18 December 2007

Blackhawk, blade, convertibles and an urban turban

Posted by Mick under: Equipment; Hats .

I’ve started planning my next expedition (info soon), and figured with all of the christmas sales on its a pretty good time to buy some stuff that i need…and some stuff that i don’t but that seems like a good idea while i am in the store buying the stuff that i do need…hmmm….

Lets start with layers…its all about the layers is what they keep telling us, so on Friday night and Monday morning i bought some layers from the Paddy Pallin store in Ringwood (Victoria).

First up a nice mid layer jacket made by The North Face called a Blackhawk Windwall (AUD $99.95 at the clearance store) with the following spec:

• Award-winning jacket with abrasion and wind-resistant Polartec® hardface front and softer, fleece back.
  WindWall™ fabric with hardface application wind permeability rated at 20 CFM
• Brushed collar lining
• Left Napoleon chest pocket with reinforced zipper
• Two hand pockets and Hem cinchcord

Quite interested to see how this goes as a mid layer because it certainly does feel a bit thicker than what i would normally use…but it did have a good feel about it when i tried it on.

Next up…the last thing i need is to be carting around a heavy weight water proof jacket in summer so i picked up a water proof top layer jacket made by Berghaus which is called a “Blade Jacket” (AUD $129.95 at the clearance price and normally $149.95).

• Berghaus 2.5 layer Aquafoil fabric.
• Full length zip with double storm flap.
• Fold down/tab down mountain sports hood.
• Two external venting pockets.
• Narrow venting pit zips.
• Inner security pocket.
• Hem drawcord.

Now this one felt really comfortable on top of the Blackhawk mid layer jacket…really comfortable. I tried on similar Macpac and North Face jackets and they didn’t feel anywhere near as right as the Blade, so hopefully it performs well when i need it the most.

Mmmm…convertible pants….who doesn’t need a good couple of pairs of convertible pants? A mainstay of any trip…one minute you are wearing pants…and then like magic you’re wearing shorts…brilliant :)

So…on what is obviously my life quest that appears to want to me to own every piece of clothing ever made by The North Face, on Friday night i stopped at the huge Anaconda store in Bayswater (Victoria) to pick up a pair of Gondwana pants and somehow walked out with a pair of The North Face Meridian Convertible Pants (AUD $99.95).

• Abrasion-resistant nylon fabric
• Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) 30+
• Three-quarter elastic waist with drawcord, zip fly and belt loops
• Utility side pockets
• Front slash pockets
• Pant legs zip off at mid-thigh
• Rear stow pocket
• Patch pocket with zip
• Quick drying
• Internal passport pocket at waistband
• Lightweight and packable
• Roll-up cuffs feature
• Crotch gusset
• Fabric is treated with a DWR finish

I’ve been wearing these today, both indoors and outdoors in around 27 degree celsius heat and they feel pretty good.

Finally…and i think this one is great..a grabbed a new hat (you can never have enough hats as my Akubra collection proves) in the legionnaire hat style which i have never really thought much of before. I found it in Paddy Pallin and its made by an Australian company called Frillneck and I think its called an Urban Turban (AUD $29.95). Its specs are pretty bare (it is a legionnaire hat after all) but i do know that the one I got is made out of  polyester micromesh and has a UPF rating of 50+.

The hat feels quite comfortable and certainly won’t blow away in a strong breeze but the best bit about it is that because of its design (with strategic points on the hat being equipped with velcro), you can quickly shape this hat into a heap of different styles. You do look a bit like Sir Edmund Hillary, but it does work really well.

Anyway..reviews will come as i get to wear this stuff in the great outdoors…next on the list is a new day/overnight pack ;)

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