I was introduced to this new specialist clothing line at Outdoor Retailer Summer Market by Graham of Cilo Gear. The NW Alpine Military Mountaineering Collection weighs in at just 102 oz, consisting of five pieces, a hardshell jacket, salopette, baselayer salopette, insulated pants and an insulated jacket. Made in the USA at their factory in Newberg, Oregon, all pieces are Berry Compliant.
Dyneema® Jacket
Based on their award-winning Eyebright Jacket climbing shell, this is a waterproof MultiCam Dyneema® Jacket.
Crafted from ultralight Dyneema® Composite Fabrics, featuring fibers that are fifteen times stronger than steel, this full-zip shell takes durability to a new level. Its small size, weighing in at approximately 8 ounces, packs down into a fist-size bundle, allowing you to carry more of what you need.
While many waterproof jackets kill breathability, the MultiCam Dyneema® features a highly breathable, proprietary construction and ePTFE eVent membrane that tests at over 50,000 g/m2. In other words, with this jacket, overheating on hours-long training runs is a thing of the past. Each jacket is individually laser-cut, sewn and seamtaped by hand.
The Jacket in these photos is a Large. It is cut for layering.
Salopette
For those of you unfamiliar with the term ‘Salopette’ it’s a generic term for climbing pants. They can range from a high waisted pant, to a traditional bib-style, to a one-piece which resembles a sleeveless coverall. Salopettes are worn by climbers as they cover more of the lower back, and help avoid cold spots when jackets ride up. Likewise, these are an evolution of NW Alpine’s one-piece salopette bib for alpinists. They use a waterpfoof/breathable softshell fabric, with the durability and abrasion-resistance of Tweave Durastretch® fabric in a comfortable fleece-lined package. A through-the-crotch zipper with three pulls allows easy access to the facilities while wearing a harness. It’s finished with zippered chest pockets, dual thigh pockets, Dyneema® scuff guards and knee pad pockets.
Baselayer Salopette
Designed to work in tandem with their Salopette shell, this 270 gsm fleece baselayer features three pulls along the through-the-crotch zipper to make using the facilities a breeze.
Belay Jacket
Featuring 133 gram Primaloft insulation, this durable jacket provides the perfect balance of warmth, weight and packability. The shell fabric is a Nanosphere coated 1.55oz ripstop nylon with a light 20D nylon taffeta for the liner. Features include an adjustable, helmet compatible hood, adjustable hem, zippered hand warmer pockets, chest pocket and internal stretch pockets to store gloves and other accessories.
The jacket in these photos is a Medium.
Alpha Pant
They use Polartec® Alpha insulation for this pant because of it’s superior breathability. The shell features Tweave Durastretch® panels along the sides of the legs and wrapping behind the knees as well as Dyneema® scuff guards, in addition to waterproof and breathable Dyneema® fabric in the seat. Three quarter zips up the side make on/off easy, even when wearing boots.
While versions of this system have been in the field for some time with select customers, NW Alpine introduced the production system in time for End of Year spending.
The collection is available until September 30th, 2017 at an introductory price of $3,500, with free shipping in the USA.
www.nwalpine.com/pages/military
Tags: NW Alpine
That Belay Jacket looks legit…Any idea if they will sell these in individual pieces? and what MSR will be? I saw what the civi version is listed for… fairly reasonable.
It reminds me of the Beyond Alpha Jacket…
Hi Matt, Bill from NW Alpine here. Unfortunately we don’t have a timeline for when these will be offered individually. We’re hoping in the next year or so but there are a number of factors in play that will effect that. The Belay Jacket is a nice piece! This one will definitely be more expensive than the civi version due to the materials costs being significantly higher. Thanks!
awesome to hear from the man himself ! thank you, and looking forward to seeing the product line develop further. Good things to those who wait….
If I am remembering right, isn’t dyneema notoriously hard to dye? I’m assuming there is a Nylon face fabric laminated to the dyneema/eVent fabric? This would also explain the weight difference between the eyebright and the MC version.
You are correct
Is the system designed to be used with any other base layers such as underwear or a t-shirt, or is it as bare bones with only the salopette?
Big fan, looks well thought out.
Good question! Depending on how cold it is I’ll generally wear boxer briefs and a light t-shirt, merino or synthetic depending on the activity, and again either long sleeve or short sleeve depending on temps. We chose not to add basic baselayers as there are many options out there. If there was interest in a baselayer offering we’d definitely be keen to explore that however.
That Belay jacket looks legit. I would definitely be interested if it is sold as a stand alone piece.
Ive worn the system and its next-level for serious MACWO, hands down. Jetsons fabrics.
Some things want a little tweaking to be competitive for tactical use but the more use and feedback the better to nail it.