Best Jacket ????

[Wood Shampoo]

Now that the weather has turned wet and windy, we need to break out the jackets while fishing to stay warm and dry. What brand/style of jacket have all of you ifishers found to work well for you in our wet climate?

[Pete]

Grunden's ... hands down. I usually wear wool and / or fleece under it, but it's hard to stay warm if you aren't keeping dry and nothing works better than a good skin.

[FishinMission]

I vote for Helly Hansen's. I like the 3/4 length coat, as if you happen to have a pair of knee hi boots..you don't really need the bibs. Combine this with a pair of poly-propylene longjohns and you're on your way to staying warm.

I've seen Helly Hansen raingear from time to time at Costco at about half the price of most other retail outlets. They didn't have the 3/4 length coat...just the reg. coat, but they did have the bibs.

Don't cut $$$ on your raingear if you plan on being in the weather much. Staying dry is most important on a wet day.

Mark

[CATCH AND EAT]

Hey Mark, we agree on this topic. H H is good stuff for the tough cold weather. I will say though that I bought a breathable Columbia rain coat and find it to be awesome. A bit on the spendy side as all breathable stuff is but it is sure working nice so far.

Did have one problem with the H H bibs, the snap on the side broke after 3 years. And no I did not gain too much weight to anyone that wants to be a smart alek.

Lots of good stuff out there you just have to find what you like.

Bernie

[Jennie@ifish]

FILSON!!!! Hands down!

[hookem]

Wall's light weight camo jacket!
Water proof, wind proof, very light.
Pant's too! I just love them.

And....Polartek underneath, what ever you chose.

C&E Caught and Ate too much? :grin: :tongue:

[TH]

Cabelas Guide Wear Non-Ins. Jacket an Bibs.. This is an expensive outfit, but worth every penny. :grin:

My dad has a new Patagonia jacket.. very nice and light, beathable, but he wishes he would have bought a Guide Wear Jacket.
I orgianlly bought the insulated one.. way too much for our area. The non-insulated one is great.

[Joe Schwab]

Guide outfit hands down! Thinsulate jacket, wear nothing but a t shirt underneath and you have ultimate comfort and stay dry. :grin: :grin:

[Backlash2]

Anyone tried the FrogTogs yet?

[Jim]

Glad to see someone mention Frogg Toggs! Nothing I have ever worn is more windproof along with completely water proof. But honestly I wear underneath my Cabelas Guide Extreme weather Goretex (my suit). But the Frogg Toggs is so much more windproof it isn't funny. Its just that the stuff is a little flimsy. But I will guarntee that it does what it says it will do...windproof while going 50mph in the winter is nice!!


Jim

[Mofish]

I bought a pair of Cabelas Guide wear last year and let me tell you they are great. dye and warm they also have a new insolated set out this year.
Mofish

[CHUMSALMON]

i was looking for a jacket last year, i have a filson coat already, but it just gets a little heavy after awhile, i ended up buying a Seria Design gortex coat. found it on the discount rack at a ski store. i think it was around $125, who knows what the original price was, but this coat has been truely awsome! Med. weight, totally windproof, and sheds water like no other, put a couple of fleece layers on and i can go all day!

[Wet_Willy]

Another vote for Cabelas Guide Wear. Expensive but durable and dry, dry, dry!!! Can't recommend them enough. I've had mine for 2 years and still holding up well and I use them all the time, not just when I'm fishing. Get uninsulated and layer polypro and polarfleece underneath so you can tailor your insulation to the weather conditions.
WW

[Threemuch]

I have all Guy Cotten commercial fishing foul weather gear. X-Trapper Bibs, Kodiak Fleece/PVC pullover, Menfal Jacket. I usually wear fleece sweats underneath. Expensive stuff, but it's the best raingear you can get.

Plus you can't miss me on the water, so much florescent orange and yellow!

[FEAR NO FISH!]

Mustang flotation jacket. It is also anti- hypothermia. Best $150.00 bucks I ever spent. Either that or the Mustang flotation worksuit. These are the chit! :grin:

[parker]

The SIMMS jacket. The people that I know who have them love them. The price is too high for me, though. :depressed:

Parker

[CATCH AND EAT]

******....Catch & Ate? :tongue: It is not C & A, it is C & E :grin:

Emergency rain wear. 50 gallon Hefty bag. Had to do that one time. :blush: That sucked but I did stay pretty dry. I alway take a couple of bags just in case a fishin partner is not prepared. I offer the bag first and let them get into it and fish for a minute or two just to make them remember the experience. Then I suddenly remember that I have A SPARE SET UP under their seat :shocked: Lesson learned.

[rags]

Is the Cabela Guide Wear the Gortex material they show on their web?

[Snagly]

Wow. Surprised to read all those posts and not a mention of North Face Gore-tex, either the shell which is perfect to take "just in case" on what appears to be a dry day, or the heavy duty (3/4 length, fully insulated Gore-Tex) "Baxter State Park Parka" (or equivalent -- I don't think this particular model is made any more).

There are many, many fine brands on the market these days. My vote is to go for (a) breathable; (b) at least hip-length and (c) made of tough outer fabric. If it's a reputable brand, then wait for the sale or buy mail order.

(I get mine in Hong Kong as most of these are sewn in China. If the factory runs an extra shift then the 'surplus' gets discounted heavily and ends up in a Hong Kong market. The only problem is that the average size sold is "medium", not "XXL" so you have to do some looking!)

[Gobbaworms]

Speaking from experience in the Alaskan commercial fishing industry, Grudens is the only gear worth buying, period.
You could get several seasons out of those and maybe only one or two from HH. Anything else didn't last a single season. As far as breathables go, well, I'd rather be guaranteed dry than stylish. Dry = warm.

[Master Baiter]

Cabelas Guide wear all the way! I have had my suit for 7 years now and absolutely love it.

[Joe Schwab]

One more thing about Cabellas guide wear. Get the green and black and you can wear it to the Duck games. Sorry Beavs, they dont make it in orange and black. Grudens is fine if you want to replace every year or two. Ive ripped more of those out than I can count. Heavy too.

[FM2]

Anyone heard of Sierra, I received a catalog yesterday and they have some good prices on their products?

[Snagly]

My brother is a big buyer of tech gear. He has ordered from Sierra in the past and is happy with the service and product/ performance. (Mostly he's buying out of season name brand garments at a discount -- not certain he can vouch for the "own label" items.)

[Master Baiter]

FM2 - I have gotten a few Sierra catalogs. They have awesome sale prices on items every year but I have always been tapped out by the time I get it so I have not ordered from them yet.

MB