New Rain Gear

[QUOTE=DJD;514144]Well I didn't make it to the stores....the women I was with won out and we went shopping for them! I wish I could just drive to BPS without traveling 90 minutes and try some suits on first. I will get an XL so it's easier to layer and move around in...Thanks for the replies!![/QUOTE]



Make sure you go try them on as they fit a little different. I thought about ordering mine online but went to the store instead and im glad i did. I wound up with different sized bibs and jacket than what i thought id need

[QUOTE=DJD;514144]Well I didn't make it to the stores....the women I was with won out and we went shopping for them! I wish I could just drive to BPS without traveling 90 minutes and try some suits on first. I will get an XL so it's easier to layer and move around in...Thanks for the replies!![/QUOTE]

After years and years of trying different cheaper rain gear and getting wet, I broke down and bought Cabelas Guidewear. Man, what a difference! Get either BPS 100mph, Cabelas Guidewear, or something equivalent. You won't be sorry...staying dry is NOT over rated.

I bought the guidewear extreme from Cabelas expensive but I bet I have had it for about ten years and it is still in great shape. I love it and would buy it again in a heart beat.

I bought the pro qualifier (one step down from the 100 MPH stuff) and I would give it mixed reviews. My main issue is with the cloth cuffs. For one, they are\were very tight. Next, they are cloth and soak up water. When fishing, you can easily end up with wet arms half way up the forearm. One of my cuffs has split from being so tight around my watch.

I am all but ready to perform some minor surgery and remove the cuffs. They do not help in any way and in some ways they hurt by "wicking" water under the suit sleeves.

That is really my only gripe (but it's a biggun). Otherwise, the suit is tough and everything else stays high and dry. The sleeve thing won't happen unless you have your arms in a rod holding motion where your hands can be pointed up.

I have had the Cabela's guidewear for about 10 years and it is still as good as new. That's what I would go with again.

[QUOTE=bigbasscatcher;514146]I got to say as far as rain gear, I have been very pleased with my Frog Toggs. Cheap but they have always kept me dry and even warm for the most part.[/QUOTE]

Second the Frogg Toggs. Got the wife a set and she loves it. I stay with my trusty $30, 15 year old set of Stearns PVC outer and nylon inner jacket and pants. Packs up easy, blocks wind and rrain great. Also breathes well for the summer rain storms. Not warm in the winter by itself, I layer a long sleeve T-shirt and a sweat shirt under it, and it hold heat in and blocks wind out.

I guess someday I'll try one of the expensive suits at the store......buy it has to be on a day that is 33 degree, raining constanly, and with wind at 30-40 mph. If they don't let me take it outside to try it on, then they will have to hose me down while in their walk in cafeteria freezer. :eek:

How do y'all keep rain gear for 10+ years? All clothing that I purchased over 5 years ago has shrunk and no longer fits my expanding body.:o

Bought a Columbia jacket and another brand at dicks on sale a year ago. Supposedly water proof. Marked way down to 50 bucks. Some pants too. None of it was gortex and none of it is rainproof. Rainproof to me means you can sit on a wet seat and not get your butt wet. The stuff I bought would work for a few hours but if you are in the rain for six hours or more forget it.

At the same time I bought a pair of Helly Hansen VOSS rain pants for $30. These things are polly coated. I had never used them because I thought the other stuff was waterproof until two saturdays ago. I did wear the Helly pants this past saturday though it did not rain. These things are polly coated, welded seams and there is no way in the world water is getting through them even sitting in a puddle. Just not possible. They do not breath...so what! Fishing is an active sport but really how active is it. I wore the pants with blue jeans and long underwear last saturday and never broke a sweat (verry wind I must say) . The morning started out at 48 degrees and went up to maybe 60. Not breathing was not even close to an issue for me. I forgot I had them on. These things are very very soft and flexible, not like the old rubber rain suites. Maybe in July not being breathable will matter. Don't think getting will matter either though.


