eVent outer layer?

K

Kirk_Ferentz

Joined
Feb 16, 2010
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589
I have been wanting to get some high performance outer wear for hikes, hunting, etc., and it seems like the top shelf outer layer stuff at REI is their eVent jackets and pants. Sounds like Gortex is more expensive generally, but in some respects (they say), eVent is as good or better.

Anyway, this stuff is very expensive. Anyone have any experience with it? I was able to find one post where a guy had bought the TADs eVent jacket which seems to be very similar to the REI eVent jacket, and he loved it. He raved about how breathable it was. If I am going to pay those prices, I want to know that I am getting some top of the line stuff.

With both gortex and eVent, it sounds like the point is to have something that is very waterproof but also completely breatheable. That sounds like it would be a great outer layer, both in very cold conditions and in warmer conditions where you need protection from wet elements. It seems to me that if you have a waterproof outerlayer, you can use a lot of layering underneath to stay warm (that seems preferrable to me to a big warm single layer like a down jacket, even if you are in below zero conditions). But let me know if you think I am taking the wrong approach.
 
Realized that I probably should have posted this in the outdoor gear sub-forum, sorry ;-) To clarify, the reason that I am willing to consider spending a bunch of money on the high performance stuff is to keep me dry if I find myself caught somewhere in a survival situation.
 
i feel perfectly fine in my Frogg Toggs/Dri Ducks suit....when its pouring buckets i usually dont hike around much or exert alot of energy. you can even get some velcro and superglue and make your own pit vents...
 
eVent is in fact more breathable than Gortex.
Several months ago I was in your same boat,
but finally settled on an Acteryx Gortex coat.
I have worn it rafting with just a t-shirt on underneath,
told that I was going to freeze in the glacial streams
I stayed perfectly dry, from waist up.

I have not found Gortex to be too unbreathable for me,
it works fine, heck it works great.

If you are set on eVent, however, I think you should
go with either an Integral Designs Thru Hiker, $250.00, or
the eVent coat by Eddie Bower, I think it was less
than $200.00, but I am not sure if it ever came out.

Well, I hope this helps somewhat, I think you will find
a great coat, you are off to a good start with your reasoning.
 
As a professional mountain guide I gave up on Gore-tex for it's lack of breathabilty and went with soft shells exclusively. I've owned over a dozen Gore-tex shells and have tested dozens of others, from most of the US, European, New Zealand and Japanese high end companies.

Also consider Triple Ceramic, depending on what conditions you plan on using it in. Mark Twight prefers it over Gore-tex for wet conditions such as the Pacific Northwest. He says that Triple Ceramic stays more breathable than Gore-tex in very wet conditions. I find that my heat still overwhelms Triple Ceramic's ability to breathe.

Now that I find myself in not such high elevations (read: much wetter than an alpine environment) I've gone back to hardshells for some situations.

I tend to sweat heavily. For me Gore-tex isn't breathable enough. eVent is considerably more breathable and my choice of hardshell, but it is still no end all, be all. Many eVent jackets do not come with pit zips or other venting options because of eVents breathability (and many professional reviewers have said that they were okay without the vents), but I found that I still tend to sweat fairly heavily when working hard in eVent so venting is a must for me. But given the choice of Gore-tex or eVent, I choose eVent every time.

Some good companies that use eVent are Westcombe, REI (although I find REI brand clothing to not fit very well much of the time, but I did like their eVent jacket's fit), Integral Designs, and Pearl Izumi. I do wish that some of the other high end companies (Mammut, Arc'teryx,TNF, Marmot, Cloudveil, etc.) would jump on the eVent bandwagon to give us more options and to drive the price of eVent hardshells down.

Hope this helps and good luck with your choices.
 
Ive also heard the statement, that eVent is more breathable than Gore-tex. And not just from the manufactureres, but also from fellow hikers.

