I was just wondering if you folks have any suggestions for rain gear. Open to any thoughts or experiences. I'm wanting something to wear on the outside of my hunting clothes for an up coming Ontario hunt. Last year we sat in rain 4 of the 6 days we hunted. Not wanting to do that again. Thanks, Mark

If you are setting still Helly Hansen is highly recommended.
I like waxed cotton, Barbour or Filson. It breathes much better than Gore-Tex.
Many Alaskan outfitters say NO GORE-TEX, it WILL leak.

Just be sure and do not wear ANY cotton under your rain gear. Wool is best.

All in all I recommend Barbour or Filson Waxed cotton. It is quiet and durable.

Yep. Lots of gore tex stuff out there but most is just a con on the unsuspecting buyer. Good thing about Cabelas is they will take it back if it does leak. That doesn't do you much good in the middle of a 6 day rainy hunt, though.

DB

I have used good Gore-Tex gear.
Marmont Mountain, North Face, etc.
My wife has excellent luck with Patagonia rain gear.
I still prefer waxed cotton for severe wet conditions.

Filson Cover Cloth Oil Finish Weekender Coat with hood and wool liner and Cover Cloth Oil Finish Rain Pants.

I am a Filsonaholic but their oil finish products (yeah I have some) seem just so heavy especially if you are using it ONLY for a rain deterrent.

I'm O.K. with Frogg-Toggs. They aren't fancy, but pack light in a backpack. They did fine on a sheep hunt in the NWTs and handle Monsoon in Mumbai. I don't know how long they will last, but for the price, who cares. I've used them two years now.

I've got an ArcTeryx jacket in GoreTex that kept me bone dry during a multi-hour pouring rain antelope hunt last Sunday. The hood was excellent, lots of adjustments to give you a good field of view yet keep the rain off my face.

My daughter had my 15 year old Campmore GoreTex packable jacket on. This jacket stuff into its own small pocket and has no frills. Its been sitting in my pack closet unused for many years. She was also bone dry.

We don't get much rain in Montana, I bought the ArcTeryx coat for hunting in the snow/winter. Worked like a charm in the rain, I'm very impressed.

GoreTex isn't much better than the other fabrics out there, like Ultrex or Patagonia's versions. I saw test results by the Army's Natick Soldier Center that compared all of the waterproof/breathable fabrics. They're all about the same performance, GoreTex is just way more expensive.

The concept of GoreTex leaking: I work with a company that uses a bunch of GoreTex. On very rare occasions they will find a pin hole leak in a piece of fabric. Much, much more often leaks are found in the seams of the garment. Special Forces use quite a bit of the stuff, depending on the environment. The purpose is to transfer the body's evaporated moisture through the fabric. If the conditions are right(wrong), like along the coast or other very high humidity environments, the evaporated moisture will not evaporate and you'll get clammy.

Some great info. I have a few more options than what I previously had. Thanks a bunch.

A friend in the garment industry told me that many companies do not seal along the seams of goretex garments, even tho' goretex tells them to do so. This allows the item to leak. He recommended that some type of waterproofing be run along the seams of all goretex/whateverbrandname to seal them. Have done so and it seems to work.

maybe you should find something like those (duno if its available in US tho - just for comparisation):

raincoat:

http://www.blaser.de/english/produkte/blaseractive/argali_jacke_weiler.htm

rain trousers:

http://www.blaser.de/english/produkte/blaseractive/argali_hose_weiler.htm

quote:

Originally posted by mmanincor:
... I'm wanting something to wear on the outside of my hunting clothes for an up coming Ontario hunt. ...

Hey Mark, I've totally worn out maybe 5 "Ponchos" keeping the rain off while hunting. I get mine at any Military Surplus store or at the Gun Shows.

You can sling your rifle Butt-Up under the Poncho or carry it in your hand and have it fairly well protected, but Stainless & Synthetic are still the best way to go for the firearm, even with the Poncho.

Ponchos can be a bit awkward if you need to take a quick shot and noisier than not wearing one. The newer ones roll up real small and I just put the Poncho beneath my Revolver Belt until I need it. The "Hood" really helps keep the wind off your neck and of course prevents the rain from running down your back. (Have you noticed rain going down your back is colder than down the front? )

A Ponco is on my Short List of must have items.