Foul Weather Gear Advice Needed

[Cheechako]

I found the "super Fantastic heavy duty" foulies to be way to restrictive.... I felt like I was trying to move around with diving gear on! Actually seemed dangerous to me..In the Caribe I used mostly cheaper Helly Hansen type stuff. $30 coat and thin pullover pants.

[Mal Reynolds]

You might want the trousers a heavier (& more expensive) grade than the jacket. The trousers take a lot more abuse, and are worn more than the jacket.

[Jammer Six]

Originally Posted by Mal Reynolds

You might want the trousers a heavier (& more expensive) grade than the jacket. The trousers take a lot more abuse, and are worn more than the jacket.

My experience is exactly the opposite.

I have a jacket with the pockets ripped out.

I wore the jacket off the boat, while I only wore the storm panties on the boat.

[savoir]

Have to agree. In humid weather I never bother with the pants. Jacket only.

[ozskipper]

In the tropics less is best. You dont need six layers of polar fleece and with built in heating. Go simple and spend the rest on beer.

Cheap pants will be fine for the "very small" amount of time you will wear them- if you bother to wear them at all. A pair of wetsuit boot will suffice assuming they have a good grip on the foot.

Much else will simply be too hot. Way too hot for the tropics.

[Bestathook]

In my last job, we fished in an open 26 foot boat, often in continuous spray and blown water, for 6 to 10 hour per day.

In warm weather, Helly Hanson pants and pullover kept me dry all day. We used wet suit booties to keep our feet warm. One size bigger works well. With warm clothes underneath, the rain suit stops the wind and keeps you dry. Also, for some reason fish hooks don't seem to penetrate Helly Hanson rain gear, they just bounce off. I have a Helly Hanson pullover parka that I bought used over 25 years ago, that is still in good shape, despite being used in daily commercial boating for several years.

In cold weather, a Mustang Survival jacket kept me warm and dry. We used waders that came up under the jacket, and they kept our socks and pants dry, which kept our feet warm. The Mustang also has built in flotation.

A well fitted hood is a key part of staying dry.

[svmariane]

Product called "Never Wet", mfr Rust-Oleum, came on the US market sometime in 2013 (if memory serves). Seems with that stuff you might just spray a pair of khakis and a wind cheater... "“Voila!” instant rain gear.

Anybody have experience with the product?

As an aside: "Never Wet" comes as an aerosol spray - so of course not available via internet shopping for us in outlying parts of the world. Dangerous goods, don't-cha-know... If it gets some thumbs up here on the forum I'll ask friends to send some over.

[jtsailjt]

Considering your sailing intentions, I'd get the lightest weight breathable foul weather jacket you can find. In warmer climates, if you get the serious offshore gear type foulies, you'll be sweaty and uncomfortable. If you do sail where it's cold, you can add layers of fleece under a good "coastal" type jacket. I think it's important to get a breathable jacket and it's also nice to have the type with the rubbery inner sleeve that velcro's tightly around your wrist to keep from having water run up your arm when you reach up for something. Try it on with the hood up and see if you can adjust the fit of the hood so you can see OK.

As for foul weather pants, you probably won't wear them much anyway so they aren't too critical and there's no reason to spend much money on them. You'll probably never wear them while ashore or doing much physical exertion so breathable isn't as important as it is for the jacket. In fact, since you'll be sitting down in them most of the time, and often sitting on a wet surface, complete impermeability is more important than breathability. Get a pair of thick fleece pants to wear under them and when you're down below you can take off the outer layer and still be decent and warm.

Tall boots so water doesn't run down into them when your pants ride up while you are seated.

A fleece hat that ties under your chin that you can wear instead of your hood when it's not raining or under your hood when it's really cold.

A pair of warm waterproof gloves. I've got a pair of the orange ones that fishermen use. They cost less than $10 a pair, are 100% waterproof, and have a wooly looking lining that does a pretty good job of keeping my fingers warm unless it's very cold out.

I wouldn't spend a lot of money on them but if you have an old pair of ski goggles with clear lenses, bring those along in case you get in some really wind whipped conditions. It's hard to keep your eyes open if they're unprotected in even 30 knots of wind driven rain and spray, especially if it's salty.

Lots of thin layers are better than gear that is too thick and bulky much of the time.

[sycankiz]

If you already own a wet suit (as most people do for diving/snorkeling or surfing etc.) use it...

There is no better protection in my opinion...