Waterproof Jackets

7mesh Guardian Air Jacket | Review

A superbly versatile, lightweight waterproof shell with excellent articulation and some genuinely clever design touches, although its £400 price and lack of ventilation will make it a considered purchase.

The 7mesh Guardian Air is an interesting proposition. At first glance, it looks like another lightweight Gore-tex shell, but spend some time with it and you start to appreciate there are some smart touches that elevate it above other lightweight shells.

It weighs just 204g, uses three-layer Gore-tex ePE construction and has a 28,000mm+ water column rating, yet 7mesh hasn’t stripped it back to the point where it feels minimalist. Instead, you get a surprisingly capable waterproof that can move between hiking, backpacking, fastpacking, cycling, MTB and everyday use.

Will testing out a size L jacket in Wales. He’s 5 foot 10.

I’ve been testing the Guardian through late summer and autumn, wearing it roughly twice a week for two months. It’s been to Switzerland with me for a week hiking at altitude in autumn conditions. It’s been on a hiking trip in the Black Mountains of Wales, on dog walks, bike rides around the Wiltshire countryside and city trips, as well as coming along on a camping trip with a heavily loaded Osprey Kestrel 58. I’ve subjected it to everything from drizzle and downpours to strong gusts – including a recent named storm.

Price: £400
Weight: 200g
Fabric: Gore-tex ePE
Durability rating: 3.5/5
Breathability rating: 3.5/5
Pockets: 2
Best for: Cycling, hiking, fastpacking, ski-touring, ultra racing
Overall rating: 4.5/5
★★★★½

Where To Buy

7Mesh Guardian Air

Our editor’s verdict: “Genuinely innovative and versatile. You can tell that the team behind it have extensive experience in outdoor gear design.”
★★★★☆

Check men's price at Ellis Brigham

Lightweight but Properly Featured

The Guardian’s headline statistic is its 204g weight. 7mesh describes it as the lightest Gore-Tex ePE jacket currently available, and that makes it particularly appealing for fastpacking and other situations where every gram counts.

Yet it doesn’t feel like a minimalist waterproof jacket that has sacrificed totally everything in the pursuit of low weight. The ripstop fabric has proved surprisingly tough, including under backpack straps, and there’s a good balance between durability and weight. I’d expect it to cope with years of normal outdoor use, although I wouldn’t choose it for a life of being dragged through sharp Scottish granite or used and abused by a winter mountain guide.

It’s also impressively packable. The Guardian Air stuffs into its own internal pocket and has a clever bungee and clip system that allows the packed jacket to be attached to a bike, belt or backpack straps. It packs down to roughly pint-glass or small-loaf-of-bread size, making it particularly easy to carry when you’re not wearing it.

Excellent Fit and Articulation

One of the Guardian’s biggest strengths is its fit. I tested a size L at 5ft 10in with an average build and slightly broad shoulders. I’m currently somewhere between M and L, and the larger size has worked very well, providing enough room for layers while retaining a trim, athletic shape.

The 360-degree articulated patterning is excellent. There’s no restriction when reaching up for a climbing hold or getting into a crouched cycling position, and the articulation around the underarms is particularly good.

It reminds me of the approach taken by Arc’teryx: technical enough to work properly, but without looking like you’ve borrowed a tent. The result is a jacket that works equally well on a mountain, bike or dog walk. That comparison with Arc’teryx is no coincidence either, because the founders of 7mesh all once held very high positions there.

Excellent Waterproofing

Unsurprisingly, the three-layer Gore-tex ePE construction is very effective in the rain. The seams are fully taped and I’ve had no problems with water ever penetrating the fabric. Even in heavy rain, the outer fabric has shed water impressively well.

The cuffs are particularly clever. They’re easy to operate, don’t get in the way and can accommodate gloves, while the hem has one-handed, glove-friendly adjustment. These are small details, but they’re exactly the sort of things that separate a genuinely well-designed jacket from one that simply ticks the specification boxes.

The hood can be adjusted with one hand and it’s big enough to work well over a helmet. There’s no stiff plastic toggle at the back to dig into your head, while a slight peak helps keep rain away from your face. It also rolls away really neatly into a collar, with a unique configuration to allow this – it’s really impressive.

Generally, I’ve liked the hood but I have found that it’s difficult to get it to hold closely around the head in strong winds – the toggles just don’t always seem to hold. That’s been my biggest frustration with this jacket.

I’ve also found it difficult to pull the collar of the hood completely close around my neck. If you’re not careful, it can leave a small funnel for rain, so I found myself occasionally checking that the collar was tucked properly beneath my chin.

Breathability is Good, but Ventilation Would Help

The Guardian Air’s breathability is what I’d expect from a modern Gore-tex jacket. It certainly breathes better than some membrane shells I’ve used, but when working particularly hard, moisture does build up and it can feel clammy. That’s just something that happens with all membrane-lined jackets.

Another downside for me is the lack of pit zips. The two-way main zip provides some useful ventilation, but there isn’t a popper or tab at the bottom, so it can blow open in windy conditions. Pit zips would add weight, of course, and that would undermine one of the Guardian Air’s key selling points, but I’d still like to see them.

The Guardian Air is completely windproof and works very well with layers. I’ve used it over a wicking baselayer and with a lightweight midlayer such as Polartec Alpha or a light puffer.

There’s one large dump pocket that’s big enough for gloves or an OS map, plus a zipped internal pocket for a phone, wallet or satellite communicator. The latter is also the pocket into which the jacket packs. There’s no external chest pocket or hand pockets, which will be a drawback for some people, but again, it’s part of why this jacket is so light.

The main zip’s small pull tabs can also be fiddly with cold hands – that can at least be solved by adding your own cordage to it as a DIY tab.

Then there’s the price. At £400, the Guardian is expensive. Very expensive, in fact. There are plenty of capable waterproof jackets available for considerably less. The Haglöfs L.I.M, Montane Minimus Lite and Rab Downpour are some examples. This does have elements that go towards justifying that price tag though. The higher-spec Gore-tex ePE fabric, for instance, and the exceptionally low weight, packability and some unique design touches.

Verdict

The 7mesh Guardian Air is a high-spec waterproof jacket that manages to be far more versatile than the brand’s cycling heritage might suggest. It’s light enough for fastpacking, capable enough for hiking and backpacking, comfortable on a bike and unobtrusive enough to wear around town.

Its biggest strengths are the excellent fit and articulation, genuinely impressive packability, reliable waterproofing and some of the little design details, like the neat cuffs and one-handed toggles, that show 7mesh has thought carefully about how people actually use a shell.

The compromises are the hood’s drawbacks in strong wind, the £400 price, lack of pit zips and the internal-only pockets. I also think that it’a s shame there are no reflective details – that would really bolster it’s multi-sport versatility, particularly when it comes to cycling and running.

For someone who only occasionally needs a waterproof jacket, there are cheaper options. But if you want one shell that can cover fastpacking, hiking, cycling and everyday use without weighing you down, the Guardian Air does still make a very convincing case for itself.

I particularly wish it had been around when I undertook a 500-mile expedition five years ago. I used a Haglöfs L.I.M on that trip, but the Guardian’s combination of weight, durability and packability would have made an excellent choice.

Where To Buy

7Mesh Guardian Air

Our editor’s verdict: “Genuinely innovative and versatile. You can tell that the team behind it have extensive experience in outdoor gear design.”
★★★★☆

Check men's price at Ellis Brigham