I was looking at the north face resolve jacket as a general purpous jacket and was jsudt wondering if anyone one owns one or how good you think it is, just some general feedback about it. It seems great value. This is it: http://www.gear-zone.co.uk/eshop/The-North-Face-Resolve-Jacket---SS06.html
north face jacket
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Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of North Face Gear, but that one does look nice! A very good aspect of that jacket, Jack, is that it's made of Hyvent which for a laminate is extremely breathable. The biggest thing with WPB laminates is to keep it as clean as you possibly can. Dirt, sweat, and oil clog the pores and when that happens, it will no longer breathe effectively. As well, WPB laminates are quite useless once the weather drops only a few degrees below freezing. In conditions like that, wearing WPB laminates can be liked to wrapping your body in saran wrap and expecting it to breathe - it won't. That's why Ventile is quite possibly the most effective cold weather garment out there and is used by the British Antarctic Survey Team. (BAST)
In the rain though, with a good DWR treatment, provided you keep that jacket clean, you'll probably be quite impressed. (I don't think that all of North Face's gear is all bad.)
Adam
In the rain though, with a good DWR treatment, provided you keep that jacket clean, you'll probably be quite impressed. (I don't think that all of North Face's gear is all bad.)
Adam
DWR stands for Durable Water Repellency and is a wash in or spray on treatment that adheres to the face fabric of a WPB garment. Membranes are very fragile (Hyvent is a PTFE membrane) and to protect it, a face fabric of either high density nylon or polyester is heat pressed to it. The DWR stops water from absorbing into the face fabric, because once it becomes saturated, water prevents the laminate from breathing. DWR's are either made of either Silicon (Nikwax) or flourocarbon (Grangers) and I've found the wash in treatments the most effective. Any and all WPB garments are 100% completely reliant on DWRs. Without them, they remain waterproof, but cannot breathe. That is why keeping your North Face jacket clean is so important. Here's another way of looking at it:
And so, your steps:
1) Wash your jacket in your washing machine and do an extra rinse cycle to remove any traces of detergent. Detergent inhibits the properties of the laminate.
2) In a second cycle, follow the directions on your bottle of Nikwax or Grangers. It's usually about two capfuls.
3) Throw the garment in your dryer at a medium-high setting. This effectively seals the DWR around the individual fibres of the face fabric.
When it starts to rain, you'll notice the drops beading onto the jacket. Once they start to soak in all over (you'll definately notice) toss the jacket again into your dryer as it re-distributes the DWR. That works for for a while, but eventually you'll have to re-proof, probably every couple years.
Cheers,
Adam
And so, your steps:
1) Wash your jacket in your washing machine and do an extra rinse cycle to remove any traces of detergent. Detergent inhibits the properties of the laminate.
2) In a second cycle, follow the directions on your bottle of Nikwax or Grangers. It's usually about two capfuls.
3) Throw the garment in your dryer at a medium-high setting. This effectively seals the DWR around the individual fibres of the face fabric.
When it starts to rain, you'll notice the drops beading onto the jacket. Once they start to soak in all over (you'll definately notice) toss the jacket again into your dryer as it re-distributes the DWR. That works for for a while, but eventually you'll have to re-proof, probably every couple years.
Cheers,
Adam
It's alright, it took me a while to figure out how it all works. Just like I said in my previous post:1) Wash your jacket in your washing machine and do an extra rinse cycle to remove any traces of detergent. Detergent inhibits the properties of the laminate.
2) In a second cycle, follow the directions on your bottle of Nikwax or Grangers. It's usually about two capfuls. (Grangers or Nikwax is the DWR, so you can use either spray on or wash in)
3) Throw the jacket in your dryer at a medium-high setting. This effectively seals the DWR around the individual fibres of the face fabric.
But, if you buy that jacket, you probably won't have to re-proof it for a long time, at least a couple of years. Just make sure you wash it and put it in your dryer every so often.
Good luck!
Adam
Jack,
Heres a review of the jacket.
Clayton
http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/review...Face-Resolve-Jacket&rcn=67&rgn=3&v=1&sp=#4298
Heres a review of the jacket.
Clayton
http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/review...Face-Resolve-Jacket&rcn=67&rgn=3&v=1&sp=#4298
I don't have that particular jacket, but I do have a North Face Mountain jacket and a Pac Lite jacket, but they are both Gore Tex fabric. I do have a pair of North face Guide trousers which are Hyvent, and they are superb. I can honestly say that I have had absolutely no breathability problems with them, even at very low temperatures (-15 c) I find North face equip. to be well made and thought out.
