Rab Myriad jacket review

So as usual, I’m hopeless at this. If I’d written this up in 2013, then I could have put it in a gear of the year round up. But, I didn’t write it up and I didn’t do a gear of the year post, so I can’t.

Or can I? This little part of the online world is entirely under my control so I can do what I like.

I can mess with time. I feel a bit like a cross between Doctor Who and Blofeld. Muahahahahahaha.

Ahem…anyway, moving on, lets just get this out of the way: this is the Rab Myriad jacket and it’s my favourite shell jacket of 2013.

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 I’ve been using it since April, in a mixture of conditions over the summer, autumn and winter. The conditions have varied from fog to drizzle to rain, heavy rain, extremely heavy rain and better-give-noah-a-call downpours. The weather has not been kind to me over the last year.

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The material is 3 layer Neoshell, and a pretty lightweight version of it too at 115g/m². The cut is pretty athletic, so no big bags of material to flap in the wind, which is good news for us slimmer chaps, although from the look of that photo above I’ve been on the pies. There’s a good amount of stretch in the material so it moves with you, making it an ideal choice for wet weather scrambling.

There are two big pockets on the chest, which sit above your pack belt or harness. There’s a waterproof internal security pocket which will take a mobile phone.

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The hood is excellent, which is what I’ve come to expect from Rab, they always do the best hoods in my experience. It’s fully adjustable, with a wired peak and it’s helmet friendly too. The arms are good and long too, which is handy for those of us who still resemble great apes. The velcro adjustments on the sleeve are well designed, and can be adjusted quickly for venting, with no risk of snagging.

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Performance wise, the breathability is very good in my experience. If you look at the specs on paper you can argue that Gore have the upper hand, but as always I prefer real world testing and so far I’ve been very impressed. Weather resistance is excellent and I don’t get lightly poached wearing it while slogging uphill.

It’s a proper technical jacket, all the features you need and none that you don’t. There are lighter jackets available but most come with compromises. The Myriad just does the job.

I have a personal measurement scale for the balance between performance and weight. It’s the MWNI scale, or to give it the full title: the ‘My Wife Nicked It’ model.

Kirsty has an innate quality detector. This can have it’s downsides because she can always pick the most expensive thing in the shop as a result, but it’s the best measure of gear that just does the job best.   A week after the Myriad arrived, Kirsty nicked it for a forest schools session and it was promptly appropriated. It’s now at the stage that I have to ask to borrow it back if I’m heading to the hills. If that’s not a 5 star indicator of how good a jacket this is I don’t know what is.

I have had some questions over the durability of the material so you’ll see this appearing in these pages over the coming year as I test it’s longevity, assuming I can borrow it back from Kirsty that is. So far it’s wearing very well.

So to summarise, the myriad is a combination of great design, finish and function and it gets the job done. Highly recommended.

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14 Comments

  1. Thanks! I’ve been trying to get good reviews on jackets and this one is very comprehensive.

  2. Michael, thanks for posting the review. How does the jacket hold up wearing a pack hipbelt and sternum strap? Does it pill or fray?

  3. Dave, no wear or pilling around the belt area yet. I wear a chest pack most of the time and there are no signs of wear around there either. That said, it’s been mixed in with a whole bunch of other jackets, so it’s only had about maybe 80 days wear so far.

  4. Cheers Michael – that’s good to know as I was a bit concerned about durability but confess to being a sucker for Neoshell kit after purchasing stretch neo trousers. I’ll try to look after the jacket as best as I can.

    Like your site btw. Some tremendous photos – keep up the good work!

  5. Thanks for the performance review of this jacket. I had been doing endless research and comparisons and after reading your review I feel my decision to purchase is justified. Great sense of humour in your writing will look keenly on future reviews. Nicolle

  6. Informative write up so thanks for that. I see that the jacket is a large but what size are you? I’m 6′ with a 38-40″ chest and seem to fall between Rab’s sizing sometimes. I tried a large Rab Neo Guide jacket but it was far too long in the arms and wide in the body so I switched to a medium Rab Mountain Dru which is unusable tight across the shoulders and elbows. I use a medium in their soft shells and big insulation pieces with no problems. Any insights appreciated.

  7. I’m 6’4″ with a 40″ chest and the Large is needed in Rab sizing, mainly for the arm length. Their cut is variable by piece, I’m trying out the Sawtooth jacket at the moment and it’s massive, whereas the Myriad is reasonably trim.

  8. Interesting. Thanks. I’m surprised at just how much variance there is in fit. The key is probably to go to a shop with your kit and see how something fits into your own personal system.

  9. Thanks for the review! I’m looking for a waterproof layer to cover my new Rab Electron in the wet weather, what’s your opinion on this for the job? I’ve just found it at half price and noticed its not on the Rab website… so I’m assuming its been revised/replaced

  10. Aye it’s not part of the range anymore, they have a limited choice of Neoshell kit in the current range. It’s a fine jacket and half price seems a good deal.

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