Synthetic Insulation 60g to 100g

Sweaters and LWT Belay Jackets

The typical question:

"I will climb Rainer this summer...next  Orizaba, Kili, then Aconcagua!  What do I need for clothes?" Here are some thoughts on a well proven "systems approach" that you may have not had.   It is a multilayer and multi use cold weather system  based at least two garments.  One garment with  60g insulation and the  another with 100g insulation.   The bench mark Patagonia DAS belay  jacket is 170g insulation by comparison. For really cold temps I have used up to 4 lighter layers or 280g of insulation, plus the resulting eight layers of nylon shell material that comes with it. 3 layers @ 60g and one at 100g. Surprised actually, at just how easy/well the system works.  And how easily regulated for mid winter technical climbing at altitude, a cold bivy, a quick ascent of Rainier in summer or Fall/Spring alpine climbing.   One garment at a time makes the buy in easier and the mutilayers should give you  a lot of use/durability over the long haul. I have a good many choices in the closet and find myself actually using variations of this system almost full time these days. Simply because of what is available for a "system".  It is the lightest, breathes the best and is the easiest to pack cold weather system I have used.   Generally 2 layers of 60g. When it is really cold I'll add the 100g as a third layer.  May be even a fourth for an open bivy. Sure a single thick down jacket will be the warmest and breath very well.  Might even be the lightest.  But they are fragile.  Get down wet from sweat and you loose much of the insulation.  Add a water proof  shell and you limit the breathability.  One big warm layer and you don't have a lot of options for temperature control.  There is defiantly a place for down garments and even multiple layers of down I think.  But for technical climbing I suspect multiple layers of synthetics offer  a better choice for most of us. No where was Alaska mentioned in the opening quote. Nor was it addressed by me originally. I've done multiple trips to the Alaska range. For time spent (45+ weeks)  almost a full year on the glaciers there. Half of those trips included the  summit on Denali. All but one were originally to more technical objectives first, just not very successful. Trivial record compared to many climbing there now.   I've taken down jackets to Alaska twice.  A synthetic bag once. Below, you are looking at an open bivy on Mt Deborah, Alaska using  both, 4000' off the deck.. We did three open bivies that trip. Not the first or the last with that or other combos. But not once did I  "sleep  like a baby". But not taken a down jacket or a synthetic bag to Alaska since '80. Dated technology in many ways now for what I was trying to do. None of my partners or myself have had a cold injury...on any mountain while using synthetics. Would I take Down again now? Sure, depending on the objective.. There are some pretty amazing synthetic stand alone jackets available these days, the Patagonia DAS, The Arcteryx Duelly or Fission SL, The MEC Tango among many. "Stand alone" meaning the biggest and most insulation in a "belay jacket". They are sized to go over all your clothing. Some nice down choices in that category as well, Eddie Bauer XV, the RAB Nuetrino, Mtn Hardware Nilas and the Naronna Lyngen. Specific combos of lighter weight insulation offer even more choices. Back to the question? "At some point I'd love to get up Orizaba, Kili, Aconcagua, and wondering if jackets for something like Aconcagua is going to be overkill for a Rainier jacket?" Polish route on Colfax n Feb '10. Mid weight down jackets like the Narrona Lyngen pictured above can be a good choice for climbs like Aconcagua and warmer environments. The experience of using a 60g and 100g weight garment  seems imo to be a better *combo* for the mountains listed, having summited on 3 of the 4. The coldest I have ever been in the mountains was in the Alps in the winter of  2010/11.    Great technical climbing just a 20 minute tram ride above Chamonix and only minutes from a latte and a nice salad. May be I should have actually zipped up that last 100g layer. In Alaska I probably would. Well may be I would. In the picture above, my base layer is a R1 Hoody.  From the R1 out I am using a  Atom Lt @ 60g, A Patagonia Nano Pull Pullover another 60g layer (which are a part of my "action suit") and finally a Atom SV @ 100g.  For a total of 220g.  I had stared the climb in a single 60g layer and as the day got colder I added layers. Synthetic garments layer well. They will dry from body heat alone from the inside out.    I have not found adding down layers to a pile garment of any sort as effective transporting moisture.   Where a layer of Priamloft 1 does very effectively. One of the reasons the Patagonia DAS @ 170g is likely the most widely used synthetic belay jacket made.  