MontBell Superior Down Review

The MontBell Superior Down offers high-quality production at a reasonable price. Using 2.5 oz of 800 fill down, this jacket provides excellent warmth for its weight. That being said, it is lightweight and best suited for high-activity outings where there's a greater emphasis on the weight than on the warmth.

Performance Comparison

Warmth

This Superior should be considered a lighter piece of insulation. The 2.5 oz of 800 fill down makes it warm for the weight but it's fairly thin. This makes it great for evening strolls or as a sweater-style layer but if the weather really drops then it's best to have additional layers.

The elastic cuffs, the cinchable hood, and the pocket hem adjusters helped batten down the jacket while doing early morning hikes in the Flatirons. These features trapped warm air into the jacket and kept our testers cozy while moving. However, they're not enough if facing extreme cold.

Many of the jackets in this review have a 650 to 800 fill-down. Having 800 fill and above means that the jacket has some very high-quality down. This makes the jacket lighter and warmer for the weight. The Superior Down's high-quality down adds to the warmth.

Weight

The size medium, which we weighed at 8.6 ounces, is one of the lightest jackets we tested. The jacket doesn't have much fill in it, which keeps it light as well.

This jacket's low weight was achieved by utilizing high-quality down and simple sewn-through construction, the stitching of the down does through the outer shell and directly to the inner lining, reducing weight and cost but at the cost of warmth. The jacket also uses a 10-denier ballistic nylon ripstop outer which is also very lightweight. The thinness of the outer shell keeps the jacket sleek. The overall feel of the jacket runs more along the lines of a fleece jacket than a down jacket.

Water Resistance

Montbell helped battle the elements of this jacket by using 10-denier ballistic nylon ripstop outer as well as a DWR (durable water repellant) treatment. Denier relates to the thickness of the fibers in the fabric. A single silk strand equates to one denier. The Superior Down has a relatively low denier, making it lighter but also more prone to soaking through. That's why Montbell added the DWR treatment, this helps prevent water from saturating the jacket's exterior and making it soggy and heavy. The treatment isn't the same as having a full rain jacket though. It helped repel early morning rains in Rifle, Colorado but when the afternoon thunderstorms rolled in, the jacket started to take on water.

Down features some natural hydrophobic properties and the DWR treatment helps keeps this jacket a bit dryer but ultimately if there's heavy precip in the forecast, it's best to bring a heavier rain jacket.

Comfort

The Superior Down fits well with a classic, slightly boxy cut. The shoulders felt a bit narrow and the tapering torso, which comes in a bit short, made overhead movement in the jacket slightly difficult. The arms fell at a decent length and the fit of the jacket as well as its thinness made it easy to wear under a heavier shell.

Our testers really enjoyed wearing this piece around town as a lightweight hiking, or backcountry jacket. It has a sweater-like weight and warmth level. The high-quality down felt good and they liked the way the piece fit. They did find that the jacket rose a bit when making overhead movement though.

Compressibility

A big part of a jacket's ability to compress comes from the quality of its down. The Superior Down with its thin 10-denier nylon ripstop outer, scrunches down to near burrito size, making it one of the smaller jackets that we reviewed.

The jacket comes with a separate stuff sack which some of our testers liked. It can be easier than trying to cram a jacket inside of itself. However, it means having to remember where the stuff sack is and keeping it handy. The jacket had strong compressibility, especially for a piece that comes with a separate stuff sack. Most of the jackets that don't compress into their own pockets tend to be bulky so our testers liked that aspect.

Features

This jacket has some solid features considering the price tag. The two zippered hand warmer pockets feature ample space for storage. Inside of them are the draw cords for the hem which help prevent cold air from wafting into the garment and from letting warmth escape. Inside the jacket are two sizeable drop-in stash pockets. The interior pockets are perfect for a pair of thin gloves.

The hood comes with a few bits of adjustability which help battle cold air from coming in. Elastic pulls, which sit on the inside of the jacket near the chin, cinch the hood close. A Velcro tab on the back of the hood helps pull the volume of the jacket and keep the hoods out of the eyes. Our testers found this feature a bit frivolous and the Velcro didn't feel secure. A different closure for this, maybe another cinch cord or even just leaving the hood scuba style could have cut weight and made it simpler.

Should You Buy the MontBell Superior Down?

The Superior boasts great value with its low price. The high weight-to-warmth ratio and the jacket's compressibility make it an excellent choice if you want a comfortable, sweater-warmth jacket with good features, at a reasonable price.

What Other Down Jackets Should You Consider?

The Montbell Superior Down is a strong contender in the down jacket market. Our testers like the high quality down and the low price. Paying more didn't get our testers a significantly better jacket so we considered this to be one of the better options on the market. However, if you have more money to spend, the classic Patagonia Down Sweater offers higher performance and the Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer/2 offers a bit of a lighter jacket in a similar vein.