I found this coat and these matching bibs at sportsman's guide (no affiliations, standard disclaimers). I'm not looking for a "break the bank" set of goretex gear, just something reasonably priced, reusable, somewhat comfortable gear to put on at scouting events when it rains. All suggestions are welcomed and appreciated.

That stuff looks like it would really keep you dry but might not breathe very well.

+1,although I wonder about a back vent and grommets. In a hard rain,the water will find its way in.

I have heard good things about these: https://www.froggtoggsraingear.com/DriDucks.shtm



but I have no experience with them (It isn't raining in SoCal these days). The price is right and they are light weight.

There really isn't any such thing as truly rainproof garments, but gore-tex and e-vent come close. If you are sedentary, PVC will keep you dry, but not if you are moving.

Price point certainly looks great on those.

Please post a follow-up review if you get them and try them out.

Here in Ohio I almost always carry at least a Waterproof-breathable jacket. Even in the summers here it can rain and cool down quickly and it generally seems to rain a lot here, at least it seems to whenever I can make some time to go out.

-b

I would look at some of the Sportsmans Guide surplus NATO GoreTex like laminate.. my German flectar camo works pretty well.. but with the high partial pressure from water vapor in Florida, even my real GoreTex is not ideal

for serious rain gear... Helly Hansen

yeah, that always seems to be the trade-off with cheap rain gear vs the more expensive stuff, just don't have it in my budget right now to get something more expensive like goretex, maybe later on I can look into that

hikermor, that looks like a good set of raingear. now i am rethinking my selection.

buckeye, whichever set I go with, I'll post a review here later, with campouts galore and summer camp coming relatively soon, I should encounter at least ONE rainy situation I'm sure, wouldn't be a scouting event without some rain

I grew up in ohio but am now living in kentucky, but I am right there with ya bro. I always have at least a semi-water resistant light windbreaker with me during the rainy seasons. I also carry an emergency poncho with me, and daily I carry a good umbrella to and from work.

les thanks for the tips, I checked sportsamn's guide and can't find the surplus NATO GoreTex like laminate, apparently they don't carry it anymore, but will keep an eye out for it. Does helly hansen make their stuff in tall sizes? that was one of the other appeals to the original jacket and bibs I posted was that they were available in a tall size

Contrary to another poster, my GoreTex has never leaked. I bought a GoreTex parka before a trip to Alaska. While there I experienced some torrential downpours and never had any leaks. It is now 14 years old and still hasn't leaked. I highly recommend it. It is well worth the price IMHO.

Remember that getting wet can be life threatening due to the chance of hypothermia.

Mark.. I had an older Helly Hansen raincoat/parka that was long, but I'm only 5'10... I typically don't buy clothes on line, so YMMV... sorry.. early in my teaching career, parents of one of my students were itinerant salmon fishers (long gill net) in Alaska, and that was the only brand that would hold up for them..

Goretex is pretty durable and long lasting and well worth the price for a Jacket and overtrouser. I bought some Goretex gear back in the early 1990s during a sale and it is still perfectly functional.

I have a Berghaus Extreme 7000 jacket, it must be old, it says that it was made in Gt Britain on the inside label. It just needs a wash and reproofed to bring it back to life.

I also bought some Sprayway Goretex overtrousers at the same time. I need to go look for them as I haven't used them for a few years.

I seem to remember buying them with a Coleman 440 liquid fuel stove and one of the early Thermarests, together with some 20 year old un-used Berghaus Mountaineering Boots (if I find a pair of boots I like I buy a spare pair). It was all good reliable, durable and functional kit back then, if a little heavier than the kit available today.

If you can afford it, go for Goretex or eVent 3 layer technology. Search around for online deals. There are some excellent deals around. For example I have been able to get a nice Jacket deal with RRP of £300 for £60 from a quality manufacture before the sizes become more and more restricted.

http://www.swillingtonshootingsupplies.co.uk/store/product/2980/Laksen-GoreTex-shooting-Jacket/

i got a LLBean light weight jacket in the early 90's and use it on the canoe trips.i can stuff it in the side pocket of my Duluth pack where i can get it out fast.the pants are from Cabelas and i got those because i wanted something a bit more heavy than the light weight ones that came with the Bean jacket.the Cabelas have double knees and seat which i want for kneeling in the canoe or in camp or sitting which you do a lot of canoe tripping.
i had a zipper fly put in the pants and sewed on lighter weight elastic suspenders to keep the pants pulled way up.i found out the hard way you get a gap sitting in a canoe for hours that the water running down the back of the jacket flows right into.thats one of those "it depends" things as hiking the jacket would cover the top of the pants with no problem.
a buddy has a heavy set of rain gear,Helly Hanson,and he gos thru a lot of hassle to pack something,it has bibs,that would be at home on a North Sea oil rig.