Helps of course that Patagonia was the first to market a belay jacket based specifically on Mark Twight's ideas and writings in EXTREME ALPINISM. I think anything over 100g weight insulation as your last layer is generally over dressing for technical climbing in the US and Canada, short of the typical Alaskan climbing season and Canada or the Alps mid winter. Lucky for us there are a lot of choices in my preferred combinations of 60g and 100g insulation. Eddies Bauer: Has two in the First Ascent Series.  The ever popular Ignitor @ 100g and the newest hybrid on the block with 40g of Primaloft 1, the Accelerant Jacket. Patagonia: Offers a number of garments in these weights.  The Nano Puff Series @ 60g and the 100g weight in the Micro Puff Series. Arcteryx: Has the Atom series..Atom LT in the 60g and the Atom SV  in 100g weight. Mount  Bell: Has the Therma Wrap BC which is unique with insulation  80g Body and 50g sleeves The Therma Wrap Pro is 80g though out   RAB: The jackets from RAB that  I looked at are the Xenon @ 60g through out and the Alpine Generator with 100g in the body and 60g in the arms and hood. But as much as these 8 jackets look the same..they clearly are not.  Patagonia uses a Primaloft 1 and Priamloft Sport for insulation.  There is a significant difference in insulation value between the two Primaloft offerings.  RAB is using Primaloft 1, the gold standard for synthetic insulation by most accounts. Acrteryx offers the garments listed here in Coreloft.   By Arcteryx's admission its Clo rating is 5% less than Prmaloft 1.  Mont Bell is using their own Exceloft synthetic insulation.  "Exceloft a combination of 8-denier compacted polyester tubing with extra-thin, 0.7-denier polyester thread makes the insulation remarkably compressible. In addition, Exceloft absorbs very little water, making it highly resistant to saturation and extremely quick to dry."  And my take from all that is either a combo of the Exceloft and their shell materials or just Exceloft makes a warmer garment for fill weight than Primaloft.  But I have not seen Clo numbers to  prove me right or wrong.  Just a educated guess from using all these garments as they were intended and in a controlled environment simply for this comparison. This came in from a reader after I first published the comparison on CC.com,  Thanks Sean! Montbell's Winter 2012 catalog, "Compared to some synthetic insulations of equal weight, EXCELOFT achieves the highest Clo Value (a measurement of thermal insulation)."  (page 16) Clo and fill weight? Synthetics are measured by grams per square meter of fill. •60 g/m² Double the thickness of the insulation and you get,  •120 g/m² Weight has nothing to do with fill power or Clo values (which is basically an esoteric heat retention measurement for the human body).  Grams per square meter is just a measure of physical weight. Which brings me to the real part of the story when you make comparisons.  The outer shell materials are obviously really important for the intended use.  As is the detailing and construction of the garments.  The combos I have used and like are a combo of pull over and and zip front.  Generally I want a hood on the 100g layer but a hood on both is welcome as well.  Although I think at times the 60g garments can be really versatile in both versions, with or without a hood.   40g, may be even more so. Weights in a Men's Large on my digital postal scale: Eddie Bauer Accelerant Jacket 13.5oz Ignitor 20oz       Patagonia Nano Puff  Pullover 10.5oz (no hood) Nano Puff  Hoody 13oz Micro Puff Hoody 18oz Arcteryx Atom Lt Pullover (vented- no hood) 10.5oz (see the next review for the 80g/m Aphix Hoody) Atom LT Hoody (vented) 14.6oz Atom SV Hoody 18.6oz Mont Bell BC (no hood and vented) 13.1oz Pro Hoody 16.8oz RAB Xenon Hoody 11oz Alpine Generator Hoody 20.7 How about a direct comparison of the 60 g garments no vents? Accelerant Jacket 40g PL1 13.5oz  (note this is 40g PL1 not 60g) Nano Puff Pullover 10.5 (no hood) Nano Puff Hoody 13oz Xenon Hoody 11oz And 60g garments with vents. Atom LT pull over (vented) 11.oz Atom LT Hoody (vented) 14.6oz BC (no hood and vented) 13.1oz Again as close as the weights are you have to make sure you are or are not getting a hood.  And if the garment offers a stretch fleece under the arms for venting.  Both will add weigh to a garment.  And depending on your requirements may be some usefulness. The side venting on a shelled and lightly insulated garment is most easily identified in my mind with the Atom LT.  I started using the Atom series several seasons ago and have written about it many  times in the last 4 years.  Eddie Bauer has take this to the extreme in the Accelerant Jacket with 40g weight  PL1.  Mountain Hardware  offers a version as does Mont Bell among others.  For an active layer where you also need some extra warmth I think the idea is brilliant.  