Lightheart Gear Rain Jacket

[Wild-Foot]

Has anyone here used one of Judy's rain jackets from http://www.lightheartgear.com/index.php/rain-gear/product/view/4/23

I love the idea of an actual waterproof jacket. But I am worried that the second I start hiking, I will sweat so much that I might as well be standing in the rain.

Would love to know your experience with this jacket.

[HeartFire]

Obviously, I'm a little biased, so I'm not really giving an opinion. But let me ask you this - in a 'waterproof/breathable' jacket - do you start to sweat when hiking?

I have always had the opinion that when hiking, you're going to get wet - rain or sweat, it doesn't make much difference, the object of rain jackets is to keep you warm in cool weather - wet and warm is alive, wet and cold can be very very bad. Keeping the contents of your pack dry is a anther thing altogether.

Judy /LightHeart Gear

[Flounder940]

I have, and I love mine. With generous pit zips, I've never had a problem venting if I get too hot. The visor, when the hood is cinched down, actually works, unlike some other jackets I've owned. Regardless of the material and its marketed breathability, if you are wearing your rain jacket, and are active, you will generate heat and sweat. There's no way around it. Yes, you will get wet, but it will be a warm wet, instead of being a cold wet without the jacket.

[Rex Clifton]

I'm old enough to remember when the only rain gear were coated nylon. Back then, most everybody used a poncho because coated nylon is like backpacking in a plastic bag. Physics hasn't changed. Get something that's waterproof and breathable (by the way, I still use a poncho in summer).

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

[jeffmeh]

Obviously, I'm a little biased, so I'm not really giving an opinion. But let me ask you this - in a 'waterproof/breathable' jacket - do you start to sweat when hiking?

I have always had the opinion that when hiking, you're going to get wet - rain or sweat, it doesn't make much difference, the object of rain jackets is to keep you warm in cool weather - wet and warm is alive, wet and cold can be very very bad. Keeping the contents of your pack dry is a anther thing altogether.

Judy /LightHeart Gear

Agree 100%.


I'm old enough to remember when the only rain gear were coated nylon. Back then, most everybody used a poncho because coated nylon is like backpacking in a plastic bag. Physics hasn't changed. Get something that's waterproof and breathable (by the way, I still use a poncho in summer).

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

Waterproof and breathable works great under ideal conditions in a lab. In the field, not so much, as it doesn't take much real use before the membrane is clogged. One is highly likely to wet it out from the inside, regardless of the stated breathability and price tag, IME.

[Puddlefish]

I got the orangey one (I'm color blind) with the more waterproof fabric. It's well designed and constructed, lightweight, certainly waterproof, and held up well to being crammed in a small space for a couple of months.

In practice I'm an umbrella user, the jacket wasn't really what I needed for my AT hike in the late spring. I used it one cool day, and was sweating and overheated quickly despite the generous pit zips and even leaving the front unzipped. I used it around camp a few rainy nights.

I absolutely will bring it along for colder weather hikes, I'll bring it sailing and I'll even wear it to the grocery store. Great value for the right circumstances.

Edit: I'm not a big rain jacket fan in general. I did like my far more breathable Houdini wind shirt under the umbrella as my go to cool weather hiking in the rain solution.

[-Rush-]

I saw a recent post-hike AT thru-hike gear review by Jacob Downing where he discussed the jacket. If I recall, it suffered the same scrutiny every rain jacket gets. He said it was super hot because it was made of Sil-Nylon. You might glean some info from that video on YouTube.

[Lyle]

I went back to silnylon rain gear, pretty much fully waterproof. Between my Brawny Gear jacket and ULA Rain Wrap, I'm very satisfied. Several reasons:

1) Breathable fabrics don't work all that great - best I found was Frogg Toggs, but they are not real durable and are bulky.
2) Rain gear, in general, does not work to keep you dry when you are active for an hour or more, despite what the manufacturers claim.
3) The reason to wear rain gear is to keep you warm in hypothermia weather (much more often than most folks realize).

Fully waterproof, non-breathable gear keeps you warm just as well as the ridiculously expensive and heavy breathable stuff. It keeps the cold rain from pounding your skin, holds in the already warm sweat, and does an excellent job of blocking the wind. Just wear a "warm when wet" synthetic or wool layer underneath the rain gear and you will be good to go in any storm.

In regard to a thru-hiker's critique, while valid in many cases, they are usually limited in overall scope. They usually have limited reference points to compare and contrast how well any given item works, they can only tell you their perception. Most experienced hikers, who have tried multiple types of rain gear, will tell you it all suc*s, just some is slightly better than others. Totally a personal choice based on your individual criteria.