Add a reasonable quality poncho. Go over everything and has a pleplora of uses.

i take a poncho and a rain suit.i canoe country we get sudden heavy downpours that only last a few minutes.problem is you can't seen them coming.down in a lake with hills all around you don't get a good view and what looks like blue open sky ahead will turn into rain when a storm moves in from behind.

the poncho is not only handy to cover the packs and keep the canoe from getting too wet inside it also serves as a quick way to cover up.pulling a rain suit on in a canoe is tricky and takes some time so just pulling the poncho out of a side pouch on the pack and pulling it over takes seconds.i marked the bottom front of mine with a bit of red duct tape.faced with a wad of poncho that turns into a huge sheet with no up or down,back or front visible at first that red tag gives me a starting point.

That's a great idea

I live in a much more temperate climate than most, a 3mil contractor bag to pull over my lower body, a vinyl coated nylon poncho, AMK heat sheet, boonie hat with mosquito head net, and a pair of lightweight cotton gloves is currently my sleep set... most likely sitting against a tree in an upright type position... not the best, but most probable...

Man, that picture is giving me cabin fever! Winter still has South Dakota in its icy grip...it's -2 F right now.

I've used ponchos in the past, I liked the freedom of movement and the built in venting of sorts they provided, but my feet and lower legs always got wet, so that's why i'm looking at getting a pants/coat combo.

Last year at scout camp, I "made do" with the rain gear I had on hand, a bright orange pullover nylon (I think) jacket I had bought from the local University bookstore on clearance. I thought it was a waterproof rain jacket at the time for some reason. I also had a non-matching pair of red waterproof (or so I thought) pants. During the week we experienced a downpour, my "making do" rain gear left me soaked. Luckily that was the only incident during the week, but I'd like to get a better set of dedicated rain gear before summer camp. Keeping dry (relatively anyway) top to bottom while going from tent to tent to check up on the boys is a definite feature I am looking for, but after seeing all the great suggestions, now I'm thinking something vented or breathable would be a plus too. I'm not hugely tall, a tad over 6', but my arms are long and lanky and sleeve length is usually an issue on regular sized items, so I like to get tall sizes whenever available.

Anyway, thanks for all the replies, if anyone has more suggestions they would be greatly appreciated.

When it is warm enough, I like to wear shorts with a poncho. My legs are fairly waterproof. The boots will get damp, but if there are creek crossings, that will be a non-issue anyway - you just become as one with the rain.

This is easy to say as I sit in a nice snug house, with rain (finally) coming down.

If you want something cheaper than GoreTex, then you might consider LL Bean's TEK2.5 fabric. They have both a jacket and pants in this waterproof breathable fabric. It is about 2/3 the price of their lower end GoreTex products. They also come in Tall sizes.

Trail Model Rain Jacket $89 for Tall sizes:
http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/68624?feat=509723-CL1&page=trail-model-rain-jacket

See the link on the above page for the pants too ($79 in tall sizes).

One great thing about buying from LL Bean is that everything is guaranteed, period. They also provide free shipping out (and back if returning). They have great customer service too.

I carry an earlier version of this jacket in my Go Bag. I have been using it for about 10 years.

My great grandfather wore LL Bean boots while working as a lumberman in northern Maine.

yeah I'd thought about LLBean's gear as well, sadly, still too pricey for my budget. I've always heard good things about LLBean's stuff.

Keep in mind I need two sets, one for myself and one for DS. One of our assistant scoutmasters recommended this and it looks to be our best option for now.

I greatly appreciate all the input so far, and I am still weighing all my options so any other recommendations are welcomed.

That Coleman rain suit is nice, until you have to go potty. Not unlike a flight suit, you have to pretty much take it all off before going.