Three of the Best Brands?

[Little Kitty]

Do you think The North Face, Life is Good and Patagonia are the best, when it comes to brands? These brands are so popular, but the price tag is so hefty, I can rarely afford them. So what do you think, the best or just a popular brand?

[pastywhite]

Life is Good is an odd brand to throw in there.

TNF and Patagonia make some great gear. TNF especially has developed a "mass market" quality but their gear is still good. The best? It depends on what you are looking for. I have both TNF and Pat gear I like but I also have Marmot, Mountain Hardware, and Outdoor Research.

[IndianaHiker]

I have a bunch of Life Is Good products. However can't say that what they make is good for camping or backpacking because of the materials that they use. I really really dislike cotton for backpacking and that is what most of their products are made off. The only thing of theirs that I use backpacking is a baseball cap. That being said however all the products are of good quality and I love the fact that they give so much back in support of worth while causes.

The North Face makes some great gear however I don't own any of their products. I have found that other companies make gear that is as good and I tend to prefer others over them. One thing to remember when buying The North Face is that they often sell 2 levels of quality. The product that they sell in their outlet centers is not always the same as you get from other authorized retailers. Many times the stitching isn't as good and cheaper materials are used. Some will agree and some wont I think that the North Face gear is of higher quality then some of the new stuff. Also many times when you consider weight other brands are better for the price point. Good example is their tents. If I was getting a tent would look at Big Agnes, Marmot, Golite, or some other makers. If looking for a pack I have owned one North Face pack and it was retired after one season due to weight and comfort. It was replaced with Deuter which I have fallen in love with that pack.

[Mary Beth]

I think the brands are okay, but there are other great brands out there. I love the feel of some of The North Face's clothing, but the price tag always kills me. I can buy the same thing, in a lesser known brand, and it work just as well.

[catspa]

Sometimes expensive name brand clothing will show up at your local Goodwill or other thrift shop for a fraction of the original price.

Parker

[Marshmallow]

I found a North Face jacket at a yard sale last year and bought it for three bucks for my nephew. It still had the tags on it. He has not had it off since. The young people really go in for name brands. He's in the ninth grade and it's the best three bucks I've spent in a long time. I'll never get that lucky again. I just looked up the price of the jacket. Wow!

[Gunny Webb]

Bought some used TNF on ebay. I am not paying the prices they want for new.
But I did drop $500 for a Western Mountaineering bag. Go figure........

[Grandpa]

Originally Posted by Gunny Webb

Bought some used TNF on ebay. I am not paying the prices they want for new.
But I did drop $500 for a Western Mountaineering bag. Go figure........

Don't have one but friends with Western Mountaineering swear by them as THE BEST bar none. Most of the other big names have outsourced production to China and quality is dropping, but WM still makes their's in San Jose, California.

[ponderosa]

I've been dreaming of a Western Mountaineering bag for a few years now. I think I may start selling my plasma to finance a new bag.

[Grandpa]

Originally Posted by ponderosa

I've been dreaming of a Western Mountaineering bag for a few years now. I think I may start selling my plasma to finance a new bag.

I wanted a new bag last year, narrowed it to Marmot, Mt hardware or WM depending on which I could get on sale. Wishing now I had forked the cash for the WM rather than the 30% off the Mt Hardware. The phantom is a good bag but I didn't notice they had cut the shoulder girth and it's a tight fit for me.