The "Millennium Falcon" of ultralight rain jackets - NORTHERNLITE Superlight Rain Jacket

First imressions

I gathered some basic information about the jacket beforehand. They were not lying, the jacket really promises to be top-notch in terms of waterproofness, ventilation, breathability, and weight. When the package arrived, the weight of the jacket immediately received the “great” rating! We are not talking about a simple “rain jacket”, but a piece of equipment that you can use to hike in the rain for days, and compared to that, 260-270 grams is absolutely good value. Very comfortable to wear, practical layout, underarm ventilation, pockets, adjustable hood… it was designed by someone who spends weeks in rainy and/or snowy places in the wilderness.

Black… I don’t like this color at all for hiking gear, but this is a prototype now, I got over it. It will be available in several other colors later.

I usually wear a size M, and when hiking I like my (rain) jacket and outerwear to be loose enough to move comfortably and even be able to wear a sweater underneath. Since Finns typically have a more “Viking” build and size, I thought their size M would be just what I needed. It fit, as you can see in the photos.

Details

Size: M

Weight: 258 gramm (own measurement) / 270 gramm (official)

Material: PU-coated fabric

During use - design, materials

Two-way zipper, which is waterproof, just like the two breast pockets. Easy to use, even with gloves. The breast pockets are surprisingly large, designed for long-term wear. Their insides are closed with mesh material towards the body, so ventilation is well ensured. The armpit zippers are long enough, also two-way - good air flow is a particularly important aspect for me. During the winter test hikes, there was rain, there was snow and the coldest use was around -10 in Börzsöny (mountains in Hungary), but I never sweated in the jacket, and it never got wet!

According to the technical description, the jacket, made of PU-coated material, is designed to remain waterproof without the need for quickly wearing out “breathable” treatments. Unlike traditional raincoats, which lose their waterproofness after a while (often within 30-40 days of backpacking), the Superlite remains permanently waterproof for a long time without the need for DWR treatment. I haven’t been able to max this out yet, but after nearly 250 km of use, the experience is encouraging.

The jacket is primarily designed for UL users, for whom not only weight is important, but also extreme durability and usability. There are lighter jackets, but very few that have such a favorable weight-to-technical parameter ratio! What does this mean?

The 260 grams comes with 20,000 mm of water resistance, meaning the material can withstand a water column pressure of this size without letting water through.

The Nortehrn Lite jacket also has strong breathability, with a RET < 3. This is a very good value, measured in Scandinavian test labs and tested beyond the Arctic Circle. It is worth talking about this a little more scientifically, as it is at least as important as water resistance in terms of comfort and usability.

All seams of the jacket are welded, meaning the seams are completely sealed with a plastic strip. This is a critical part, as many lightweight jackets lack this or only partially have it.

Since I have struggled with sweating heavily on hikes in my life, I had a new experience that I had never had before: in Börzsöny and the Buda Hills, I was able to wear a raincoat while backpacking on multi-day hikes without sweating much or at all! Whether in the rain or just because of the test.

I didn't believe it at first, but after several times I had to admit that this was a technical development I had never seen before.

Extra

All zippers are easy to use even with gloves, and this also applies to the two-way underarm vents, which, in addition to the above, provide extra comfort and adjustment options for ventilation (I used these too, so the described outstanding vapor permeability and breathability are understandable!).

In addition to the usual narrowing, the hood can also be adjusted to the width of the face, which can be very useful for larger hair or wearing a hat.

Drawstring bottom: I had the opportunity to use it in a stormy wind on Csóványos and it felt really comfortable to narrow it from the open position to the closed state.

A cikk folytatódik a hirdetés után...

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The material is moderately loud - this may be an unusual aspect, but it is important to me because of the bushcrafting. It does not rattle too loudly, especially in windy, stormy weather, but it can be heard in calm, rainy weather.

Recommendations

I recommend it primarily to those who are looking for a rain and wind jacket for traditional or ultralight hiking in more extreme conditions. The material is durable and surprisingly strong for its weight, so I also recommend it for bushcraft use with careful use.

It is also good for running and cycling, and in addition to its technical parameters, it performs well in these activities. The cut may be the most problematic here, since it was designed for hiking, so it has a little “extra” bulk, which gives a more floating feeling. It doesn’t bother me during training, but I wouldn’t wear it for a competition.

I don’t recommend it (but only because of the price) for simple hiking and activities where surface load may be regular (airsoft, paintball).

  +   liked

• weight
• waterproofness
• breathability
• ventilation
• hood

  -   disliked

• erre csak a színt tudom mondani, nem szeretem a fekete felszerelés az erdőben

  *   proposal

• hordózózsák (bár a zsebébe könnyen el lehet csomagolni, így ez nem olyan nagy probléma)

Hivatalos videó

Technical summary 4.9