View Full Version : What rain pants
One of my sons is in need of a good pair of rain pants to keep him dry walking to class. Personally I have had good luck w/my Marmot Precip pants, however when I went to purchase them I was amazed at the number of negative reviews. These pants have served me well; what is your take on them.
I had a pair for a while and they worked fine. I recently changed them out for Golite Reed Pants because they were lighter, but the the precips worked fine. Marmot's Precip technology doesn't breathe all that well so it isn't as good for jackets, but for pants, where you don't need as much breathability they are fine.
There was a problem with Marmot's Precip stuff de-laminating prematurely, but they were supposed to fix that in newer models and I never had any problems with mine.
I bought a pair of walmart workout pants cut the liner out of them and gave them a coate of DWR. They have a zipper at the cuff to get over your shoes easy and pack up small. To get to class a hightek option is overkill. Even unbreathable polyethylene would work for a walk to class.
I have a pair of north face goretex pants and only take them as camp pants/ backup in severe winter conditions. For hiking rainpants just do not breath enough. IMO
I too am drawn to the Marmot Precip pants.
TimeSnake
11-16-2009, 07:48
ULA rain skirt
Kerosene
11-16-2009, 10:42
For just walking to school in the rain, pretty much anything will work. I'd find an inexpensive pair of coated nylon rain pants from Walmart or Lands End. Just remember that he probably will run out of the house without any sort of rain gear or a coat in a few years.
lazy river road
11-16-2009, 11:05
columbia makes a reallly good sturdy pair of rain pants Ive had mine for like 8 yrs and jsut this summer the seam started to tear a little their called Shelter Cove Pants. They are not breathable at all but keep every ounce of rain out. Or he could just wear a kilt and then his pants would never get wet :)
300winmag
01-13-2010, 16:24
Precip laminate is about the least durable and also not very breathable.
I have Cabela's Rainy River GTX PacLite pants. Got 'em a few years back for $79. Now they're $99. and still a bargain, as is the parka at the same price.
I like rain chaps, but then, I do not wear a short jacket.
Rain chaps work well with a Packa or a poncho.
The PU-coated, ripstop nylon Exped Rain Chaps (http://www.exped.com/exped/web/exped_homepage.nsf/b43HomePageE?openframeset) are durable.
I like sil nylon Liberty Mountain Ultralight Full Moon Chaps (http://www.libertymountain.com/shop/product.asp?p=4340&pg=2&c=175&o=0&s=5).
Used with the Packa, or poncho, you have ventilation available.
Nothing that's waterproof breathes very well.
eVent is supposed to be better than Gore-tex. I have an eVent jacket and it appears to be slightly LESS DAMP inside than my old Sierra Designs Gore-tex parka, and markedly less damp than a PacLite jacket that I owned for two days and returned to REI because it had a sheet of condensed sweat inside it from moderate hiking on a 50 degree drizzly day.
Whatever you get for rain pants (really not necessary except in cold weather), make sure they have full side zips. That's your only hope of ventilation.
Again - waterproof is NOT breathable! (not breathable enough that you'd be able to tell, anyway).
Bags4266
01-13-2010, 17:49
This thread is probally dead due to the start date but if this kid is going to College or High School he needs to be stylin! So the ULA skirt is a winner!!!!!!!! Great conversation piece anyway.
It's probably relevant to other hikers even though the OP was obviously hyping his own gear.
I'm thinking about making myself a skirt. If it was just for rain, I wouldn't bother, but I can also use it for doing ALL my laundry....as long as I don't make it out of cuban fiber.
waywardfool
01-22-2010, 10:08
Years ago, I had a pair of Campmor rain pants. Full zip, wore them for winter, snow stuff, etc. They were goretex, and had coated nylon knees and seat. If I wore over long pants, then removed them later, the pants would be visibly wet exactly where the coated nylon reinforcements were, and dry elsewhere. You could see precisely where the knee patches covered. The goretex laminates do work.
I currently use goretex (now marmot) pants most trips. Most times, it's the only long pants I carry. Usually don't bother with rain pants in summer.
300winmag
02-05-2010, 16:30
Take a look at Cabela's Rainy River Gore-Tex PacLite pants. I like mine, especially for the price. But the design and quality is very good as well.
I have both parka and pants. Cabela's is the only PacLite rainwear maker I know of that has Tall sizes.
Eric
Cloudynesz
03-21-2010, 20:25
Golite or Sierra Design have lighter rain pants than most of the other brands. They are really brief design, removed all zips to keep in low weight. The fabric for the lightest one of golite is pertex, tough enough for nomal hiking.
TIDE-HSV
04-25-2010, 11:52
I've had good luck with my Precip pants, but my Precip jacket developed the same delam problem in back of the neck. They offered to replace it under warranty or allow me a credit against another model. I opted for the Super Mica, which has their proprietary MemBrain technology. I might have moved to another brand, but I was stuck with them...
One of my sons is in need of a good pair of rain pants to keep him dry walking to class. Personally I have had good luck w/my Marmot Precip pants, however when I went to purchase them I was amazed at the number of negative reviews. These pants have served me well; what is your take on them.
