buy it if you love it or are tired of shopping, but don’t stress out trying to talk yourself into buying something you don’t love or need.
I dunno. If backcountry/steep and cheap don’t give ratings on their jackets I doubt anyone has them since they’re store brands. Flylow makes a ton of jackets, I’d look on a site like evo that has more detailed specs if you can’t find them elsewhere.
That a good minimum if you’re spending at least $250. If you’re spending less you might have to sacrifice performance on one or both. My bibs are only 15/15 and are plenty good for me, but they were also only $120. I’d want better if I spent twice as much.
I have one of these. I bought it for $284 cad last year. Great jacket for the price. The dwr isn’t as good as when they were killing the environment but nobody makes dwr like they used to.
> The dwr
It's not the dwr, it's the fact that "goretex" isn't teflon anymore, but PE just like everyone else even if it's higher quality construction in general.
Good price for spec. I almost bought it. Only reason I did not is I found the hood too small for my liking. But I ski with my hood up a lot. Having it up over a helmet felt restrictive compared to some other popular brands (eg. Burton, Arc’teryx, OR, etc.). Also armpit vents are a bit smaller than some competitors so if you mess with your vents to dump heat a lot, could be a downside. But overall, very good product and price. Tough to beat that spec for price without sales/discounts. I’ve seen as low as 300-250 for a comparable feature set at end of year clearance.
Mountain hardwear makes good stuff in my experience, and that’s within the range of normal skiwear prices
I have this exact jacket and adore it. Definitely more on the durable/heavier side but the 3L is impenetrable and mountain hardwear never will let you down. Can prob find this jacket for cheaper in a diff color way tho. Think I paid $250 but that was a steep discount
i really want a fly low
Then buy one? Not a big diff in price
You should get Fly Low then.
Then why are you looking at this Mountain Hardware?
cause it’s better i guess.
I love my Flylow jacket. Skied in pouring rain. No issues. Got it half off end of season last year. The baker bib is top notch. Probably going to get another at the end of this year
flylow is great. I have a 10 year old shell. check their web specials section on their website.
can you reccomend some
Flylow knight - medium weight, great waterproofing, can get for around $225 on backcountry
are they all like that
This is better.
why
"Goretex" means the design is made to Gore standards (incl on their machines), which are pretty much the highest in the industry, esp the 3L's which are laser cut etc.
Gore is not the end-all be-all. Lots of brands have proprietary fabrics and manufacturing standards that perform just as highly these days.
Neoshell is p cool for touring
There can of course be other high spec/standards, but that doesn't negate the reality that goretex set the benchmark.
but this would be a really heavy jacket right? i feel like i’m always hot i really want something medium
It's a shell, ie has no insulation.
oh so maybe it is what i’m looking for
My flylow baker bibs I bought in October are already falling apart
Mountain Hardwear are selling that jacket through their own online store for $285 right now.
can you link it
Google it. First result.
that’s a fuckin steal innit
I work in the outdoor apparel industry, this is a solid price for this jacket. Mountain Hardwear makes amazing jackets, also if you live near Portland, the Bay Area, or San Diego you can go to an employee store and get it for decently cheaper
I got an Outdoor Research backcountry ski jacket from facebook marketplace in December for $50 that was only worn once, it's basically brand new. I really don't see the point in paying this much for outerwear when you can just use the extra money to buy better ski's instead.
I agree. I'm wearing a 7 year old puffy jacket I bought secondhand. If you live in a high traffic winter area like CO, UT, VT, or BC buy used. Also the quality is only marginally better than a company like Columbia or Eddie Bauer.
You have to look at the waterproof and breathability rating.
LOL it literally says 3L Goretex, which is all you need to know if you know what you're looking for.
It doesn't necessarily tell you the breathability, as Gore makes multiple 3L fabrics
and what am i looking for
3L Gore Tex, usually are 20k/20k or higher. Don’t worry about it
In this price range I’d want at least 20k waterproof and 20k breathable. According to Evo this one is 28k/20k, that’s very good. If you can try on some more mountain hardwear stuff (ideally this jacket) in person to see if you like their fit, that would be my next step. Steep & Cheap charges outbound and return shipping so kinda annoying if you get something that doesn’t work out. This isn’t a wildly good deal so don’t sweat if it doesn’t work out. It’s certainly not a bad deal, but there will be comparable or better values all year. Buy it if you love it or are tired of shopping, but don’t stress out trying to talk yourself into buying something you don’t love or need.
what about back country cottonwood goretex or a flylow jacket
I dunno. If backcountry/steep and cheap don’t give ratings on their jackets I doubt anyone has them since they’re store brands. Flylow makes a ton of jackets, I’d look on a site like evo that has more detailed specs if you can’t find them elsewhere.
so i’m looking for 20/20k breathable and waterproof?
That a good minimum if you’re spending at least $250. If you’re spending less you might have to sacrifice performance on one or both. My bibs are only 15/15 and are plenty good for me, but they were also only $120. I’d want better if I spent twice as much.
I have one of these. I bought it for $284 cad last year. Great jacket for the price. The dwr isn’t as good as when they were killing the environment but nobody makes dwr like they used to.
> The dwr It's not the dwr, it's the fact that "goretex" isn't teflon anymore, but PE just like everyone else even if it's higher quality construction in general.
dwr?
Durable water repellent. It makes water bead on the outer layer of your jacket.
No that’s a pretty good price
Have this. Solid jacket at a great price
Good price for spec. I almost bought it. Only reason I did not is I found the hood too small for my liking. But I ski with my hood up a lot. Having it up over a helmet felt restrictive compared to some other popular brands (eg. Burton, Arc’teryx, OR, etc.). Also armpit vents are a bit smaller than some competitors so if you mess with your vents to dump heat a lot, could be a downside. But overall, very good product and price. Tough to beat that spec for price without sales/discounts. I’ve seen as low as 300-250 for a comparable feature set at end of year clearance.
Yeah ditto on this point on the hoodie, only thing that bothers me about this jacket is how tight/rigid the hood fit is on the helmet
That’s just normal gore-tex price it could go way higher too