[URL="http://shop.hellyhansen.com/us/item/voss-jacket-55267/?t_type=rvp"]VOSS JACKET - Men - Rainwear | Helly Hansen Official Online Store[/URL]
[URL="http://shop.hellyhansen.com/us/item/voss-pant-51081/"]VOSS PANT - Men - Rainwear | Helly Hansen Official Online Store[/URL]


I am going to order the jacket after I post this. Eighty bucks total for pants and jacket. If I burn a hole in them or cut them I can get another pair or duct tape them. They are comfortable, low cost and no way possible rain is getting through.

As posted here I have heard good things bout those three and four hundred dollar rain suites. Having never owned one I just have to wonder if they are actually totally rain proof. A friend of mine was wearing one of those $400 suits when it rained all night while we fished all night a few weeks ago. He wiped the water off his seat every time before sitting down just like I did. It was his second such rain suit. The first one just broke down and didn't work after ten years. Ten years is a pretty long time. He also said it was too hot to wear in the summer.

I'll know more in a year or so after using the Helly Hansen stuff.

Keep your line wet and your clothes dry!

The absolute worse place to be wet is in the Boundary Waters. I have two sets of rain gear that I use in the Boundary Waters......both are from Cabelas.

I have the Cabelas Rainy River 2 layer goretex. I've had it for 15 years, and it is the BOMB. Fantastic stuff. A few years ago, while I was suffering in my shitty Artic Armor gear while at Dale Hollow, Rob Embrey was using my Rainy River.

When it is really, really cold in the Boundary Waters, I use my Guide Wear cabelas raingear. It too is pretty dang good.

Both have been used for years, and will probably be used for a few more years. My Rainy River gear is finally letting some water in, but it is not too bad.

You cannot go wrong with good, high end gear.

Later,

Geo

[QUOTE=Atomdata;514101]I use the Frabill icesuit and love it. They have a couple of different sets to choose from. I paid around $300 for the bibs, coat and liner. Many more features than the ProQualifier set.

Here is a link....I am not sure where I ordered them from....

[url=http://www.franksgreatoutdoors.com/frabill-grey-icesuit-jacket-and-bib-12815.html]Frabill Grey Icesuit Jacket and Bib[/url][/QUOTE]

I use the Frabill Storm Suit and its awesome. I also have the Cabela's Dry Plus and it *****!! I can be zipped up and sealed up to the max in my Cabelas and I still get wet!! And the cabelas suit was twice as expensive as the Frabill.

Have had the BP 100 mph suit for 7 years and it is still working fine.....but too hot for summer. I get the frog togs for the hot weather but only get one season out of them....but I am on the water virtually every day between March and end of November so mine get a work out for sure. I am hearing good things about the GILL suits and may try one out when my BPS quits working.

[QUOTE=DaveStewart;514223]Have had the BP 100 mph suit for 7 years and it is still working fine.....but too hot for summer. I get the frog togs for the hot weather but only get one season out of them....but I am on the water virtually every day between March and end of November so mine get a work out for sure. I am hearing good things about the GILL suits and may try one out when my BPS quits working.[/QUOTE]

I've got a pair of the Frogg Toggs Toad Skins from Gander Mountain and like them better than the regular Frog Toggs as they are thicker material and don't tear as easily. But when I tried to clean them with a prespray wash and a scrub brush and some water in the kitchen sink they black on the inside faded onto the read outside part of the top. I've since washed them twice in a washing machine with some tide HD and with warm water and cold water and they still have these black specks on the red parts of the jacket. I'm wondering if by washing them I've taken away the water proofing on them?

I know that with Gore-tex type rain gear you can wash in in NIKWAS TX.DIRECT WASH-IN and restore the water proofing in them. So I've been told. Not put that to the test yet. I've got two sets of older Cabalas Rain gear that don't shed water like they used to. They are made with Gore-tex. They are too small for me these days or I'd try to restore them with some NIKWAS TX.DIRECT WASH-IN .

The first pair of Frogg Toggs that I bought were regular light weight Frogg Toggs and the inseam ripped out on them the first time I worn them in the boat. They are very thin material and tear easily from my experience. But they do keep the wind out and the rain off you if you take really good care and don't stress them much.