# Highest Quality Snowboarding Outerwear Brand?



## Mel M (Feb 2, 2012)

If price is truly not a factor, you can go as high as a 3L goretex jacket that would cost you about $500 or higher. They usually have all the other bells and whistles like powder skirts and cuffs.

Burton AK is what comes to mind, but I believe Homeschool gives a very comparable product at a lower pricepoint.


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## timmytard (Mar 19, 2009)

NSboarder said:


> I seem to be pretty hard on my outerwear as I have gone through a few sets over the past few years which has been pretty costly. What brand offers the highest quality jacket and pants? Love features like powder skirt, built in cuffs, suspender options for pants, etc. Im going to try not being cheap for once so want to know what's best.


Alpha Jacket MultiCam / Men's / Hardshell / Waterproof Jackets

Alpha Bib MultiCam / Men's / Hardshell



TT


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## racer357 (Feb 3, 2011)

I haven't got to ride in mine yet, but the quality feels good in the living room.

Picture Organic Clothing


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## highme (Dec 2, 2012)

Arctery'x
AK 
Volcom Baldface line
Homeschool (I switched from AK to their 3.5l set up this season, bomber as fuck)


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

and Trew...this year picked up a Beast jacket

TREW | stylish and technical ski/snowboard outerwear


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## Nivek (Jan 24, 2008)

Homeschool.


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## Banjo (Jan 29, 2013)

I can also vouch that Homeschool is top notch gear with great customer service....big fan.

Only complaint is that I ride goofy and the zipper flaps on their jackets (if you get one with a flap) face downhill and catch wind. If youre goofy make sure you get one without the flap.


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## Oldman (Mar 7, 2012)

Homeschool: Night Witch Pullover Shell; love it (Might be discontinued, but I am sure they still have something like it )

Flylow: Magnum BC Pants ( these are Bullet proof ) Best pants ever.

Did some homework. Both of these are now discontinued. :-(

Homeschool Jackets only. 

Flylow, looks like the Chemical Pant is the closest. The current Magnum has no knee reinforcements which make the pants so bombproof.


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## midnightcaper (Mar 23, 2013)

I've had good luck with spider use a jacket only. Got a new pair of volcom pants for $25 haven't got a chance to wear them yet.


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## theprocess (Sep 9, 2013)

Burton AK carries a lifetime warranty (not sure about the other brands mentioned). AK line has lots of variety and price points but generally on the higher end of the scale. The goretex pieces are well worth the price of admission imo, especially if you can grab discounted prior years gear.


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## cav0011 (Jan 4, 2009)

Burton AK line (I dont like the fit though)
Homeschool baker series
Volcom baldface stuff
Arctyrex

Take a pick from those. I currently use volcom jackets and bibs and homeschool pants.


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

*just as a repeat*

Actual snowboard specific companies have not done well here, with tons of attrition in the marketplace. As such imo, a couple few have risen to the top and stayed there:

Burton and Volcom

Homeschool is making really killer shit as a newcomer. Usually these companies are just rebranding chinese factory stuff hoping for style impact, but HS is actually innovating and so far the 2 pieces of theirs I have are faves. I'm so fucking hot all the time, cocona is a godsend. Not to mention since I got my shants, I went and cut the legs off all my other base bottoms....

Non-snowboard brands you can't go wrong with:

Flylow (pretty much exclusively into their work glove and mitt at this point, their pants and jackets are fucking BOMBER, if I didn't wear Volcom GTX, I'd be in this shit, although I would and probably will be giving a full HomeSchool setup a try after how much I've enjoyed these items this year)
Patagonia (I like their baselayers and my nanopuff)
Arcteryx (no experience but pretty heavily approved on the boards)


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## taco tuesday (Jul 26, 2014)

I got a pretty fkn sweet new Obermeyer jacket in the fall. It has all the bells and whistles. Got it on clearance for $160(over half off). I caught some flack for it both here and from some people I know because it is a ski clothing brand. As far as I am concerned, if you want to be an elitist, label whore, gear snob, you should be on skis anyway so F off. That being said, some of these brands, patagonia, arc teryx etc. make great gear but the prices are outrageous. 600 bucks for a lightweight rain shell?! why? Because label whores will pay that much...


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## koi (May 16, 2013)

Burton has always been my go to. Last season I started wearing 686 a lot, and they have been a champ for me.

A buddy swears by Trew, and I have heard nothing but positive reviews from others. When I checked out my buddies gear it seemed like the material was strong.


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## neni (Dec 24, 2012)

taco tuesday said:


> I got a pretty fkn sweet new Obermeyer jacket in the fall. It has all the bells and whistles. Got it on clearance for $160(over half off). I caught some flack for it both here and from some people I know because it is a ski clothing brand. As far as I am concerned, if you want to be an elitist, label whore, gear snob, you should be on skis anyway so F off. That being said, some of these brands, patagonia, arc teryx etc. make great gear but the prices are outrageous. 600 bucks for a lightweight rain shell?! why? Because label whores will pay that much...


