Really? Hmm, I will have a look at that. Never knew that sort of stuff would work. I presume you have to get a waterproof jacket first
I didn't believe in it either but will relate my tale, sorry if it's boring but if it saves a chap a few quid it's worth it...
I bought a British army DPM windproof smock off ebay for a few quid. It is a poly-cotton garment with really well designed pockets etc. for stalking it doesn't claim to be waterproof. It is robust, has a good well designed hood, has a decent zip that is easy to operate in the dark or with gloves and generally ticks all the boxes for stalking. The only thing is there is some velcro on the storm flap that needs to come off in case you bend over and "rip" it at just the wrong time, and some people may not like wearing DPM.
I then bought some of the Nikwas wash in waterproofing for cotton (Amazon have the best price I think and sell it in 1 litre bottles which keeps down the cost of a few treatments over the year) and washed the windproof smock in it. I wasn't expecting much but was please with comfort, design and so on for fishing/stalking.
My girlfriend has always wanted a salmon so I knew a man and picked a good day and out we went and down came the rain - me in my windproof smock. She had 5 fish in about 20 minutes, on her first ever time casting the fly, and all told we spent about 2 hours out in heavy Hebridean rain and to my amazement no leaks. The girlfriend screamed and jumped up and down a bit every time she hooked something but now thinks salmon fishing is easy and can't understand why people can sometimes go for a whole hour without catching one
Over last season I wore the smock while out stalking here in Ireland. Now, I didn't have a solid 12 hour day of rain but it got a good mix of average winter weather and still it didn't leak - my several £300+ coats were starting to look a bit worried having not been out of the house all winter. Then one evening I spotted a movement in the distance and spent half an hour crawling up a ditch, with an inch of water in it, to get a shot at the deer. The deer turned out to be a hare but no water came through the elbows of the cheap smock. This wasn't in the plan but I continued to be impressed.
So, I'm not claiming that they are totally waterproof but what I will say is that for most stalking situations short of solid rain for hours (and my experience is that the deer are unlikely to move so the stalker is probably not out in such conditions) then the windproof smock is a really good solution, made even better because I recently saw a brand new one go for £7 on ebay though prices are usually a bit higher. When you combine it with a flectarn Gore-Tex jacket to be worn under the smock, so you keep all your pockets, you have all bases covered and all for a few quid. The reason I suggest the German flectarn gore-tex is just because the British version usually goes for more money on ebay than the German. I paid £13 for mine and it is good as new and rolls up into its own hood so it is always in the bag or car. The German sizes are a bit tight so that is the only thing you have to watch out for.
Now, there is a new British windproof smock in MTP camo pattern and they were commanding something of a premium on ebay though the careful buyer could still get a new one for £20ish. I suspect that this camo pattern might be better than the DPM as it is not as dark, ideal for the hill or forest edge. However, the new MTP smock is made of a different material to my DPM one. On the positive side it is softer and so is quieter especially when pushing through forestry and the like but on the negative side I've found that it is not as waterproof and will leak after 2 - 3 hours of constant rain, especially around rucksack straps for example. Again this isn't a big problem if you have a gore-tex shell with you to put under the smock.
So, all I can say is that I will be wearing the windproof smock again next season for my stalking and it works for me plus the cash you save would pay for a day or even more at red stags, also for the sake of literally £30 if you buy carefully it is well worth a try.
. Best part of £300. Reason I like them is;
