Rain Gear

[GameHauler]

Well, after sitting here for a day and a half,

not hunting because of this storm that has been none stop since Friday morning.

Lets talk about rain gear.

I have been wanting to buy some GOOD rain gear for several years

but did not want to shell out a bunch of money on a piece of crap.

Lets hear some input on the best gear for the money.

Thanks,

Mike

[rthrbhntng]

Cabela's MT 050. Never had a problem.

Steve

[Red Rabbit]

The guys in Alaska seemed live in Helly Hansen Impertech, and scoff at Gore-tex. I wore g-t on my Kodiak trip and sweated good underneath climbing up through the alders. The Imertech is pretty stretchy, which is good for hiking and climbing.

[firstcoueswas80]

I bought a rain suit from a guy from a different site for $32 shipped to my house! It looked brand new and I love it. Its not super light, but it is light enough.

[GameHauler]

I bought a rain suit from a guy from a different site for $32 shipped to my house! It looked brand new and I love it. Its not super light, but it is light enough.

 

Thanks Casey,

I do not mind spending a couple hundred bucks

if it will keep me dry and WARM.

I get cold pretty easy so lets do it right once.

Mike

[mattys281]

I hunted in a Predator 100% waterproof jacket since last Jan. It's not terribly warm so you'd have to layer underneath it, but it has kept me dry in a complete down pour. Before the early archery hunt this year I added the matching 100% waterproof pants. Just as good as the jacket and their decently breathable. A lot better than the Maddog gear my GF hunted in. She stayed dry from the rain, but was soaked from sweating - not breathable at all. The Predator stuff I got at SW, the jacket was $109 & the pants were I think $70 or $80. They don't roll down super small, but both are light enough to pack if you don't want to wear them all day & they do offer some wind resistance & insulation.

 

I've recently bought a Sitka Gear 90% jacket & the Mountain Pants & Shirt. Haven't used them in foul weather yet, but that shirt is so warm that when I try it on in the house I get real warm, real fast & take it off. They're supposed to dry in minutes, even in cold weather.

 

As a matter of fact, it's rainy, damp & chilly right now, so it sounds like a good opportunity to test their drying ablilities. I'm goint to go douse 'em with the garden hose & hang them on the porch to see how quick they really do dry.

[elpepe25]

Frog toggs are cheap and light, cabelas space saver stuff is only 1 lb and awesome

[mattys281]

Well the advertisement for that Sitka Gear said that they "walk dry" quickly, even in cold temps. Don't know what difference walking makes vs. hanging, but they sure didn't hang dry quickly. I doused my pants & 90% jacket w/ the hose & hung 'em out on the from porch. Checked every 15 minutes for an hour & a half & they were still wet, so I let them hang overnight. Inside of the jacket was still a little damp this morning. Of course it was 72% humidity & down into the 50's in Superior last night too, according to the Wheather Channel website. I'll wait to see how the perform this Dec. before announcing myself the victim of another marketing ploy.

 

Matt S.

[azpackhorse]

I broke down and bought the Rivers West H2p jacket and pants a couple of years ago, I used them in New Mexico when it was 16 deg and a 30mph wind and I actually got hot when I was walking. When I sat to glass they cut the wind very well, never got cold. Last year I got to use them in the snow, I was anxious to use them so when we got out of the truck about an hour before light I put the pants and jacket on and flopped down in a big snow bank and made a snow angel My buddies looked at me like I was loco! So far I am nothing but pleased with them, however the set was a little expensive, right around $450 for both.

[GameHauler]

$450 for both

OUCH

Thanks for the replys

Keep them coming so maybe we can get a few people agreeing on something.

Mike

[coueshunter]

Mike, I have a set of Cabela's dry plus rain gear that I believe I paid around 175.00 for tops/bottoms combined. I bought it for Alaska and have used it all over and could not speak higher of this outfit. I think Doug (redrabbit) mentioned the M-50 from cabelas. I sure have been impressed with how well it has held up. I bought this outfit around 6 years ago...........Allen........

[Ron G.]

If I was you I'd list out all the features you are looking for in a set of rain gear; weight, # of pockets; quietness, ventilation (pit zips, ankle openings, etc), breathable or waterproof/non breathable, camo pattern (if it matters to you), whether it has a mesh liner or is 3 layer laminate, and any other things you'd like to have in a set of raingear. Do you want the bottoms to be pants or bibs? I think as long as the waterproofing material has a good reputation (gore tex, dry plus, etc) and has taped seams, it will be waterproof and then you can concentrate on what features you want in the rain gear and start hitting the catalogs and the internet. Usually, less frills equals lighter weight, and sometimes lighter weight means less durable. It will all be a trade off... That is how I did it a couple of years ago when I was searching. I ended up with some lightweight packable gore tex rainwear. It is pretty lightweight, so if I wear it when cold I need to layer underneath. Usually, if I get wet, it is from sweat from too much exertion while wearing it. Hope I didn't make it harder! Good luck in your search!

[youngbuck]

I have the cabelas rain suede, and i really like it. It packs really small so it fits in the pack easy, its also super quiet. I wanted something lightweight and not too hot so i could use it as a outer layer when its cold or over a t-shirt when its a little warmer. I couldn't be happer with it. I think the jacket was around 100 bucks and the pants we around 80. My sister used it on a 2 week mountianeering (sp) course with outward bound at 14,000+ ft in Colorado in rain and snow. She loved it. It kept her dry and warm. She also said it rained every day but one so it saw alot of good use.

[IHunt2live]

I don't have a whole lot to add here but this year I tryed some of those spray-on water repelant on my dogs kennel cover and I was realy impressed with Camp Dry's silicon spray. I cover half the cover with it and ran out and tried another brand and Camp Dry worked the best.

 

Mike

[bmf1321]

I like to use a hefty bag with 3 holes cut in it.