Compare apples with apples. To compare a mid priced on half price clearance with a high price at full price is cherry picking. A high price jacket at clearance will cost abt double as yours but you get higher quality, half the weight, half the packing volume, it'll probably last double as long. If these features are not important for _you_, fine. Maybe for others they _are_...? To judge someone by the label of his gear is pretty childish :dunno:


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## ekb18c (Mar 11, 2013)

I've used Burton AK, Arcteryx, Homeschool and loved each of them. I get them after the season though so they are usually 30-50% off.


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## taco tuesday (Jul 26, 2014)

I wasn't intending to compare a 400 dollar ski jacket to a 600 dollar rain shell. That was not the point of my post. Yes I mentioned those items in the same post but i was not trying to draw a comparison between them. Funny that you should say judging someone by the label on their gear is childish. That's somewhat in line with the orignal point I was making. People giving me shit about an obermeyer jacket because it is not the accepted, trendy, snowboard branded label. I was told that I should have bought something from Homeschool, Holden, Bonfire etc. Apparently that would have been more acceptable(hip,trendy). I still feel the prices of certain brands are inflated not because their quality is so head and shoulders above others but because of the name. Do they make gear far superior to my current jacket? Of course. Does that justify it costing as much as a used car?


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## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

I have used Burton AK for years, its great. 

I also have stuff from Northface, its ok but their warranty is great. I have a jacket with about 200 days on it and it is in decent shape. 

I got an outfit from Patagonia this season and it is awesome so far, I got their Goretex stuff. I think they are called freeride pants and jacket, jacket is insulated. Lifetime warranty. PataGucci......

My son rides in volcom goretex and it has been super durable. He has used it for a couple years, this year went to the bib. He got a tear in his jacket from an encounter with a tree but other than that it has been flawless. A patch quickly solved the tear issue. Lifetime Warranty

Flylow makes great shit.

Arcteryx makes great shit, it doesn't fit me.

Trew is meh.

Homeschool, dunno.

Bonfire is warm but you can instantly feel the degradation of material after a wash.

We have had various items from 686 throughout the years and it has been durable and warm. I just got my wife some new 686 pants and she is liking them.


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## ju87 (Mar 9, 2011)

have had Burton AK and Patagonia... I prefer the Patagonia, especially their mid layers


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## neni (Dec 24, 2012)

taco tuesday said:


> Funny that you should say judging someone by the label on their gear is childish. That's somewhat in line with the orignal point I was making. People giving me shit about an obermeyer jacket because it is not the accepted, trendy, snowboard branded label.


You're right with being offended when ppl give you shit abt your gear, of course this is childish. Just wanted to point out, that "judging by brand label" also works the other direction , cos this sounded also pretty judging:



taco tuesday said:


> As far as I am concerned, if you want to be an elitist, label whore, gear snob, you should be on skis anyway so F off.


I'm no elitist, label whore, gear snob. I just wear that "used car" priced jacket cos it'll pack to the size of a fist, while the "used bicycle" priced jackets I had before will occupy half the backpack. So the guys you tend to judge to be elitist may also have a good reason why they chose their gear :dunno: 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not arguing :whiteflag:. I sometimes catch myself as well thinking "oh, boy, such a poser, learn to ride before you get the most expensive high end stuff", but then... why not? It may have been a sweet deal, a present, or he just has the coins and likes it? It's not up to me to judge. Who am I to say my reason (practibility) is better, more valid than his (whatever his reasons are). There are pots and kettles hidden everywhere 

BTW: IMHO, judging always goes hand in hand with sort of envy (why would one feel the need to be judging others if one's perfectly happy with oneself?). So the next time someone calls you out on your gear just think that they envy your sweet deal or maybe the envy that you're above any brand fashion show pressure they may be under.


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## flipstah (Feb 3, 2015)

BUMP!

Looking to get a more durable jacket since my Columbia Titanium is showing great wear. I see that Arcteryx is a quality brand but what justifies their price point? Seems a bit high unless there's a lot of R&D involved in their product.

For people that have them, what was the justification in buying Arcteryx vs. the competition?


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## itchynscratchy (Nov 16, 2010)

flipstah said:


> BUMP!
> 
> Looking to get a more durable jacket since my Columbia Titanium is showing great wear. I see that Arcteryx is a quality brand but what justifies their price point? Seems a bit high unless there's a lot of R&D involved in their product.
> 
> For people that have them, what was the justification in buying Arcteryx vs. the competition?



I got a couple of their shells and really like Arcteryx. Not sure what jackets/brands you're comparing but arcteryx is prob more expensive since some of their gear uses gore tex pro which is a lighter and more durable gore tex. i really like their quality as well.


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## flipstah (Feb 3, 2015)

itchynscratchy said:


> I got a couple of their shells and really like Arcteryx. Not sure what jackets/brands you're comparing but arcteryx is prob more expensive since some of their gear uses gore tex pro which is a lighter and more durable gore tex. i really like their quality as well.


I'm comparing products from a lower price-point such as Columbia with their Omni-Heat and Nike SB.

I'm a big fan of GoreTex hence I'm researching Arcteryx a lot, especially if I plan to cough up $400+. It better last.


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