Kuiu Yukon System

[Nick Muche]

Friend of mine wore his for 9 days on POW in pouring rain each day, he stayed dry and comfortable. The brush is thick there too and he didn't tear anything up on his at all.

 

[Sundodger]

Yeah, that sucks and the non-waterproof zipper thing is BS, but after decades of fishing, hunting, camping, hiking, and backpacking in Washington’s Olympic peninsula (temperate rain forest) I have learned nothing is 100% waterproof, they are just various degrees of water resistant. Some of the fancy expensive stuff starts out ok, but performance degrades with time/use.

The most waterproof is of course the real rubber rain gear; while heavy, bulky, and noisy it does work. Easy proof is try to cross a river wearing 16” rubber boots, rain pants, and surgical tubing. That is my requirement for my rubber rain gear.

When I am in the rainforest for a week or so straight fishing/hunting/etc. living in the back of my truck I have various rain gear with me and take different stuff depending on what I am doing that day, where I am going, how much I am hiking, what the weather has been like, and what it is forecasted to be. I have everything from ultra lightweight jacket and pants (1 pound for both) to heavy commercial fishing rubber rain gear and stuff in-between.


Also, I always put paper, cell phones, etc. in a ziplock bag.

 

[todd kelly]

Well that was a pretty quick reply from Kuiu. They have seen the same issue only 3 times before from the pictures I had sent them, and already have a fix lined up. They are going to fix it and pay shipping both ways. Can't complain about that.

 

[DaveC]

I am not aware of any rain coat which has a truly waterproof zipper (i.e. the kind you'd find on a paddling drysuit). They're extremely expensive, and the stiffness would make a jacket less wearable.

A good rain coat will have water resistant zips as well as flaps, either inside, outside, or both. If you must have pockets on a rain coat, they better have a good zipper garage, else they'll just be good for collecting drinking water.

 

[TEmbry]

I didn't mean that negative reviews shouldn't be brought to light, just that it the jacket truly has been falling apart at the seems as the OP implies I'm confused why he wouldn't just get it replaced. He only mentions the zipper as a problem to Kuiu.

I'd be getting it fixed, especially with a $700 investment! Ha

 

[Displaced Nova Scotian]

Also what was the temperature in the shower? Ie did you use hot or cold water? Because I have heard of breathableembranes failing when used in hot showers. I cannot remember the exact science but something about the outside vapor being hotter then inside the jacket.

The shower was in the middle of temperature between hot and cold; granted the water could have been adjusted a little bit colder but the actual material of the system hasn't failed such that my inner clothes were getting wet in any areas besides where my zippers were.

My pockets were always wet on the coat, also leaked on the shoulders a few times. The pants only leaked on the pennulisa and that's mostly from the sideways rain

Okay, this is good to know. So perhaps what Kuiu told me, in that the zippers leaked and soaked up the water, is more of a possibility then the outside face fabric failing. This just doesn't seam to be the case simply because my clothes on the inside didn't get wet, except near the zippers.

Yeah, these are the first negative reports I've read on the Yukon. I haven't had mine all that long, but I've been abusing them for about a month now and they are tip top. I laid in 5inches of slush/overflow the other day for 15 minutes TRYING to force a leak and I couldn't do it. Only time will tell though I guess.

How did you lay, back down or stomach down? Depending upon how you laid, the zippers may not have been exposed to "wet stuff" and thus the material would have held up. If however you were laying on your stomach for 15 minutes I'm going to bet the main zipper is going to create a small leak, which is totally acceptable.

I didn't mean that negative reviews shouldn't be brought to light, just that it the jacket truly has been falling apart at the seems as the OP implies I'm confused why he wouldn't just get it replaced. He only mentions the zipper as a problem to Kuiu.
I'd be getting it fixed, especially with a $700 investment! Ha

Just to clarify, you are referring to Todd's post, not mine right?

So guys/girls, what I am gathering here is that yes, the pockets may get wet on any water gear I own and that zip locks should be used on important stuff. Because my jacket is keeping me dry in such a test all over my body, neglecting the zippered areas (which only leaked a bit), I likely have a jacket that works great….?

 

[KUIU Patrick]

Based on the pictures Displaced Nova Scotian sent to KUIU, we feel the seepage through the Water Resistant YKK Aquaguard Zippers is normal based on 15 minutes of direct water pressure in a shower. There does not appear to be any waterproof membrane or taped sealed seam failure. We have asked DNS to return his jacket for inspection. If the jacket is defective, we will replace it or refund his money.

 

[todd kelly]

Well I just got my Yukon jacket back from Kuiu. They did a good job fixing the cuff. Great service on the repair.