Oros Gambit Jacket Assessment | GearJunkie

Outdoors of the tent, I might hear the snow falling. Daylight was gone, the temperature had dropped, and I’d left my Jetboil again within the truck a few mile down the snowy street my companion and I hiked in on. And with out the Jetboil, our dehydrated backpacker’s meals had been ineffective.

So I reluctantly stepped into my insulated snow pants, stuffed my toes into my Sorrel boots, and swaddled myself with the Oros Gambit jacket. I actually didn’t need to go away the consolation and security of our winter shelter. However there was no avoiding it if we wished to eat.

I stepped out of the tent, prepared to begin operating. However regardless of the air temperature now hovering within the center teenagers, I felt fairly heat. The Oros Gambit jacket was a good barrier between me and the chilly air. It was trapping my physique warmth inside it, making the stroll to the automobile extra leisurely than I’d anticipated.

The Oros Gambit jacket feels comparably heat to my Patagonia Nano jacket. However it has a wind-resistant, waterproof, breathable outer layer and no down, artificial insulation, or fleece lining inside it. As a substitute, Oros hangs its hat on proprietary insulation referred to as “SOLARCORE,” a composite aerogel the model claims provides “extra heat in a a lot thinner bundle than conventional insulations.”

Briefly: The Oros Gambit jacket ($340) is heat, waterproof, and notably slimmer than many down jackets of comparable heat. And, like artificial insulation, if the SOLARCORE throughout the Gambit will get soaked, it can nonetheless maintain you heat. It doesn’t pack down like down or artificial insulation. Neither is it almost as light-weight — actually, it’s downright heavy. However, almost a decade since its inception, Oros stays within the first technology of SOLARCORE. The founders say they’re addressing these points for future iterations.

And actually, the Gambit is slimmer wanting than most down jackets. However so far as insulation goes, SOLARCORE nonetheless has room for enchancment in the case of weight and compression. I wouldn’t make this my major jacket for snowboarding, touring, or winter backpacking. However for neighborhood walks, commutes, brief winter hikes, working exterior round the home, and even going out in town, it’s an sufficient outer layer.

This isn’t a parka for sub-zero temperatures (although it weighs as a lot as one). However it does the job for many informal winter actions, which is strictly what it’s marketed to do.

Oros Gambit Jacket Assessment

Discovering SOLARCORE

In terms of insulation, down is king. It has been since Eddie Bauer created the primary jacket encased with feathers in 1936 and patented the design underneath the title “skyliner.” Down traps warmth inside air pockets that stop warmth from transferring out of a jacket.

The expertise blew each different insulation out of the water on the time. Wool, cotton, leather-based, fur — none of them might compete. Down has remained on the prime of the rostrum ever since.

At the same time as various artificial insulations like Primaloft, Polartec, Thermoball, and others have appeared on the scene, down has remained a favourite insulator as a result of, within the easiest phrases, it’s simply heat as hell.

It does have drawbacks, although. If it will get moist, it loses its insulation properties. If it’s compressed, these air pockets exhale their warmth, and the jacket loses its heat. And tightly-woven cloth usually encases it so feathers don’t leak out, decreasing breathability. That outer materials is often skinny and could be susceptible to ripping.

Michael Markesbery is the co-founder and CEO of Oros. And in his aesthetic opinion, down jackets at all times look cumbersome and awkward. He calls it the “Michelin man downside,” and he needs to seek out an alternate.

SOLARCORE Expertise Examined

The Gambit Jacket makes use of SOLARCORE panels strategically positioned on the torso and arms to maximise insulation with out minimizing mobility or limiting breathability. Vents and pit-zips enhance passive and energetic airflow for air flow.

“Each insulation that’s ever existed because the starting of time, no matter business, has wanted bulk or air house to work,” Markesbery instructed me. “That isn’t true with aerogel, thereby not true with SOLARCORE. For the primary time in historical past, you possibly can have a skinny quantity of insulation that truly provides you important thermal worth.”

I used the Gambit jacket all through that two-day winter tenting journey, on many cold-weather canine walks, brief day hikes, out round city, and even for a day snowboarding.

For many of these makes use of, it was an sufficient jacket. Nonetheless, I discovered there have been each execs and cons to the SOLARCORE insulation — one thing different GearJunkie testers have observed as properly.

Water Resilience

SOLARCORE insulates even when it’s moist. Down received’t do this. Artificial insulation will. But when artificial insulation will get compressed (whereas it’s moist or dry), the trapped air pockets get squished, and it loses its insulating properties.

SOLARCORE will preserve its insulating properties regardless of how moist you get it or how a lot you attempt to compress it.

And in contrast to many down or artificial insulation jackets, the outside of the Gambit is DWR waterproofed. So you would put on it whereas it’s snowing exterior or in gentle rain and keep good and dry.

I didn’t get to put on the Gambit in any critical rain. Though I wore it in some fairly moist snow, the waterproofing held up. Regardless that the seams aren’t seam taped, the DWR end does its job.

