Sierra Designs Savage Softshell Jacket

Sierra Designs Savage Softshell Jacket
Review by Coy Starnes
Jacket provided by Sierra Designs for testing.

Photo courtesy of Sierra DesignsThe Sierra Designs Savage is a softshell jacket, so before going any further, a brief explanation of what a softshell is might be helpful. Softshell jackets are designed to be softer than jackets referred to as (you guessed it) hardshells. Manufactures have taken different routes, but the goal is to produce clothing that is softer, quieter and more supple than typical rain gear, yet still keep you dry under fairly wet conditions. They are designed to be highly breathable and just generally well suited for active outdoor use. I am no expert in materials but the hang-tag calls the material for the shell of the Savage “Vapor”. It also list a waterproof rating of 800 and a respirance (I think this refers to breathability) rating of 3600. Exactly what those numbers mean is a mystery too me but a little research did reveal that most stretch-woven softshell fabrics fall within the 0 – 1000mm waterproof range. Once you get over 1000mm you get into material that is considered waterproof and of course the higher the number the more water pressure the material can withstand without leaking through. On the other side of the coin, softhshells are not as soft as fleece, but, they don’t pill, snag or absorb water. They are also much more wind resistant than fleece but don’t breathe quite as well.
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Now back to the Savage. I am testing an XL. The color is listed as black but it looks more like a dark brown too me, closer to black than brown, but still not jet black. I weighed the jacket at my local post office and according to their scale my XL weighs in at 1 lb 12 oz. I made a short video going over the main features of the jacket which should help in understand my description of the jacket a little better. You can watch it before or after reading my description. The video can be found here: Sierra Designs Savage Softshell Jacket
Sierra Designs Savage Softshell

Right-click or ctrl-click this link to download

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One of the first things I noticed was the lining in the jacket. It looks like a patchwork of different materials. Sierra Designs calls it Core Comfort Technology. It consist a heavier polyester fur lining around the chest area that continues across the shoulders and down the center part of the back. This same polyester fur also runs down the outer half of the jacket sleeves. In adjacent areas around the main body (where the polyester fur is located) a lighter lining called polyester fleece is used. The inner half of each arm sleeve and each side of the jacket (basically under each arm) is not lined at all. This is also where the pit zips are located. They can be opened up from the top or bottom and run all the way down each side of the jacket.

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The Savage has four zippered pockets, three on the outside and one on the inside. All the zippers look to be water resistant. The two lower outside pockets are what I call hand warmer pockets and they are big. The chest pocket is quite a bit smaller but still big enough for my hand to fit easily inside. The inner pocket is directly behind the outside chest pocket and appears to be the same size. The main zipper on the jacket can also be opened in either direction. It looks like the zippers for the pockets, only it is slightly bigger, and has YKK stamped on the pull tab.

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The hood on the Savage is not detachable. It is also generously sized so that it can be worn over a helmet. Of course this means it is a little big when not wearing a helmet, but it will still keep the wind off my ears and rain off my head. There are a couple of cinches which can be used to tighten the hood down but they are located inside the jacket, and the only time I would want to cinch down the hood is if I had the jacket completely zipped up. Therefore, the only way to access them is to unzip the jacket from the bottom. It works great but I think the cinches need to be on the outside. However, I’m sure there is a good reason for them to be on the inside, it just escapes me for now.

Another neat feature of the Savage is the use of what Sierra Designs calls Fusonic™ technology. The website gives this detailed description “a stitch-free, state of the art assembly technique that creates best in class apparel. Employing heat, pressure, and a small amount of adhesive, Fusonic™ technology places Sierra Designs’ jackets and pants among the best technical apparel available. By eliminating needle holes and seam tape, Fusonic™ eliminates the possibility of tongue tears at the seams to increase the durability, reliability, and lifespan of the garment.”

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Overall all the Savage is just a good looking jacket. Maybe too good looking. The day I got it my wife was planning a quick weekend trip and she practically begged me to let her take it with her. I refused, but when she gets back I will let her wear it occasionally. I plan to wear it for all my outdoor activities this coming winter. It is not heavily insulated so there may be times when I will need a warmer jacket but it should be ideal for my day hikes, bike rides and exercise walks with my wife. If only I can manage to be the one wearing it on those walks. Stay tuned for my next update which should be forthcoming in a month or so from now.

Sierra Designs Savage Jacket Update: December 16, 2011

I have been wearing the Savage jacket quite a bit over the past couple of months. Temperatures have been all over the place, from a cool 28 F to a rather warm 60 F. Anything warmer than that and I didn’t need the jacket. I also wore it during several rain showers and even during a couple of brief snow events. I wore it mostly when either day hiking or riding my mountain bike but also wore it on a long recumbent ride and a couple of shorter road rides. I have worn it under a hydration pack (Geigerrig Rig 1200) most of the time. I have worn it over just a t-shirt and over a t-shirt and thick winter shirt.

Performance so far
The Savage softshell jacket has been great for the most part. It is not the warmest jacket but this proved to be a good thing most of the time. I do remember getting cold standing around in a parking lot about 30 minutes waiting on some riders to show up for a ride. This ride was a little over an hour long and it was 28 F at the start and only warmed up to around 35 F by the end of the ride. I also sweated more on this ride than most because it was a short but steep trip up and down the mountain, with a 10% grade for about a mile. Once back at the top I stopped to catch my breath and took it off for a few minutes before riding the last (mostly flat) mile back home. My shirt underneath was pretty much soaked and I got cold quickly so put the Savage back on. I expected to get chilled on the easy ride on home but the Savage is very wind proof and it was up to the challenge.

