Pretty nice NORTH FACE jacket at REI-OUTLET --> $99.

[biglaw11]

Hey guys,

As many of you know, NORTH FACE jackets are super super expensive. I found this pretty nice jacket at REI-OUTLET for $99.....

I'm posting this as a risk that EVERYONE out there will probably have one, but hey, I gotta help out my fellow AT members..right?

Originally, this jacket was $225 or something, so this is a pretty good deal. They have a women's version too. So check out the link!! GOOD LUCK!

JACKET (men's)

-biglaw11

 

[DVDKing]

Nice find. They till got pretty good selections at this time. Too bad I don't really need one.

 

[bomb99]

10% off coupon at FW
just used on ski pants. work perfectly at rei-outlet

 

[flavio]

Don't really care for the jacket too much, but it's a good deal.

There's a North Face Outlet store near my house and they had a 40%-60% off everything in the store sale over the summer. THOSE WERE SOME DEALS! I just about have a whole wardrobe of North Face gear now. Got find out when they'll do that again.

 

[zlooop]

ew... not gortex

 

[hoihtah]

not to crap on the thread...
but one of the reasons why northface jackets are so expensive is because of their life time warranty policy.

however, these jackets that you purchase from the outlets... they don't come with the same sort of warranty.
and hence, that's where the savings are coming from.

if you are type of person who never returns clothes after you purchase them... then, i would say outlet shopping is a great way to save money.

however, if you're thinking of returning the product every year... like many college students do, you should look elsewhere.

 

[theNEOone]

<< not to crap on the thread...
however, if you're thinking of returning the product every year... like many college students do, you should look elsewhere. >>


I dont' understand, are you saying that you can "upgrade" your jacket at the end of the year??? I don't see how this works. Are there any costs involved? Where do I "upgrade" - at any store that carries North Face, or do I have to do it through the manufacturer?

 

[RossMAN]

Thanks, nice find. Before ordering online I'm going to visit my local REI B&M to see what the colors look like in real life and see which size is right for me.

 

[dlaw]

Oh, nice, good price for this jacket, though it is not a good price for my wallet...

Too expensive for me.

 

[bigrash]

that's a nice jacket and a good price, but I don't like the color. Too bad, cause I was really looking for a Nortface jacket

 

[Beerinator]

This jacket ain't that hot. Its not GORTEX, never buy a Northface Jacket unless its GORETEX.

 

[zojirushi]

Two things:

The first is to address the statement regarding the warranty. The North Face's lifetime warranty has nothing to do with where you bought it. Therefore if you buy this jacket, you will have the lifetime warranty (and by "lifetime" they mean the "life of the jacket"). The North Face, Patagonia, Marmot and a few others have OUTSTANDING lifetime warranties. I used to work in an outdoor retail store and I had some friends who had a jacket for 10 years or more and then something happened (like the Gore-Tex delaminated) and they'd send it in for repair - BAM, they received a brand new one from the manufacturer. Anyway, that's not to say that factory seconds may have voided warranties, but this particular jacket is just a closeout, and so the warranty is valid.

Second, this jacket is only a warm deal. As someone mentioned previously, it isn't Goretex, but rather a waterproof/breathable "coating". Coatings are typically not nearly as durable and good as a "membrane" (like Gore-Tex, Membrain, and others). Also of note is this jacket is insulated, so it isn't like the typical NF Mountain Light jacket EVERYONE has, which is a waterproof shell that you would layer a fleece or down with. Layer is usually the better method to pursue, so unless you live in extreme cold temperatures most of the year, this jacket will live in your closet most of the time. A couple alternative options I would recommend over this jacket are:

Marmot Armstrong Jacket - a little more expensive, but worth it
Marmot Kirkwood - again, a little more but Gore-Tex


Marmot Thunderlight - Great lightweight 3-ply - not for everyone though
Marmot White River
Moonstone Easyrider

Anyway, just a few suggestions. The best manufacturers are Arc'Teryx, Marmot, Mountain Hardwear, Patagonia, and maybe Sierra Designs and North Face (although I wouldn't say North Face is worth as much as it costs - its just popular). It's actually not the best time of year to be purchase outdoor equipment. So, if you can hold off, DO. Middle of Feb to the middle of March is when you can get sweet deals, because that's when outdoor shops are getting rid of Fall/Winter and starting to stock the new Spring/Summer stuff, and if they're smart they slash prices pretty drastically. Check out Altrec.com, Sierratradingpost.com, EMSOnline.com, REI-outlet and some others starting in mid-Feb and you should start to see this year's merchandise dropping in price. Also, call your local outdoor shop and ask if they have an "End of Winter" sale, because more likely than not they'll be selling stuff from 30% - 60% off.

