The BEST, lightweight, under $100 rainjacket??

[jhg]

The best LIGHTWEIGHT rain jacket?

Think elk hunting. Think having to carry this thing in a pack, a lot of the time climbing mountains.

 Can be something other than camo- Black. Green. Brown.

I would rate light weight over quiet.

Venting over breathable fabric.

Should be reasonably made to withstand some bush whacking.

Thanks

Joshua

[DWT]

After elk hunting for alot of years in colorado I have come to the conclusion its best to buy the 3 dollar rain ponchos and have a few of them with you. I have tried several different brands of rain gear and find nothing that is truly rainproof that it isnt derived from rubber. Ihave tried high dollar stuff and it wasnt better than the cheap stuff and nothing is as light as a plastic poncho. If it is raining real hard you shouldnt be poking holes in elk anyway as recovery becomes almost impossible in the vasness of elk country. Just my humble opinion,Don.

[Rob DiStefano]

nope, not for under a hunnerd buck$, 'cause imo gore-tex and rain just go together, and gore-tex just ain't cheap.  i always hated noisy plastic rain gear and that clammy feeling.

i use a cabela's made-in-china mt-50 gore-tex 'quiet pack' rain jacket from cabelas.  it has an attached hood, zipper up the front and brass snap buttons to close off the zipper flap.  it works just fine, allows for good inside air circulation (this is very important!), keeps me good 'n' dry in a down pour, and is quite lightweight.  however, after two years of rather light use, the female part of the snap buttons have all fallen off ... just not well installed.  

     

[team fudd]

might want to look at frog toggs,  whole set is around 65 bucks. Not super quiet but very light and pretty durable.  Pretty sure it is made of tyvek,  that stuff they wrap houses with.  I bought a set to go bear hunting with this spring and they work.

[longbowben]

Yes look at frog toggs cabelas has them on sale all the time for $29.

[Bobaru]

Just picked up a nice camo rain jacket from Bass Pro Shop for about $ 30.00.  It's very light.  It's made of urethane coated nylon.

[Rob DiStefano]

the very last urethane coated nylon 'rain jacket' i had was a peter storm - oh yeah, it was totally waterproof ... and noisy, and with tons of perspiration soaking me from the inside out.  never again.  super soft, 'breathable' rain gear is the ONLY way to go, FOR ME!  this is just one of those things more than worth the money and not worth skimping on.  imho.  ymmv.  

[RedShaft]

cabelas dryplus it has treated me very well, lasted a long time, still is... and quiet and breathable.

[Lost Arra]

Brief occasional showers or extended soaking rains?

Makes a difference.

[USAFdad]

Always had good luck with Frogg Toggs. From Arizona to Alaska drizzle to downpour they've kept me dry. After a few washings and running thru the brush they'll fuzz up and get fairly quiet. Only a pound pants and top reasonably packable and as said above, only $65.

[Smallwood]

from personal experience, I either use cabelas mt-50 rain gear or army surplus goretex raingear.

[moththerlode]

Garbage bag .. 18 to a box

[Jack Guard]

If you really only wanted to spend 100 Bucks I would buy the Marmot PreCip ( 14 ounces as advertised on REI).  I have owned one since 1996 when i did my first long trip to Bosnia,  I have since carried the same jacket and pants around half of Europe and the Middle East, not to mention its my go to jacket for backpacking and back country trips ( fishing and hunting).  Some of you are saying, Middle East !  Rain ?   oh yeah man, it can come down and it can rain for days.   I believe it made Backpacker Magazines Editors choice award.  There are plenty of reviews on the internet, some good and some bad.   Additionally you can purchase matching pants (12 ounces) for approximately $90

Frog Toggs are pretty darn good also and can be found very inexpensively at times.  

A couple fo thought i would like to leave you with.  Buying a Jacket made to protect you from the elements, a rain jacket can be a decision that can save you from hours of discomfort and potentially save your life.  That might sound drastic but is true.  If i really could only spend 100 Bucks on my rain jacket i would probably buy the Marmot.  BUT, i would much rather save and work a little overtime, take my lunch to work, skip eating out for a month or two, or three, to buy a higher quality piece of rain gear.  Thats easy for me to say cause its not my money being spent.  

Kuiu, Sitka Gear, Arc'teryx  and many others, to name a few, have developed outerwear to protect us more effectively.  These jacket are tougher, more water repellent, and last many more years than there less expensive counterparts.

[Rob DiStefano]

Originally posted by moththerlode:
Garbage bag .. 18 to a box

                   

[bfrbmj]

I agree with Jack about the Marmot precip.  It is not the most rugged, but is relatively cheap.  I have used it for backpacking quite a bit.  Not made for bushwacking but good for trail use.  Garbage pack definitely for a pack cover.
Brian

[Onions]

I have had a few friends with Cabelas Space Rain. Quite waterproof, but not real tough.
I wore Team Realtree's Rubline Paclite Goretex jkt in Southeast last fall. Rained every day, all day, kept me totally dry. Bought the jkt. for $80 (regular price is around $175) on camofire.
Grunden's Petras series will keep you totally dry, but doesn't breathe well.
I agree with Jack G., if you have to save for a extra month or two it's worth it for good raingear.

chris <><

[skilonbw]

I lie to wait for the specials from golite and grab there raincoat last a rally long time for hiking just not as quiet for hunting so i put a shirt over it. I also found at basspro a mad dog jacket for under $100 that is light and comfortable.

[Steve H.]

Peter Storm

[KentuckyTJ]

I would steer clear of the Frogg Toggs. I have a camo set and unless they have changed them this year it is very loud fabric and I'd say very difficult to get drawn on a deer unless it was very windy.

[bowgy]

I bought the frogs togs last year.  I wouldn't hunt in it if I wasn't sitting still it's  too noisy.  The pants and jacket in the stuff bag measure 13"x8"  I found it to be way too big for my daypack.  It fits but really fills it up.