Enough so that I have stopped using soft shell jackets changing out for a 60g layer of synthetic insulation with venting and a good hood. Aton Lt in use @ -25C      Ignitor Jacket 20oz 100g PL1  Lightweight 1.25 oz  20-DENIER 100% Ripstop nylon With StormRepel® Durable Water-Repellant Finish Micro Puff Hoody 18oz " Lightweight, 1.7oz 30-denier 100% recycled polyester ripstop, windproof shell made of recycled polyester and treated with a Deluge® DWR" Atom SV Hoody 18.6oz Gossamera™—100% Nylon ripstop fabric with water repellent coating DWR Pro Hoody 16.8oz "Ballistic" nylon is one and a half times more abrasion resistant than other similar weight fabrics and boasts three times the tear s trength of nylons that are almost 20% heavier. 100-wash rated POLKATEX DWR treatment." Alpine Generator Hoody 20.7 30D triple rip stop Pertex® Endurance outer and a Pertex® Quantum 20D rip stop lining Fit?  Fit is obviously such a personal thing.  I am 6'1" and 190#. Here is how I have used these garments and my comment on the fit in that use. Accelerant Jacket:  It is a slim fit and feels like a more traditional sweater as there isn't much too it.  But warmer than you would think for the weight and good wind protection as well. Ignitor:  Is a full zip and light weight sweater with a lwt fleece hood.  Warm enough and wind proof enough to work as a layering piece or as outer wear.  Interesting garment that should draw a lot of attention once people learn how to use it in their own clothing systems. Nano Puff  Pullover:  I generally use this as an over shell for the Atom light.  It is a big and boxy cut on me.  Nothing flattering but I love the weight and warmth of this jacket/ sweater. Nano Puff  Hoody: This one is again big and boxy for the size on me.  It is a little heavy and I don't like the hood size.  But for  the weight and versatility of a full zip and a usable hood others might love this one. Micro Puff Hoody:  With Primaloft Spot this one holds little interest for me but then the price point reflects the use of a less insulation.  Same issues with Patagonia with fit and pattern for me on this one.     Atom LT Pullover: Atom LT Hoody: Atom SV Hoody: These I'll admit are go/to pieces for me.  They fit like they were  designed to layer together and every detail is almost perfect on both jackets.   The Pullover is a slim fit that I use as a wind proof sweater. Awesome hoods by themselves on the jackets or in combo and over my Petzl helmets, which generally  impresses me.   I have zero complaints on these two after several years of use in some really cold conditions.  They have a tailored athletic fit which I really like and never bind while climbing.  I simply love the combo. BC (no hood and vented): I like the option of not having a hood on occasion.  And I really like the vented style garments.   The 50/80g combo also added a garment here that is significantly  different in warmth.  I have to look for places to use it and then  decide why I should instead of an Atom Lt.  But it is good enough to make the effort.   Pro Hoody:  This is a jacket that made me realise I really am a gear snob.  For it's 80g weight it seems warmer to me than the Atom SV by comparison.  I really like the pattern and detailing.  The hood (which will take my helmets) and knit  cuffs stand out.  As does the pattern.  It is athletic and very fitted.  This has become one of my very favorite 100g jackets...even though it is only 80g weight insulation.  Go figure!  Big surprise to me all round and a very pleasant surprise at that. Xenon Hoody:  This is a sneaky little guy.  It is not sewn through like the Patagonia 60g Primaloft.  And it is two ounces lighter.  It has a Pertex QuantumGL® 10 Denier shell fabric inside and out.  There is more to this one than easily meets the eye.  My only down side is the hood is good only under my huge helmet.   The shell alone and the way RAB has done the insulation makes this one sort of  "out of category" in a very good way.  It has replaced my Atom LT on windy days and dropped a few ounces in the process. Alpine Generator Hoody:  If the Xenon is "out of category" the the AG is a ringer here.   No one else using  a Pertex®  Endurance outer and a Pertex® Quantum liner.  The hood is the best of the bunch imo and the Acteryx hoods are VERY good.  The sizing spot on for layering.  This jacket seem to me to be a specific built belay jacket with no compromises.  There are no bad 100g jackets listed here but the AG is a step above all of the ones I looked at in this review.   It is as obvious and as simple as that.   Be sure to check your sizing. I've found RAB to run a little on the small size across their range. The point to the conversation here is that as singles or as combos synthetic garments for climbing even in the harshest of conditions can easily be justified.  With the right combination  of garments you could easily use a lighter one listed here for a chilly day cragging or a combination of several for a  speed ascent of the Cassin. If you ended up here by chance be sure to look at the following review of the new (fall 2012) Acteryx Aphix Hoodie.  Things just keep getting better!