Anyone got one of these in jacket or gilet form, they look a bargain?

http://shop.uniqlo.com/uk/goods/074880

Seen the ads, but wonder how well cut / designed they are. Alpkit down stuff is well designed and cheap.

There’s no DWR on the fabric so they’d need to be worn with an outer layer. That was what put me off.

DWR would be handy but still for the price they look a bargain – is the Alpkit one DWR treated?

I tried a heavier one, seemed good value.

I’m happy with my synthetic Montane mid weight one tho, more likely to get wet.

Dwr largely irrevevent its down …. Dont wear it in rain – simples

Dont wear it in rain – simples

Perfect jacket for a British winter then!

Just want something that packs down small, doesn’t break the bank and can be worn for end of ride, ride stops and walks to pub when chilly

People seem to have a fear of getting down jackets wet. The only thing that really happens is that they lose a lot of their heat capacity once wet and need thoroughly drying out.

If you’re only going to be out in the rain for a few minutes, I doubt it would be a problem.

The key thing to remember is that Uniqlo are a high street fashion retailer and Alpkit are a specialist outdoor company.

I suspect little thought has gone into down weights, fill power etc on the Uniqlo jacket. It could be an awesome bargain or utterly useless.

Alpkit have been improving and tweaking their jackets for a good few years.

For a post ride jacket I’d be more inclined to look at a small packing Primaloft type smock or jacket like the Montane Fireball or Prism.

I’ve been looking for a jacket for the same purpose, and not sure about synthetics over down, trying them on in the shop they just don’t have that instant super warmth, even the ultraloft ones. Seem to be a huge choice this year anyway, alpkit don’t have any til after xmas though?

My wife has a Uniglo jacket. Seems decent quality. Very lightweight and very little down though. All up weight around 250g for a female medium size. Packs down to almost nothing.

Worth it for what it is. A bit of very light insulation that packs very small. Not for very low temps though. below freezing you would want a proper lightweight down jacket in the 500-700g weight range.

I’d maybe think of a Uniglo jacket as equivalent to a jersey or fleece at less weight and smaller packed volume.

I’ve got a a Uniqlo parka (with a hood), think it was only £30 when they had one of their bargain days on. I also have an Alpkit Filo.

There is no comparison in quality (which is fine, but the Uniqlo is just a very simple thing) and warmth, but I would be more likely to take the Uniqlo on a bivvy ride because it is much much lighter, packs down to about 1/3 of the size and was way cheaper. Makes a good pillow if not so cold out too. Would I get one for £50? Maybe 🙂

I’ve got a Filo Jkt & a Uniqlo gilet. Very happy with both. Gilet is well made for the money and perfect for stuffing in the camelback.

Mtbtomo

Getting it wet leads to the down clumping up around the bottom of the jacket.

Can be saved with tmble drier and tenis balls sometimes but we have neither so try and no get them wet, seem to wear my pertex pile more when i woulda worn my down jacket these days

I’ve got the jacket. Claims to have a DWR coating, although I’ve not tested it properly yet. For the money it’s pretty good and small enough to stuff into a reasonable sized Camelbak for the cafe stop. Surprisingly warm as well.

Since I got my mid-weight therma loft jacket, I’ve barely worn my full-on puffa.

uniqlo parka is great; i got it when they were £30 as a cheap bivvy jacket; much better than i thought it would be.

outer layer is a pertex like material; water beads on it in fairly heavy showers; wets out after a while but for bivvying when i’ll always have a waterproof that i can put on too it’s not really an issue.

Indeed it does clump a bit but I’ve managed to save two Tog 24 jackets following washing with a decent bout of shaking.

The instructions don’t say you shouldn’t wash them. I can’t believe other down jacket manufacturers would be dry clean only either.

Or else there will be some rather wiffy jackets out there 😉