I used one of them during a recent hiking trip to the Lakes. :umbrella: The only time it stopped raining/ snowing/ hailing was for about 10 minutes just outside of Macclesfield on the journey home
I was totally impressed with it. It kept the water out completely and moisture build-up wasn't an issue. The temperature only dropped down to about -5c so unfortunately I can't really speak of it's performance in cold conditions. But down to that temperature it was a real Godsend.
Also it's casual enough to be worn to the pub in the evenings without looking like a tourist, which was a nice bonus
I have it in a grey/brown colour
I will agree with that review though (link posted by Graywolf, above). The hood seems to have been designed for Klingons and unless you've got an unusually massive forehead you're gonna need a peaked hat underneath.
I'll second the comment about the pockets too - they line up directly with the waist belt of a pack and getting into the fiddly zips is bad enough when you've got gloves on without having to get past your belt too. And if the pockets are full then the belt won't sit properly and will be very uncomfortable.
To sum up I'd say it was very good as a waterproof and good on looks but not too clever on the practical side. In all though I'd recommend it if you can get it cheap. But do try one on with a pack before buying.
Sorry if I've rambled on for too long.
Hope this helps!
I was totally impressed with it. It kept the water out completely and moisture build-up wasn't an issue. The temperature only dropped down to about -5c so unfortunately I can't really speak of it's performance in cold conditions. But down to that temperature it was a real Godsend.
Also it's casual enough to be worn to the pub in the evenings without looking like a tourist, which was a nice bonus
I have it in a grey/brown colour I will agree with that review though (link posted by Graywolf, above). The hood seems to have been designed for Klingons and unless you've got an unusually massive forehead you're gonna need a peaked hat underneath.
I'll second the comment about the pockets too - they line up directly with the waist belt of a pack and getting into the fiddly zips is bad enough when you've got gloves on without having to get past your belt too. And if the pockets are full then the belt won't sit properly and will be very uncomfortable.
To sum up I'd say it was very good as a waterproof and good on looks but not too clever on the practical side. In all though I'd recommend it if you can get it cheap.
But do try one on with a pack before buying. Sorry if I've rambled on for too long.
Hope this helps!
North Face is another "Rise and Fall"-story. I would not recommend any
North Face product since the quality changed 5 or 6 years ago.
Maybe they became too popular, earned too much money. When 80% of
your products is bought by the average camper, snowboarder or clubber you
start to make buisiness for them.
Have a look at the seams of their gloves! I remember my friend and me in
an outdoor-shop spreading the seam of a North Face glove and see it ripping!
A man from the shop said we were damaging it. We both started laughing and
mourned for how far it has come with TheNorthFace.
Since then I have heard too many stories about bad equipment from them.
Same thing with Ajungilak now. How we loved this company. And my friends
and me still have the old ones (my fafourite is a Tyin Elite, without zip, Pertex inner!).
North Face product since the quality changed 5 or 6 years ago.
Maybe they became too popular, earned too much money. When 80% of
your products is bought by the average camper, snowboarder or clubber you
start to make buisiness for them.
Have a look at the seams of their gloves! I remember my friend and me in
an outdoor-shop spreading the seam of a North Face glove and see it ripping!
A man from the shop said we were damaging it. We both started laughing and
mourned for how far it has come with TheNorthFace.
Since then I have heard too many stories about bad equipment from them.
Same thing with Ajungilak now. How we loved this company. And my friends
and me still have the old ones (my fafourite is a Tyin Elite, without zip, Pertex inner!).
Sorry, I dont know much about the jacket you intend to buy but I bought a Mountain Jacket about 8 years ago and it was one of the best bits of kit I've got.
With that said, I dont think I would buy NF again given the trendy nature of their product line. Much like the previous reply, when a company starts pandering to fashion I start worrying about their motives.
Good luck and buy the kit which works for you.
With that said, I dont think I would buy NF again given the trendy nature of their product line. Much like the previous reply, when a company starts pandering to fashion I start worrying about their motives.
Good luck and buy the kit which works for you.
Like some have already said.. TNF equipment has it's good and it's bad.. the prices are too over the top.. and their Tents are way to expensive... TGF rucks aren't very good.. but I do like their Jackets, and pants...
I've sold TNF in the past, and I've never had one customer who complained.. and that's been for the past 10 years..
I've sold TNF in the past, and I've never had one customer who complained.. and that's been for the past 10 years..
I'm sure North Face make some good gear but the worst Gore-Tex jacket I've got is North Face and the worst Gore-Tex leggings are also North Face.
Both look good and seem to be well made at first glance but they both leak through the seams and are only good in light rain. I've become very wet in their gear but I keep on wearing it because it costs so much and it does look good.
The zipper broke on the jacket fairly quickly but I can still use it by putting a safety pin in it (otherwise it slips open).
