UKC

Quite fancy one of these, but not the price.

Does anyone have something similar for less money?

Do Decathlon / Simond do anything like it?

In reply to MtnGeekUK: i have a me shroud i think which may be cheaper power stretch panels plus polartec 100. the new paramo base layers look very good too. allmost anything will be ok IF it fits! i wear a balaclava.....

In reply to MtnGeekUK: It seems everyone is making a competitor these days. I just got the Rab MeCo hoody for reviewing for example - from the harsh testing ground of trying it on in the UPS depot car park after going to pick up the parcel, I can say it's lovely, although RAB are making one in polartec fleecey base layer stuff as well which will be closer to the R1 than the MeCo merino.

If you have a friend in Canada, this is the cheap option http://www.mec.ca/product/5026-604/mec-t3-hoodie-mens/ I've had one for years - its great, but the material is a bit lighter than the R1. I've had a non-hooded R1 for even longer and its really the perfect midlayer. Hoodies are very trendy right now, but the hoodless version + a hat works jolly well too!

In reply to MtnGeekUK:

Thanks for your replies so far.

Toby - so annoying - my BiL cames back from 18 months in Canada two weeks ago.

Grrrr!

In reply to MtnGeekUK:

I'm sure he's got a mate then!

Hasn't the C$ been going up in value though anyway? So they might not be the steal they were once anyway.

I tried a ME Shroud on some years back and at the time it had huge "wings" under the arms, a really bad cut. I bet they've improved that since though. But there Eclipse hoody does look great - rave reviews from the OGL and they do really thorough reviews http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/Fleece-Jacket-Reviews/Mountain-Equipment-Ecli...

In reply to TobyA: 'their', not 'there' obviously.

Taking care with typing: it the difference between knowing your sh#t, and knowing you're sh#t.

In reply to MtnGeekUK: rat race did have some good deals on last years ME eclipse and some places were doing r1 pullover a while ago for £50 ( last season colours). I have a mammut kala patar tech hoody which is very similar which I got for £70 from LD mountain sports not long ago which I think is about £40 off the normal price. Having had the eclipse and the r1 I can say that personally I prefer the mammut in terms of the fit , design and looks. Performance wise I guess there all about the same really

In reply to MtnGeekUK: Berghaus Smoulder hoody £50 http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/a109654/smoulder-hoody-ii-fleece-jacket-ca...

In reply to MtnGeekUK: R1 hoody bargains at countryside - a few of last years versions of R1 hoody - paintbrush red is still in medium!

In reply to MtnGeekUK: Quite a few lightweight hooded fleece tops in this review: http://www.ukhillwalking.com/gear/review.php?id=5306

In reply to TobyA:


Great call.

And while I'm here; +1 for the Smoulder, slightly heavier grade than the R1 and more robust IMO.

In reply to MtnGeekUK:

I've an old R1 hoody and a new ME eclipse. The R1 is showing it's age a bit (split seams, zip falling apart, a couple of holes) but has been a fleece I've lived in for the last 4 years.

The Eclipse is a thinner fabric fabric so I'd assume it's not quite as warm but haven't felt that in practice. It's fit (for me!) is better and the hood far superior. The R1 hood left a few patches that seemed to rub raw and I don't think this'll happen with the Eclipse. I've not used it for a winter though so some of this is speculation. It did get the American Alpine Guide award for best product though!

In reply to MtnGeekUK:

Anyone seen the Lowe Alpine CS Hoody?

http://www.lowealpine.com/aleutianr-cs-hoody-men-s

Lowe Alpine having recently returned to the clothing market.

In reply to captain paranoia: I remember looking at the LA stealth hoody which looked good, very thin grid fleece but full zip. Half zip looks even better