Customer Reviews The North Face McMurdo Parka III

It's a lovely jacket but it is unusable because it is so hard to get the zipper aligned just right. What use is it if it takes 5 minutes of fiddling with the zipper each time you want to wear it? I am returning it.

I really can't be sure but someone some where mandy the decision to make them light. Like one of the comments posted my old parka from 10 years ago would stand up to Canadian winters and Albany. One trip TNF found was tosses in trunk for a different maker .Go back to the old design.

I love the look and feel of this coat, but the fit is way too bulky. I'm 6'0 and 180 lbs, and the size medium felt boxy and billowy, and the sleeves were way too long and wide at the wrists, felt like I was swimming in it. Ultimately I returned the coat and would be curious to try a small sometime to see if the fit is better.

I went back to wearing my original Mcmurdo with all of its duck tape repairs. I work on top of a mountain in the winter. It's not a coat for those in need of a warm coat. I don't wear it for a fashion statement. I wish hadn't purchased this parka and could get my money back.

As others have echoed here, the zippers are atrocious - having ordered mine online when I tried it on it took me, I kid you not, over five minutes to get the zipper to work. next, the pockets: that there is only one inside pocket is ridiculous : it is barely big enough to hold a very small wallet and a cellphone. on the outside, only the lowest pockets are insulated, and not all that well. the other pockets are too awkwardly placed, and the one on the left sleeve is impossible to get to. Whoever designed this jacket should be fired, and whoever is in charge of QC should follow suit

I'm returning it. The zipper is IMPOSSBLE to use. And gets stuck every time I try to use it. Shoddy.

Great coat. Bad zipper. Originally difficult to fasten, then after a couple days IMPOSSIBLE to get the zipper to link up. I send the coat back. May buy the same coat or similar style again but will definitely go to a brick and mortar store to test the zipper.

Zipper is a major problem. I returned mine after 1 week and with a fair amount of difficulty, was able to exchange for a new one. Same problem again. The zipper is manufactured improperly.

Not warm enough

I've had this for one full Wisconsin winter, it is great in the really cold weather. I got a large because the sleeves on the medium seemed too short at the store. The large fits better but there is no way to tighten the hood, and I feel like my neck isn't long enough when it is all zipped up, the zipper hits my chin. If I got the medium, maybe the hood and neck would fit better, but the sleeves would have been short. When you have this coat on zipped up with the hood movement is extremely limited. Think astronaut or marshmallow man.

This parka is good up until -15C. Once it gets below that, the cold can be felt in the arms and the back. This is a great parka for a winter commute to and from work in an office, but I wouldn't use this in cold temperatures for an extended period of time. I bought this product in Whitehorse, Yukon, and have worn it in winter there and in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Gore-tex is the only real waterproof barrier...why is NFace going cheap on us!

I bought my first Mc Murdo about 6 years ago and its still hanging in my wardrobe. Unfortunately, from the outside, its only good enough to walk my dog with it, but its a rock solid piece, which keeps me warm on cold Russian winter nights with 0F and less. This is, what I always appreciated about this parka and I love it. The replacement: I am usually a size M, but since my last parker was an M and large, I ordered an S. It is short and tight. Order S, if you want to look good, but order an M, to be comfortable. I guess, its the same for M and L. The Mc Murdo 2 seems to have some other outside material. It feels softer and less endurable, than the old parka. It also attracts fur, hairs, as well as other textiles. It looks dirty fast, especially on darker colors. The Mc Murdo 2 is lighter and less puffy than the old. I assume, its also less warm. During my first wears I noticed that my upper legs get cold. First I thought, its a size issue, but then I realized that the zipper doesn't go all the way down, as it used to be. Air can flow inside from below, especially when its windy. That is a big negative for me! I am very disappointed that North Face changed this parker to something, that seems to be less warm and functional, than what it used to be. I need a sub-zero / arctic parker for the Russian winter (I'm a German who lives and works here) and this one doesn't do the job. I am disappointed from my favorite (years and years!) supplier of mountain and winter gear. It seems that making profit has become more important for The North Face, than making functional, warm and good clothes, as they used to do. If I would have not owned a Mc Murdo before, I'd probably accept all of that, but the original piece was fantastic and this one is average or lower! So buy this parker, if you live in a city and want to look cool, but not, if you need a proper winter coat to keep you warm in winter storms and temperatures around 0F.