They don't breathe enough to prevent a sweaty leg/body union area (how could I put that nicely?? :D).
I wear breathable pants in rainy weather if it's below 55 degrees or so (warmer if it's windy). The nylon gets wet, but it doesn't feel nearly as cold as wearing shorts since the nylon also blocks much of the wind. I dry them whenever I can, wringing them out at night, hanging them under my tarp and hoping they won't be too wet the next morning when I have to put them back on.
Oops! I already weighed in on this. Please ignore any future babble from me :D.
I use rain chaps for "adequate ventilation".
Exped rain chaps or Equinox Ultralight Full Moon Chaps are high quality.
Exped Chaps has the edge on wear for brushcrashing.
The links I had posted no longer work: google.
safn1949
05-17-2010, 15:28
I have a pair of NorthFace venture pants.7.8 oz and they fit well,I am a 6'2".Also comfortable and inexpensive.
http://www.thenorthface.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=143895&storeId=207&catalogId=10201&langId=-1&from=subCat&parent_category_rn=11704&variationId=001
The Phoenix
06-20-2010, 20:28
gym shorts... keep a pair of clothes dry to sleep and rest in at shelters and in tent always... but as for when it rains...
my experience is in rain pants and a rain jacket for that matter when it rains... whether its rain water or sweat... whatever it is... I get soaked either way...
So lightweight quick drying gym shorts (nylon) and then next sunny day in 1 hour or so off good sunlight (hanging on the back of your pack) they are good to go...
I hiked the AT last year with no raingear... I suppose I wasn't the most Orthodox hiker out there.
Save money... go with old gym shorts is my opinion!!!
Kerosene
06-20-2010, 21:03
Every time this discussion comes up and people say you don't need any rain gear, I think back to the stalled "hurricane" that came to rest over southern Vermont in August 1979. A few days later I heard that 14" of rain came down that day, and much of it was obviously from 50,000+ feet as it was incredibly cold. While I had a poncho with rain chaps, I'm convinced that I would have succumbed to hypothermia if I hadn't been wearing something that kept me sufficiently warm. Of course, it needn't be rain gear, but other alternatives would be at least as heavy.
In addition, there are many places up north where you might require wind protection, which rain gear can provide or you can go with lighter weight wind gear.
Chance09
09-13-2010, 10:39
I don't ever hike in rain pants. I use the ULA rainskirt at 3 oz. If i can't get by in that I'm getting out of the woods ASAP
I don't wear rain pants in rain either, but in winter I often carry them as a shell for camp or in case the weather happens to turn colder.
For walking to class, I think I would just grab a big golf umbrella.
As for hiking, I just normally go with shorts. If I'm walking in the rain, I'm just going to have to deal with being wet until I get to camp. I put more effort into keeping my sleeping bag and gear dry than myself.
ZeroLozen
09-13-2010, 12:05
Go to TheClymb.com...still a goLite sale going on...70 bux get u a nice pair or pants
i really like my first ascent storm shell pants, but i've only worn them in the cold so i don't know how well they breathe.
SalParadise
10-09-2010, 01:33
i didn't wear rain paints on the Trail, either. i generate enough heat hiking that as long as my upper body was relatively dry, i was fine. i still carried lightweight nylon pants along just to have something warmer to wear in cold weather and something to wear when i was doing wash in town. otherwise, really have no use for rain pants.
I've been wearing 2009 model Marmot Precip side-zip pants for two years now and have experienced no problems. Sure in a driving rain or in high-humidity environments I get damp, but I expect that really. I also have the jacket and hat, and they have also served me well.
I'd have to admit that 90% of the time I've worn my Precip stuff it has been as a wind break or to cover a down insulation layer in really cold weather and not so much in actual rain. I didn't have any problems even when snow skiing. I did get damp from perspiration, but that is what happens when you're wearing a plastic bag. The pit zips on the jacket and the side zips on the pants do help quite a bit though.
Cloudynesz
10-12-2011, 03:43
I use torrentshell pant, great price, great quality, only the weight could be a little bit heavy.
Trailbender
10-12-2011, 07:39
I made "rain shorts", cut off a pair of rain pants, they are easier to take off and on, protect your crotch from cold rain(for heat loss prevention), and I can wear them as camp shorts in hotter temps than I could with rain pants.
The Arc Teryx SL and AR lines are your best bet.. The PacLite hard shell pants are supremely breathable and the theta soft shell pants are a different alternative
Go Lite Reed pants have been great, agreed, when it is NOT cold rain pants have limited value.
Learned this from Nimblewill Nomad...............good enough for me
WILLIAM HAYES
12-28-2011, 17:00
marmot precip full zip had them for years they work well just wash them now and then with powder detergent and dry them in the dryer dont use a dryer sheet in the dryer- you can do this about 10-12 times it restores the orginal DWR after that use a DWR product to restore the DWR
WILLIAM HAYES
12-28-2011, 17:00
marmot precip full zip had them for years they work well just wash them now and then with powder detergent and dry them in the dryer dont use a dryer sheet in the dryer- you can do this about 10-12 times it restores the orginal DWR after that use a DWR product to restore the DWR