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Christopher W
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Mar 15, 2019
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OH
· Joined Mar 2019
· Points: 0
Cory F wrote: The OP sounds like a focus group survey for EB... hmmmm Actually, No. just a regular guy who wants to know. I work in the energy industry, Bub.
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Nick Niebuhr
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Mar 15, 2019
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CO
· Joined Aug 2013
· Points: 465
My wife's bought a few things from them with mixed results. She had a great 40L backpack that lasted over 10 years, she gave it to me a couple years ago and I just retired it this year after all the fabric around the side straps started ripping. It was closer to an 'ultralight' pack so we were pretty impressed. She also has soft shell pants that she rarely wears but are great. But she also bought their top of the line (in 2012) hardshell jacket (with their own waterproofing, not Goretex) and it leaked like a sieve. But she was able to get a full refund and then got an Arcteryx Alpha SV and obviously loves it to this day. I dunno if it was just a weird issue with that jacket, or if their waterproofing membrane sucks... I'll never know and don't really care because I only like to use Goretex myself.
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Sean Post
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Mar 15, 2019
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Golden, CO
· Joined Apr 2017
· Points: 31
Christopher W wrote: Actually, No. just a regular guy who wants to know. I work in the energy industry, Bub. Either way, some marketing/customer service guy for EB is doubtlessly creaming himself reading this thread.
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Christopher W
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Mar 15, 2019
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OH
· Joined Mar 2019
· Points: 0
Jaren Watson wrote: One of the things I most lament about the millennial generation is their wanton neglect of the ever-faithful “Bub.” Like a 4-pack enema kit at Christmas, “Bub” cheers both the giver and recipient. Yes, and that’s why I used it. The field I work in is full of people who use the word, and are good at making assumptions. I’m just here to get some real world opinions because EB was a gear company I was interested in. I could care less what others want to assume. I just want a friendly conversation, and maybe people can get some info from it, that might have been afraid to ask. I own all kinds of gear, including a bunch of tactical based items I have from my time in the military.
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GearGuy 316
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Mar 16, 2019
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Unknown Hometown
· Joined Mar 2017
· Points: 0
Christopher W wrote: Actually, No. just a regular guy who wants to know. I work in the energy industry, Bub.
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GearGuy 316
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Mar 16, 2019
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Unknown Hometown
· Joined Mar 2017
· Points: 0
Christopher W wrote: Yes, and that’s why I used it. The field I work in is full of people who use the word, and are good at making assumptions. I’m just here to get some real world opinions because EB was a gear company I was interested in. I could care less what others want to assume. I just want a friendly conversation, and maybe people can get some info from it, that might have been afraid to ask. I own all kinds of gear, including a bunch of tactical based items I have from my time in the military. What EB gear are you specifically interested in and for what type of climbing activity (ie. Rock, Ice, Alpine, Mountaineering)? I don't own any but I agree that EB prices are good, and seems to be the best for tall people.
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Arthur W
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Mar 16, 2019
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Unknown Hometown
· Joined Dec 2017
· Points: 5
I don’t own any EB gear specifically but to your broader question (“elite brands” vs “non elite brands) I think there is plenty of value to be found in the non elite brands especially for more “simple” items.
There are certain brands I just *want* to support (western mountaineering, feathered friends, now gone brooks range) come to mind. They’re very much activity focused but marketing isn’t there. Some items from elite brands IMO are worth the money if for nothing else other than warranty/repair have come through for me.
Some brands (salewa, mountain equipment, rab) aren’t marketed much in the US so you kinda have to explore to find them.
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Christopher W
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Mar 17, 2019
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OH
· Joined Mar 2019
· Points: 0
GearGuy 316 wrote: What EB gear are you specifically interested in and for what type of climbing activity (ie. Rock, Ice, Alpine, Mountaineering)? I don't own any but I agree that EB prices are good, and seems to be the best for tall people. I rock climb, boulder, and want to get more into mountaineering, as I was in the military, and it’s always an interest. Furthermore, I camp, hike, and do extensive mountain biking. I like the FA gear. Have a few items I got on sale, and they seem great so far. Just don’t have a ton of experience with them.
