Having trouble finding super warm mitts | |
ravisurdhar
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After looking through the Black Diamond, Cloudveil, Outdoor Research, North Face, Marmot, and Mountain Hardware websites, it seems like no one cares about mitts except for BD! They had great descriptions of their products, specifying the insulation, lining, and even temperature ranges. No one else seemed to do that! So now I'm hoping some people here can provide recommendations on a few mitts to try out this winter.
I'm looking for an insulated mitt that about one step down from the Himalayan style BD Absolute and OR Alti. Well, I'd ideally like that much warmth in a dexterous mitt, but I know that's not going to happen, so I'll trade a little warmth for a little dexterity.
It's mostly going to be used skiing in Colorado, but also on the occasional ice climbing trip, so waterproofing (Goretex or similar) would be good and windproofing is a must. A removable liner would be nice, as well as a nosewipe.
I'm currently debating between the BD Mercury and Fever, but that's mostly because I can't find out a lot about mitts from other brands. One thing that confuses me though is that the Mercury and Fever are both rated to -20F, but the Fever only has 5oz of synthetic insulation vs the Mercury's 10oz. The Mercury also has the same amount of insulation as the Absolute, so why is it rated to 20 degrees warmer than the Absolute?
Other mitts I was looking at were the Cloudveil Patrol (combo sythetic and down! awesome!), Outdoor Research Cornice, and North Face Mountain Guide. Marmot and Mountain Hardware also had a bunch listed on their website (Expedition and Randonnee for Marmot, Absolute Zero, Masherbrum, Spearhead, and Medusa for MH), but I couldn't find much about them on their websites.
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altmanator
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Hey ravisurdhar,
Something is up with the BD temperature ratings as the only discernible difference between the Mercury and Absolute is the use of Gore tex in one and BD dry in the other. There's no way this should result in the Absolutel being 20 degrees warmer.
We've got a BD contact we're going to get in touch with regarding the mittens because you've asked a good question and deserve a solid response.
Hopefully we'll hear back real soon and will post up a response as soon as we do.
Thanks,
Justin |
brettbrown
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I have the MH Absolute Zero Mitt. They are very warm. I keep them in my pack when ice climbing for real cold days to warm my hands between climbs. I have a size large and I lent them to a first time ice climber who had small hands and she managed to ice climb in them. |
ravisurdhar
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Hey altmanator, any updates? |
climbhigher
 Cred: 15937 Joined: Jan 06 |
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Hey,
I think Justin (altmanator) is out in the wild this weekend, but he will get back to you on Monday.
Matt |
marks
 Cred: 20957 (Admin) Joined: Mar 05 |
| Posted: November 15th, 2009 Edited: November 15th, 2009 | Quote, Reply |
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ravisurdhar said:
Hey altmanator, any updates? |
I actually contacted BD for Justin and sadly no update yet. If I don't hear anything by Monday I'll follow up. |
ravisurdhar
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Hey Mark and Justin, sorry to keep bugging you guys, but I haven't heard any updates yet... |
marks
Cred: 20957 (Admin) Joined: Mar 05 |
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Not at all. Your question is totally fair. I emailed two other people. I apologize about the delay. Having problems finding who knows more than what's on the page.
Thanks,
Mark |
marks
Cred: 20957 (Admin) Joined: Mar 05 |
| Posted: November 20th, 2009 Edited: November 20th, 2009 | Quote, Reply |
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ravisurdhar said:
Hey Mark and Justin, sorry to keep bugging you guys, but I haven't heard any updates yet... |
Here's the official BD answer:
"sorry, sometimes our website is a tad misleading, and may have a bit of wrong info on it. Basically, the Mercury is our warmest mitt that isn't an expedition mitt, followed by the Fever. The absolute is an expedition mitt, and is typically warmer than most folks need unless you are headed to AK or up Rainier (it is also therefore super bulky), etc. The Mercury mitt is our best selling mitt, and I would highly recommend this. Just google mercury mitt reviews and you will se a lot of good stuff.
I hope this helps, if you have other questions, feel free to let me know."
And yes I agree they really haven't answered the question to the technical degree I'd like to see as well though that does provide some information.
Another thing which I ran into while researching this is BD is good about replying to people's questions via twitter so if you want some technical follow up that might be a great place to try.
http://twitter.com/BlackDiamondUSA |
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