Stalking smock/jacket that keeps bum dry
- Thread starter Mungo
- Start date
As said jackets very subjective
No such think as 100% waterproof and breathable
It’s a compromise.
Plus for me as a sweater I now see no point spending hundreds on jacket expecting to do all when I end up as wet inside as out... pointless!
So .... for me .... layers way to go & if on a hike uphill remove jacket , carry it in roe sack or day pack or thru rifle sling till I stop workrate then wear it when static
Been done many times before but worth mentioning Caorach’s method of army milsurp smock and a goretex rain cover
Advantage is it’s cheap and works ... I’m seen jackets advertised at £600 now ! ******** to that!
Paul
No such think as 100% waterproof and breathable
It’s a compromise.
Plus for me as a sweater I now see no point spending hundreds on jacket expecting to do all when I end up as wet inside as out... pointless!
So .... for me .... layers way to go & if on a hike uphill remove jacket , carry it in roe sack or day pack or thru rifle sling till I stop workrate then wear it when static
Been done many times before but worth mentioning Caorach’s method of army milsurp smock and a goretex rain cover
Advantage is it’s cheap and works ... I’m seen jackets advertised at £600 now ! ******** to that!
Paul
Hornet 6
Well-Known Member
That would be because you used Fed-Ex cross border service, you paid all the charges upfront to the seller, it s good system, and saves you money, it also means it comes Fed-Ex all the way cutting out any interference from royal fail or parcel farce. UPS do the same sort of system, they deliver direct to you, but send a bill for the customs charges a week or so later, no handling charges again.
Neil.
PS: Not one mention of Ventile, 100% natural, breathable and waterproof.
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Has Anyone tried one of these?
https://www.raymears.com/Bushcraft_Product/931-Swazi-Nahanni-Shirt-Tussock-Green/
https://www.raymears.com/Bushcraft_Product/931-Swazi-Nahanni-Shirt-Tussock-Green/
Heym SR20
Well-Known Member
I have two of these - Bergans Morgedal Backcountry Anorak - Dark Khaki
One in Red which I use for Skiing, Hill walking etc and one in Khaki that I use for stalking. Really like it, but it does underarm zips to give more ventilation. You are welcome to borrow mine to see if it keeps you bum dry.
One in Red which I use for Skiing, Hill walking etc and one in Khaki that I use for stalking. Really like it, but it does underarm zips to give more ventilation. You are welcome to borrow mine to see if it keeps you bum dry.
CPShines
Well-Known Member
I was in a highseat during the "beast from the east (tm)" being snowed and rained on. Every part of me was cold and wet except my backside. Not sure how durable it is but seems OK so far.
I slightly doubt that it will keep anything dry...
I’m afraid I have no time for cotton in Scottish conditions! No doubt there will be plenty along shortly to tell me all about ventile and similar, but I have absolutely no intention of going back to that. Tried it. Got miserable.
McKenzie
Well-Known Member
You're welcome to borrow the Nomad smock that lives in the back of my car. There are often several coats in my car & it's always the Nomad that the dogs head for.
The Nomad is fantastically comfortable & would keep your bum dry but I must admit that if I was expecting to be sitting I'd take a roe sack as I consider that to be one of it's purposes.
The Nomad is fantastically comfortable & would keep your bum dry but I must admit that if I was expecting to be sitting I'd take a roe sack as I consider that to be one of it's purposes.
I have a issue Arctic windproof gabardine jacket that I have treated with Nikwax cotton proof and that seems to do quite well. Admittedly I will usually only be stalking for around 2.5 - 3 hours and I haven't used it in torrential rain. I sweat a lot and don't find breathable jackets tend to really 'breathe'. I was thinking about splashing out on a double Ventile jacket from Hilltrek. Has anyone got any experience with Ventile?
Ventile is a con.
It’s fine in showers, and if you don’t put any pressure on it. But in prolonged rain, it soaks up water (it’s designed to). If you then rest on it (like elbows on the ground; backpack on shoulders), it leaks - badly.
They have tried to get round this by spraying it with some kind of hydrophobic coating, which helps a bit. But only about as much as using Nik wax on an issue smock.
They are tapping into the nostalgia market, and pretending it’s a British product (it isn’t - all ventile is made in Switzerland).
I wouldn’t touch it. I think it’s actively dangerous in Scottish conditions.
It’s fine in showers, and if you don’t put any pressure on it. But in prolonged rain, it soaks up water (it’s designed to). If you then rest on it (like elbows on the ground; backpack on shoulders), it leaks - badly.
They have tried to get round this by spraying it with some kind of hydrophobic coating, which helps a bit. But only about as much as using Nik wax on an issue smock.
They are tapping into the nostalgia market, and pretending it’s a British product (it isn’t - all ventile is made in Switzerland).
I wouldn’t touch it. I think it’s actively dangerous in Scottish conditions.
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UK Issue windproof smock in MTP in longer size - now with zipped fleece pockets, less velcro and all mesh inner pockets eliminated. A very good piece of kit with lots of features such as underarm zips and multiple pockets and very hardwearing, showerproof material for a fraction of the price of others. Just may not have the same cachet as some brand names...
Malxwal
Well-Known Member
I wear a Hilltrek Ventile smock, based on this, but altered by the wonderful seamstress to have a longer tail, longer sleeves, game pocket and subtle modifications to ame it a bit more gun mount friendly:
http://hilltrek.co.uk/clothing/smocks/liathach-natural-smock/
Mine is made of double/heavy Ventile, and has a lining. It's without doubt the best garment I've ever owned.
In light of Mungos comments, next time I get a proper soaking in it, I will endeavour to test it. However, there is no magic garment, this smock for me is the absolute best.