Shame because they do look nice and I would never have guessed that they would be as poorly thought out as they are.
If I was going waterproof on a budget I'd take a quick look in that awful TK Max store (or whatever it's called) I was in there a few weeks ago and they had some excellent Gore-Tex jackets from Spray Way (one of my good jackets is made by them) for under 70 quid.
Both look good and seem to be well made at first glance but they both leak through the seams and are only good in light rain. I've become very wet in their gear but I keep on wearing it because it costs so much and it does look good.
The zipper broke on the jacket fairly quickly but I can still use it by putting a safety pin in it (otherwise it slips open).
Shame because they do look nice and I would never have guessed that they would be as poorly thought out as they are.
If I was going waterproof on a budget I'd take a quick look in that awful TK Max store (or whatever it's called) I was in there a few weeks ago and they had some excellent Gore-Tex jackets from Spray Way (one of my good jackets is made by them) for under 70 quid.
In reply to addyb's comments, Hyvent is actually a Hydrophillic membrane constructed of polyurethane and is not a microporous laminate like Goretex or Event.
DWR's generally will only last about 6 months with regular wear.
I help to look after the BAST clothing and a lot of what they wear is microporous membrane clothing as this works very well in cold dry conditions.
Also nikwax products do not need to be heat activated so tumble drying is not necessary.
DWR's generally will only last about 6 months with regular wear.
I help to look after the BAST clothing and a lot of what they wear is microporous membrane clothing as this works very well in cold dry conditions.
Also nikwax products do not need to be heat activated so tumble drying is not necessary.
Matt,
You're right that Hyvent is polyurethane based, but it is still a micoporous fabric. (My bad!) It's a three layer coating, which I guess is similar to Entrant's GII-XT. For example, the PU Entrant coating is almost honeycombed in structure, with the first layer being hydrophillic to suck up the water vapour from your body where it passes it through the pores in the coating.
I think with today's available technology the differences between PU and PTFE coated/laminated fabrics are pretty minimal, sortof like comparing carbon with stainless steels.
Oh, and Nikwax mentions something about heat treating a fabric that has been washed with their product can help it, depending on the application.
And a question for you: Does the BAST still wear Ventile at the Pole, or is that wonderful fabric a thing of the past? I wore my double layered anorak skiing about two weeks ago, and while I was getting stares from people because of how I looked I was more comfortable than I'd ever been before.
Cheers,
Adam
You're right that Hyvent is polyurethane based, but it is still a micoporous fabric. (My bad!) It's a three layer coating, which I guess is similar to Entrant's GII-XT. For example, the PU Entrant coating is almost honeycombed in structure, with the first layer being hydrophillic to suck up the water vapour from your body where it passes it through the pores in the coating.
I think with today's available technology the differences between PU and PTFE coated/laminated fabrics are pretty minimal, sortof like comparing carbon with stainless steels.
Oh, and Nikwax mentions something about heat treating a fabric that has been washed with their product can help it, depending on the application.
And a question for you: Does the BAST still wear Ventile at the Pole, or is that wonderful fabric a thing of the past? I wore my double layered anorak skiing about two weeks ago, and while I was getting stares from people because of how I looked I was more comfortable than I'd ever been before.
Cheers,
Adam
Has anyone had any experience with their footwear?
I need some new shoes and I have my eye on a pair of North Face gore-tex trail shoes which look very rugged and hard-wearing.
I need some new shoes and I have my eye on a pair of North Face gore-tex trail shoes which look very rugged and hard-wearing.
I think a lot of the problems we hear about with some items from North Face are factory based. Stuff made in some sites went very downhill, the stuff from Port Glasgow was very good, then they imported most of their produce and we started to get leaky seams and zips busting.
I still like their jackets, they fit HWMBLT comfortably, lightweight, have lasted exceptionally well, and I love their UV protect shirts and trousers. The boys use the daypacks and they stood up to years of schoolbag use no bother at all. Similarly the trainers and leather hiking boots.
I think the problem is we can't reliably say, " Oh yes, NF is good kit." A lot of it really is, but there's some shoddy workmanship there too
Fashion wise, they're all at it; last years colour Merrell's are at half price as are Craghoppers and Wolfskin
Cheers,
Toddy
I still like their jackets, they fit HWMBLT comfortably, lightweight, have lasted exceptionally well, and I love their UV protect shirts and trousers. The boys use the daypacks and they stood up to years of schoolbag use no bother at all. Similarly the trainers and leather hiking boots.
I think the problem is we can't reliably say, " Oh yes, NF is good kit." A lot of it really is, but there's some shoddy workmanship there too
Fashion wise, they're all at it; last years colour Merrell's are at half price as are Craghoppers and Wolfskin
Cheers,
Toddy