On several other less strenuous rides I would start with the jacket on and ride an hour or so. Temperatures might be in the 40s or 50s F, but as long as I took it easy the Savage felt great. It was not too hot on the brief climbs but kept me warm on the coasting sections of the ride. I played with the front zipper and pit zips to regulate my temperature. I found that it was often more difficult to manipulate the front zipper than the pit zip zippers. For some reason, I need to grasp and pull down on the bottom of the jacket under the front zipper to work it up or down. The pit zippers were easier to adjust while riding but sometimes they too required me to stop to adjust. In this photo I have just climbed about 600 ft in less than a mile and even though it is chilly (around 40 F) I have already unzipped the pit zips a little and front zipper completely.

Author taking a break after a steep climb

The pockets on the Savage jacket are indeed very handy. I found I could keep my cell phone in the top inner chest pocket and leave it unzipped without fear of the phone coming out. This way, when I got a call, I could answer it quickly even when riding. Of course I usually stopped to answer it, but on a few occasion (especially on my Dynamik on the road) I did answer it while riding. The hand warmer pockets were handy for storing my gloves and boggin (I think Yankees call it a toboggan) after it warmed up. I would start with everything on, then take off items as needed plus unzip the pit zips and front zipper until I finally needed to take the jacket off and put it in my day pack. And for the record, it stuffs down very compactly.

I mentioned rain and snow earlier. I was never out in the rain for long but did wear it several times in anything from sprinkles to pouring ran. So far the Savage jacket has kept me dry. Also, I was never out in the rain more than 30 minutes. I know that as a general rule softshells will eventually soak through if worn out in continuous rain but I have not found that point yet. The only time I have noticed the inside of the jacket getting wet was when I have worn it over a t-shirt and sweated profusely. This was usually on a chilly mountain bike ride when it was too cool for just a light shirt but too warm to work really hard in a jacket. Anyways, upon returning home from such rides I usually turned the sleeves inside out and hung the jacket out on my deck a couple of hours.

The durability of the Savage seems good. I have worn it while hiking and took a few short cuts at times which inevitably lead to crashing through some undergrowth. I know that on a couple of occasions I scratched the shell pretty hard and even looked to see if maybe I had ripped the jacket. On my mountain bike rides I have scraped it on many overhanging limbs etc but fortunately, it has survived unscathed so far. Here I am riding on a more open section of trail.

Aurthor out for a MTB ride on a chilly morning

Summary so far
I don’t know if you can tell but I’m really liking the Savage jacket. As a matter of fact, so does my wife. I have had to keep an eye on her, and even then, she has managed to slip out the door with it on several times. Which is why I finally broke down and ordered her a similar jacket. The Sierra Designs Vapor Hoody to be exact. It features the same shell material and is identical right down to the pocket placement etc. It lacks the fleece lining but it should be good for her most of the time since she does not stay outside as much as I do. It is supposed to arrive next week. Anyways, back to “MY” jacket. The Savage is remarkably warm for such a light jacket but can also be worn in warmer conditions without overheating. This is mostly due to the way the jacket is easily ventilated. Stay tuned for my final update to see how the Savage continues to perform. Thanks to Sierra Designs and 4alloutdoors for the chance to put it thought its paces.

Sierra Designs Savage Jacket Final Update, February 1, 2012

Enjoying an overlook in Hot Springs Arkansas with my wife

I have continued to wear the Savage jacket on a pretty regular basis. As a matter of fact, I have only needed to wear my heavy winter jacket a couple of times so far this winter because while the past several weeks have been a little cooler, we have yet to see what I call winter weather. It has snowed a couple of times and the coldest was a few mornings in the upper teens. However, it has rained a lot and I did get to use it as a rain jacket several times. I also carried and wore it on a couple of road trips to see my daughter in Arkansas. On the last trip we also went to Hot Springs for the day and I wore it pretty much the whole time there. We spent some time on some short hikes and also just walking up and down the streets of the town.

I have worn it on several more bike rides, the longest being 20 miles on New Years Day. I have not been able to ride my mountain bike much due to the wet conditions and have not ridden my recumbent much either. To make up for the missed riding I have taken more walks and have worn the Savage jacket on nearly all of them. A couple were warm enough that I didn’t need it.

As for performance, I still have no issues with the jacket. All zippers work as intended and the pit zips have come in handy several times. It has worked well as a rain jacket on several occasions. The pockets on the Savage are great. I could carry a water bottle, camera and several other small items on short walks when I really did not need my day pack. It is a little snug in the arms to wear over some of my heavier sweaters but fits fine over my favorite light long sleeve flannel shirt over a tee.

By the way, I mentioned getting my wife the Sierra Designs Vapor Hoody. She really likes it but there were a few times when she said she liked my jacket better. This was during the few times when we had cold weather . I found the Savage would keep me warm down into the upper 30s F with just a light shirt on under it. However, when I would get to moving about I did not easily get too hot in the jacket. I think the core insulation is a big reason as to why this jacket is so versatile. As a matter of fact, it is just about perfect for the type weather (not counting summer of course) we have around here most of the time. In my book the Savage jacket is a winner!

About the Author I am from northeast Alabama where I spend a lot of my time divided among several hobbies that include backpacking and dayhiking, canoeing and kayaking, and just getting out enjoying nature.

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