Armory Sponsor
Posted: 1/23/2016 7:34:35 PM EDT
|
I'm looking for a long term review of the Condor Summit softshell jacket. All the unboxing and <1 month reviews seem to be good, but I'd like to hear about how the stitching/zippers etc have held up long term. |
|
Quoted:
I'm looking for a long term review of the Condor Summit softshell jacket. All the unboxing and <1 month reviews seem to be good, but I'd like to hear about how the stitching/zippers etc have held up long term. I have one coming up on two years this April. Everything is still good on the jacket except for the "velcro" cuff adjustment at the wrists. I use the term "velcro" as it isn't actually velcro, it is some plastic velcro type teeth. The male velcro teeth side is a little weak and doesn't "bite" the female side as strong as actual velcro, and can come loose. You really have to secure it to have a sealed cuff. After about four washes, the DWR finish is still present except for some certain areas. I still wouldn't hesitate wearing it in snowy conditions. |
|
Can't say for the soft shell, but I have a condor fleece jacket. This is my second winter with it. I'm construction superintendent and end up doing a lot of clean up and manual labor, it's my go to for that. The fleece has held has held up very well, I'm pretty sure a soft shell would have died a quick death in my line of work. No tears, no major stains from the mud, couple from grease and the side got melted by torch my stucco guys had running. Zippers are good to still. I recommend the fleece for sure, doesn't block wind for shit though. Soft shells don't take super had use in my experience, but normal abuse they are probably fine. If the soft shell is built similar to the fleece it's should be good to go. |
|
I got one about 2 years ago.
The fit was small. I normally wear medium shirts (including BDU and ACUs), so I ordered a large softshell to have room to layer under it; it turned out to be fairly tight; tighter than any side Medium jacket I've owned. I did start wearing it regularly about 6 months ago. For the last 3 months or so I probably wore it >50 hours/week, but no serious "run though the bushes" outdoor abuse. No issues so far. One thread looks like it might fray, and the plastic hook&loop "hooks" that are used to adjust the cuffs occasionally start to come off the loop side, but never come completely off. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another, but I'd want to try it on in person to get the sizing right. |
| Used mine OCONUS. After two rotations of winter I retired it. Mine was black and it became discolored and the zippers had a hard time catching. However, for a sub $100 jacket it got the job done and I'm looking to pick up another one. Buy the jacket with the expectation to replace it after a few years. |
|
Rothco version here, 2nd winter with it. Have really mostly wore it around town, really like how un-bulky and lightweight it is. Not very warm unless you layer correctly under it. I also unzipped the hood all the way off and store it in the back kangaroo pocket (rothco hoods unzip). The collar is still weird to me though, wish it was shorter as I typically lay it down.
I get a lot of compliments on this coat, and at some point I wouldnt mind getting one in multicam for screwing around out in the woods, though it is a bit to noisy for deer hunting. |
|
Quoted:
Rothco version here, 2nd winter with it. Have really mostly wore it around town, really like how un-bulky and lightweight it is. Not very warm unless you layer correctly under it. I also unzipped the hood all the way off and store it in the back kangaroo pocket (rothco hoods unzip). The collar is still weird to me though, wish it was shorter as I typically lay it down. I get a lot of compliments on this coat, and at some point I wouldnt mind getting one in multicam for screwing around out in the woods, though it is a bit to noisy for deer hunting. Must be something different about the rothco then, my condor is airtight for wind but lets the sweat out. The collar i like because i can go without a turtleneck base until it gets in the 20's |
| It definitely blocks the wind, I just mean it still is a shell which if you are sedentary in 20 degree weather it wont keep you warm without some adequate base layers. If I wear a silk layer and polypros it is great. I also bought a $10 fleece jacket from walmart that matches the green perfectly and makes a great liner for when it's really cold out. |
| I have had mine for over a year and it is holding up pretty good, being from SoDak I have to wear coats quite a bit of the year. The Velcro around the arm cuffs could be better, but I do cinch it down a lot compared to most people. The rest of the jacket is pretty tough, (i.e. stitching and zippers) I have worn it quite a few times with a PC and plates doing all sorts of stuff and so far it has held up really well under the stress of rolling around and being active. The stow-able hood is a nice feature and the side access pockets are positioned well for PC use. It does not have any real insulation but it is more of a rain/wind proof layer. I pair it with a first ascent down shirt and that is plenty for around 0 - 30 F, anything else I ditch the down. But take that for whats its worth, I may have a skewed sense of cold weather, I ditch any sort of coat above 35 - 40 if there is no wind. |
|
Quoted:
Five years now. Every zipper and velcro is intact and working great. The waterproof laminate is pretty much crap now. It soaks in water like any other fabric and gets wet on the inside. However, dry coldweather and snow it holds up fine. This is my experience as well. |
Armory Sponsor