I bought a new McMurdo parka to replace one that I had bought 3 years ago and was severely torn. My old McMurdo parka had a two way zipper to open and close the parka. The new one has only a one way zipper. A parka of this caliber, price and especially coming from The North Face has to have a two way zipper for when you have to kneel down or get in or out of a transport vehicle. The Hyvent material was also thinner than my old McMurdo parka. The thinner material is acceptable if the parka still keeps the heat in and can be considered an improvement. However, the lack of a two way zipper in unforgivable. Raise the price if you have too, but keep the product the same.

I bought it but had to return it because it was to big but great jacket.

Very big and boxy. Poorly fit

The other reviews on the zipper are extremely accurate. This is an expensive coat with a sub-par zipper. Most coats of this type or expense have a heavy-duty zipper. They did this one on the cheap in my opinion. It, fortunately, has been a mild winter, but when the temperature fell below 20 degrees and this coat came out, multiple tries to start the zipper failed. Due to a number of surgeries, the cold really gets to me which is why I bought this coat. My opinion - look elsewhere if you need a coat like this.

First off, my product came a week late. Next, the box was damaged when I received it. Nevertheless, the jacket is beautiful, with the red and black combination, I was awed. But then I tried fitting myself in the jacket, and the zippers were such a hassle to put on. It should be an easy process of putting the jacket on and taking it off. It took me a minute to zip up the jacket. Probably the thing that I most dislike about the jacket is the sleeved. They were short and the cushioning that's made the inside of the jacket so warm did not extend all the way to the sleeves, such that when wearing the jacket, wind would make its way up through my arms. Even North Face's most basic jackets have cotton or cushion extending all the way to the hand area. Other then those two unconventionalities, the jacket was really warm, but heavy. Sadly, I'm thinking of returning it.

I wanted a parka for the polar vortex that seem to come to Chicago every winter. And this was the one I eanted to try out. Listen it's not that I didn't like it, it just didn't fit well on my arms. I'm 6'4" and 215 pounds. So I get it that I'm not your average 5' 8" 140 pound guy. But please for the love of God make tall sizes. I put the coat on and it fit great on the chest and length area, XL is what I got. First thing I did after putting on the coat was put my arms straight out in front of me. It recessed about 5 inches from my palm. So it was an immediate no. I even did the simulation of shoveling snow and it was just the same as far as riding up my arm. Disappointed but not surprised. Still love the brand

I've owned the same styled North Face for many years being a native of NYC. My first coat was ruined by old fashioned dryers on Boston Post Rd. in the Bronx back in 2009ish. The coat was melted by the dryer. My replacement coat was in my truck on The New England Thruway Service Rd. and my truck was stolen in 2017, so I lost my coat and other belongings as well. So I finally replaced that one by ordering a new McMurdo Parka III from Backcountry online, and when I received the coat, the first thing I noticed is that there was no draw string to keep the wind from coming in from the waistline? I drive from New Rochelle to Manhattan to the Backcountry store on Spring St. this weekend since I have a little time off from work, and they can't seem to assist me in the matter. Then I walk to the North Face store on Broadway and after waiting for a half hour for assistance, the sales rep called customer service for me to find out that they removed this feature because other customers were allegedly complaining about the draw string breaking or dry rotting or something like that? I find that very hard to believe, so now because of my 6' 3" frame, I buy a 3X size coat that I can't prevent the under draft by just tightening the draw string... I'm very disappointed at this point because as a truck driver that's really never at home because of work, I don't have time to send the coat back in exchange for a smaller size hoping I can fix the issue that way. The North Face made a bad decision in my opinion by removing the draw string feature.

I can feel this is a very good jacket, but on the second use, the leathers are coming out of the jacket. I will return mine in exchange for a new one.

The North Face has really cut corners. This so called parka doesn't even have a draw string around the waist or hem to prevent cold air from coming up. No recessed rib-knit cuffs to lock in heat. The Velcro cuffs are useless. Multiple cold spots especially around the elbows. Hood is too small and just fly's off when its windy. Can't move my neck around when zippered all the way up its so tight and uncomfortable. I feel cold even when its just 4 degrees Celsius outside sitting in my car. Bad purchase. Do not recommend.

The product was decent enough -- and was warm in Canadian winters. However, after a machine wash there was a large tear on the jacket despite it being washed exactly per the instructions on the jacket. Its infuriating to see such poor workmanship on such an expensive product. The worst part is that The North Face is refusing to honour their "lifetime" warranty by saying that they could not "verify the reason for the tear." I guess no one told me that I needed to have a North Face representative sitting next to me while I do my laundry.

Received it today. Struggling and Unsuccessful to put the zipper on. Wouldn't recommend this jacket.

The jacket is warm BUT the hood is completely useless. There are gaping holes in the back and around the fur trim. Just as useless as having no hood. When then it's cold enough for such a jacket, you need a decent hood. deal breaker.