Affordable Rain Gear for one off rainy days.

[Kitten]

I’ve really liked my Snugpak Enhanced Patrol Poncho. It has worked really well out West and around here for getting to and from a shooting house and staying dry.

I have one of these in black and reach for it more than my cheap rain coat. Being able to fit it over my body and backpack is pretty cool even though I look like a hunchback.

 

[orion_]

I'll be the dissenting opinion and recommend you skip the marmot precip. It has great features, but the delamination is real. It's great for one season, but abrasion on key areas (shoulder straps, hipbelt) destroy it.

If you want something about as breathable as frogg toggs (aka not at all) you could try silnylon / silpoly jackets like lightheartgear or antigravitygear. Should be slightly more durable.

 

[jd1006]

I wouldn’t go cheap here if you can avoid it. When you’ll need the rain gear, it will need to work. I like the Black Diamond Stormline Stretch Rain Jacket…can be found on sites like moosejaw for a discount, is very packable and well-made. For pants, i haven’t found a discount option that I liked. I bought a pair of Arcteryx LEAF Alpha LT a long time ago in Multicam off of Ebay. I haven’t seen anything better. When you have to wear them, they are going to make or break your hunt and the material needs to be durable, it needs to have the ability to vent, and it has to be able to be put on quickly over boots.

Best bet for a deal is to watch for discounts at REI, Sierra, etc and look for gore-tex. The hunting brands will have their own laminates but likely charge more than you can get discounted for a non-hunting brand piece.

 

[Kitten]

I wouldn’t go cheap here if you can avoid it. When you’ll need the rain gear, it will need to work. I like the Black Diamond Stormline Stretch Rain Jacket…can be found on sites like moosejaw for a discount, is very packable and well-made. For pants, i haven’t found a discount option that I liked. I bought a pair of Arcteryx LEAF Alpha LT a long time ago in Multicam off of Ebay. I haven’t seen anything better. When you have to wear them, they are going to make or break your hunt and the material needs to be durable, it needs to have the ability to vent, and it has to be able to be put on quickly over boots.

Best bet for a deal is to watch for discounts at REI, Sierra, etc and look for gore-tex. The hunting brands will have their own laminates but likely charge more than you can get discounted for a non-hunting brand piece.

Just looked up that Arcteryx... Looks nice and wow that price tag haha

 

[BoltActionBrotherhood]

Sorry to bring this back to life, but can anyone speak to these, I am trying to decide on between these four because they are on special.

1.) I hear the precip eco is not very water proof. ??

2.) The Minimalist Jacket Seems to be Gortex with DVR, anyone have this one, is it packable?

3.) Knife Edge Jacket Not sure what the difference is on this one, is it more packable but less waterproof?

4.) Badlands BAIL RAIN JACKET I like that it is cam but what kind of job does it do?

Any input you have has on these would be very appriciated.

 

[grappling_hook]

Sorry to bring this back to life, but can anyone speak to these, I am trying to decide on between these four because they are on special.

1.) I hear the precip eco is not very water proof. ??

2.) The Minimalist Jacket Seems to be Gortex with DVR, anyone have this one, is it packable?

3.) Knife Edge Jacket Not sure what the difference is on this one, is it more packable but less waterproof?

4.) Badlands BAIL RAIN JACKET I like that it is cam but what kind of job does it do?

Any input you have has on these would be very appriciated.

One thing to keep in mind is that there are several types of Goretex, and they are not all equal in their waterproofing, breathability, and durability. The Marmot Minimalist and the Knife Edge you list above are GoreTex PacLite, which is why they are in this rough price range (still under $200, but pricier than the PreCip). PacLite is a lesser grade (but lighter) 2-layer version of GoreTex, so be sure not to confuse it with regular GoreTex (the standard) or GoreTex Pro. They are going to be a bit more robust in waterproofing compared to the PreCip, but then you're also looking at a fairly big step up in price and a small step up in weight. I haven't tried the Knife Edge, but the Minimalist is nice, still pretty light, and packable (but lives up to its name, Minimalist, in terms of features, almost as minimal as the PreCip).

I don't know anything about the Badlands jacket.

 

[BoltActionBrotherhood]

One thing to keep in mind is that there are several types of Goretex, and they are not all equal in their waterproofing, breathability, and durability. The Marmot Minimalist and the Knife Edge you list above are GoreTex PacLite, which is why they are in this rough price range (still under $200, but pricier than the PreCip). PacLite is a lesser grade (but lighter) 2-layer version of GoreTex, so be sure not to confuse it with regular GoreTex (the standard) or GoreTex Pro. They are going to be a bit more robust in waterproofing compared to the PreCip, but then you're also looking at a fairly big step up in price and a small step up in weight. I haven't tried the Knife Edge, but the Minimalist is nice, still pretty light, and packable (but lives up to its name, Minimalist, in terms of features, almost as minimal as the PreCip).

I don't know anything about the Badlands jacket.

