One Planet Rain Jackets & Overpants

[Strider]

Thanks Stry. Good to hear that I have absolutely no reason not to buy this jacket!

Any ideas on the new fabric folks?

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[Strider]

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[Strider]

First one to leave the factory, or so I believe

[Mountain Rocket]

Nice! Do we know the specs of the 'old' eVent fabric?

[Strider]

Nice! Do we know the specs of the 'old' eVent fabric?

I did look on the tag of a eVent C&G today too but there was no mention of it.

[Mountain Rocket]

Yeah mine didn't mention it, nor could I find it on the web.
Not that it really bothers me, would simply be curious to know how it stacks up on paper to this new Synapse stuff.

[Strider]

I have just spoken to Ian at OP. Essentially, he has told me that the new Synapse membrane has a lower MVTR than the most modern Goretex and eVent fabrics, but has the higher durability equivalent to older less breathable GTX technologies. At this stage it is a brand new technology and OP are constructing the fabric themselves here in Melbourne.

[Strider]

Apparently they've also changed the face fabric to nylon.

Normally significant changes like these would worry me, but being locally made and having a 5 year warranty does provide some confidence.

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[north-north-west]

I have just spoken to Ian at OP. Essentially, he has told me that the new Synapse membrane has a lower MVTR than the most modern Goretex and eVent fabrics, but has the higher durability equivalent to older less breathable GTX technologies. At this stage it is a brand new technology and OP are constructing the fabric themselves here in Melbourne.

That sounds good. Fabric durability is more important to me than breathability. Will see what the consensus is when I'm next in the market for a jacket.

[Strider]

Just put it across the scales. Weight is 562g for Large size.

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[wayno]

i doubt very much that they are making the actual waterproof membrane fabric themselves. thats usually the domain of massive factories overseas, you dont develop and make a proprietary membrane without a massive financial input and major infrastructure
sure they will be creating the garment in Aus though.

[Strider]

Wayno yes, as I understand, they are buying the membrane in but are laminating it to the fabric themselves.

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[wayno]

Wayno yes, as I understand, they are buying the membrane in but are laminating it to the fabric themselves.

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thats a black art... the breathability comes down to factors like how you bond it to the face fabric, the type and volume of glue you use..
how can you trust their QC? how well tested will this be against issues like delamination? eVent membrane had a notorious history with delamination earlier on.

[Strider]

How do you trust the QC from any manufacturer? Sometimes you just have to have faith in the process.

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[wayno]

How do you trust the QC from any manufacturer? Sometimes you just have to have faith in the process.

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yes well i've heard nothing bad about One planet to date, if you were going to trust a brand they'd be one you'd put your faith in,
but i have been burnt trusting new technology on another reputable brand that went on to scrap that technology completely.

[Strider]

Yes and these were significant factors in my purchasing decision.

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[Strider]

i have been burnt trusting new technology on another reputable brand that went on to scrap that technology completely.

So have I. Funnily enough, that technology was eVent - the exact technology OP have just scrapped themselves.

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[wayno]

snap, although event seems to have ironed out the worst of the delamination isues now it seems, but it still needs more care an attention to maintain its breathability and life than polyurethane based membranes do, gore tex have until recently covered their equivalent event membrane with polyurethane to get around its problems. their latest pro shell they removed the outer membrane and created a multi layer laminate made from undisclosed materials as their own solution to improving the breathability and supposedly maintaining some reliability

[newhue]

So a decade on from my involvement in the recreation and little seems to have changed. I once bought a $700 gore-tex WE rain coat that never seemed to really work, good wind stopper though. Perhaps as these companies constantly look for the latest and greatest product to pair up with, it's as simple as it just may not be possible. Like light weight and Aus bush durable seem as far apart now as 10 years ago; dry light breathable raincoat when your warm inside and it's raining outside just equals damp and eventually wet inside as well.
Still I am in the market for a couple rain coats and have been a one planet supporter since my first walk. And can vouch for their products as many others.
It's my understanding Cat and Dogs is their most basic version. Is this correct? I'll be buying online as my local OP supplier doesn't have the greatest service and a lousy range.

[Strider]

Yes the Cat & Dog is their most basic jacket, which I actually prefer as it keeps the weight down.

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[Hiking Noob]

Does The Cat and Dog have pit vents?

[Strider]

None of the OP jackets have pit zips. And I'm pretty sure no other Australian designed jackets do either.

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[wayno]

some mountain designs jackets have pit zips

[stry]

Cheer me up some more

My "new" C&D is Event. Been worn only in Tassie and on Bogong and no fabric issues with that little amount of use to date. Whatever the face fabric is,water beads up on it beautifully.

Now that the forum has opened my eyes to the wonders of wind shirts, the C&D will be worn on fewer occasions, so hopefully no Event issues arise for me.

[Strider]

Stry the change of fabric for the C&D was more related to production cost than performance, from what I could gather.

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[Hiking Noob]

None of the OP jackets have pit zips. And I'm pretty sure no other Australian designed jackets do either.

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Mont do one or two with pit zips.

[Joomy]

I have just spoken to Ian at OP. Essentially, he has told me that the new Synapse membrane has a lower MVTR than the most modern Goretex and eVent fabrics, but has the higher durability equivalent to older less breathable GTX technologies. At this stage it is a brand new technology and OP are constructing the fabric themselves here in Melbourne.

Sounds like a good amount of BS to me.

Gore-tex and Event are both extremely durable, you just need the right face fabric.

Lamination is very hard, and laminating PTFE membranes is super duper hard. If they are indeed laminating the fabric themselves that would explain why they switched to PU, which is much easier to laminate (still hard) at the price of being an inferior technology.

Now whether or not one needs or notices a huge difference between PTFE and PU in the real world is a subject of debate. All WPB fabrics have a pretty small window of comfort relative to what your body can output; once you're sweating up a storm nothing will "keep you dry". And if it's humid then forget about "breathability" altogether. Ditto if the face fabric is wetted out.

And finally as we all know those MVTR ratings are total, utter bunk and one should never use them to compare anything and the sooner manufacturers get rid of them the better.

[rockwallaby]

Hi
So has anyone had some long term experience with the One Planet Cat and Dog or Wangi jacket?

I'm looking at this or the Wilderness Equipment Deluge jacket (which has a lot less WP rating)

getting a bit confused as some of the local shops are saying there's not alot of difference between these Water Head ratings in the real world

looking for something Tassie tough and will keep me dry (discounting times where you sweat like a pig)
I really want to buy an Australian made jacket as well.

[Hermione]

I have been pretty happy with my cat and dog jacket. I’ve had for about 4 or 5 years I think. Sees a reasonable amount of use in rough tassie conditions, although I don’t think any waterproof layer can stand up to the scrub indefinitely.
It is heavy though, I generally carry something lighter if the weather looks reasonable or I’m on well maintained track.

[Drew]

I've had a Cat and Dog for maybe 7 or 8 years. It's the Event model. It's been quite good but has lost it's DWR. I gave it a new DWR treatment before taking it to the Western Arthurs in January and was disappointed that after not much rain at all it stopped beading and started wetting out. It seemed especially bad next to my friend's brand new Cat and Dog, which was beading beautifully. It's tough fabric though, and I quite like the chunky zip, which is heavy but so much easier to open and close with cold hands than a little waterproof zip. I don't like the pocket position - right under the hip belt for me.

I thought my next jacket would be a non-breathable one from Lightheart Gear, but then the dollar sunk and I saw a Patagonia Torrentshell on sale for $70! I don't believe in breathability at all anymore so I reckon pit zips are a must. The One Planet might get used if scrub bashing is expected, but I don't do much of that.