I've had rain gear get old and ripped up in the past but this was ridiculous.

My nephew and I purchased light summer rain gear in 2008 and used it during the early hunting seasons.

This last weekend we were once more, hunting the early season but the rain didn't just drizzle, it was a monsoonal downpour all day long.

In any event, our rain gear failed and we got drenched from head to toe and clear to the bone.

Our rain gear isn't old nor is it torn in any places. It acted like a sponge and I could squeeze water out of the lower part of the jacket.

The brand is Dry-Plus and it's designed to keep one dry plus it breathes. The shell is 100% polyester and it's lined with 100% polyester. The directions say machine wash and tumble dry on low. The only change I made was that I have dried it on Medium with other hunting clothes such as flannel shirts and pants.

I wouldn't think this gear would fail this bad.

Load fast and aim slow.

quote:

Originally posted by White Finger:The brand is Dry-Plus

That's interesting...Cabelas sells Dry-Plus and I've used it for years now...a Hunter Green set I used for trap & skeet shooting, and a camo 'soft quiet suede' set for hunting. I've been caught is showers and stayed dry, but haven't been caught in any heavy downpours. You mentioned "light summer rain gear"...maybe its a thinner version than the ones I have?

Yes, they have heavier rain gear and I have some and I wear it later in the year. I use it during the late hunts because it is defiantly warmer gear.

This weekend we hiked up a long steep grade and continued to hunt steep grades so controlling over-heating was of major importance. That and keeping dry which in this case, failed.

Load fast and aim slow.

My rain gear is also the soft quite suede.

The pants say to wash in cold water and lay flat to dry.
The jacket say to machine wash and tumble dry on low.

I washed in medium water and rinsed on cold. Then put them in dryer on medium.

My wife say's that this procedure shouldn't compromise the garments.

I'm baffled.

Load fast and aim slow.

quote:

Originally posted by White Finger:
My rain gear is also the soft quite suede.

Mine is the heavier soft suede finish and I actually wear it on a lot of days for the warmth also...I just treated myself to a new set this year...haven't even pulled the tags off yet, LOL...season opens November 2nd.

I have an Army surplus poncho for wet weather hunting. Plenty of room underneath where I can even hold my longrifle out of the rain.
But, it is heavy and I sweat so much I might as well not be wearing anything I get so wet. Plus it really does not keep out rain despite being heavy and rubberized. Time for trash. These days when it rains I'm next to the fire inside.

Sometimes wonder if the secret isnt wearing wool under all the outer wear? Even when wool is wet it keeps you warm.I read in the "old days" they wore wool,real wool under garments, not the blends we get today. Iam with Rifleman 1776 on this ,as I got older,when it is miserable outside I stay inside,lot to be said for a warm fire and repairing gear for tomorrow.

Man with that much water my flinter might as well go swimming with me, and the deer hold up in pine groves, so no reason to be out from under cover. I'd hold-up in a blind site with some oil cloth, sit it out and hope it quits while there is light for me to see the sights and the deer might come out to eat.

LD

That particular day, I purposely carried me caplock.

I just spent 4 days hunting deer and elk. The first day I carried the Blue Ridge flinter and by the end of the day, the charge was compromised due to rain. After shooting that charge out accompanied by a nasty hang fire, I reloaded and continued the hunt. At the end of the day, I fired that charge out and cleaned the rifle that night.

The following two days, I alternated between the Pedersoli Blue Ridge flinter and my Lyman great Plains caplock, depending on circumstances.

the last day we discovered some hunters at the advantage high point and knowing they didn't have permission to hunt on the property, we went in below them and hunted while they were above us bugling and bugling.

I purposely carried the flinter on this hunt because I knew Ai would be bumping into the trespassers. After the fog lifted and no elk were found, I climbed the hill and talked to the other party. they were 5 in number and after passing pleasantries, I asked them if theey had their written permission slips to be on the property. No they didn't but one of the party said he know the land owner. after chatting, I knew that the person knew the land owner but not very well. After more pleasantries, one of the group asked about my rifle, "it was one of the old type, as he put it. Every one of that group had stainless steel in-lines.

The meeting between us was friendly and cordial which was my goal, even though I was out to get a name and make sure they new they were on private land and my party of 3 were the only ones who had permission, I also specifically carried the flinter for the meeting, a personal agenda.

later in the day when I connected with the land owner, he told us that he knew there were extra hunters on his property because they were bugling and my group didn't have bugles. He bugled from his camp and then moved to his neighbor's property and bugled. This gave the impression the elk ( if there were any) were moving away. the group on the hill became more aggressive in their bugling hoping to get the elk to return. The land owner returned to his own property and bugled again. This he said would give the impression the elk returned. He then drove up to the upper end of the property to talk to the group knowing that they would still be their believing the elk had returned.

I'm relaying this story just to let others know that confrontations don't have to get nasty. We carried the day very well, nobody got threatened, nobody lost their temper, nobody left angry, so all went well, as it should have.

Load fast and aim slow.