Thanks for the feedback. I did find this chart, which shows the paclite as waterproof as any other gortex they make, but not as breathable. which I thought was interesting.

 

[SMOKYMTN]

One thing to keep in mind is that there are several types of Goretex, and they are not all equal in their waterproofing, breathability, and durability. The Marmot Minimalist and the Knife Edge you list above are GoreTex PacLite, which is why they are in this rough price range (still under $200, but pricier than the PreCip). PacLite is a lesser grade (but lighter) 2-layer version of GoreTex, so be sure not to confuse it with regular GoreTex (the standard) or GoreTex Pro. They are going to be a bit more robust in waterproofing compared to the PreCip, but then you're also looking at a fairly big step up in price and a small step up in weight. I haven't tried the Knife Edge, but the Minimalist is nice, still pretty light, and packable (but lives up to its name, Minimalist, in terms of features, almost as minimal as the PreCip).

I don't know anything about the Badlands jacket.

I have never been impressed the Gore-Tex PacLite performance. My OR Foray would wet out in no time, so much so that I sent it back for a new one and it did the same thing. Light drizzle, in and out of buildings, stroll downtown, I could see it but it is not for serious outdoorsman, not in my experience. My $99 OR Apollo performed better.

That said, does anyone have any recommendations on a Gore-Tex 3L?

 

[jd1006]

Camofire had some awesome Sitka options the other day. I grabbed the Vapor SD jacket for 40% off…I saw the dew point was on there for a big discount. Keep your eyes on Camofire and you might find some good deals.

 

[sneaky]

Sorry to bring this back to life, but can anyone speak to these, I am trying to decide on between these four because they are on special.

1.) I hear the precip eco is not very water proof. ??

2.) The Minimalist Jacket Seems to be Gortex with DVR, anyone have this one, is it packable?

3.) Knife Edge Jacket Not sure what the difference is on this one, is it more packable but less waterproof?

4.) Badlands BAIL RAIN JACKET I like that it is cam but what kind of job does it do?

Any input you have has on these would be very appriciated.

I have the Minimalist jacket, yes it is packable, yes it is Gore Tex. Got it on sale for about $120 I think.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[sneaky]

I take the Minimalist when there's a chance of precip in the forecast and as a wind shell. I take my Takur gear when there's going to be prolonged periods of precip. Not really a fan of the Gore stuff when there's more breathable fabrics out there that outperform it.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[grappling_hook]

I have never been impressed the Gore-Tex PacLite performance. My OR Foray would wet out in no time, so much so that I sent it back for a new one and it did the same thing. Light drizzle, in and out of buildings, stroll downtown, I could see it but it is not for serious outdoorsman, not in my experience. My $99 OR Apollo performed better.

That said, does anyone have any recommendations on a Gore-Tex 3L?

I found the Arc’teryx Beta AR (3-layer Gore-Tex Pro) very nice. Too noisy for me to buy again for hunting, though (and certainly not a good choice for OP who wants a cheap set for the occasional unexpected shower). You mention wet outs, so here are my thoughts on that. The DWR was phenomenal at first, but wore down after a few weeks and would wet out like other high-end stuff; and reapplying the DWR was just as bad as (if not worse than) the others. After that, not super-fast wet-outs, but would always happen in sustained wet conditions. That said, it never wet through when it would wet out, so no leaking and I’d stay dry. Very stylish, looks great among the non-hunting outdoor crowd, and a helmet-cut hood if you need it.

 

[SMOKYMTN]

I found the Arc’teryx Beta AR (3-layer Gore-Tex Pro) very nice. Too noisy for me to buy again for hunting, though (and certainly not a good choice for OP who wants a cheap set for the occasional unexpected shower). You mention wet outs, so here are my thoughts on that. The DWR was phenomenal at first, but wore down after a few weeks and would wet out like other high-end stuff; and reapplying the DWR was just as bad as (if not worse than) the others. After that, not super-fast wet-outs, but would always happen in sustained wet conditions. That said, it never wet through when it would wet out, so no leaking and I’d stay dry. Very stylish, looks great among the non-hunting outdoor crowd, and a helmet-cut hood if you need it.

Thanks for the response.

I tried every DWR known to man. NikWax wash in, Revivex spray, Grangers, all of it. It would still wet out after a use or 2. I live in the wettest region on the East Coast, by a long shot. NC’s Southern Mountains just wring out tons of gulf moisture in the spring and summer, and with how much time I spend in the rain, I think the PacLite was just too lightweight.

 

[grappling_hook]

Agreed, DWR these days just doesn't work well, and hasn't since they had to remove the fluorocarbon-based DWRs by law a few years back. I think it's the biggest gap right now in outdoor technology. Hopefully some chemists will develop something much better in the coming years.

 

[BoltActionBrotherhood]

Just an update. I ended up getting a killer deal on the Sitka cloudburst pants brand new for 145. Which seems worth it, I know I will put them on more when needed just for the fact I wont have to take off my boots etc.
For the jacket I am still up in the air probably will do a marmot minimalist.