Rain gear recommendations

[Ardent]

We lived in rain gear outfitting the north coast. If climbing hills and hiking HH impertec, if looking for tough and the most well fitted and designed Grundens. Can forget gore Tex / Sitka / Kuiu for heavy rain use. Waders, Simms G3 or better, I had frog togs they lasted a single trip.

Grundens - toughest, heavy though, and has neoprene cuffs so water doesn’t run down into your arm when you raise it up for tying fly sheet cords or what have you. True marine gear and what I’m wearing below.

HH Impertec, and it’s the softest and quietest, and quite lightweight. What I recommended clients packed, the ones who showed up dressed head to toe in Sitka / Kuiu often regretted it three days in.

 

[Jon87]

We lived in rain gear outfitting the north coast. If climbing hills and hiking HH impertec, if looking for tough and the most well fitted and designed Grundens. Can forget gore Tex / Sitka / Kuiu for heavy rain use. Waders, Simms G3 or better, I had frog togs they lasted a single trip.

Grundens - toughest, heavy though, and has neoprene cuffs so water doesn’t run down into your arm when you raise it up for tying fly sheet cords or what have you. True marine gear and what I’m wearing below.

HH Impertec, and it’s the softest and quietest, and quite lightweight. What I recommended clients packed, the ones who showed up dressed head to toe in Sitka / Kuiu often regretted it three days in.

Yeah, I have no interest in spending Sitka money on rain gear. I've used breathable goretex stuff before and there's a limit to what it can do. I'll take a look at Grunden but sounds like more than what I need really. Getting a lot of suggestions here that I've never heard of so lots to consider. They have some HH Abbotsford in stock at the local Marks. I may go check that out later today before ordering.

 

[Ardent]

HH Impertec will never lead you astray. Grundens if you want it to last ten years, and it fits better, plus some upgrades like cuffs. It’s offshore commercial fishing gear essentially.

Sitka / Kuiu is nice in light drizzle, but it’s not rain gear. It is however a great set of water resistant clothing for under rubber that breaths, I wore it as the same.

 

[medvedqc]

goretex doesnt work for real rain ... ever seen a goretex on fishing boats? i guided a browning crew for caribou and they bring it on the goretex includings boots while we had 3-4 hours in including return. after one day we found them real rain gear and they used goretex for footage only. hilarious to say the least ...

i wont rely on impertech as they re more fragile than non strechable stuff but they re great i have them too. to avoid bibs you can use the 3/4 coat ...

 

[Jon87]

Took a look at some HH Abbotsford coats at Marks this evening. They’re lighter weight than I was expecting but the material does seem to have some give to it. Also fits a lot bigger than other rain gear I’ve had. A little disappointed to see it’s all made in China. I always thought HH was made in Canada for some reason but I guess those days are gone maybe.

 

[MiG25]

Can say exhaustively, but my older stuff (not raingear) was Made in Canada, the newer stuff is Made in Bangladesh and is smaller. Got a pair of HH boots and they are Cambodia.

Some of the workwear is tough, Kermel is similar to Nomex and Kevlar. It was always the zippers that would give out first.

 

[conor_90]

I wear goretex pro in all kinds of weather including extreme rain. Whatever was the case with goretex in the past it is not the case now.

I can't speak to goretex pac lite but goretex pro is really very effective stuff.

For ops needs I'm going to give it up to something basically plastic though. At some point the width of the fabric comes into play re warmth. Plus if mud etc is coming into play they are much easier to clean

The sensation of being wet is temperature and pressure. If you are wearing a modern shell of goretex or whatever imitator you prefer without base layers you will be cold and feel the pressure of the rain even if you are " dry"

Paying the same or more for kuiu stuff as you would for really well made technical gear is ####ing insane

newer stuff is Made in Bangladesh and is smaller

My clothes seem to be getting smaller too, not helly Hansen though

 

[Jon87]

I’ve noticed sizes changing over the last few years too. Not just me getting bigger haha. Shoes and boots seem to be running around a full size smaller than they used to

 

[bearkilr]

I'm looking for a decent set of uninsulated rain gear for hunting / ATV use. Would prefer bib style pants. I've got other breathable gear that does well with medium rain / general use but I'm looking for something that would only likely get used for heavy rain, so breathable/goretex/etc isn't super important. I've always just used cheap Canadian tire type rain gear knowing that I'll be trashing them and replacing every few years but want to try something a little better. I'm not finding much to check out in person locally so will probably have to order. Any recommendations?

