Waterproof jackets/trousers

[CanucksTraveller]

Thanks. I had a look on the Showers Pass site and there is a sale on some products. Are you familiar with their Syncline jacket and how it compares to the Night Vision Cyclone? At the sale price it is nearly the same price as the Night Vision one on sale at my local Evans store.

Sadly not, I've got the Showers Pass Elite 2.1 which is perfect (better than the Night Vision I had a few years back) but it's not comparable price wise, it was probably double the price.

 

[JE201]

Sadly not, I've got the Showers Pass Elite 2.1 which is perfect (better than the Night Vision I had a few years back) but it's not comparable price wise, it was probably double the price.

Yeah that one looks a little out of my range unfortunately. It's rating is better than the Syncline one, but the Syncline one is on sale which makes the price difference even larger. The thing is their rating scale seems to be different to others, so I'm not sure how the Syncline one compares in terms of waterproofness to the Night Vision jackets on sale at Evans that I linked to.

Have you ever used any of their gloves?

 

[JE201]

I've tried all sorts of waterproofs over the years and I've found that the altura night visions stuff is as good as anything. You need to keep up with the cleaning and reproofing stuff. My favourite overtrousers are night vision. But I don't tend to bother about my legs too much and have been known to use regular waterproof trousers and wrap insulation tape around them to keep them out of the chain.

As someone has pointed out already the problem with waterproof stuff is the big holes in it that you need to put it on. I'm yet to find anything that keeps me truely dry either the rain gets in or the sweat doesn't get out. I've got a Boardman waterproof jacket that cost £15;in a sale thats every bit as good as a £120 jacket. Think about pockets too, if you are wet and cold with soggy gloves your dexterity will suffer. The aforementioned Boardman has no pockets and fiddling for gate keys or work passes under layers is a pain.

I now take the approach that I don't mind being wet as long as I am warm, so build layers with that in mind and then put a waterproof top layer on.

I've yet to find any decent gloves that will keep me dry on my half our commute. The expensive stuff seems to fare only marginally better than the likes of Aldi stuff. My favourite are planet X lobster claws that I got for £8 a pair but they leak.
Sealskinz don't do it for me and were a big disappointment.
Size up with gloves, I have a pet theory that it's the stretching of the stitches allows water in.

Thank you. When you use the Night Vision overtrousers in rain, do your trousers get wet in heavier rain/longer periods of riding in the rain?

I was actually considering going for the Planet X Crab claw winter gloves along with their Carnac softshell ones underneath. Are these the ones you mean?

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CLCARULCRG/carnac-waterproof-crab-hand-winter-gloves

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CLCASSPG/carnac-softshell-pro-gloves

 

[vickster]

Surely the point of waterproof trousers (at least decent ones) is to keep whatever is underneath dry by repelling the rain, not absorbing it. Cheap ones will be a bit sweaty so don’t get the cheapest or Just wear cycling shorts underneath?

And the most you’ll be is 30-40 minutes in the rain from what you’ve said, only on very rare occasions in London does it rain soakingly heavily for that long. And presumably with a Brompton in London you always have the bail to public transport option (Just carry a mask).

(do you keep spare clothes at office to change into or for a rare downpour emergency on the way to work, going home it doesn’t matter if you get wet).

It doesn’t need to be overthought For a 30 minute London commute where most of the time in the limited hours you are on the bike, it’ll be dry or at the worst drizzly

 

[mjr]

Would a cape/poncho also be necessary/recommended by anyone?

Recommendations for trousers? Gloves?

In summer, I use a fairly cheap (£15 I think) Brick Mate cape. Front of it goes over the handlebars and I sit on the back of it, using pegs if needed to shorten it so it can't dangle into the wheels. My lower arms, shins/calves and feet get wet, but most of me is dry and fairly cool. I was out in yesterday's heavy rain and still presentable when I reached my destination. To be honest, the most difficult things are that ideally you need an actual cloakroom to hang your dripping wet cape up, and it's the second least aerodynamic thing I've cycled in but folding bikes aren't very aero anyway.

