[Closed] Synthetic down jackets- recommendations

I always have my Snugpak in the boot and over the many years I've owned it it's been excellent.

Peeved off as washed/tumbled dried my down jacket yesterday and in some places I can't get the down to unclump etc.

Tumble dry with a tennis ball in the drier.....

rab generator, wore it to ride in this morning.....toasty.

Decathelon have a bunch for under £60... I can't comment on the quality though.

Montane Prism is my go-to jacket.

Not very outdoorsy brand, but H&M have down jackets for £35

On the balls- yep. Took it to a Laundrette with the huge drum dryers- about 6 balls in. Spent a fortune and removed/aired/shook inbetween.

I'm going to try again to see if they'll fluff up.

I hate washing down jackets and when they get wet in winter.

On the Prism- what temps have you used it in? will layer of course.

Another Snugpak vote here. Very toasty on the coldest of days.
Not quite as warm but worth considering for anything but the depths of winter is the Finisterre Sastruga.

If it doesn't need a hood then maybe a Keela Belay. About £50 on Amazon and they have 130g/m of Primaloft, despite the price.

I only use Down for skiing when it's below freezing all the time. In the UK I use an old Rohan synthetic thing which has been excellent.

I wear the Prism (over a decent bike jersey and baselayer) when bivvying and camping, so anything down to -5 last winter.

I'm 'warming' towards Snugpak. Having a whizz through their site

http://www.snugpak.com/ some good stuff!

I wear mine in all conditions and it's by far one of the best bits of kit I have. It's also thinner than most for it's added warmth so easy to wear underneath my goretex.

haglofs barrier 2 is my choice

How does it size up? I'm a biggish bloke yet I find large seems to suit me trunkwise in most things. I've got a XL Montane Dyno jacket and its a bit billowy on the trunk/front.

I have run flats on my car so the spare wheel well has a load of emergency kit tucked in there. My emergency warm jacket is a Keela Belay jacket, very warm and pretty cheap

If you need something warm and cheap the other option is the army Softie jackets

My other synthetic fill jackets are nicer and more expensive so they're used more regularly or saved for proper outdoors use

I have a Prism, and it's a great jacket, gets loads of wear, but that's only because it isn't too warm for active use(unlike my down jacket). If you want something equivalent to a down jacket you might want to look for something a little warmer with more insulation, although of course this depends on how warm/insulated the down jacket is you want it to replace. I'd be looking for 100-130g primaloft or equivalent, the Prism is only 40g (or 80g on the front).

Keela belay and Sungpak are both good shouts. I'll also throw Rab Photon into the mix. Or for something inbetween those and the Prism there is the Montane Flux.

Montane Prim gets good reviews, they had them in Go Outdoors for £87 with their 15% off promotion recently. Not sure if its still on though.

Rab Xenon is similar sort of thing, but more minimal and lighter.

Arc'Teryx Atom LT is a nice jacket but a lot pricier.

I recently got a Norrona Lofoten primaloft jacket 50% off on Snow & Rock's eBay site. I've not tested it in the field yet but it's stood up to a couple of pub missions admirably 😀

Anyone tried a Prism and a Flux? I have a Rab Vapour rise jacket and I'm thinking the overlap with the Flux will be too much, hence a Prism for cooler commutes.

If it's for bunging in the boot of the car, just buy a mil surplus version of the Snugpak. Does the job without any of the names, badges etc.

If it's for bunging in the boot of the car, just buy a mil surplus version of the Snugpak. Does the job without any of the names, badges etc.

Good advice there, we've just been issued with new snugpak style windproof shirts that are pretty good for biking in aswell but not quite as warm as a jacket so will be plenty of ex mil kit about.

On the balls- yep. Took it to a Laundrette with the huge drum dryers- about 6 balls in. Spent a fortune and removed/aired/shook inbetween.

I'm going to try again to see if they'll fluff up.

I hate washing down jackets and when they get wet in winter.

If it's a nice jacket and you want it sorted, Franklins in Sheffield do a professional down cleaning service that'll sort it out. Down doesn't play nicely with water, though the new water-repellent down used by Berghaus and a few other brands is a lot more resilient and dries again without clumping if you do get it wet.

On the synthetic side of things, anything with PrimaLoft fill is generally decent. Lots of different weights available, but for all-round, mostly casual/post-ride use, pretty much anything'll cope.

Anyone tried a Prism and a Flux?

Only tried them on back to back in Go Outdoors, is that the equivalent of the car park test for bikes?

The Flux was noticable warmer and a closer fit, especially on the arms.

I bought the Prism. Last weekend I walked Snowdon wearing it. Just above freezing on the top in the clouds. With a thin long sleeve base layer I was fine when moving. Only time I put anything else on was when we stopped for lunch on the east ridge and I chuck my Paramo jacket over.

I think the Flux would be more suited to lower activity rates and/or lower temps, eg winter climbing.

Don't have any experince of the Rab Vapour Rise to compare with.

I do tend to run slightly warm and get by with less insulation than some, so YMMV.

My Finisterre jacket has been superb over the last 3 years. So much so that Ive gotten rid of my 2x down jackets and Ive bought the gilet version. Cannot recommend it enough

I noticed this [url= http://www.nikwax.co.uk/en-gb/products/productdetail.php?productid=2 ]Nikwax down wash [/url]recently, not tried it but might sort out your jacket.

Personally I'd not bother with down for general use in this country - too wet to keep it lofted and insulating.

Edit: Paramo for me.

bought a snugpak softie in 1996 for a trip to bosnia. great jacket and still going strong. highly recommended

I noticed this Nikwax down wash recently

I used this when washing my nuptse and it went okay. Tumble dried with tennis balls in as well and only had clumps in the arm.

Montane prism is best cut and warmth. Mrs_oab is never without it.
Having said that I have Patagonia and it is lovely, but more a hanging round camp jacket.

I have a really old down jacket, and the instructions suggest using a clean sneaker with the laces removed to un-clump the down, so it might be worth giving it another try with a clean Converse Chuck T chucked in. 😀

Can't recommend the [url= http://rab.uk.com/products/mens-clothing/synthetic-fill/xenon-x-hoodie.html ]Rab Xenon[/url] enough. Super lightweight and warm as owt.

I've got a flux jacket. It's a very nice jacket but it's no where near as warm as a proper down 'duvet' jacket. I like the fact that I don't get to hot in the flux when moving, whereas a down jacket i have to take off once I start moving.

I'm 6'1 and 38 waist, and the large flux will comfortable go over a baselayer and softshell, while staying snug rather than restrictive. Good jacket for pub stops or mechanicals on winter rides.

I tried the prism when I bought the flux but it wasn't as warm and the flux has a better featured hood and more pockets.

as said above, for leaving in the car, buy a surplus softie

I have a vapour rise and a flux. The flux is a lot warmer.

Just to bring this thread back, had a look at the Snugpak SJ9 jacket that's new and it looks really good if a bit more expensive than their normal items.

If it's a nice jacket and you want it sorted, Franklins in Sheffield do a professional down cleaning service that'll sort it out.

Unfortunately not since last year when they closed.

These are the people now:
http://www.elitecleaningandaftercare.co.uk

Another prism fan here, so much so I have two, an early one with no peak and a prism 2 which isn't as nice a fit as the original but still very good.... Used in some pretty cold conditions when being active, only got cold when stopping in minus temps.