You may be seeing more and more insulated Rab jackets on the high street these days, but don't be mistaken in thinking it's now a fashion brand. This is a company that still makes some of the best insulated jackets, as demonstrated by the very good Rab Glaceon Pro.
Taking on a shape with mid-size baffles and packed with 700 fill power hydrophobic recycled down, this is a jacket that delivers impressive warmth.
The features and quality of construction aren't too shabby, either. Read on to find out more in our full review.
Pros
- Warm
- Good coverage
- Cosy and luxurious feel
- Recycled down
Cons
- Not the lightest
- A little bulky
- Some down leakage
| RRP: | £250 / $340 |
| Men's Sizes: | XS-XXL |
| Women's Sizes: | UK 8-16 |
| Fabric and Fill: | Pertex Quantum Eco ripstop with PFC-free DWR (100% recycled shell and lining); 700FP Nikwax Hydrophobic recycled duck down fill |
| Weight: | 594g / 1lb 5oz (men's M) |
Design and features
New for 2024, the Glaceon Pro is the replacement for Rab’s older Axion Pro jacket. It’s a similar ‘midi’ baffled puffer, using the same shell fabric and fill as previously (Pertex Quantum Pro ripstop nylon and 700FP hydrophobic down).
Essentially, you can consider it an upgrade to the more generalist Rab Microlight jacket. It’s definitely aimed at more technical users, since it features a larger volume hood, a two-way main zip and fully adjustable cuffs with Velcro tabs.
These are all design elements that are preferred for scrambling, climbing and mountaineering, because the hood will fit over a climbing helmet, the zip can be opened from the bottom to access the belay loop of a climbing harness more easily, and the bigger cuffs will accommodate bulky winter gloves.
However, a lot of these features also make this jacket a more practical choice for winter hillwalking, too. For example, a two-way zip is useful if you’re sitting down or need to access midlayer pockets, and Velcro cuffs are better than simple elasticated cuffs for locking in warmth.
Even the hood is fitted with two embedded cordlocks around the face, as well as a Velcro tab at the rear to adjust the volume, so it still cinches in well over a bare head or beanie. You also get a wired peak, which can be shaped to help deflect wind, rain and spindrift.
Unlike the old Axion Pro, which featured a hood filled with synthetic insulation, the Glaceon Pro has a down-filled hood for superior warmth and a cosier feel, though perhaps at the expense of wet weather performance.
The jacket also boasts two cosy microfleece-lined hand pockets and a zipped outer chest pocket, plus dual hem drawcords at the rear to cinch in the scooped tail. All in all, it’s a well-designed package.
Fabrics and fill
The Glaceon Pro has a stitch-through construction, employing a 20D Pertex Quantum Pro ripstop nylon shell stuffed with 700FP hydrophobic recycled down. This is a lighter weight face fabric than is typically found in bigger ‘belay’-style insulated jackets, but it's fairly typical of down puffers.
It’s tough for its weight and the ripstop construction also improves resistance to snags and abrasion, but still shouldn’t be treated too harshly.
Both the shell and the down fill are treated with Nikwax’s PFC-free hydrophobic finishes, improving resistance to moisture, which has always been the traditional Achilles heel of down jackets.
The 700FP down is considered a mid-range fill in terms of overall warmth for weight, but the Glaceon Pro has a fairly high total fill weight (containing 265g of down in a men’s size M). This ensures it’s warm enough for all-season use in the UK, even in the depths of winter.
Performance and comfort
The Glaceon Pro is nicely cut for a midi baffled puffer. Obviously, the bigger baffles add a little bulk compared to a lighter weight down jacket, but the Rab designers have used chevron-shaped baffles in the chest and torso that help to slim the jacket’s overall silhouette.
The fit offers good coverage in the arms and body, aided by a pronounced drop tail with a scooped rear hem. There’s enough room to wear a winter-weight base layer and mid layer fleece underneath, while still just about fitting under a waterproof jacket, too.
This makes it a versatile insulator in all seasons – you could wear it as a standalone jacket in milder conditions, or under a shell in very cold weather. It feels cosy and luxurious to wear, but still protective enough for technical use in the mountains.
In terms of weatherproof performance, the closely woven Pertex shell does a good job of resisting windchill, but as a stitch-through jacket, there are occasional cold spots at the seams.
