Puffy coat ?

[adamm88]

Im going to start by saying its been a really damp year here, lots of rain, everything has been wet/damp.

When hunting i my down puffy coat the times i wore it(only wore it when it wasn’t raining) it seem to suck up the moisture off my base layer or the ground. When im done with my sit the loft seems to have gone away and the jacket seems damp, by a the next day it seems dry.

My questions are is this normal? If i get a sythetic coat will the problem be less. The coat i have is a kryptek(not sure the model).


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[Rommy]

Down clumps up and loses its loft and therefore its insulating properties when it gets wet, so you definitely have to baby it.

That’s why so many people use synthetic insulation in the hunting crowd, because we have to brave later seasons than your traditional backpacker.


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[Muley Buck]

I may or may not be in the minority here but I've been in some pretty wet and inclement weather with my down garments and down sleeping bags and I've never had a problem. It's why outer shells and waterproof stuff sacks are made. They work for me. I've used synthetic and yes it can work, but nowhere near as effective as down for me, not to mention synthetic is generally heavier and worse yet bulkier. Yes down will fail if you go swimming in it, but a little moisture has never slowed me down. I would like to clarify that I am talking about bigger puffy jackets with good construction with a quality outer layer and not super nano light minimalist "puffys". My $0.02

 

[Beendare]

Yeah, down's performance can be compromised in continual damp conditions. Synthetic insulation will also...but not quite to the same extent.

I've used both Down and Synthetic in those conditions. I've never had down wreck a hunt...in fact there is a good thread on that. My buddy has froze his tail off in a cheap down bag that was damped out....so quality factors into this too.

Everything is a trade off. The Syn insulations are a tiny bit heavier...but just don't compact/store as small. You will find there are many die hard Down fans that will never admit that in very wet conditions....synthetic is better.

This site does a good job of giving you objective opinions if you search. Personally, I use down as much as I can for the less weight/more compatible features....but if its going to be very wet conditions....I go with Syn......YMMV