Looking for opinions on rain gear. I was a huge fan of Peter Storm years ago, but for situations with more than minimal activity you could work up quite a sweat in them.
Opinions?
Firstlite stormtight tops and bottoms buy once and be done little pricey but worth ever penny IMO!
I went with Kuiu rain gear. Same idea though, pretty pricy but worth the money.
I have both Kuiu Chugach and Yukon sets and it has been bomb proof,the Yukon is overkill for all but Alaska and the Pacific Northwest.
What ever set you get look for pit zips to dump body heat.
QuoteOriginally posted by Jayrod:
Firstlite stormtight tops and bottoms buy once and be done little pricey but worth ever penny IMO!
X2
I have the vapor top and storm tight bottoms, and they are both great pieces.
But do they let you breathe and not sweat while keeping you dry?
I have Peter Storm also and they are great but like Yukon chuck said, you would build up quite a sweat in them.
My past experiances over the years has been, rain gear will make you sweat, period!!! I work outdoors, all year, in all weather. On occasion, I do wear rain gear. In the morning when I'm done, I'm usually just as wet with it, as I would have been without it.
When hunting, if the weather is nasty, I wear wool. If it's raining so hard, that I NEED rain gear, I use an old Camo military poncho. Put it on, take cover, wait it out...
Just one old fart's oppinion!
Some of you must hunt in the rain a LOT to validate a set of clothes that cost close to $1000. Especially since rain gear is uncomfortable in non-rain situations. I hunt in the rain, but if it's rain beyond what normal rain gear can handle, then it's too much for me to hunt in. I have "Rain Suede" from Cabelas that i bought on sale in the off-season and have never had issues with it, in fact it's performed great.
Now, for the bass boat - my gear is top notch because I will be on the boat in some absolute awful weather. But it's loud and hot if it's not raining. I can't even fathom wearing something similar in camo for hunting.
Helly Hansen Impertech- lightweight, stretchy, durable, inexpensive compared to others.
QuoteOriginally posted by Mint:
But do they let you breathe and not sweat while keeping you dry?
I have Peter Storm also and they are great but like Yukon chuck said, you would build up quite a sweat in them.
I haven't put mine through the ringer yet, so I can't really comment on that. I just got my gear last winter. I was fishing this summer and a storm blew in. I just happened to throw my FL rain gear in, and I was dry and very comfortable the whole time. Maybe next year I will make it to the Rocky's again for a hunt and I will put it to the test.
QuoteOriginally posted by Jayrod:
Firstlite stormtight tops and bottoms buy once and be done little pricey but worth ever penny IMO!
X3
If you hike in 4 miles to set base camp and it's monsoon season rain is just part of the equation. Last January I hunted cours deer for four days and we had about 60 hours of rain in thise four days. I stayed dry in the FL gear. SEAK jacket and Stormtight pants.
I've been using Kuiu Chugach rain gear for 3 years and find it works very well when I'm sweating like a pig. Check out this article on comparing some of the most popular rain gear:
http://www.rokslide.com/gear/clothing/269-let-it-rain-light-weight-rain-jacket-shootout
QuoteOriginally posted by J. Cook:
Some of you must hunt in the rain a LOT to validate a set of clothes that cost close to $1000.
I wear my rain gear all winter in bad weather and while moving snow,it's worth every penny for me but if I just used it a few weeks a year hunting it would hard to justify the expense.
The Sitka gear with gore-tex is pretty good. It's pricey as well but if you know a Gore employee (like my fiancee) you can get it for 40-50% off. That makes it almost reasonable, almost.
QuoteOriginally posted by woodchucker:
My past experiances over the years has been, rain gear will make you sweat, period!!!
When hunting, if the weather is nasty, I wear wool. If it's raining so hard, that I NEED rain gear, I use an old Camo military poncho. Put it on, take cover, wait it out...
Yep, sounds about right.
Thank you to all that have responded. I'm leaning toward FirstLite, but will mull it over a bit more.
QuoteOriginally posted by woodchucker:
.... If it's raining so hard, that I NEED rain gear, I use an old Camo military poncho. Put it on, take cover, wait it out...
Just one old fart's oppinion!
What he said
I've had good luck with cabelas MT050. I have used in the mountains of Wyoming, Illinois prairie, Piedmont of North Carolina and swamps of Louisiana. Good stuff and tuff.
I just put my Cabelas MT050 to the test with Hurricane Harvey. I must say that I was very pleased with it after using it for several days in a row. I did get a bit damp, but I was paddling a canoe with heavy loads for several hours. The fabric seemed quiet as well.
QuoteOriginally posted by J. Cook:
Some of you must hunt in the rain a LOT to validate a set of clothes that cost close to $1000. Especially since rain gear is uncomfortable in non-rain situations. I hunt in the rain, but if it's rain beyond what normal rain gear can handle, then it's too much for me to hunt in. I have "Rain Suede" from Cabelas that i bought on sale in the off-season and have never had issues with it, in fact it's performed great.
Now, for the bass boat - my gear is top notch because I will be on the boat in some absolute awful weather. But it's loud and hot if it's not raining. I can't even fathom wearing something similar in camo for hunting.
First Lite stormtight pant $250, Stormtight jacket $300= $550 Thats money well spent when I am miles in the back country away from my truck or camp and a nasty storm rolls in plus I wear mine fishing and all kinds of other activities. I have used less expensive rain gear and I believe there is a huge difference.
QuoteOriginally posted by Jayrod:
Firstlite stormtight tops and bottoms buy once and be done little pricey but worth ever penny IMO!
X2
First off, if it is raining hard I do not hunt. It is difficult to shoot an accurate arrow if your arrow rest, feathers, and shooting glove are wet. In addition, tracking is pretty difficult when rain is washing away the blood. That said, I really like rain bibs with a quality rain jack like Sitka over the top. Rain bibs are nice because you don't get water seeping like sometimes happens with rain pants. Yes Sitka Gear is expensive, but you get what you pay for.
Waiting it out is great if the climate allows that, and personally, it,s what I would prefer to do. Worked fine when I lived in Anchorage, moving to SE Alaska a few years, that idea went bye bye fairly quick.
At this point, at work alone ( run fuel truck), I have FR raingear, spare FR raingear, Grundens for when the not so waterproof raingear is gonna soak through in the first fifteen minutes.
Out in the woods tried a Mtn Hardwear jacket with e-vent, does all right-ish..Wearing a pack is rough on the DWR coating.. Spent a LOT more than I wanted to on Arcteryx Beta AR pants. So far, two years into it, in some fairly nasty weather and terrain, the pants are cooler, more comfortable than the jacket. And have proven to be a LOT tougher than they look. Plan on picking up a Beta AR jacket this fall. Do some snoopin around and find stuff on sale, you can save some bucks.
Downside, besides expensive, is loud. But if the wind is blowing and the rain is comimg down, it ain,t real silent in the woods anyhow.
Did pick up a little First Lite stormlight jacket this summer, light, waay packable, so far, keeeping the water out. Great to throw in a pack.
Most of this stuff costs a lot more than I really want to pay, but living in a rain forest, it pretty much comes down to buying one less bow or one less rifle and actually being able to get outside, rather than waiting, and waiting, and waiting, for the weather to clear up.
I agree with Woodchucker. Has worked for me. Wool pants with gaiters and a poncho - just pick a spot to sit and cover yourself and your bow with the poncho. Plenty of ventilation. If it is really wet and expect more rain I might use rain pants.Poncho breaks up my outline well.
Kuiu Yukon rain gear. Pricey but incredibly effective. Breathable and not terribly loud compared to others I tried.