There are a handful of big players out there making true alpine jackets. Jackets like these are meant to repel the kind of weather that Ernest Shackleton might soberly reflect on in a long-faded diary excerpt. When the wind is howling and choked with side-ways snow, or when you’re high on a ridgeline and the sky opens up to dump down all the water of the heavens, life is much better in a true alpine jacket. They’re not easy to make though, since each weakness has a real effect when the weather is sour enough. 7Mesh has earned a strong name for itself in the world of mountain biking soft goods in recent years, and recently launched into the world of alpine clothing. I’ve spent the past few months testing out their new Guardian Apex jacket, and I have some thoughts on this dark horse.
7Mesh Guardian Apex Jacket Features:
- 360 articulated patterning for free movement
- Versatile fit for layering
- CrossPull Hood with Stowaway Snap
- StashSystem
- Adjustable cuff opening compatible with or without gloves
- One-handed glove-friendly hem pull cords
- Harness Friendly Hand Pockets
- Underarm Vents
- Double Headed Slider / Two Way Zip
- Internal storage pocket
- Weight: 330 grams (as weighed on my scale in size Large)
- MSRP: $600
Not Quite Apex Yet
When it launched, the Guardian Apex Jacket rolled out with product images of athletes wearing packs with rope and ice axe strapped to them, and donning full alpine getup. Their copy alluded to the jacket being a do-anything, multi-sport shell designed for the alpine. Its price? $600. It was an entry into the market with great confidence, confidence the company earned through so many successful pieces in the MTB space. Still though, the $600 price tag casts a shadow even on the directly comparable Arcteryx Beta SL, which sells for a still-staggering $500. Pricing like that demands perfection.
I’ve spent 3 months testing the 7Mesh Guardian Apex jacket, and I’ve spent my time across a few key activities. I’ve been hiking a fair amount, splitboarding, and searching with limited success for ice to climb here on the coastal side of the Cascades (soon, I’m sure). My testing has not included any mountain biking, though I’m sure many other testers have thoroughly covered that front, given 7Mesh’s background.
Across those different activities, I’ve found that some things work really well and others could bear some improvement. The first and arguably most significant win of the jacket is the material. The GoreTex ePE fabric is very lightweight and wonderfully waterproof. It never soaked through on me, even on a 5-hour snow, sleet, rain bush-whacking mountain mission. Honestly, it would’ve been excusable if it had soaked through that day, but no. In spite of the abuse, it not only kept me dry, but remained intact without even a pin-prick hole. The material is a win.
Storage for the jacket is good enough too. Two zippered outer pockets and one zippered inner pocket are sufficient for a lightweight jacket like this. No gripes regarding overall storage capacity. In fact, I think the convertible pocket on the inside which you can stuff the jacket into is particularly clever for its attachment setup. When you stuff the jacket into its own pocket for storage, it not only has your typical clipable loop, but also has a couple of elastic loops with tidy buckles to allow you to strap the stowed jacket to the handlebars of your bike or to the outside of a pack. It’s a clever idea, and 7Mesh executed it well too.
Where things start to break down for the jacket for me is the scale of certain features. The zipper pulls, for instance, are all tiny. They don’t have any significant bump to them, and their rubbery coating is slippery when wet. All of this adds up to some frustration in the rain and an increased need to take off gloves in the cold. And while zipper pulls are easily replaced (let’s ignore the fact that they shouldn’t need to be on a jacket of this price), other tiny bits like the hood adjustment pulls or the snap buttons really can’t be. I can’t help but feel that minimalist aesthetic was prioritized here over alpine practicality.
I feel the same way about the cuff straps and the zippered vents. Both are small. The former is more difficult to grab with gloves as a result, and the latter is traceably less effective for its diminutive length. Breathability is, of course, an equation with a few variables, and open ventilation is just one of them. Thankfully, the GoreTex ePE does a great job with ventilation on its own, but that doesn’t cover the full need. When membranes like GoreTex get wet or are used in more humid environments, they’re less breathable. In scenarios like this, open ventilation really matters, and the Guardian Apex doesn’t have much of it.
My final thought on the Guardian Apex surrounds its hood. With a background in mountain biking, 7Mesh is used to accommodating some large helmets. This hood can do that, certainly. What it isn’t as great for is a good old fashioned head, sans foamy exoskeleton. While the CrossPull hood adjustment system is effective in tightening down the hood, it is both restrictive and rather uncomfortable against the nape of your neck. When I wear the hood over my bare head, I find myself turning like Batman, all shoulders. The CrossPull setup just sits too rigidly for me to be fully mobile.
So, I have some notes on the 7Mesh Guardian Apex jacket, at the end of the day. For alpine purposes, I don’t think it’s quite polished out, and therefore probably not sufficiently justified in its price tag. But with that said, I do think that this jacket is just a few minor tweaks away from greatness. With a hood redesign, larger vents, cuff straps, and zipper pulls, and perhaps a slightly trimmer cut, this jacket would be an alpine wonder. It has all the right base ingredients. As for the current version, I won’t be taking it on my big mountain adventures.
Fit: I’m 5’11” and a lean 170 pounds, and I typically wear size large shells, which is what I tested here. The jacket’s sizing accommodates many layers. I would’ve tested a Medium, if I could go back in time.
Buy Now: Available at 7Mesh
The Bottom Line
Less Alpine
This jacket represents a lot of hard work by the 7Mesh team in their initiative to make a multifunctional and alpine ready shell, and it has a bunch of excellent attributes. The materials and construction are spot on, and the weather protection shows it. That said, many of the details of the jacket are small and non-glove-friendly, like the zipper pulls, cuffs, and hood adjustments. I’d also like to see a hood design that prioritizes neck mobility and larger vents. This jacket is suitable for many, many applications, but it’s not a perfectly polished alpine shell just yet.
The Good:
- GoreTex ePE is water tight and super light
- Packs down wonderfully and stuffs neatly into its own pocket
- Very accommodating for multiple layers
- Adequate zippered pocket storage
The Bad:
- Zipper pulls are small and slippery when wet
- Cuff tabs are small
- Vents are small
- Hood adjustment is rigid, restricting, and not so comfortable without a helmet
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Fit
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Weather Protection
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Breathability
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Packability
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Storage
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Value