MONTANE APEX 8000
DOWN SUIT
REVIEW
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THE MONTANE APEX 8000 DOWN SUIT IS THAT RARE EXCEPTION – A DOWN SUIT DESIGNED FOR 8000m ALPINE CLIMBING. OBVIOUSLY THERE’S LOTS OF 8000m SUITS OUT THERE, BUT ALMOST ALL OF THEM ARE MADE FOR COMMERCIAL ASCENTS WHERE TECHNICAL CLIMBING IS BASIC AND CAMPS ARE SUPPLIED WITH A LARGER LOGISTICS MODEL LAUNCHED FROM A WELL SUPPLIED BASECAMP. ALL THAT GOES OUT THE WINDOW WHEN THE ROUTE IS STEEPER, LONGER, COLDER AND MUCH MORE REMOTE THAN MOST OTHERS.
THIS SUIT COMBINATION IS WARM; A COMBINED 800g OF 850+ DOWN PLUS ABOUT ANOTHER 60g OF PRIMALOFT IN THE BACK AND TOP OF THE SALOPETTE IS A LOT OF INSULATION. THIS MAKES THE APEX SIGNIFICANTLY WARMER THAN SUITS DESIGNED FOR COMMERCIAL TRIPS BASED AROUND HAVING BOTTLED OXYGEN THAT CAN HAVE 15% LESS DOWN AND/OR LOWER FILL POWER DOWN, AND IS WHY THE APEX CAN ALLOW A MORE STREAMLINED LAYER SYSTEM UNDER IT.
THE APEX 8000 IS NOT THE LIGHTEST SUIT, BUT BY BEING A TWO PIECE IT NEGATES THE NEED TO CARRY A SEPARATE JACKET AND IT CARRIES BETTER WITH THE SALOPETTE DEEP IN THE PACK AND THE JACKET ON TOP READY FOR USE – IRRELEVANT FOR MANY 8000m CLIMBERS BUT STANDARD FOR THE STOP-GO NATURE OF ALPINE ASCENTS.
WE SEARCHED LONG & HARD FOR THE RIGHT DOWN SUIT FOR THE NORTH RIDGE OF K2, APPROACHING SEVERAL COMPANIES AND TRYING SEVERAL SUITS. SOME SEARCHES LEAD TO DEAD ENDS AND OTHERS JUST DIDN’T HAVE WHAT WAS NEEDED FOR TECHNICAL HIGH ALTITUDE CLIMBING, BEING FINE FOR BIG COMMERCIAL-STYLE ASCENTS BUT NOT FOR THE SORT OF TRIPS LIKE THE NORTH RIDGE OF K2. JUST AS WE WERE RUNNING OUT OF TIME & OPTIONS, MONTANE ROLLED OUT THEIR NEW APEX 8000 SUIT AND IMMEDIATELY WE COULD SEE THIS WAS INTERESTING.
PREVIOUSLY WE HAD USED TWO-PIECE INSULATION SETS ON K2 & BROAD PEAK, FINDING IT A BALANCE OF PRO’S & CON’S COMPARED TO A ONE-PIECE. SOME OF THE ISSUES WE FOUND WERE COMMON TO ALL SUITS – ONE, TWO OR THREE PIECE – SO WHEN IT CAME TO WHAT WE WANTED WE KNEW THERE WAS ALWAYS GOING TO BE COMPROMISE & ACCEPTANCE IN SOME FORM, BUY MONTANE HAS GONE A LONG WAY TO ADDRESSING THAT.
WHAT WE LIKE ABOUT THE APEX 8000 SET IS HOW TECHNICAL CLIMBING SPECIFIC IT IS. UNLIKE SOME CONTEMPORARY SUITS THAT HAVE BECOME EVER-MORE COMPLEX AND TRICKED OUT TO APPEAL TO AN INSTAGRAM-ORIENTED MARKET THAT ONLY NEEDS TO JUG FIXED LINES, MONTANE HAS GONE THE OTHER WAY AND STREAMLINED EVERYTHING; ONLY THE NECESSARY SIMPLE POCKETS, CLEAN & SIMPLE HOODS, CUFFS & VENTS THAT ARE SIMPLE & SEAMLESS, SIMPLE & STRAIGHTFORWARD DETAILS. YOU WILL NOTICE THE TERM ‘SIMPLE’ FEATURES A LOT THERE, AND THOUGH THE CONSTRUCTION IS FAR FROM THAT, THE RESULT IS A SUIT THAT DOESN’T NEED A RELEARN TO LIVE IN.
IN THE PAST WE HAD FOUND THAT TWO-PIECE SUITS COULD HAVE ISSUES WITH INTEGRATING. THOUGH THEY ARTICULATE BETTER, VENT BETTER & FIT BETTER THAN ONE-PIECES, TWO-PIECES OF THE PAST HAD A WEAK POINT AROUND THE WAIST WHERE THINGS CRUNCHED TOGETHER WITH HARNESSES & HIP BELTS. MONTANE HAS RESOLVED THIS WITH A GOOD OVERLAP THAT HAS LITTLE BULK AND IS WELL SUSPENDED FROM THE INSIDE BY BRACES & STRETCH CORDS AROUND THE HEM AND MID-RIFT. A HARNESS CAN GO EITHER UNDER OR OVER THE JACKETS TAILS WITH THE SAME DEGREE OF SEAMLESSNESS AS A ONE-PIECE.
AND OF COURSE THERE’S THE WEIGHT. THE COMBINED WEIGHT OF THE TWO PIECES IS ABOUT THE SAME AS A ONE-PIECE (LESS THAN SOME), BUT THE LOW BULK AND 850 FILL OF THE JACKET MEANS IT SERVES WELL ENOUGH AS A STANDALONE JACKET TO BE THE ONLY ‘BIG’ INSULATED JACKET YOU NEED ON A TRIP. THIS MEANS ABOUT 500g LESS YOU NEED TO CARRY UP THE GLACIER AND A HELLUVA LOT MORE PACK SPACE LEFT FREE ON THE LOWER HALF OF THE ROUTE. THAT’S PROPER DOUBLE-DIGIT PERCENTILES THERE.
THIS SUIT IS, WE THINK, A LITTLE OVER-BUILT AND BRISTLES WITH FEATURES THAT ARE NICE BUT WE DONT THINK ESSENTIAL LIKE HAND WARMER POCKETS AND ZIP FLAPS; THEY CERTAINLY HAVEN’T KEPT THE WEIGHT DOWN BY EXCLUDING ANYTHING. THINGS MONTANE HAS DONE EXCEPTIONALLY WELL IS MINIMIZING VELCRO THAT WILL ONLY CLOG WITH ICE, GETTING THE ZIPS TO REALLY WORK EASILY, ESPECIALLY THE PIT ZIPS, AND REDUCING CONVECTION INSIDE THE SUIT WITH CINCH CORDS AND A NECK BAFFLE.
OVERALL THIS IS A SUIT MADE TO PERFORM AT HIGH ALTITUDE, NOT JUST FOR BASIC CLIMBING BUT FOR THE COMPLEXITIES OF ALPINE ASCENTS THAT REQUIRE A GREATER DEGREE OF INSULATION, VERSATILITY AND MOVEMENT THAN A STANDARD ONE PIECE PROVIDES.
THROUGH OUR RELATIONSHIP TO SPECIALIST EQUIPMENT SUPPLIER BRIGANTES WE CAN ARRANGE MONTANE APEX 8000 SUIT SETS FOR FEEDING THE RAT EXPEDITIONS TEAM MEMBERS AS PART OF OUR TEAM DISCOUNTS.
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