When we went looking recently for a field jacket that could take some abuse, physical and weather-related, and still keep us warm without weighing us down, we settled on the Eddie Bauer Convector jacket. One big plus: we love us some Primaloft One synthetic insulation, a benchmark for the industry, and the Convector is packed with 60g of the good stuff, covered with Eddie's StormRepel DWR coating for excellent weather resistance.
The Convector is reminiscent of those old army liner jackets, but oh-so-much better. It's got a moisture-wicking liner with just a little stretch built in, a full length zipper flap, a microfleece chin liner with zipper garage, and a nice high neck. There is extra reinforcement in form of Cordura patches on the shoulders and arms, perfect for hunters who need to shoulder a firearm or lie in the prone.
We ended up wearing the Convector most days this spring, and it's great across a wide range of temperatures; for active pursuits, Eddie says it works down to -5F. We think that's pushing it a bit, but we run cold and it was still fine at 15F as long as we were moving. If you're not working too hard, it's a versatile piece that can be worn open when the temps are in the 50s.
Overall we love the Convector. The only things we'd change would be the pocket setup. The two zippered handwarmer pockets are capacious and fine, but the inside zippered chest pocket should be migrated to the outside so you don't have to open the jacket to get to your wallet. Also, the open top dump pocket on the right side is perfect, but the one on the left starts at the top of the jacket and goes down for two feet while only being about six inches wide. If you drop something down that hole you're taking the jacket off to get it back out. But all in all, the Convector has become our go-to piece when abuse by either man or mother nature is in the forecast.
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