There are a few new products from Mountain Equipment this year. Scroll down to see what’s what.
K7 Jacket
The K7 is an expedition down jacket designed to get the balance between warmth, weight and packability. It has plenty of down contained in the windproof and water resistant Drilite loft outer fabric making ideal for tough conditions. The down is 800FP and it has lots of pockets, including a water bottle pocket so your water doesn’t freeze. The K7 really is a jacket to rely on for winter alpinism or expeditions to the arctic or greater ranges.
Transition Jacket
Mountain Equipment have made a Transition Jacket before, but this is a complete redesign which bears very little resemblance to the old one, bar its intended use, which remains similar.
It has a lightweight, breathable outer to keep you comfortable and your movement unrestricted. The insulation is breathable Polarloft synthetic insulation again chosen for it’s breathability as well as warmth and low weight.
The alpine fit makes it ideal for layering and it packs into its own pocket which has dual loops for securing it to a harness. It’s a versatile mid layer, ideal for aerobic activities such as ski touring, alpinism and walking.
Ogre Pack
Back in Spring we did a few blogs on Mountain Equipment’s excellent new Tupilak pack. We though it was great, though a little on the pricey side. Now, based on the Tupilak, but at a much lower price point they’ve brought out the Ogre. It’s available in 42 and 33 litre versions. We’ll post a review of the Ogre later on, for now here’s a run through of it’s features.
It keeps the same Grappler buckle found on the Tupilak and can also be completely stripped, removing up to 280g. Alongside this it has all the features you’d expect from a top alpine climbing pack including a spacious zipped lid pocket, zipped security pocket, side compression straps, a removable EVA composite back panel, 38mm webbing hipbelt with removable High Density EVA moulded hip-fins and dual axe retainers with an integrated pick pocket.
G2 Alpine Glove
The G2 Alpine Glove joins the G2 mountain pant as part of Mountain Equipment’s winter mountaineering range. Like the pants the G2 Alpine Glove features a Gore-Tex Windstopper membrane for complete windproofing and excellent weather resistance. The outer materials are Exolite 210, a stretchy softshell fabric which again gives good protection from the wind, and a Goatskin leather palm. They have a brushed tricot lining for dexterity and warmth along with the expected pre-curved fingers and thumb and adjustable wrist closure.
Notably they do have a low price point considering that they are a pair of winter gloves with Gore Windstopper, though they do rely on the tricot lining for warmth. But at £60 RRP and £51 from facewest they are a great value pair of winter mountaineering gloves which can be relied upon.