 

[freebee]

Actually the lifetime warranty is void on North Face Jackets purchased in outlets. Thats why they black out the "O". They also remove the lifetime warranty label included in retail jackets. For closeouts, the waranty is valid, which is why closeouts on north face stuff at retail stores are so attractive.

The Mountain lights with 2 ply actually have a lining, but can be further insulated with zip in fleeces.

 

[fletch713]

While not wanting to crap on this thread, I have to throw in my 2 cents' worth. For this price, even after the discount, I would recommend going for a goretex jacket. If you check with rei-outlet now and then, or other discount sites such as Sierra Trading Post, you can get pretty decent deals on North Face, Marmot, Arc'Teryx, and Mountain Hardwear goretex shells.

 

[RossMAN]

zojirushi - Thank you for the excellent post with a lot of useful information including the recommendation of other jackets.

I think I'll heed your advice and wait until Feb-Mar to pickup a sweet "last season" deal.

Besides I prefer 3/4 long coats and just don't like the waist jackets, maybe I could learn to live with them. They'd probably be thinner/lighter than my Haagar 3/4 coat which I picked up on clearance for only $25 from the Lincoln City, Oregon outlet mall last spring, the best $25 I ever spent!

 

[vancenase]

a bit off topic, but it was brought up already:

how do you make use of the "guarantee" and return the jacket for repair/a new one? my brother has had one about 4 years, and it's not as "waterproof" as it used to be (it leaks in a bit around the forearms)

do you have to have a receipt to keep the warranty?

any addresses/email address you can recommend to look into this?

 

[zojirushi]

I assume you're talking about a North Face jacket? The best thing to do is to take it into your best local outdoor outfitters and have them return it to the manufacturer for a warranty repair/replacement (their discretion). Typically they'll charge you 5 or 10 bucks to send it back to the manufacturer, but its nice to have someone responsible for its whereabouts and if their a certified retailer they will sometimes get better service because they have a relationship with the manufacturer. If you're looking for info about delaing straight with North Face you can find it on their Warranty & Product Repair Page. For other manufacturers just go to their websites and they'll either have the warranty info there or you can contact them. But again, I recommend you send it through your local retailer.

Also, make note of this (from their site):

"Gore-Tex garments are made of a nylon outer fabric that has been laminated to a Gore-tex Membrane. This nylon outer fabric is treated at the mill with durable water repellency, called DWR. DWR is a substance like Tectron or Scotchguard, only it is much longer lasting. The Gore-Tex membrane is what keeps raindrops out and allows body vapor to pass through. Once the DWR wears off, water will soak into the nylon layer of the jacket, but Gore-Tex membrane will keep water from soaking all the way through to your skin.

In order to revive the DWR, the product needs to be thoroughly cleaned with a powder detergent (do not use liquid) in a regular washing machine, in warm water. Put the product through two rinse cycles to ensure there is no detergent residue. Then dry it in a regular clothes dryer, on medium heat. When cleaning your Gore-Tex jacket, be sure to attach all Velcro closures and zip all zippers. Finally, the entire outside of the garment should be touched up with a warm iron on the steam setting.

This process should revive the DWR. For even better performance, treat your product with a coating of a DWR spray, such as Tectron or Revivex. This maintenance program is only required when water stops beading up on the outside of the garment.

In the event you find this process ineffective, please send your Gore-Tex product in to us. We would be happy to inspect it for you."

Very frequently this can help, but as they say if it doesn't seem to help, send it to 'em.

