MontBell Down Balaclava

A perfectly tailored piece of pure warmth for your noggin.

After using a generic one-size-doesn't-really-fit-anyone down balaclava that I found on Amazon for $35, I coughed up almost three times that for the Montbell version. I have to say though, you do get what you pay for.

 https://www.montbell.com/us/en/products/list?q=down+balaclava

I wear balaclavas year round not just to keep my head warm, but equally to prevent sweat and sunscreen from rubbing off on the collar of my sleeping bags. Once temperatures drop down into the 30's, a fleece balaclava alone can't quite do the job of keeping my head toasty, and I still have a full head of hair. A down one, even a cheap Amazon one, keeps my head warm regardless of temperature.

So, why then spend an additional $100 for another one you ask? It weighs only 3.0oz (86g), stuffed with 800 fp goose down, made with 10d ballistic ripstop, and it comes with its own stuff sack (as does virtually everything from Montbell).

The generic one was too large all around to begin with. The only adjustment was a cinch cord surrounding the face opening, which did shrink the size of the thing, but at the same time pulled the brow down over my eyes, and pulled the bottom of the opening up right under my nose. Not comfortable, nor did I appreciate the soggy fabric from breathing into it all night. I've since given it away so no pic.

The Montbell balaclava is beautifully tailored with both horizontal and vertical adjustment features, even though it's also one size only.

I would happily buy another one of these if the need arose. When turning your head left or right, it follows along perfectly, whereas the Amazon one refused just like stiff, non-adjustable hoods on rain shells.

Now, a word on ordering things from Montbell. I believe they have only one remaining brick and mortar store in the U.S.—Colorado somewhere, which also serves as the U.S. distribution center. You can order online from either that site, or directly from Japan. The Japan site comes in English so it's easy to navigate, however the prices are all in Yen. The dollar-to-yen currency exchange has been quite favorable from the dollar's perspective, so it just might be less expensive to order things directly from Japan. As I write this the U.S. price for the balaclava is $99, vs the exchange price of $82.30 when ordered from Japan. There's shipping to consider and I haven't figured out how that's actually computed. I've ordered a number of items from Japan, and once got free shipping but don't know how that occurred, unless my order exceeded some minimum yen amount. 

If you order only one item, it's probably no cost savings to order from Japan, but if you go a bit nuts with three or four items, you might save a couple hundred dollars. 

Background

Four decades of winter camping, using a host of different products and designs for head covering.