From my brother, asking the SDMB for experienced advice:
I have had a great gore-tex jacket for ~13 years. It has finally died (after it has limped along with DWR re-treatments) and I’m looking for a replacement that has the following (in order of importance):
A waterproof/breathable shell (gore-tex or otherwise)
No (or almost no) permanent insulation
The ability to zip in an insulating layer (with a #10 YKK zipper) and have the sleeves clip together at the internal wrist cuff
Velcro on the outside wrist cuff that will not come undone easily when working in tight places (ie crack climbing and catching the velcro on the rock/gear)
Is durable enough to stand crack climbing generally
Is sized to fit at least one insulating jacket and wicking long-johns underneath while preserving your ability to move at the shoulders and elbows in awkward positions (ie climbing!)
Has a hood that hits well with or without a helmet on.
Perhaps even reinforcement at the areas where a pack would wear on it
I’ve looked at The North Face and they fail on most points, especially on the velcro wrist cuffs. Mountain Hardware and Arc’teryx are great, but don’t offer anything with a zip in option. I’m wondering if LL Bean or Campmor or some other company makes a dependable jacket that does it all. Patagonia might fit, but don’t seem to be as durable; although they will replace the thing forever, no questions asked. Maybe something from Outdoor Research?
I have been using a columbia vertex jacket for the past five years, sparingly as I now live in Florida, but it comes in handy on winter vacations and hiking the Appalachian trail in winter months.
Going down the list it hits everything you are looking for except for the hood. It does have a small rain hood but I doubt that it would cover a helmet as it barely covers my head.
I dont think that they still make the vertex line but there were a number of combinations on their website under interchange that appeared similar.
They also have a great replacement plan to my knowledge. My brother purchase the same jacket when I purchased mine and last winter a few of his zipper teeth broke off. He mailed it in and they sent him a brand new jacket that was similar to his old one complete with a new inner shell.
There’s no one jacket that’s perfect for everyone or every situation. Fit is different, your needs are different, and your price point may be different.
I’m not a huge fan of zip in layers, I much prefer to layer as I see fit. I don’t want to commit my outer layers and inner layers to a single company or fabric. I have fleece, down, and synthetic garments that I swap as I need. This is why most of the top end brands don’t have anything like that; “real” climbers/mountaineers don’t use them very often.
The North Face has great gear, but not at most retail outfits. They sell mass market stuff but they also sell real gear. Mountain Hardware, Arc’teryx, Marmot, and Mammut all make bombproof top of the line gear which costs accordingly. I’d find a jacket that meets your needs among them, and worry about the liner separately.
These days most people seem to use fleece and a separate water proof shell over that jacket.
One thing very nice about REI is you can return stuff there forever. I had a problem with a rain jacket that was 4 years old and they gave me a new one, no questions asked.