Human experiment with five jackets in the minuses

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Human experiment with five jackets in the minuses
Human experiment with five jackets in the minuses
Anonim

We went skiing in Donovaly, Slovakia with five technical jackets to find out if the 100,000 is better than the 16,000 and to find out if they really stand up to wind and water, if they really breathe, and if you really don't need five sweaters and three t-shirts under them. It's no secret, we didn't get cold in any of them, but this can also be attributed to the fact that we didn't manage to find one colder than minus six degrees. However, it turned out that all the starters are Chinese and do not contain natural materials except for the metal puller of the zippers.

The glasses wiper combined with the ski pass dispenser
The glasses wiper combined with the ski pass dispenser

F&F (Tesco) now HUF 15,990 instead of HUF 19,990

You need a belly for the snow skirt, so the snow goes down smoothly
You need a belly for the snow skirt, so the snow goes down smoothly

The cheapest in the test was the Tesco F&F brand jacket, which costs HUF 16,000 on sale. In theory, this one can do everything like the big ones, as it is waterproof, withstands 2000 mm of water as promised, windproof but still breathable, has an mp3 player holder, waterproof pockets, and even a ski skirt.

It is no coincidence that it costs almost half of the price of the next two well-performing jackets. The first impression of it is that it rustles, like the heaters of the '90s on the Polish market. The second is that, while it is L, it fits a 185-centimeter, 75-kilogram man like the pants on a cow. While her sleeves are the right length, her ski skirt sags, as if she is missing another twenty kilos, also from her stomach. Nevertheless, it delivers what it promises in its properties, it didn't get soaked, the wind didn't blow through it, and you could even ski in it. Its most serious extra is the zipperable faux fur on the hood, we zipped it right away, and we haven't found it since.

Wed'ze (Decathlon) HUF 29990

In which the Hungarians are easily recognizable
In which the Hungarians are easily recognizable

Decathlon entered the competition with a wed'ze brand jacket offered for HUF 30,000. Compared to F&F, the quality jump is clear, the jacket is completely suitable for ordinary skiers, the biggest disadvantage is that half of the Hungarians in Donovaly wear it, and it is quite annoying if you are one of the dozen. At least it annoys me.

By the way, the jacket is comfortable, a t-shirt and a fleece top are really enough underneath, but surprisingly it doesn't have a separate mp3 headphone output, which I think is the most unnecessary feature of all jackets, and it's not even equipped with a glasses wiper. However, it promises a water resistance of 5000 millimeters. What worried me a little is that the zipper has very small teeth, which in my experience break sooner than those with larger teeth, but the jacket has a two-year warranty, so if the zipper gets stuck, you can go for a new jacket. It is also a zipper problem, and obviously an individual social problem, that the outer pockets cannot be pulled down while wearing gloves, they put such a small zipper on them, and even well-made ski gloves do not fit in the outer pockets without the risk of being left behind.

Heavy Tools HUF 25,990 instead of 36,980

North Face inspired design
North Face inspired design

The Hungarian Heavy Tools has just reduced the price of the test jacket from HUF 34 to HUF 26,000, which won the price/value competition, because it has everything that a decathlon player knows, and even more in a few things. glasses wipe, right in the ski pass holder pocket, so that you can pull it out with one movement and leave the expensive pass behind if the glasses are damp. There is a separate pocket and waterproof outlet for your mp3 player and earphones. Its design is quite clearly inspired by The North Face, the zippers of the pockets are in a striking color, their location is very similar, as is the practical extra that the waist tightening cord is in the outer pockets. It's practical that the pockets are big, you can put stuff in them, and you can take them off even when wearing gloves. It is suspicious, however, that the hand warmer started to fluff up after only three days, but they raised the stakes further. the limit of water resistance here is already 8000 mm.

The North Face HUF 104,000

Image
Image

The 2013/14 jacket from The North Face is clearly in a different category. On the one hand, the retail price is HUF 104,000, and on the other hand, it includes extras such as the Recco brand avalanche beacon, which helps you find people under the snow. We haven't tested this, but maybe it's better that way.

Although it is made in China just like the other jackets, the higher quality is already visible in the wrist warmers, which are much more beautifully crafted than any other jacket. But the experience and invested energy can be seen in the adjustability of the hood as well as in the softness of the lining. Of course, the real test would have been a good windstorm at minus 15-20-25 degrees, but he could easily withstand the wind and minus 6 in a t-shirt and a fleece, who likes design, has money for it, and often skis and hikes in a cold and avalanche-prone place, it's worth it. Another question is that the avalanche beacon is only worth something if the searchers have something that can find them, because the jacket itself does not give a signal if a person is lost under the snow, but it responds to the signal of a compatible search device. It doesn't hurt to find out before the person disappears.

+1 outdoor jacket: Jack Wolfskin (Intersport) HUF 43,990 instead of HUF 64,990

The brand you can have fun with
The brand you can have fun with

The Jack Wolfskin 3 in 1 jacket stands out, because it is not a ski jacket, which is obviously the reason why it became the most popular jacket in the test. The jacket now available at Intersport for HUF 44,000 instead of HUF 65 is officially an outdoor item, but it's also suitable for everyday wear, and it's actually a combination of a usable fleece sweater and a jacket, which almost explains why it's so expensive. By the way, it is also suitable for skiing, if you don't have a ski pass pocket on your arm, you don't have a snow skirt, and it's also shorter than ski jackets. Not to mention, it has less out of pocket. However, it is essentially just as warm and ventilated as the stuff specially designed and developed for skiing.

Summary

But which one is the most beautiful?

  • F&F
  • Wed'ze
  • Heavy Tools
  • The North Face
  • Jack Wolfskin

In terms of price/performance, Heavy Tools is tied with the decathlon Wed'ze, mainly thanks to the recent devaluation of Heavy Tools, which on the other hand, the decathlon is covered by a two-year warranty, so it's really a matter of taste which one to choose. Tesco's F&F will do it in an emergency, but if we're already spending hundreds of thousands on ski trips, it's not necessarily worth saving on the jacket. The North Face is the choice of brand fanatics who ski and hike a lot, HUF 100,000 is still HUF 100,000. The Jack Wolfskin is good for those who want a jacket that can be worn every day and maybe try skiing, then if the skiing comes in, invest in a ski jacket, if not, you can still flash the cool one abroad, with a brand that is not yet so widespread at home.

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