- In this video, we are going to be taking a look
at the Montbell Plasma 1000 jacket.
It is seriously lightweight - I mean really.
It is ultra light and we're really excited
to dive into all the details in this video.
I'm Tom, the Founder of Pack Hacker,
and we love helping people optimize
their travel experience with guides
and reviews just like this one.
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Let's jump right into the
Montbell Plasma 1000 Down Jacket review.
[upbeat music playing]
First of all, the lightweight nature of this jacket
is incredible and it is hard to match
with other jackets on the market.
I mean this thing is so lightweight
it basically just floats in the air.
Our medium size comes in at just 4.8 ounces,
and that's about half the weight
of our previously reviewed Patagonia Micro Puff Jacket.
And that's pretty incredible
when you can cut the weight in half
and pretty much still get the same warmth
out of the jacket.
At the time of this review, the Montbell Plasma jacket
is available in three different colors.
We have Primary Blue as the first,
then we have Black and Garnet,
which is pretty much a red color.
Now we're not sure why it's called Primary Garnet,
or Secondary Blue, or Tertiary Black,
but that blue is Primary Blue.
From a branding perspective you're going to have
one Montbell logo on the front of the jacket.
Overall we think the aesthetic is pretty good -
we would typically go with the black jacket for travel
just because it's a little more subdued,
especially in an urban environment. However, for this one,
we wanted to check out the blue and see how that felt.
Overall, we think this jacket is pretty slick,
but aesthetic taste is always in the eye of the beholder.
So we polled our Instagram audience over at Pack Hacker.
So be sure to go follow us if you want to be involved
in future polls. We'd certainly appreciate it
'cause we love getting the general consensus
for the look on things from a bunch of different people
versus just kind of my own opinion
and our team members' opinion, 'cause we find that data
really interesting. So, be sure to go follow us
over @packhacker to get involved in that for the future.
The nylon is Montbell's Ballistic Airlight nylon -
which according to their website,
uses a highly technical production process
to create extremely fine, super thin threads.
These threads are then woven into ultra-light,
gossamer fabrics that share the same characteristics
as ballistic - one and a half times
more abrasion resistant than other similar weight fabrics,
and it boasts three times the tear strength of nylons
that are almost 20% heavier.
We haven't really confirmed and tested the tensile strengths
side by side with others,
'cause we don't wanna ruin the jackets that we have.
However, in our two months use of durability testing so far,
it's held up well and there's not a lot of aesthetic dings
and/or holes forming across the jacket.
So - so far, so good.
One thing to consider about most jackets in this category,
is that they typically sacrifice lightweight for durability.
So they use lighter-weight materials,
that maybe aren't quite as strong
but still kind of hold up pretty well,
and then they really kind of hone in
and drive in on just keeping it lightweight
and very warm for the size that it is.
Since we typically try to travel as lightweight as possible,
overall we think this is a good trade off,
and we take a little less durability for more lightweight.
Wrapped inside of that 7D nylon
is 1,000 fill power goose down.
Fill power is a measurement relating to the volume
in cubic inches that an ounce of down will fit into.
A lot of top-shelf jackets will typically use 800 to 900,
and that's plenty. However,
Montbell really pushed it with 1,000 in this jacket
and the warmth-to-weight ratio shows.
Just a quick note on the down that Montbell produces -
they only utilize down plumes
and feathers collected as a byproduct of water fowl
raised to meet the demands of the food industry.
So the treatment is about as humane
as it gets for down feathers.
We understand that some people
may not want to use any goose feathers,
and that's completely fine as well.
If that's the case for you,
we recommend taking a look at our reviews
on the Patagonia Micro Puff,
and the Patagonia Nano Puff.
Both of those jackets are lightweight, highly compressible,
and they use synthetic down, like PrimaLoft,
which is a pretty good warmth-to-weight
ratio fabric as well.
All of these materials come together
and the jacket kind of feels like a plastic bag
or something like that. There's a bit of crinkle to it,
and it feels like a little stiff in some areas -
you can just hear how it sounds.
[jacket crinkles]
This isn't the most positive thing,
but an observation nonetheless.
The exterior is coated with DWR,
which is going to help with that additional weather resistance.
However, if you do plan to wear this in inclement weather
or heavier rain, we definitely recommend
grabbing a rain shell that you can wear over the top
of this on the outside, as this thing
isn't really meant to be a rain jacket
and it will soak through and start to affect the down,
unless there is a layer above it to repel the moisture.