If you're using it in warmish weather for ATV use just grin and bear it, you'll get wet. The downside of goretex is that it doesn't work well for heavy extended rain, but wearing the impenetrable rain wear from HH and Grundens in summer will leave you wet inside from sweat., they don't breathe. Pick your poison.

 

[medvedqc]

If you're using it in warmish weather for ATV use just grin and bear it, you'll get wet. The downside of goretex is that it doesn't work well for heavy extended rain, but wearing the impenetrable rain wear from HH and Grundens in summer will leave you wet inside from sweat., they don't breathe. Pick your poison.

nothing a fire cant fix for the real rain gear try that with gore products lol ...

 

[Canuck65]

+1 for HH

 

[Jon87]

I'm also looking at the HH Gale series. Abbotsford didn't have any pockets and was only snap closure (no zippers). The Gale series doesn't look to be flexible though. If I could find Impertech I'd just get that but it only seems to be available here in a few places in weird sizes.

 

[Ardent]

Gore Tex doesn’t work on the west coast in the spring and fall, it’s not that you’ll get damp, it’s when it really comes down your under layer can get so wet you have a hard time getting out of it. And you will be cold. We had every brand of rain gear show up, bunch of Euro stuff too. I always packed spare rubber for clients. The Kuiu and Sitka were free and we tried both. With a reapplication of DWR, they work for awhile, until you brush them through bushes again. Tried Arcteryx, Mountain Hardware, others on our own dime. In the end the locals know what they’re doing, only rubber is infallible, and use good base layers to keep the steam under control. I prefer snap closures, zippers fail, and the snaps allow some breathing.

With enough layers of goretex, it’s possible to keep water out, look at Simms waders. The problem is nobody wants to wear something that thick as a jacket and it gets heavy once damp, it will also stop breathing just like waders tough enough not to leak.

And for those who say this sounds alarmist, there’s rain, and then there’s living on the BC north coast in May and October.

 

[Butcherbill]

Another vote for HH and good base layers, preferably wool or some other wicking synthetic. I’m a wool guy, either thin merino layers in the spring with a thicker wool sweater in the fall/winter. Have a merino/cashmere sweater I generally live in over the winter or a thicker style of Stanfield when it’s really cold, hard to beat wool in the rain. You might get wet from rain/sweat but at least you’re going to be warm.

Have a Highviz HH Workwear jacket and it’s been great, not 100% waterproof but it’s not rubber. Has kept me dry in all but the worst downpours on the block, in a utv or quad.

What I’ve done in the past and still use during hunting season is a set of surplus German flecktarn gortex, have had them since I was in my early 20’s. Bib pant, when they started to fail as all goretex eventually does I tried all the gortex specific cleaners/renewers. They were a bandaid, what worked 100% was waxing them. I can literally sit in the rain in a puddle and stay dry, they aren’t breathable like they were but they are fully waterproof. You can watch the rain hit them and head up and roll off. If you have an old set of goretex and want to try an experiment I highly recommend waxing them, I used a 50/50 beeswax/paraffin mix as the beeswax stays somewhat soft. Rub it on and heat it with a hairdryer to melt it into the fabric. Works on denim or any other fabric, I treat leather work gloves and boots but use a beeswax toilet ring for those items.

 

[Jon87]

Another vote for HH and good base layers, preferably wool or some other wicking synthetic. I’m a wool guy, either thin merino layers in the spring with a thicker wool sweater in the fall/winter. Have a merino/cashmere sweater I generally live in over the winter or a thicker style of Stanfield when it’s really cold, hard to beat wool in the rain. You might get wet from rain/sweat but at least you’re going to be warm.

Have a Highviz HH Workwear jacket and it’s been great, not 100% waterproof but it’s not rubber. Has kept me dry in all but the worst downpours on the block, in a utv or quad.

What I’ve done in the past and still use during hunting season is a set of surplus German flecktarn gortex, have had them since I was in my early 20’s. Bib pant, when they started to fail as all goretex eventually does I tried all the gortex specific cleaners/renewers. They were a bandaid, what worked 100% was waxing them. I can literally sit in the rain in a puddle and stay dry, they aren’t breathable like they were but they are fully waterproof. You can watch the rain hit them and head up and roll off. If you have an old set of goretex and want to try an experiment I highly recommend waxing them, I used a 50/50 beeswax/paraffin mix as the beeswax stays somewhat soft. Rub it on and heat it with a hairdryer to melt it into the fabric. Works on denim or any other fabric, I treat leather work gloves and boots but use a beeswax toilet ring for those items.

