I live in San Diego so don't need a heavy jacket. In winter months I'm good with a fleece jacket/vest and on really cold days I have a Columbia lightweight rain jacket to put over it.
Not sure about "perfect" since clothing is pretty subjective but I have a TAD Rouge RS and Beyond Clothing x Grey Ghost Gear Rig Light that get a ton of wear. The Rouge RS is quickly becoming my favorite light jacket though. Sent from my LG-H918 using Tapatalk
I like the look of some of the rougher leather jackets, but when I try them on, well it just doesn't feel right. Unfortunately. Like others have said, there is a perfect jacket for each use-case, so to limit the scope a little, I will narrow the term EDC down to everyday normal life, which normally doesn't present larger challenges than commuting to work, driving the kids to their different activities and some occasional work related travel. I'm very much into layering, so I prefer my jacket to be a single layer outer shell. Since my everyday challenges doesn't require much from my jacket, my requirements are comfort, breathability, wind protection and fire resistance. As I'm not able to make friends with leather jackets, my requirements more or less narrow my choices down to cotton based shell jackets. I used to wear a Klättermusen Einride jacket in 100% organic cotton, but after loosing some weight it just didn't fit right anymore, so I sold it. These jackets has become crazy expensive, so I just couldn't justify getting a new one. The jacket I currently wear almost every day is the Fjällräven Skogsö jacket. It is a compromise, as it is a cotton/polyester blend, but it is still very resistant to heat. It also has better pockets than the Einride, and I was able to buy it new for less than I got for my old jacket. I like it very much, and with some layering I can wear it comfortably for all but the coldest days. It might be too outdoors oriented for some, here in Norway, dress-code isn't much of an issue, so for me it's not a problem even for work. There are off course days were this jackets fall short, but I have a thing with jackets so my options are plentiful There is usually a backup suitable for the season in my backpack as well.
My gf got me the Blackhawk field coat for Xmas and I really like it.. Thin, comfortable and able to layer underneath but not so thin you freeze to death.. Patterned after the m65 field coat but more refined Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
I've tried lots of different brands - Columbia, LL Bean, Carhartt etc. All good but the last real winter coat I bought was in 2010 and I Haven't felt the need to change it yet - still very warm and functional. TNF Summit Series 3 in 1 jacket, similar to the picture but 7 years old now. Still in great shape. Mild NC winters help; it probably only sees use for 3 or 4 months per year. Now that camping season is almost here my wife heard my complaining my Columbia rain shell is peeling, ripped and in need of replacing. So she got me a TNF for the rain, complete with pit zips. Nice and light. Hopefully it holds up as well as the other.
I just got a Columbia Omni heat packable jacket. It's really light weight but man is it warm. I got it only for travel/hiking as I prefer something with a tougher shell (I'm a project manager and on construction sites all the time) but this is perfect for a just in case jacket
NorCal person here so many jackets and my collection has been years in the making. It seems my tastes run on the stupidly expensive side so I've had to buy off-season, hunt on ebay, and lucky enough to be in San Fran and Seattle/Vancouver BC when the clearance sales hit and the deals are there to be had. For really cold weather EDC I wear the Aether Highline, as it gets warmer the Aether Northener -- just love the cut on these jackets. For milder dry weather I like the Filson Cruiser and Filson Short Cruiser. For wet weather I cycle between the Tad Gear Predator, to Arcteryx Leaf Alpha, to Arcteryx Veilance Field Jacket, or a Westcomb Shift LT (love that Polartec Neoshell and one of these days I will get the Tad Gear version). My most prized jacket is an old school Tad Gear Anorak, the seam tape is already off but everything else was a advertised when it first came out and still going strong -- toughest jacket out there.
I've been enjoying my ex officio FlyQ jacket. Carriess good EDC load discreetly. Comfortable. Not for heavy weather or rough conditions. But great for civilized conditions and carry.
I think it's really hard to select my perfect jacket since every jacket that I had owned had seen different use. But I think my EDC jacket will be the Condor Summit Tactical Soft Shell Jacket, which is basically a superb rip off from the TAD gear ranger hoodie, which I would love to have. Picked up the condor jacket over the TAD gear after seeing the review on the Nutnfancy Project and numerous other review sites. Jacket may not be the most well made as compared to my ArcTeryx LEAF Alpha jacket (Gen 1), but for the price, it's really worth it for EDC. Good number of pockets to stash light items, slightly fleeced lined for some extra warmth in Spring and early Autumn. For harsher winter months, it will be either the ArcTeryx LEAF Alpha jacket or the Northface Zeus triclimate jacket over a polartec thermal high loft fleece. For the ArcTeryx LEAF Alpha jacket, it is just a thin flimsy outer waterproof shell that have zero warmth but that jacket had lasted me about 9 years and is still as good as day 1. Had it sent back to ArcTeryx to mend some of the goretex seams 2 years back. Really awesome outer shell when worn over other warm fleece.
