Reviewed: Mission Workshop Onyx Primaloft Insulated Jacket

Mission Workshop is a maker of bespoke outdoor gear, often tailored towards cyclist, that has been on my radar for years. They are one of those companies that has an absolutely dialed esthetic, coupled with great functional design and thoughtful material choice. My first Mission Workshop tester has been the Primaloft Insulated Onyx Hoody.

Mission Workshop Onyx Primaloft Insulated Jacket Features:

• Olmetex 100% Nylon Textile Shell
• PFC Free C0 DWR [Durable Water Repellent] Coating
• PrimaLoft® 40g Gold Active+ insulation
• Performance fit – Size up if you are between sizes
• Two YKK zip secured hand warmer pockets
• Two internal open pockets
• Two-way separating YKK front zip
• Performance fit – Size up if you are in between sizes
• 3-panel hood with cord lock adjustment
• MSRP: $295

Italian textiles meet PNW mud:

The fabric choices really stand out to me in this piece. The Olmetex nylon shell, and the PrimaLoft Gold Active+ insulation. More and more companies are going to various brandless textiles, or will develop an in-house option to compete with the big names. This has happened frequently with active insulators, but PrimaLoft Gold has long been at the top of its class. Olmetex was new to me, but I think this might be the first Italian textile I’ve ever seen incorporated into activewear like this. You can read their website (in Italian) here. 

The Olmetex nylon has many of the traits that I already love about nylon as a face material. When I compare this to polyester, it’s more durable and has a finer weave. Generally I expect nylon to resist pilling more than polyester. The PrimaLoft Gold is at a 40g weigh, meaning there is 40 grams of insulation per square yard of fabric. It comes in a wide variety of weights, and I’ve tested everything up to 200g in a heavy duty puffy. 40g is quite light.

In practical terms, 40g translates into a light to medium level of insulation that’s also breathable and water resistant. For most people, this weight will be good to wear with light to moderate activity in temperatures down to the high 30’s. With a good merino base layer and hats and gloves, you could push this into the 20’s with moderate activity. I used this primarily for ski touring which meant huge exertion on the uphill with the Onyx in my pack, getting sweaty, and then pulling this on over my sweaty self to transition and descent.

The thing about the Primaloft Gold is that, by their own description, it’s not the most breathable synthetic insulation. It’s a fairly old and respected fabric that has since been improved upon by technologies like PrimaLoft Active or Polartec Alpha. These newer insulations use linearly arranged fibers to wick water vapor from your body to the garment wall.

My testing gave me a really clear sense of this jacket’s strengths and weaknesses. This is not the jacket that you buy to work hard in: there are just better breathing jackets out there. You buy this jacket if you’re looking for an exceptionally sleek, well-made semi-active insulator from a boutique US brand. The Olmetex nylon is lovely, and the Primaloft Gold is a strong performer despite its limitations. I couldn’t tour up in this one without wetting out the body fabric and insulation. When I did pull it on after getting sweaty, the Olmetex felt heavy as it picked up my sweat and any semblance of breathability got lost. There are other active insulators whose body fabric feels lighter and less boggy with sweat.

Mission Workshop nailed the features on the Onyx. The twin hand pockets have an easy-pulling, toothy YKK zipper that never snagged for me. Same with the main zip, which pulls effortlessly and is two-way for belaying or peeing. The two internal dump pockets are absolutely massive, and can easily accommodate giant mitts, thermoses, and literally anything you would want. A chihuahua would fit in there. The hood is not helmet compatible, but it fits on the head well and the pull cord adjustment seats it well and facilitates surprisingly great peripheral vision.

Fit is important to think about. This is a trim piece and I recommend sizing up for it. I’m 5’11” and 200lbs, and I tend to wear a Medium but on this needed a Large. The sleeves felt a touch short to me, so if you have particularly long arms see if you can try this on first. Be aware that the Olmetex nylon has minimal inherent stretch, so you’re relying on the Onyx’s overall excellent tailoring for the jacket to move with you. Lastly, sometimes the nylon felt heavy next-to-skin, especially if I got it saturated with sweat as below.

Buy Now: Visit MissionWorkshop.com