A durable, #3 YKK zipper
has been selected for the main zipper,
and it's lightweight and strong as well.
So a great choice from Montbell there.
Lastly, there is a very unique sewing pattern
on this jacket as well.
They implement as little threading as possible
to keep the down in place, but also stay lightweight.
This actually adds up to quite a bit of thread
and stitching when you're considering
the entirety of the exterior of the jacket,
so a lot of thread is saved
by strategically knitting like this
and it locks the warmth in as well.
The excellent warmth-to-weight ratio
is what makes this jacket really great
for extended one-bag travel.
After testing, we found the ideal temperature range
to be from about 35 degrees, to 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
With the right layering strategy
this could be your only jacket
that you take with you on extended one-bag travel,
if you have enough clothing to layer with it as well.
It can get you through the coldest temperatures.
At the base we have one Wool & Prince
Merino Long-Sleeve Crew Neck.
Then we have the Icebreaker Long-Sleeve Shifter hoodie.
Then the Montbell Plasma jacket.
Then for any rain or inclement weather,
the Patagonia Storm Racer.
Overall this jacket is a trimmer fit.
I typically wear a medium
and all my clothes are pretty fitted.
So medium works well even with all those layers underneath;
however your mileage may vary.
If you like to wear baggier clothes
be sure to account for that in your layering strategy -
might be good to go a size up
higher than you normally would.
The end of the sleeves feature a tapered,
elastic end to help lock the warmth in
and keep the sleeve in place.
Also to note, there is a piece of slightly stretchy,
paracord-like material that you can use
to hang the jacket up on a hook,
or just anywhere else that you need to store it.
The jacket is compressible via the
included stuff sack that we have here.
However, it is not attached to the jacket,
which is not ideal for storage
or keeping these things together.
Some other jackets of this size,
and this compressibility, will also self-stuff
into a pocket. However, the Montbell Plasma 1000
doesn't even have any pockets to do that in,
and you can't even really hack it either.
And you heard that right - NO pockets on this jacket at all.
Having pockets on a jacket is nice,
especially if it's your exterior layer.
Now if you're wearing this as a mid-layer,
not as big of a deal; but on the exterior
it's just nice to have pockets.
It's good if you want to keep your hands warm
or just store additional items in there.
But this is the trade-off you get
for the extreme, ultra lightweight
that Montbell is going for here.
They don't have to use two extra zippers
for pockets on each side,
they don't have to reinforce with extra stitching
and extra fabric. So, that's a trade-off
that you're going to get with a jacket like this.
At the time of this review, I've been testing the
Montbell Plasma 1000 for about two months of on and off use.
The great thing about using a jacket like this
is the extreme light weight.
And the actual down at the 1,000 power fill
kept me really warm as I was using it.
It's super helpful for packing light,
and especially great if you have an
exterior rain shell to use as well.
Not much to report in terms of durability issues.
And even with that lighter-weight fabric,
so far the jacket has held up well
and hasn't really gotten snagged on anything.
There's really no small holes forming,
or things that need repair, or any fraying
or anything like that. So very happy with the quality
of this so far in the testing.
So to wrap this thing up with some pros and cons -
this is one of the best, warmth-to-weight ratio jackets
out there on the market today.
It is highly compressible and lightweight,
which is great for one-bag travel.
The design is very considered
and it's been great to see Montbell's strategy
on how to keep this thing lightweight.
Moving on to some of the cons -
it is not self compressing which means
you need a special stuff sack,
and you have to keep track of that
and your jacket, which isn't ideal.
There are no pockets on this thing,
but that's a concession that's been made
to accommodate for lower weight.
The less heavy-duty material requires more gentle care
than that in some other jackets.
Overall, Montbell really pushes the technology
on what a jacket can do, with their Plasma 1000 down jacket.
It's extremely lightweight,
with a good warmth-to-weight ratio.
Sure you can get away with a slightly heavier,
less compressible, and cheaper jacket.
However if you are really looking to optimize space
and weight, the Plasma 1000 is an excellent choice.
Thanks for taking a look at our review
on the Montbell Plasma 1000 Down Jacket.
Be sure to head over to packhacke.com/newsletter,
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We'll see you in the next video.
Jacket ... serioutsly ... serioutsly [laughing]
No jackets on this pocket!?
Put your hands in to keep them warm when they're not in use ...
[laughs] ... hands are in use.