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Noah R
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Mar 18, 2019
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Burlington, VT
· Joined Nov 2018
· Points: 0
Christopher W wrote: Yes, and that’s why I used it. The field I work in is full of people who use the word, and are good at making assumptions. I’m just here to get some real world opinions because EB was a gear company I was interested in. I could care less what others want to assume. I just want a friendly conversation, and maybe people can get some info from it, that might have been afraid to ask. I own all kinds of gear, including a bunch of tactical based items I have from my time in the military. Since I last posted I actually walked by an EB store, wanted to check on their end of winter deals. My old nano puff was really packed out and tired from 5 winters of loving use. I checked out their First Ascent series 800 fill "Storm Down" or something puffy, it was marked down from 300 dollars to 85 dollars... Felt like a no brainer. So I purchased. Worn it casually around town, it was 20 degrees last night and I had that and a T shirt under it. Was very warm (Especially cause I was used to my old nano puff) Jacket has a hood, breast pocket, cinching bottoms, pockets for hands. Hood is very fitted but I actually like that. I will say that the material and stitching is absolutely lower quality than my old Patagonia. I skied through many trees and used it climbing for years, and not once did I poke through it or have more than a few stitches pop here and there. You will not see me trusting this material nearly that much, but with a shell over it, I would image it would be very warm and durable enough considering its 85 dollar price tag... TLDR: FA series down puffy seems worth it if you get it for a good deal. Obviously lower quality than Patagonia (no surprise there)
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Christopher W
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Mar 18, 2019
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OH
· Joined Mar 2019
· Points: 0
Well, I just went to EB and bought 637.00 worth of gear for the wife and I. So, here is a real world opinion of just the initial quality. I compared their gear to some Patagonia, and some Prana. This entailed feel of material, stitching quality, including how straight it was, fit, and technology. The EB is really nice. I noticed no difference in the stitching or feel compared to Pat. The Prana didn’t compare. The stitching was awful and crooked, and the feel not the same.
Furthermore, I got into a really good conversation with the store manager who has been with the company for 15yrs. She is passionate about the brand, and said, when she no longer is, she will leave. Climbing jeans are coming back. They ran them briefly during the holiday season, and they sold out immediately. They are working to turn things around. The Spiegel era kind of screwed things up I guess. Anyhow, no long term testing, but I’ve talked with a few people lately who use the FA gear, and said it’s been great. So, hopefully this helps some people that might care. We will see.
Cheers.
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Christopher W
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Mar 18, 2019
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OH
· Joined Mar 2019
· Points: 0
Mike McKinnon wrote: My thoughts exactly. The initial paragraph is pretty transparent. This is an EB rep trying to sell and promote EB clothing. Pretty transparent to me That’s interesting because I work for an oil company. But thanks for making that assumption.
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Noah R
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Mar 19, 2019
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Burlington, VT
· Joined Nov 2018
· Points: 0
Christopher W wrote: Well, I just went to EB and bought 637.00 worth of gear for the wife and I. So, here is a real world opinion of just the initial quality. I compared their gear to some Patagonia, and some Prana. This entailed feel of material, stitching quality, including how straight it was, fit, and technology. The EB is really nice. I noticed no difference in the stitching or feel compared to Pat. The Prana didn’t compare. The stitching was awful and crooked, and the feel not the same.
Furthermore, I got into a really good conversation with the store manager who has been with the company for 15yrs. She is passionate about the brand, and said, when she no longer is, she will leave. Climbing jeans are coming back. They ran them briefly during the holiday season, and they sold out immediately. They are working to turn things around. The Spiegel era kind of screwed things up I guess. Anyhow, no long term testing, but I’ve talked with a few people lately who use the FA gear, and said it’s been great. So, hopefully this helps some people that might care. We will see.