This is basically what I do for hunting too. I have a heavy pair of wool pants that work fine unless it's really pouring then I put rain gear over top. I'm not really looking to change that system, just want better quality rain gear that will last longer. This will mostly be for fall hunting where wet=cold so just getting wet and dealing with it isn't a great option for what I'm after.

I've used beeswax mixes on leather boots before but hadn't considered that for something like a coat. I've got all kinds of old leaky hunting coats around so maybe will give that a try sometime.

 

[Butcherbill]

This is basically what I do for hunting too. I have a heavy pair of wool pants that work fine unless it's really pouring then I put rain gear over top. I'm not really looking to change that system, just want better quality rain gear that will last longer. This will mostly be for fall hunting where wet=cold so just getting wet and dealing with it isn't a great option for what I'm after.

I've used beeswax mixes on leather boots before but hadn't considered that for something like a coat. I've got all kinds of old leaky hunting coats around so maybe will give that a try sometime.

The wax works well on coats, Filson sells waxed denim jackets for big prices. Is cheap to do it yourself and just as effective, the only thing I’ll say and if you’ve waxed leather you’ll know already. It will darken the item and depending on how heavy you wax it it can change the pliability, my German set will be stiffer when it’s cold out vs when it’s warm but I waxed it heavier than I could have.

As mentioned there’s a trade off with good well made rain gear, if it is actually waterproof it won’t be all that breathable. You’ll sweat and get damp, your base layers will essentially keep you warm. Which I think is more important, after working outside for years either in trades or in forestry I’ll take being warm over dry cause you’re never actually going to be fully dry if you’re moving around. Sitting still is another story sometimes.

 

[AR15meister]

I'm looking for a decent set of uninsulated rain gear for hunting / ATV use. Would prefer bib style pants. I've got other breathable gear that does well with medium rain / general use but I'm looking for something that would only likely get used for heavy rain, so breathable/goretex/etc isn't super important. I've always just used cheap Canadian tire type rain gear knowing that I'll be trashing them and replacing every few years but want to try something a little better. I'm not finding much to check out in person locally so will probably have to order. Any recommendations?

KUIU Yukon. and the heavy rubber stuff.


KUIU Best money can buy. I have hunted sheep with it all over the world in the harshest conditions in the himalayas, pamirs, rockies, cassiars, caucasus, etc, etc. It cant be beat (maybe equaled though)

 

[AR15meister]

HH Impertec will never lead you astray. Grundens if you want it to last ten years, and it fits better, plus some upgrades like cuffs. It’s offshore commercial fishing gear essentially.

Sitka / Kuiu is nice in light drizzle, but it’s not rain gear. It is however a great set of water resistant clothing for under rubber that breaths, I wore it as the same.

I agree Rubber is better if you arent moving. But it isnt light weight and it doesnt breathe. and its uncomfortable as hell and ugly.

KUIU Yukon is the best you can get that is breathable. and I think its pretty damn good even compared to rubber. And its good for wind breaker.

I wore it in some ####ty snowstorms this past season on my way to Everest after shooting a blue sheep down south in Nepal. It works and its light and its tough enough to wear in thick #### without tearing apart (I have worn it on several extended horseback sheep hunts in all weather in both BC and Alberta). .

 

[Big Bad]

Not a popular choice anymore, but an old fashioned rain poncho has many things to recommend it. Especially if you can find one in camo, a poncho can completely break up your outline and with just a bit of air circulating at the bottom is the equivalent of truly fully breathable, before goretex and such there were ponchos. Not great in high winds or above the treeline in general, but there's nothing quite like a wearable tent to keep you dry comfortable. My best model is or was made by the SilTarp company (IIRC) and would protect my firearm from weather, with an extra roll up and tie off length of fabric in the back, it will protect a pack as well.

 

[medvedqc]

Not a popular choice anymore, but an old fashioned rain poncho has many things to recommend it. Especially if you can find one in camo, a poncho can completely break up your outline and with just a bit of air circulating at the bottom is the equivalent of truly fully breathable, before goretex and such there were ponchos. Not great in high winds or above the treeline in general, but there's nothing quite like a wearable tent to keep you dry comfortable. My best model is or was made by the SilTarp company (IIRC) and would protect my firearm from weather, with an extra roll up and tie off length of fabric in the back, it will protect a pack as well.

i was given rain poncho in the army and it was just good for the army ... try to use a poncho in the wind if properly tight with a rope ...