OUTERWEAR

[eleveneightnate]

In my old age, I actually get cold and I can't believe it but I am actually thinking about adding an insulated jacket to the quiver. Any feedback on the AB Beast 2l jacket? For reference I usually wear a Volcom L jacket in medium and like it or my Quiksilver Black Alder in a medium which is a little more slim and long than I like, especially since it only has a one way zipper which is a no go for me.

No experience with the Beast, but I had the L insulated and it was toasty. I also like 686's zonal insulation like they have in the Thermagraph.

[scrub]

@eleveneightnate the 80g of insulation in the Volcom may be too much which is why I was looking at the Beast with 40g but it is only critically taped.

[eleveneightnate]

@eleveneightnate the 80g of insulation in the Volcom may be too much which is why I was looking at the Beast with 40g but it is only critically taped.

Yeah that's why I sold the L, it was too freakin hot.

[kimchi]

External shovel blade carry on the Helipro 12L is disqualifying for me, YMMV.

I like my Whatvest a lot. Pricy, but I wanted a vest and higher visibility colors than the black of the Dakine and Volcom options-- I wish this colorway was available when I purchased lol.

I have about 20L capacity, but feel way more balanced than riding with a pack. Everything sits closer to my center of gravity, more pockets is useful, and the vest just distributes weight more evenly. Comfortable enough that I ride it cruising around inbounds on pow days. It's also my primary "pack" for splitboarding, I don't ride with a my ~30-ish L AK pack unless I have bigger objectives and feel like I need more gear.

Really interested to hear about your WhatVest. Which one do you have, the Full one or the Side Hustle? I am choosing between the WhatVest and the Volcom (had the original Dakine before). I am concerned that the WhatVest is too big/has too much capacity in the backpack section and not as streamlined. And how well does the internal hip belt work?

I want a vest mostly to always have my avy gear with me (for side country/slack country hits - if I am heading into the back country I will have a real backpack with proper harness/straps/etc.) and expect to mostly use the pockets on the front.

@kimchi Any comments on this? Appreciate anything you can share.

Whoops, missed this.

I have the Full Send. It definitely has more capacity than the Volcom Slack Vest. To me that was a bonus, since I use it touring as well as well as side/slackcountry. I'd estimate capacity is around like 22-24L on the L/XL size. Tight, but enough that I can carry essentials (water, food, small repair kit, and small first aid kid for mellower tours).

If you want the most streamlined possible option, I'd probably go Slack Vest. It looks a lot more minimalist. I don't have any issues with the Full Send on lifts with just my avy gear and the straps tied down FWIW. The waist belt anchors the weight super well, and there's some internal harnessing in the actual pack that keeps gear from bouncing around.

[sunokeru]

Really interested to hear about your WhatVest. Which one do you have, the Full one or the Side Hustle? I am choosing between the WhatVest and the Volcom (had the original Dakine before). I am concerned that the WhatVest is too big/has too much capacity in the backpack section and not as streamlined. And how well does the internal hip belt work?

I want a vest mostly to always have my avy gear with me (for side country/slack country hits - if I am heading into the back country I will have a real backpack with proper harness/straps/etc.) and expect to mostly use the pockets on the front.

@kimchi Any comments on this? Appreciate anything you can share.

Whoops, missed this.

I have the Full Send. It definitely has more capacity than the Volcom Slack Vest. To me that was a bonus, since I use it touring as well as well as side/slackcountry. I'd estimate capacity is around like 22-24L on the L/XL size. Tight, but enough that I can carry essentials (water, food, small repair kit, and small first aid kid for mellower tours).

If you want the most streamlined possible option, I'd probably go Slack Vest. It looks a lot more minimalist. I don't have any issues with the Full Send on lifts with just my avy gear and the straps tied down FWIW. The waist belt anchors the weight super well, and there's some internal harnessing in the actual pack that keeps gear from bouncing around.

Thank you, super helpful. Slack Vest it is - I already have Burton Dispatcher pack (https://www.burton.com/us/en/p/ak-dispa ... 27971.html) at the 25l size point (and love it - really compact/streamlined, well thought compartments, useful straps) for short day tours. So want something sleeker for ad-hoc side country hits on resort days.

[kimchi]

Also @sunokeru , I think you mentioned something about external shovel carry on the Slack Vest. Older versions of the Slack Vest had "Exterior Shovel Blade Holder" advertised (example. The current Volcom site for the 2023 says it has an " interior blade pocket". Not sure if they changed the wording or changed the marketing, but FYI.

[sunokeru]

Also @sunokeru , I think you mentioned something about external shovel carry on the Slack Vest. Older versions of the Slack Vest had "Exterior Shovel Blade Holder" advertised (example. The current Volcom site for the 2023 says it has an " interior blade pocket". Not sure if they changed the wording or changed the marketing, but FYI.

Cool, thanks. Suspect that was just a lazy copy writing/copy & paste job - elsewhere in the same ad it mentions the "interior blade pocket"...

Small edit: One of the previous versions had external storage for the shovel blade but at least for the last couple of years the blade has been in the zipped pocket.

[ZeroK]

In my old age, I actually get cold and I can't believe it but I am actually thinking about adding an insulated jacket to the quiver. Any feedback on the AB Beast 2l jacket? For reference I usually wear a Volcom L jacket in medium and like it or my Quiksilver Black Alder in a medium which is a little more slim and long than I like, especially since it only has a one way zipper which is a no go for me.

I have the Beast 2L. Fit is pretty TTS, maybe a touch smaller (both slimmer and shorter) than Burton for reference. It's a good level of insulation, light enough that it's comfortable with vents open up to ~35F for me, and warm enough to go without a mid layer down to single digits. My only complaint is the plastic cuff closures are finicky

[Jean77]

In my old age, I actually get cold and I can't believe it but I am actually thinking about adding an insulated jacket to the quiver. Any feedback on the AB Beast 2l jacket? For reference I usually wear a Volcom L jacket in medium and like it or my Quiksilver Black Alder in a medium which is a little more slim and long than I like, especially since it only has a one way zipper which is a no go for me.

I have the Beast 2L. Fit is pretty TTS, maybe a touch smaller (both slimmer and shorter) than Burton for reference. It's a good level of insulation, light enough that it's comfortable with vents open up to ~35F for me, and warm enough to go without a mid layer down to single digits. My only complaint is the plastic cuff closures are finicky

So currently riding a Quicksilver Travis Rice jacket size medium. I'm able to buy an Airblaster sasquatch 3l jacket. Now you guys said it has a slimmer fit?
I'm 178cm and a somewhat slim guy myself.
Should I opt for the medium or large?
I do like to have a "baggy" fit tho

[scrub]

I have the Beast 2L. Fit is pretty TTS, maybe a touch smaller (both slimmer and shorter) than Burton for reference.

So currently riding a Quicksilver Travis Rice jacket size medium. I'm able to buy an Airblaster sasquatch 3l jacket. Now you guys said it has a slimmer fit?
I'm 178cm and a somewhat slim guy myself.
Should I opt for the medium or large?
I do like to have a "baggy" fit tho

The last time I tried a medium Burton AK jacket (velocity anorak) it was huge and I had to return it. My Volcom L Jacket fits nicely on the larger end of medium and the Quiksilver fits smaller (but it is a few seasons old). I hate getting my picture taken but I think this may help?