North Face?

[steelerfanhw 0]

Kind of off topic considering fly tying, but has North Face's gear gotten worse? Does anyone know if you can still buy older North Face gear anywhere?

[ILikeFish 0]

I have not noticed a decrease in value. I am gathering backpacking supplies and have been looking at different brands... i think northface looks great, and the stuff i own has held up

[Fishyman 0]

N.F. was and probably still is great stuff, but I feel that they've kinda broadened their market just a bit too much (i.e Columbia) and have possibly lost a bit of their respectability. I remember when Columbia stuff was solid as a rock and had to be bought in dedicated outdoor goods store. Hell, Northface was really hard to get before the internet unless you happened to live in a climbing / backpacking hotbed area. :dunno: I now see it in Gander Mountain, Kohls, MC Sports, etc. etc.

 

I know I'm becoming a grumpy old man, but it's no different than how I feel about SUV's. I stand in line at the store behind cute little yuppie mom and her two obnoxious kids that are wearing brand new North Face GoreTex shells and looking at me in my old Woolrich shirt and Red Wing boots as if I'd just farted in church. Usually it continues into the parking lot as they try not to rub against my muddy S-10 thats parked next to their immaculate Hummer with the chrome 22's on it. I suspect that the walk from the mall entrance to the parking lot is as close as they ever get to "The Great Outdoors" It's trendy and chic to look like a eco-racer nowadays. :wallbash:

 

The best fortune cookie I ever got was about two years ago and I still have it tacked above my tying bench.

" A lifestyle is something you pay for, a life is what pays you"

 

Scotty

[Harold Ray 0]

Personally, I like REI's branded equipment. I've bought it for years.

 

Ray

[philipmadamson 0]

My take on things....

I used to buy north face about 8 years ago, I do not anymore. They have sold out to a company named VP, owners of Lee Jeans, jansport, wranglers, ect... I feel that any outdoor company needs to be able to keep up with the current research that is being conducted to keep their products up to par. Some might say that selling your name to a big company like VP could help you, I feel like it hurts you. I think that it hinders your limits and eventually the quality of the other gear companies gear will go up while yours goes down.

I prefer patagonia gear for clothing in the backcountry settings. Arc'teryx is good, but very very pricy. Depending on what type of gear you look into getting different brands will be better, but I do not buy north face for anything anymore.

[Mato Kuwapi 0]

North Face still produces quality gear but they have brought in lower end lines as a way of boosting sales and cashing in on the name. You get what you pay for in NF. The higher end stuff will reflect in the price. The low end stuff is just that. There was also a big problem with counterfits a few years ago. I doubt that has ended. Trust me...if you think you got the deal of the decade on eBay or some unknown shop...you most likely ended up with a counterfit...and trust me...they are C R A P.

[Harold Ray 0]

I prefer patagonia gear for clothing in the backcountry settings.

 

I enjoy Patagonia, too, but I don't enjoy their often high prices, so I watch and wait for their sales. I generally buy Patagonia winter gear in the summer and summer gear in winter, usually at nearly 50% discount straight from the company.

 

I have had very good success with REI as I said before, both their store brand or some of their major name brand suppliers. I bought my initial full set of backpacking gear around 1970. It lasted, with a few minor replacements, until the fall of 2005. At that time, I decided to go to ultralite gear for the weight savings since in the prior 35 years, I had gone from 30 years old to 65, and I felt the lowered weight of an ultralite system would be more enjoyable. I was right, and I was amazed.

 

The old, outdated system weighed 45 to 50 pounds, which included about 20 pounds of water, when I was ready to go into the Big Bend of Texas, a part of the Chihuahuan Desert, for a week to 10 day pack. The new ultralite system topped out at 32.4 to 36.4 pounds which also included the water. Now when I go to an area like the Gila Wilderness where water is readily available, I can pack for a week or more with a pack that starts out weighing about 14 to 18 pounds, quite a difference. I made the difference by buying titanium and reducing weight in every way I could, even down to trimming off labels.

 

Some packs are still tough, but not nearly as bad as they are for someone carrying a 50, 60 or 70 pound or more pack. It still amazes me how little thought some people put into getting ready and packing for a several day long trip. For me, carrying everything, all of the amenities, is not an option!

 

Ray

[JSzymczyk 0]

They have sold out

 

 

I was gonna say that..... like so many other once admirable names.