I'd have to add, given the context of the thread, my backside is kept dry by my troosers, not so much the tail on my jacket, as its not long enough to form a seat.
http://hilltrek.co.uk/clothing/smocks/liathach-natural-smock/
Mine is made of double/heavy Ventile, and has a lining. It's without doubt the best garment I've ever owned.
In light of Mungos comments, next time I get a proper soaking in it, I will endeavour to test it. However, there is no magic garment, this smock for me is the absolute best.
I'd have to add, given the context of the thread, my backside is kept dry by my troosers, not so much the tail on my jacket, as its not long enough to form a seat.
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I’ll grant the Hilltrek jackets are superbly well designed and extremely comfortable. I wishe there were goretex ones that well made. I’ll even grant that, most of the time, in most conditions, they’re waterproof enough (and wonderfully breathable).
But if you’re out in persistently wet conditions, with a pack or rifle on, or have to crawl or lie up for any length of time, I’ve found you get soaked. And once the water is through, they do what cotton does, and turn into a giant sponge. I would have been better off in a dressing gown!
The marketing is also misleading to the point of outright lying (as I found out after my brush with hypothermia):
http://welldresseddad.com/2017/05/20/ventile-ugly-facts-they-dont-tell-you/
But if you’re out in persistently wet conditions, with a pack or rifle on, or have to crawl or lie up for any length of time, I’ve found you get soaked. And once the water is through, they do what cotton does, and turn into a giant sponge. I would have been better off in a dressing gown!
The marketing is also misleading to the point of outright lying (as I found out after my brush with hypothermia):
http://welldresseddad.com/2017/05/20/ventile-ugly-facts-they-dont-tell-you/
countrryboy
Well-Known Member
So would the above jacket coupled with a light wieght goretex jacket not be an ideal combo??
I know its miserable when u get a soaking (been out working in that all day today in guttery stinking wet fields) but 8 out of 10 times u'd probably not even need to take the gore tex jacket out with u.
I know its miserable when u get a soaking (been out working in that all day today in guttery stinking wet fields) but 8 out of 10 times u'd probably not even need to take the gore tex jacket out with u.
Swazi are good and I have never had one for a practical test. I have had the Sweedteam light smock which is good and took it to Scotland Red Stag Stalking it has to rain heavy to come through, last year bought its bigger Gortex brother the Titan, its very long and very dry you can lie on souring wet ground nothing comes through. Bought both of them from Swillington
Swazi very good I understand. You may also want to consider Sweedteam Titan very long Gortex I had the lighter Sweedteam smock it’s very good but if you lie on soaking ground it will eventually wick through. Bought the Titan it’s bigger dearer brother for Red Stag stalking in Scotland last year it’s excellent 2 days it rained that hard you could hardly see through it, no leaks and you can sit down in it protects your trousers and valuables. Bought both from Swillingtons can’t speak highly enough of them in terms of price and customer service
They do jackets / smocks with a Ventile outer and a Nikwax Analogy pump liner. That might be a good combination. I've got some Paramo stuff for walking that I like.
Think I might just stick with my issue windproof gabardine smock. You can pick one up for 35 - 40 and they are very lightweight, breathable and nice to wear. Plenty of pockets and stands up well to light rain. I can always wear my lightweight eEvent Rab walking waterproof underneath in very bad weather.
Think I might just stick with my issue windproof gabardine smock. You can pick one up for 35 - 40 and they are very lightweight, breathable and nice to wear. Plenty of pockets and stands up well to light rain. I can always wear my lightweight eEvent Rab walking waterproof underneath in very bad weather.
caorach
Well-Known Member
This is as near to the perfect system as possible in my view, it took me a while to catch on to it and I was skeptical to start with but over the longer term you are more comfortable in a windproof smock than in a completely waterproof jacket on the majority of days out and you simply add a lightweight waterproof layer to put on under it when really necessary. For light rain or short showers the smock is sufficient. The catch with it is that it is a system that requires you to use your brain rather than just to spend cash based on a magazine advert and that is hard to sell to people. "This system isn't always waterproof but works really well, here's what you have to do..." isn't easy to market. I did have a conversation with a manufacturer of waterproof clothing who admitted this to me but said that he simply can't sell anything that can't claim to be 100% waterproof, he had previously tried to sell a version of the military "layers" system.
So I tried the lightweight waterproof under an issue smock, and didn’t like it. It seems to make more sense to have your most waterproof layer as the outer most layer. Otherwise you end up losing any insulation your outer layer could have provided, and it’s wet when the rain stops.
I think any sensible person accepts that nothing will be 100% waterproof, so you look for the best you can get within your budget. My preference is for a maximally waterproof outer shell, then multiple layers underneath that are at least damp ‘tolerant’, like fleece.
I think any sensible person accepts that nothing will be 100% waterproof, so you look for the best you can get within your budget. My preference is for a maximally waterproof outer shell, then multiple layers underneath that are at least damp ‘tolerant’, like fleece.
countrryboy
Well-Known Member
Must admit i'm with mungo here, just can't understand why u'd put ur waterproof jacket under ur wind roof jacket and not on top.
Wot is the reason for it?
I pretty much use the same system but in reverse with wind proof gear and base layers but keep the water proof for outside layer
The only time i do something similar is with my waist coat and occasionally wear it on top of my water proof (quite handy with th big pockets for loading picking up) but if it does dry up ur stuck with a wet waist coat
Wot is the reason for it?
I pretty much use the same system but in reverse with wind proof gear and base layers but keep the water proof for outside layer
The only time i do something similar is with my waist coat and occasionally wear it on top of my water proof (quite handy with th big pockets for loading picking up) but if it does dry up ur stuck with a wet waist coat
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