The Sabre 2.0 is 5.11 Tactical’s upgrade to their most popular concealed carry jacket.The jacket is mid weight and is built on a polyester bonded soft shell over three-layer microfiber. I bought it for use as a spring/fall jacket, and it turned into my winter jacket too.

5.11 Sabre 2.0 Jacket 100% Microfiber Softshell10K/10K Waterproof Breathable, Fully SeamsealedSeam Sealed Che… [More] Price: 264.99 Sale: 264.99 Buy Now

Overview

5.11 has a handy rating system on their website to show both how warm, and how dry their outerwear is designed to be. The Sabre 2.0 Jacket is rated with 3/5 warm and 5/5 dry. Perfect, since I was looking for a light waterproof jacket for the spring and fall. I had a Condor Phantom that had looked super tactical and turned out to be a huge disappointment the first time i wore it in the rain.  The 5.11 Sabre 2.0 is actually waterproof, ok almost waterproof. I’ve been on the range in a couple of downpours and eventually everything gets soaked, but its stood up to light rain quite well. The Sabre 2.0 is also surprisingly warm. I’ve worn it as a winter jacket for most of the winter in -25°C weather. After Christmas I was on the outdoor range all day on two different weekends at -25°C and -20°C with snow up to my knees. The Sabre 2.0 with a long sleeve shirt keep me warm. Surprising since it’s an unlined jacket.

The Sabre 2.0 is available in black, coyote, navy, and moss. The exposed YKK zippers are all waterproof and come in black. This has led to some unfavorable reviews, but I like the contrast between the moss and black zippers, and I hate coyote as a colour, so I’m ok with it. But I can see why some HSLD badasses get uppity if their jacket doesn’t look tactical enough. On to pockets, where many of the zippers are.

• Outside
  • both sides of the chest
  • both shoulders
  • front(traditional) pockets, fleece lined
  • rear right aka the butt pocket
• Inside
  • left chest, zippered
  • right chest, velcro
• ID Panels
  • both side of the chest
  • back

Both sides of the Sabre 2.0 have 5.11 Quixip for access to a concealed side arm. The Quixip system is based around a hidden buckle with an exposed pull tab. Pulling the tab releases the buckle, and opens a small patch of velcro that holds a zipper pull in place. As you keep pulling the zipper opens upward and the jacket breaks away from it’s self. Since I can’t carry a handgun in Canada, I didn’t think this feature would be very useful. It’s actually helped a couple times at training and IPSC matches where I wear a belt holster and want to expose the pistol, but keep most of me out of the rain.

The cuffs of the Sabre 2.0 are pretty ingenious. They are elasticized and easily adjustable. The if they are adjusted smaller then normal the cuff is held in place with velcro. At their normal location, which I need to get my hands in and out, there is also a Prym snap to hold the cuff secure.

Both uppers arms of the jacket have a colour matched loop field that is 4″x4″. Obviously for displaying patches. However with out any patches the loops is discreet and the jacket blends in well. On the topic of not blending in; there are three zip out ID panels. Two on the front that are 5″x5″ and one on the back that is 12″x9″. The panels themselves are attached with velcro and are easily removed from the jacket. and the panel pocket is hidden by a storm flap design.

The jacket includes a detachable hood. The hood zippers on to the back of the neck and velcros on to the sides of the collar. The collar features a small piece of fleece backed shell that protects the wearer from the zipper when its all the way up.

Pros

• Solid construction and design details
• YKK and waterproof zippers
• Warm
• Light weight
• Water resistant
• Loads of pockets

Neutral

• ID panels
• Rear (butt) pocket

Cons

• Mismatched zipper colour

5.11 Sabre 2.0 Jacket 100% Microfiber Softshell10K/10K Waterproof Breathable, Fully SeamsealedSeam Sealed Che… [More] Price: 264.99 Sale: 264.99 Buy Now

I don’t see a huge need for a jacket, even a concealed carry jacket that has ID panels. I think 5.11  could bring the price down a bit by removing the panels. Same thing with the pocket on the bottom back of the jacket, I have not found a good reason for it to be there. The mismatched zipper colour is going to bother some people. I think it works in the moss colour, but not the coyote.

Overall this has been a fantastic jacket. Warmer then I expected and very water resistant. It’s stood up well to everyday wear, and some hard use on the range.