Katabatic Gear Tin Cup Down Jacket Review

The Katabatic Gear Tin Cup Down Jacket is a premium hooded down jacket that’s a step down from a parka but considerably warmer and bulkier than most three-season down or synthetic backpacking jackets. It’s a good jacket to bring on cold-weather hikes or early spring and late autumn backpacking trips for hanging out in camp, but it is too bulky and warm to be worn for active use or for sleeping under a quilt or in a sleeping bag.

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• Mfg Spec Weight: 14.7 oz Men’s XL (women’s model available)
• Actual tested weight:
• Fill weight: 6.7 oz
• Insulation: 850 fill power ExpeDRY down
• Fit: Athletic (I had to size up from a large)
• Shell: 20d Pertex Quantum Eco
• Liner: 20d Pertex Quantum Taffetta
• Hood: 1-way adjustable
• Stuffable in a handwarmer pocket: Nearly, but not intended for that
• Pockets: 4 (two zippered hand warmer pockets, two drop pockets)
• Construction: Sewn thru with box baffling on top of hood and shoulders only

The Katabatic Gear Tin Cup Hooded Down Jacket is a very warm down jacket insulated with 850-fill power water-resistant down that is best used as an outer layer in camp or when you take a break during a cold day on a hike or backpacking trip when temperatures drop below freezing. It’s a cross between a full-blown parka and the type of lightweight down jacket that you’d carry for warmer three-season use: it’s too short to be classified as a parka and a bit too warm and bulky to augment sleep system insulation unless you run very cold.

The Tin Cup is a finely crafted jacket with a high-quality 20d Pertex Quantum shell and liner, and a beefy YKK zipper. It has four pockets: two zippered handwarmer pockets on the exterior and two long drop pockets in the interior. There are stretch cuffs at the wrists to seal in the heat and a hem adjustment at the upper thigh to prevent drafts from below.

While the jacket has a sewn-through construction, the top of the hood and shoulders (only), are box baffled for extra warmth, although the rest of the construction can leak cold air through the seams. The perimeter of the hood is a loose-fitting elastic, although there is a rear volume control to adjust the amount of air that must be warmed when wearing it.

While this is adequate, our preference is for hooded jackets that have neck controls that let you adjust the size of the front opening to prevent drafts from entering around the sides like the Feathered Friends Eos or the Montbell Ex-Light Down Anorak, which are comparable to the Tin Cup in weight and applicability but are significantly more expensive. The problem with rear volume controls is that they pull the sides of the hood back from the face when tensioned, reducing the hood’s head coverage, an effect that is particularly pronounced for people with smaller heads.

The Tin Cup is insulated with 800 fill power ExpeDry Down, a new chemical-free water-resistant down treatment that helps prevent humidity from degrading down insulation and accelerates the drying process by bonding down clusters with microscopic amounts of gold. You can read about it more in this ExpeDRY white paper from Allied Feather. Its most significant claimed performance benefit is resisting humidity buildup in down baffles, such as those used in sweater-weight down jackets, where perspiration will reduce down’s ability to retain heat. However, that application isn’t relevant in the Tin Cup Jacket, which is too warm to wear for active use.

Recommendation

The Katabatic Gear Tin Cup Hooded Down Jacket is a very warm down jacket suitable as an outer insulation layer for winter hiking, camping, or backpacking. Super comfortable and warm, it’s a cross between a parka and a lighter-weight down jacket that you’d use in three-season weather or to augment a sleep system with additional upper-body insulation. It has a good feature set and superb construction, in addition to being very competitively priced. It’s best suited for people who get chilled easily during rest breaks or in camp in cold weather and want a jacket that provides extra insulation and warmth.

Disclosure: Katabatic Gear donated a jacket for review.