Michelin Man Downside

Simply as Markesbery had hoped, SOLARCORE insulation solves the majority subject he noticed with down insulation. The Gambit is a slim-looking jacket that’s straightforward to put on round city. It accompanied me on many days out operating errands, assembly buddies for dinner, and going to and from work. It’s a heat jacket that doesn’t make you look or really feel like a marshmallow.

For the file, that side of down jackets has by no means actually bothered me. And to be truthful, most down jackets I put on for informal winter actions are fairly low-profile.

Nonetheless, for anybody who’s bothered by the “Michelin Man downside,” as Markesbery was, the Oros Gambit is an efficient various choice.

Match

I believed the jacket match me properly. The shoulders weren’t tight, the arms had been an excellent size, and the again of the jacket lined my butt (a fantastic function for any winter jacket). The form is a little bit boxy, nevertheless it leaves sufficient room to layer beneath it.

Nonetheless, I observed once I went snowboarding that the hood doesn’t match over a ski helmet, and the jacket received’t zip all the way in which up should you’re sporting one. It’s the identical subject our different tester observed in 2016 when he took the Oros SOLARCORE Parka snowboarding.

Breathability

SOLARCORE is just not very breathable by itself. That makes it a fantastic wind blocker, nevertheless it additionally means you couldn’t make a whole jacket out of it. Understanding that the Oros crew designed the Gambit jacket with a lot of air flow between the SOLARCORE panels stitched into the shell.

On the again, between the shoulder blades, there’s a giant open vent. Two pit zips present much more air flow. And the liner of the pockets is mesh, bettering airflow much more once they’re open.

This was nice for brief hikes the place I labored up a sweat or heat days strolling my canine once I wished extra air flow. However sporting the jacket on the ski slopes, the again vent (which is the most important) consistently dumped my warmth. And it doesn’t shut. So once I acquired on top of things, chilly air rushed in, forcing out any heat the SOLARCORE insulation was trapping.

Packability and Weight

Whereas tenting, I rapidly realized that the Oros Gambit jacket is just not a packable piece of substances. Sure, it saved me heat once I ventured out into the chilly after that Jetboil. It was additionally well-ventilated on a brief hike the subsequent morning.

However once I wished to stuff it into my backpack, it took up as a lot room as my Marmot Lithium 0-degree sleeping bag. And the Gambit weighed greater than the bag — SOLARCORE is a heavy insulator.

Against this, my Patagonia Nano jacket stuffs right into a pack that’s already stuffed to its brim. It weighs only a handful of ounces. It isn’t waterproof just like the Oros Gambit. However even when I mix the Nano’s weight and packability with a rain shell, it’s nonetheless lighter and extra packable than the Gambit.

That is undoubtedly the largest disadvantage to SOLARCORE expertise.

However, Markesbery says Oros is engaged on addressing that.

“The heartbeat of Oros is a crew referred to as Oros Labs. It’s a crew of textile, mechanical, and chemical engineers devoted to creating the subsequent technology of thermal supplies,” Markesbery stated. “And this crew has spent the final 4 years creating our subsequent technology of SOLARCORE.”

SOLARCORE: Does it ship?

The Oros web site describes the Gambit as “comfortably within the center” of the model’s jacket lineup. One of the best makes use of for it are listed as “commute [and] hike.”

And the perfect temperature vary specified for the Gambit is 25-55 levels Fahrenheit. I don’t usually put on an insulated jacket when it’s a lot hotter than 40 levels. However for the 25-40-degree spectrum, this jacket will serve you properly on commutes and hikes. I’d be overheating if I wore it in 40-55-degree climate.

So, the Gambit does ship on Oros’ guarantees. Nonetheless, SOLARCORE has a protracted method to go earlier than it dethrones down or artificial insulation. It definitely has potential. The Division of Protection noticed sufficient potential in it to incorporate a $7 million line merchandise within the 2023 Omnibus Appropriations invoice for Oros to develop SOLARCORE for army functions, in accordance with Markesbery.

That’s most likely why he’s so assured they’ll be refining SOLARCORE and bettering on its weight and packability points whereas ramping up its insulative properties.

The DOD is a giant investor to have behind your product. Till these points are addressed, although, you received’t see technical mountaineers carrying SOLARCORE merchandise with all of their light-weight gear.

Oros Gambit Jacket: The Ultimate Phrase

For anybody in search of an insulated jacket that may look good round city and serve you properly on most informal adventures and funky climate actions, the Oros Gambit is a superb choice. Its SOLARCORE insulation is heat and slim wanting, retains its insulating properties if moist and compressed, and blocks wind properly.

It’s too heavy and unpackable for top vitality output or extra technical actions. When you want a light-weight jacket that you may stuff right into a climbing, backcountry snowboarding, or winter tenting backpack, this most likely isn’t the jacket you need.

However who is aware of? Finally, it is likely to be. As Markesbery stated, the Oros labs crew is working onerous on bettering SOLARCORE insulation in all of these areas.