Mountain Hardwear Cohesion Jacket Review

A few weeks ago I posted about the new cohesion jacket that I ordered off of the REI.com sale page.  The jacket arrived and over the past week I have used it enough to give my initial thoughts on it.

My biggest struggle in finding a good rain shell has been the weight and breathability of the jacket.  I live in Florida and the heat and humidity but I also want something durable enough for hunting and shooting in matches.

So far I do believe I have found a winner.  I put on the jacket one evening and walked around the neighborhood, while I was a bit stuffy it honestly breathed and vented better than expected.

The jacket has several nice features, it does include pit zips a must in my book

A nice front pocket and 2 side pockets, all are in user friendly locations

There is a single mesh pocket on the inside.  Overall the jacket is well designed.

How does it repel water?

To see for myself I suited up and jumped in the shower for 5 minutes, the jacket did as expected and kept me dry. 

*Note to Self* Zip up the 2 hand pockets in the rain, I left these open and had some water get through.

Overall I am very happy with this jacket, especially for the price you can drop a lot more on a rain shell but this one should serve me well.

Mountain Hardwear Cohesion Jacket

I have struggled for years to find what I think is the ideal rain suit, for me it needs to:

– Be lightweight and Packable

– Breathe

-Good fit, not baggy and bukly

– Be somewhat durable –My wife says I am a bull in a china shop and I am rough on my gear.

-Protection from the elments

-Affordable

I have probably gone through half a dozen different shells in the past couple of years.

Unfortuantely the stuff I really want Sitka or Arc’teryx is out of my budget.  In a back issue of the Huntin’ Fool Bryan Martin suggested the Mountain Hardwear Cohesion Line as a more afforable solution for a good hardshell set.  Further research saw that Lance Kronberger also suggest that line, that was proof enough for me.

Luck would have it that rei currently has the jacket listed in the outlet for $110 http://www.rei.com/product/807988

Last week happened to be my birthday so I had a little extra spending money.

The jacket is currently in the mail and will be here next week