Reviews by User: mafisto (4)

I'm actually blown away by the build, quality and feel of these Axiom pants, which is not something I can be commonly heard saying. The corduroy is extremely soft and flexes / stretches whenever stressed. These pants are perfect for casual clothing, but if circumstances require you to be more athletic, they work with you like a fine pair of bouldering pants. I'm really very impressed; this is my first Blurr purchase, but it won't be my last.

In other words, excellent. Functionality: Pure merino wool, and it shows. This is a midweight layer, but I can wear it out in the field or in an overheated garage in the same day and feel just as comfortable. The thumbloops are brilliant, keeping your sleeves from bunching up and create seamless protection with gloves. Appearance: Lovely dye job. Icebreaker's mid and heavy weight wools tend to pill with a lot of abrasion, so either protect them or decide not to care. Quality: Icebreaker currently makes the best merino wool in the world. Seams are overbuilt, wear points are reinforced, and the materials are top notch. Overall: 4 stars.

I usually expect the best from Arc'teryx, having owned their harnesses, packs and outerwear for over a decade. So I was a bit surprised at some of my impressions of the Fission LT. Build quality appeared average, with the collar abrading my delicate white neck, loose threads dangling in a few places and the fit being wildly wrong. I had to double check a few times to make sure the tag said "Medium" and not "Large", as it fit like a size larger. Arc'teryx clothing usually fits me like a glove. On the plus side, the jacket was very warm, and appeared to be windproof for the few hours I wore it. I'm guessing that this was an aberration, as every other experience with Arc clothing has been superior, so I returned it with no hard feelings.

Functionality: The Vortex is certainly functional, as it is made of Smartwool's high grade merino wool. It wicks, breathes and warms like wool. It is rather thin, so don't expect too much in the thermal department, but transitions nicely between activity and the street. Appearance: This is a shirt to show off, first and foremost, so for those of you looking for a simple base layer this is not the ticket. The blue/black I ordered is a beautiful azure, and has gotten several favorable comments in the last few weeks. The ladies love it. Quality: Smartwool consistently makes high quality clothing. I would not put it quite on par with Icebreaker, but the attention to detail is certainly here. Overall: 4 stars, way above average clothing.