In winter, I wear a waterproof long walking coat (the sort with a hard shell over a membrane over fleece) and rainlegs or waterproof walking trousers but I sweat terribly if I try to wear that when it's above 5°c.

 

[Tom B]

Thank you. When you use the Night Vision overtrousers in rain, do your trousers get wet in heavier rain/longer periods of riding in the rain?

I was actually considering going for the Planet X Crab claw winter gloves along with their Carnac softshell ones underneath. Are these the ones you mean?

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CLCARULCRG/carnac-waterproof-crab-hand-winter-gloves

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CLCASSPG/carnac-softshell-pro-gloves

The trousers do keep you pretty dry if it's really wet then I do find they get wet at the very bottom, but that could be water bleeding up from my feet. They also get wet at the side pocket area but only sometimes. Mine are a good few years old and have probably been updated since.

The gloves are the newer version of mine.. I really like the claw type gloves in the cold.

 

[simongt]

the seal skinz stuff doesn’t have a great rep

Had two pairs of Sealskinz 'waterproof' gloves. Both pairs leaked, including the second pair which were a replacement from Sealskinz to replace the first leaky pair - ! Wasn't particularily impressed with Sealskinz aftermarket attitude towards the problem either.

 

[mjr]

Had two pairs of Sealskinz 'waterproof' gloves. Both pairs leaked, including the second pair which were a replacement from Sealskinz to replace the first leaky pair - ! Wasn't particularily impressed with Sealskinz aftermarket attitude towards the problem either.

Mine were fine but then, I cycle past their HQ a couple of times a week, so they probably know better than to allow any duds to be sold at Norfolk Country Clothing at the end of their road! The grips wore out after an average life and they weren't warm enough for me, so I replaced them with Decathlon ski mitts for winter and wet hands in summer

 

[vickster]

London Cyclist has some tips
https://www.londoncyclist.co.uk/waterproof-cycling-trousers/
https://www.londoncyclist.co.uk/waterproof-cycling-jacket/

 

[JE201]

Surely the point of waterproof trousers (at least decent ones) is to keep whatever is underneath dry by repelling the rain, not absorbing it. Cheap ones will be a bit sweaty so don’t get the cheapest or Just wear cycling shorts underneath?

And the most you’ll be is 30-40 minutes in the rain from what you’ve said, only on very rare occasions in London does it rain soakingly heavily for that long. And presumably with a Brompton in London you always have the bail to public transport option (Just carry a mask).

(do you keep spare clothes at office to change into or for a rare downpour emergency on the way to work, going home it doesn’t matter if you get wet).

It doesn’t need to be overthought For a 30 minute London commute where most of the time in the limited hours you are on the bike, it’ll be dry or at the worst drizzly

Perhaps I am overthinking it. Probably because I went out on a non-commute ride yesterday for ~1hr and got soaked.

 

[SafetyThird]

Another vote against sealskin gloves, utterly useless at keeping the water out

 

[The Bystander]

For all but torrential rain I'm happy with my Rain Legs https://www.rainlegs.com/en/about.html
My "water proofs" aren't but if the rain is heavy enough I'll use them to deal with the (less exposed) lower leg and use the rain legs on top to keep the rest dry - they work well in the winter too keeping the wind off the knees and thighs.

 

[JE201]

Another vote against sealskin gloves, utterly useless at keeping the water out

Thanks, I am really considering the Crab claw gloves from Planet X instead.

 

[Fram]

Another vote against sealskin gloves, utterly useless at keeping the water out

plus one

 

[JRTemple]

I use sealskin socks for golf and they are great for keeping the water out but not the softest of materials.

I've not had to go out in the rain yet, when it started to rain I just turned around and headed home, luckily I was only 10 miles out!

I have very expensive golf waterproofs Galvin Green gore tex and i'm going to use them, not having two sets of waterproofs!