If you’re sick of your down jacket looking like a clumpy, shapeless sack of feathers, you should pay attention to this.
We’re sure you’re familiar with the expression of ‘reinventing the wheel’ – meaning to waste a great deal of time in creating something that already exists. But that’s only true if there is genuinely no way that the wheel could be improved – which as far as we know, there isn’t.
As you can probably tell, we’re not all that clued up on wheels, but we like to think we are somewhat clued up on jackets.
In our view, the down jacket equivalent of reinventing the wheel is reinventing the baffle – the compartment that holds all the duck feathers – a seemingly impossible task, but recently it appears that one brand has done just that…
Goldwin has announced a collection of outerwear that utilizes a brand new take on traditional baffle construction, called the 3D Box Baffle.
To comprehend Goldwin’s genius, you’ve got to first have a clear understanding of what a baffle is, because if you don’t, the rest of this is bound to be baffling.
Baffles are internal compartments within a jacket that prevent the movement and clumping of down feathers, ensuring even insulation throughout the garment. The issue with baffles is that when a jacket is heavily used the down feathers can shift around inside them, creating weak spots within the compartment where no insulation is present. One or two of these spots is acceptable, but the more you have, the less warm your jacket is going to be.
This issue is exacerbated by jackets that do not accommodate well to movement, especially movement associated with outdoor pursuits, this causes compression of the down near the stitching and ultimately allows cold air to seep in.
Sometimes this issue can be resolved by chucking your down jacket in a dryer on low heat with a few tennis balls – but that’s assuming you’re in close proximity to a dryer, and if you’re wearing a highly technical outdoor garment, there’s a good chance you’re not.
Goldwin has identified this issue with traditional down jackets and set about re-designing how the compartment actually functions.
In the creation of their 3D Box Baffle, they identified an issue with the stitching of traditional baffles that promoted the shifting of down, to counter this they have added tucks and pleats at the seams between compartments which keep each baffle independent.
The result of this is a three-dimensional baffle that allows for greater loft with less down fill, these baffles allow the fabric to conform to the wearer’s body, reducing cold spots and promoting fluffiness. A feature that is very important, not just technically but also because there’s nothing more sad than a clumpy down jacket.
Due to these baffles requiring less down fill to produce the same amount of insulation, this ultimately reduces the weight of the jacket and minimises the environmental impact associated with production – the 3D Box Baffle is a winner in pretty much all areas.
What did Goldwin do when they discovered that they’d basically reinvented the wheel? What any sane company would do – incorporated the design into as many down products as possible.
For this season Goldwin has worked the 3D Box Baffle into a range of outerwear, from lifestyle items to skiwear, ensuring the best performance for each use. Products that use the technology include:
- GORE-TEX Windstopper Parka
- GORE-TEX 900FP Down Jacket
- GORE-TEX Snow Range Down Parka
- GORE-TEX Snow Range Down Coat
It’s not that often we feel we’re writing about something that will go down in the jacket history books, but this is definitely one of them, and we’re hardly surprised that Goldwin are the ones to do it.
To learn more about the 3D Box Baffle, do so here.
