ErgodyneErgodyne - 16838 Balaclava Ski Mask, Solar Activated Warming, Mutiple Layers for Versatile Wear, N-Ferno 6838,Black

This is a dual-layer balaclava. The fabric is 81% nylon, 19% spandex. A separate tag says “Defeat odors. Active substance: 3-(trimethoxysilyl) propyldimethyloctadecyl ammonium chloride” © 2018 Microban Products”. The construction features a 3 part hood (back, right, left), with a T-shaped front sewn on the front. The T-shape has an inner mesh lining. The garment was made in Indonesia.I’m on the fence about this balaclava. It has a definite chemical odor which is off-putting, and I don’t general like any products that are anti-microbially treated. If I had known from the description that it is anti-microbially treated, I wouldn’t have ordered it. Yes, the balaclava fits me. I am a woman with a medium-sized head. I think it would be tight for men with large heads. It would also be warm. So if you have a medium to small sized head and you don’t mind anti-microbial products, perhaps you might like this balaclava.Certainly, the packaging is amusing to read. It starts off with “Most days, your job is waiting just around the corner with a 2x4 and an XL can of whoop-a**.” Sounds like the start to a good novel. I wish I knew what whoop-a** was, and that they had provided an explanation for the ** footnote. Overall, if you are looking for a light weight nylon dual-layer balaclava and you don’t have a large head, this one might work.

This balaclava fits well and snugly covers your head, chin, pretty much whatever above your shoulders you would like to cover. I first tried it on a day that was 28 degrees and sunny. When I started out, the sun was low in the sky, so I wasn’t able to initially try out the solar thermal feature. I spent about an hour outside and for the most part stayed warm. The fabric is pretty thin, so until I got moving I was cold and even the 2 mph wind was pretty chilly, blowing through the fabric. About half way through the walk, I felt warm. The sun was shining and my head was warm, but not noticeably so - I was just comfortable. This balaclava is a good hat for medium cold weather, or maybe to wear with layers. In severe cold I don’t think it would be enough on my head to keep me warm. The coverage on my face is good, so I might add a beanie and be comfortable. I didn’t really notice any warming effect with the solar activated thermal feature that I don’t get with any other warm hat. Since I was cold when I wasn’t directly in the sun, I don’t think it would work well on cloudy days either.

It's so bitterly cold and windy outside right now, so it's been the perfect time to test this balaclava. This one is different than other types I've had, and a little nicer. It's mostly synthetic materials and stretches a lot. I have a pretty big head and it stretched to fit, no problem. For skiing, snowshoeing and other winter sports, or non sports like snowblowing, there are 2 layers that go over the mouth and nose. Depending how much you need to breath, you can lower the outer layer to get more airflow in your nose. I'm probably not explaining this well but it's a good design because on other balaclavas, you just have to expose your nose to breathe, and on this one you don't. So I really like that feature.It's thin but surprisingly warm. My face gets especially cold in really cold weather so I wear this all the time now and it's been very helpful. It's machine washable and seems to be well constructed. I do have the same problem I always have with my glasses fogging up when wearing this, so I wear contacts to solve that problem. I'm not sure what the solution is if you have to wear glasses and you also want to keep your nose warm. But overall this is a very good balaclava, definitely above average.

It’s amazing how something so thin and lightweight can be so warm. I wore it during subzero temps & wind while snow shoveling, it kept my head, face and neck very warm and protected from the wind. I like the dual flaps for the nose and mouth.The balaclava fits very snuggly, nice because it keeps the wind from getting under it, but less comfortable over the nose. I have an average size head, if you have a large head it might be too tight.It would fit great under a hard hat or other required headwear. If you need to wear the flap over your mouth & nose it will get wet from your breath, so for all day wear I would have at least one more to be able to change into a dry one for the 2nd half off the day.This would make an excellent addition to a vehicle winter survival kit. Very warm and takes up little space.

I have a few of the older N-Ferno 6970 balaclava with heat exchanger models that have served me well, especially for my Spartan races. This particular 6838 model uses a lighter combination of nylon spandex for a similar dual layer system but the result are not as effective. The design is great as it offers protection against exposure for your face and neck but doesn't offer the same amount of insulation as their fleece line. For moderate winter conditions this is fine and will perform as expected, but for colder weather, I suggest the thicker fleece models featuring the air exchange unit. This specific model is comparable with their competitors though, not really anything special.

It is very thin but keeps you warm. The meshed inner layer helps you to breathe easily but gets colder if you do so.Well, I think I got a large head. I still can wear it and use daily but I have never tried to use it more than 15-20 mins. On the other hand, my initial thought about the breathable inner layer was that it would help me to use this with my glasses on but it doesn't make any difference. It is still the same when I close it my glasses get foggy.I think I can recommend this if you don't have a large head otherwise no.