 

[dentalboy]

nice find, getting cold in the northeast now!!\
luv gortex

 

[Midnight Rambler]

<< Actually the lifetime warranty is void on North Face Jackets purchased in outlets. Thats why they black out the "O". >>

Well, I don't know where you get your info from, but it's not always true, at least not from my experience. Either that or perhaps NF doesn't consider REI to be an "outlet" store. Last winter this time I bought a NF Summit jacket for a killer price from REI ... FREE! (they lost the first one in shipping, somebody in Georgia ended up with a jacket they could never use there, REI sent me another one and credited me $100 for my hassle without my even asking, the 2nd jacket had a small problem but they didn't have any more of them in my size as it was a closeout, so REI gave me yet another $100 credit, all this combined with a credit I had from a test drive promo, and free Summit jacket ). I then contacted NF about the problem and they replaced the jacket under warranty, no questions asked. BTW, the O was not blacked out either. One of the finest outdoor jackets I've ever had the pleasure to own, very toasty yet super light, highly breathable, articulated arms, etc., it rocks. And dibs to REI too, they have always treated me right, and are very quick on orders, so I have done all my outdoor-related purchases with them since the Summit jacket "deal".

 

[icantiwont]

REI has always stood behind the products they've sold. I have no reason to believe they wouldn't with this jacket.
Gortex would be nice, but then again, take a look at how much you'd be paying for this jacket. Plus, this is
covered under REI's "100% Satisfaction Guaranteed"

"At REI-OUTLET, our goal is your complete satisfaction. Our 100% guarantee ensures that every item you purchase at REI-OUTLET meets your high standards or you can return it for a refund.

Every item purchased at REI-OUTLET.com is backed by this guarantee.
Goods must be returned via insured shipping or brought to an REI store.
Returns must include a copy of the original invoice.
Returns without an invoice copy will automatically be returned to you."

 

[ander]

I LOVE NORTH FACE GEAR!

 

[superhuang]

<< I LOVE NORTH FACE GEAR! >>


People in San Diego need coats?

 

[WoundedWallet]

are you kidding?

It's 55° outside right now!

Do you wants us to suffer from hypothermia?

 

[yakswak]

I'm just guessing, but for those saying that the lifetime warranty is not valid on outlet purchased items, aren't they referring to the "Northface Outlet" stores? Because although REI-outlet is an outlet store, it's an outlet store for REI, not Northface, so I'd consider them retailers. Anyway, I was confused since midnight rambler said something about the warranties are available on outlet items, even though he did not purchase from the outlets (northface outlets).

 

[zojirushi]

It all depends on the product itself, not actually where its bought. REI-Outlet is an outlet for REI, but it serves 2 purposes.

One, it allows REI to offload old clothes and equipment, at "close-out" prices. So, the outdoor industry is basically on a 2 season yearly rotation, with products like Jackets, sleeping bags, backpacks, and such being brought out once a year or so, with complete redesigns every 4 or so. Anyway, in August and February retailers start chucking their Summer and Winter (respectively) stock in order to make way for the upcoming season that they are beginning to get shipments for. This is when you start to see big sales. If you're looking for a jacket or other such fall/winter apparel your first opportunity will typically be February where there will be decent stock and sales, and then in August they'll be really discounted as the next generation will be arriving, but you may not get the size/color you want since the product has been out a year.

The second reason for places like REI-Outlet are that they purchase slight blems and such from manufacturers at huge discounts and offload these for good deals compared to their "pristine" brethren. It is these products that would potentially be refused from a warranty standpoint (and these are the ones that the manufacturer typically denotes somehow on the product itself - blacked out letter, hole punch somewhere, etc). Often times, even with a product like this, you can get the to do a warranty repair or replacement, it just depends on what the problem is. ANYTIME, you have a Gore-Tex jacket that either leaks, or is delaminating, it will be covered. The reason I say this is from experience and from 2 other facts. The North Face and others are not going to release a factory second that doesn't fulfill its functional role - so a waterproof/breathable jacket won't be sold if its got holes all over it for water to get in - and W.L. Gore warrants Gore-Tex itself, so that warranty will supercede any "Factory 2nd".

So, you typically need to know the reason the product is on sale in the first place. Places like REI-Outlet and Sierra Trading Post invariably tell you this reason. Like the jacket that started this thread stated at the end of the description "CLOSEOUT". So, you interpret that as the first scenario I described. It was a first quality jacket that is now out obsolete by some redesign, change in colors, or discarded from the line. This product will still have the full manufacturer's warranty. Now, if it said "FACTORY 2NDs" or something like that, then you are running the risk that it has been tagged and may not be subject to the full warranty. There are other terms associated with products sometimes too, like "FABRIC OVERRUN" and such, which sort of confuse me in that they are saying they had extra stock of the fabric so they made some more product that they are just going to sell for cheap? These ambiguous terms may need to be looked into further by asking a sales rep or something.

Anyway, hope this helps.