We also noticed a little bit of down leakage here over the course of testing. It didn’t lose feathers at an alarming rate, but we certainly noticed more leakage with this jacket than with any other down piece we had on test.
Otherwise, overall warmth is excellent and, thanks to the ability to lock in plenty of heat at the hood, cuffs and hem, this jacket can get seriously toasty.
It's also more resistant to damp than most down jackets, thanks to a DWR finish that has been applied to both the shell and the lining. In addition, the down itself is hydrophobically treated with Nikwax.
Don’t expect miracles – it won’t withstand a sustained downpour, but it can cope with intermittent drizzle and claggy conditions. If it does get damp, we noticed that it also dries far more quickly than untreated down, and also clumps less, suggesting the Nikwax does a good job of preventing the clusters from getting saturated and collapsing.
Sustainability
This jacket scores highly for sustainability. In recent years, Rab has taken major steps to reduce the environmental impact of many of its insulated jackets, which are a key category for the brand as well as the wider outdoor industry.
Both the face fabric and the down fill are made from recycled content, as is the jacket’s nylon lining. The entire product is also free from PFCs, the harmful fluorocarbons or ‘forever chemicals’ that are now gradually being phased out of the outdoor industry, having been shown to bio-accumulate in the environment.
One point to note is that because the down fill is recycled, it isn’t certified by the Responsible Down Standard. Basically, that’s because it’s impossible to know where, when or how the original down was sourced before it was collected, cleaned and repurposed.
But using recycled down obviously has many upsides in terms of repurposing a resource that would otherwise go to waste and helping to ‘close the loop’ in production terms.
The jacket’s overall environmental impact is clearly expressed in Rab’s industry-leading ‘Material Facts’ user information. Presented similarly to the nutritional information you find on food packaging, it aims to help outdoor users make informed choices by giving you the raw data.
Rab is totally transparent about what the jacket’s made from, as well as how and where it is manufactured (Indonesia, in this case), and we’d love to see more brands take the same approach.
As a brand, Rab has also been a member of the Fair Wear Foundation (FWF) since 2020. It’s currently classed as a ‘leader’ by that organisation (the highest award under the criteria of their annual Brand Performance Check, scoring an impressive 76/100 overall).
Price and competition
With an RRP of £250 ($340), this is one of the cheaper hooded jackets in Rab’s AW24 range of down puffers, tied with the Electron Hoody (the cheapest is the Microlight Alpine at £210/$295).
The Glaceon Pro has a more technical look and feel than either of those alternatives, though the Electron uses slightly higher fill power down (750FP compared to 700FP) and is a bit lighter overall, too. It has a far lower total fill weight though, and we’d expect the Glaceon Pro to be considerably warmer.
In terms of rivals, Montane offers the Anti-Freeze XT, which has slightly better warmth for weight than the Glaceon Pro thanks to higher grade down (750FP). But it's £30 more expensive (£280/$350) and lacks the Glaceon Pro’s excellent adjustable Velcro cuffs.
Mountain Equipment has its similarly priced Senja (£230/$269.95). The Senja is a similar overall weight to the Glaceon Pro and uses the same 700FP down. But it has a slightly lower total fill weight (220g compared to 265g in a men’s M), so again, the Glaceon Pro should feel a bit warmer. On the other hand, the Senja has a tougher face fabric, so if you’re hard on your kit, that might be a better choice.
Of course, if you want a warm and weatherproof jacket for UK winter conditions, it might be worth looking at synthetic options rather than a down duvet.
Good value picks include the Sprayway Torridon Insulated (£180/$229), the Keela Solo (£165/$177) and the Mountain Equipment Shelterstone (£220/$274.95). You don’t get quite the same warmth for weight compared to down fill, but you do get added wet weather capability.
Verdict
The Rab Glaceon Pro is a very warm and sustainably made midweight down jacket with a feature set that works well for winter hillwalking or more technical scrambling and mountaineering.
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About the author
Ellie Clewlow lives in Snowdonia and can often been found testing kit on airy crags in North Wales. She loves long-distance trails and has already completed hikes such as the West Highland Way, Pennine Way and Cambrian Way. Her love of the outdoors has taken her onto trails around the world, including New Zealand, the US and Iceland.