Cheers. Chris, I am curious what products you bought? Cause the stitching on the puffy I purchased there was noticeably weaker than my Patagonia. The material also felt much thinner/less durable. With that being said, I paid 80 bucks for it, not the 200+ for a Patagonia Puffy
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Eric Duncan
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Mar 19, 2019
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Boise, ID
· Joined Sep 2013
· Points: 0
Yes, I too was shocked you didn't notice any difference in the quality of stitching or materials. For the few days I had the EB storm hoody in my possession, it was a stark drop off in both materials and stitching from outdoor research or patagonia. I'm happy you're happy. Maybe EB has stepped up their quality control in recent months.
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Graham Johnson
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Mar 19, 2019
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Unknown Hometown
· Joined Apr 2006
· Points: 0
It is also possible that eb’s quality control isn’t very tight - leading to some poor stitching etc... slipping through that might have been caught by Patagonia quality control, for instance.
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Christopher W
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Mar 21, 2019
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OH
· Joined Mar 2019
· Points: 0
I am not sure honestly. I think it all looks good.I don’t own any OR, so I can’t comment on that. I’d have to look at some of the stuff I bought. Don’t have the names of the gear. I know I did buy a Sandstone 2.0 jacket, and the puffy with the hood is synthetic fill Pertex Quantum. I’m very interested in this coat that uses sheets of down. Very cool. Also, the store manager did say anything that when it comes from an outlet is 95% different than the store, as they do get some “Real” EBstore stuff there at times. It says Eddie Bauer on it, but it’s actually a completely different supplier and material.
I know some people claimed I work for EB. This is not true. I’m just a person that doesn’t normally go with the standard. I like to explore other options for things. I already know Patagonia and Arc’teryx are excellent. But, I was always intrigued by the heritage of EB, and wanted to see how their stuff was. Anyhow, I found this article.
https://gearjunkie.com/eddie-bauer-2019-alpine-climbing-shell-review
Sent from my iPhone
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GearGuy 316
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Mar 21, 2019
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Unknown Hometown
· Joined Mar 2017
· Points: 0
Christopher W wrote: https://gearjunkie.com/eddie-bauer-2019-alpine-climbing-shell-review
Sent from my iPhone The EB BC Uplift Jacket is impressively light for a waterproof Climbing rain jacket at 6.3oz, and on sale at EB for $125 The closest comparison would be the Black Diamond Fineline which is retailing for $135 but is 7.5oz. If the BD Fineline goes on sale, I would most likely get the Fineline since BD quality from my experience is consistently good, though the fit is not as good as Arc’teryx.
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Sam Stephens
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Mar 23, 2019
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PORTLAND, OR
· Joined Jan 2010
· Points: 1,090
EB is my go to for mostly durable stuff. I've had one of their cheap down jackets (<$50?) for almost ten years, and it works great for cheap beater warmth. I have some pants of different varieties that I love (breathable outdoors, jeans, canvas/carhartt esque), shorts, and random jackets. They're also super tall people friendly as mentioned before (6'3, 170lbs, 31x34 pants). Their flannels are great, especially on sale (God I love their medium tall slim cut stuff).
I do need to try some of their more technical stuff, but for people that aren't putting it through the ringer every week and just need a good puffy for belaying their buddy on their project, or pants that hold up, I think they're a pretty good damn deal. If your priorities are about the companies values (living wages, manufacturing locations, material sourcing, etc.) then I can't speak to that and clearly Patagonia is the leader in ethics minded manufacturing.
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Dan Cooksey
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Mar 26, 2019
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Pink Ford Thunderbird
· Joined Jan 2014
· Points: 365
I have been rocking a pair of EB guide pants I bought 3ish years ago at their outlet store. They were like $20. Natural wear and tear from sqeuezzing in chimneys and such, but overall a good product. No seems ripping or falling apart, all zippers in tact.
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Jack Quarless
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Mar 26, 2019
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Unknown Hometown
· Joined Feb 2011
· Points: 0
Gear is Aid. You are all cheating.
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