Description of Columbia Snowline Softshell Jacket - Men's:
Snowshoeing and cross country skiing can be hot and stuffy experiences in a hardshell, which is why Columbia made the Men’s Snowline Softshell Jacket with a breathable, stretchy softshell fabric. Columbia gave this jacket a water-repellent coating so the Snowline won’t soak up light flurries like a kitchen sponge, and a zippered chest pocket keeps a granola bar close by when you feel your energy levels decreasing.
First let me say that I'm a huge fan of Columbia in general. I feel like most of the time you get 90% of the features for 70% of the price, and the quality has always seemed excellent to me.
Now, about this jacket...I wear a size 'medium' in pretty much everything (I'm 5'10", 32" waist, 40" chest). So when I decided to order this jacket I of course ordered a 'medium'. To my surprise it was pretty snug all the way around, and especially in the arms (I was wearing a T-shirt and light sweatshirt underneath). The cut was also quite short (meaning it just barely reached the top of my belt in the back). I sent it back and ordered the 'large' instead. The 'large' fits exactly how I expected the 'medium' to.
Quality seems excellent, the features are well thought out and it looks nice. I'd definitely recommend.
Great jacket. reasonably warm. Nice long cut in the arms and fairly slim fit overall. It is cut large in the waist but not nearly as large as the north face apex series. The drawstrings do a good job closing the gap and do not bunch up the waist too much. Impressed at the water repellency as well. went snowboarding with it and it shed melted snow as well as rain. Love this jacket
Good enough soft shell specially for the price. Wind and water resistant enough. Should be good to use for 3 seasons. A little stiff specially around the neck. Used it for climbing in -2 to -10 C weather last weekend and it was adequate with just a mid weight base layer if you are on the move. Was climbing offwidths and no scuff marks on the jacket. Not stretchy enough to be a good climbing jacket but I guess it was not meant to be used that way. This will be my beater jacket.