I have a Scott-E-Vest Brad Thor Jacket I use for the colder weather.. And I have a really nice Patagonia Fleece zip up my work gave me for my 5 year anniversary I usually take everywhere when I travel. It is light and packable..
Just picked up what I am hoping will be my ultimate EDC jacket. Patagonia Nano Air Hoody. Synthetic active insulation packs down to and weighs nothing. Wind and weather resistant, more so than I expected. Comfy with a t shirt under it from 35F up to 65F(for a bit). Feels like a sweatshirt on. Threw on the my RAB neoshell hard shell and it was toasty at 30F standing around. Here in Colorado it can be jacket weather any morning and shorts by noon, the jacket weather after dark. I wanted something I could get to work in and lose into my pack. It layers great and should keep me happy in the Backcountry with the shell for bad weather. Looked the Arc'teryx Atoms and some others. Liked the Voormi Confluence as well but ended up with the patagucci since I got a deal. Really surprised at the comfortable temp range on this thing so far. May make shedding layers and applying them a thing of the past. Though I live my RAB primaloft vest, super handy. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk
I have 2 perfect jackets. Well... 2 perfect jacket systems, that is. For work and as an easy to throw on beater I love my vintage surplus Alpha Industries M65 with the quilted liner. I wear it most days, to be frank. But when I need something nice and warm, I layer a 30oz wool Asbell pullover, my Wrangler denim rider jacket, and my Filson cruiser. It provides me around 52oz, give or take, of wool for insulation and the denim acts as a windbreaking layer. I waited ten years for my Cruiser and I love it.
The most versatile and well-made spring/autumn jacket I've ever owned is my Duluth Trading Co. Force Nine waterproof/breathable jacket. This jacket has plenty of pockets, arm-pit zippers for ventilation, and a comfortable yet tough fabric that is built to last. It is now known as the Alaskan Hardgear Force Nine Jacket.
my favorite, best jacket is my NorthFace Venture jacket. living in the South Florida climate, it handles all my needs. packs small & light, waterproof and in my opinion looks great. for the "cold" weather i wear a hoodie underneath
RPMWEST Original Quarter Century Jacket in slate. I picked one up in a Massdrop, it's a perfect 3 season jacket (Fall/Winter/Spring). Made in USA, 25 year guarantee, plenty of pockets, casual yet stylish enough for wearing with dress pants/suit.
I'm still looking for it! (ask my wife about all of our closets full). I've come close a couple times, one time real darn close, and I wore those jackets out to threads. Live in Colorado so the weather can do absolutely anything...in any given month or day. I've seen it go from snow, to wind, to rain, to bake...to rinse and repeat all in a single day, and not just a couple times either. It's not uncommon to see the temperature here swing 70-80 degrees in a 24 hour period year round. It can be 50F during the day and -20F the same night, or 100F during the day and 20F at night. It can rain, then blow, then bake your socks off and then snow (or any permutation thereof). This is why so many people die of exposure in the Rockies. And, this is why clothing, like jackets, is not just a casual endeavor, but rather a "science" of self preservation. I think the closest I've come to the perfect jacket was one I mentioned in another thread. It was a Solstice Goretex parka shell. It was pretty close to the best of all worlds. You could zip a fleece into it (many brands fit), or you could just wear the shell. It breathed when hot, and had pit zips to stay cool when exerting yourself, but then you could zip up when back idle again (great for climbing). It was 100% water"proof" (I'm talking like driving / pouring rain for days on end...water"proof"). It was big enough you could layer underneath it, but not so bulky to get hung up on stuff. It had reinforced cordura elbows and shoulders which resisted hard-core abrasion (like on rocks and the like, or with packs and harnesses, which are brutal on jackets over time). All of that, and it was light too. Never found anything like it since. I don't think they're in business anymore (sadly), so unfortunately I can't replace it...and it's pretty much shot. Most jackets are set up to deal with one element and only one (i.e. wind, or rain, or cold, or hard use). Finding one which will do all of those in one garment is pretty difficult. Like I said, I came close once with the Solstice and it got worn and used well past its service life to the point where it was just flat worn out...and even then it would still provide pretty good service (better than most). So the search goes on. P.S. I "use" my gear, and I use it hard. I take great care of things, but they definitely get used and are expected to really 'work', not just look the part. There's a lot of people running around in Colorado wearing some pretty great gear they scored from Goodwill on account of it not being able to cut the mustard with me. That, and the closets full of ones who came and saw, but couldn't quite get the T-shirt.