That being said, ive owned several Gore-Tex hardshells from The North Face and Mountain Hardwear. My current hardshells is a Mountain Hardwear Duracity. Its got a Gore-Tex XCR membrane which is supposedly 25% more breathable than regular Gore-Tex. My other jacket is a lightweight North Face Prophecy Pac-Lite Gore-Tex.

Gore-Tex has worked fine for me. If i feel a sweat coming on, i just layer down.

Your approach is pretty much right. Hardshells dont keep you warm, theyre intended as protection from wind and rain. Theyre not so breathable to allow high-intensity activities. You should still dress in layers underneath the hardshell, and remove/add layers as you go. With the right layers you can dress for the worst weather, and still be warm, the hard-shell is just to keep you dry and windproof.

Hardshells come in all sorts of variations. Be sure to pick one to fit your needs. Get a light, simple one that packs small for emergency foul weather protection. Or get a full-length one with cordura reinforced sleeves/shoulder, storm flap, 3-way adjustable hood, etc. for technical use ie. mountaineering. Finding the style that fits you is more important than the membrane.

If youre worried about snow and wind, then get a windproof softshell. If its wind, rain or "wet" snow then get a hard-shell.

Heres a pic of the Duracity i bought from another forum.

S6001226-1.jpg


S6001229.jpg
 
A lot of great info.--thanks to everyone. A lot of options and I will have to check them out.

As far as whether I am worried about rain or snow/wind, I am really worried about all of the above. Sounds like it might be worth it to have a softshell outer layer for situations where it is snow and wind and no chance of rain coming down.

The line about how it doesn't have pit vents because the fabric is so breatheable that it isn't necessary is the line that I got from the REI guy as well. As I thought, sounds like some vents could still be useful.

That mountain hardwear jacket looks nice, and appeals to me since I bought some mountain hardwear pants this fall and they are honestly my favorite pair of pants for every purpose. Very tough and warm yet breathe very well and are extremely comfortable.
 
kage said:
I do wish that some of the other high end companies (Mammut, Arc'teryx,TNF, Marmot, Cloudveil, etc.) would jump on the eVent bandwagon to give us more options and to drive the price of eVent hardshells down.
Click to expand...

As well as drive the price of Gore Tex down....which has always seemed over priced (monopoly pricing).
 
I have an eVent Thruhiker by Integral Designs. I bought it straight from the factory here in Calgary where it's made. It was cool to see the sewing machines and everything and nice to support one of the smaller (local) companies, especially when they make such great gear.

Very cool piece of gear. I've used it winter camping in -20 in the Rockies and summer hiking over some ridge lines as a rain/wind shell. Works great. Packs down super small and light. Simple design with only one large breast pocket and no other side pockets. Sealed seams, etc. I'd highly recommend it. I'm a skinny, tall guy, and bought the large size so I could easily fit layers underneath. Breathes well.
 
The Gov did scientific testing of several waterproof and water-repellent fabrics and eVent was 6x as breathable as Gore-Tex until you were drenched inside. THEN (once you are soaked ^___^ ) Gore-Tex did much better but was still significantly inferior to eVent. I lost the link when my computer died a year ago. I'll try to find the link.

As I recall, a couple of Scholler fabrics led the water-repellent list.

Ed: Found it: http://www.verber.com/mark/outdoors/gear/breathability.pdf
 
I believe Mountain Hardwear is going w/ eVent this fall with some of their jackets (they are going to call it DryQ)

evidently OR may also be going to EVent

Marmot's Membrain Strata laminate is pretty breathable (and waterproof) as well, several other companies have their own laminates that are pretty good too- Patagonia for one

someone will build a lightweight eVent jacket w/ pit zips pretty soon I'm guessing (hoping anyways :))
 
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I've messed with E-vent and find it way more breathable than goretex, at least with the rain jacket and boots that i have used. The e-vents that I have seen also appear to be a little bit heavier than the goretex jackets,but also more durable I think as well.

Joe
 
I have the REI eVent jacket Kimtah. I dig it. I've worn it in the Pacific Northwest last year when I was out there visiting friends. Here's a shot up on the coast in the Olympia National Forest.
IMG_0303.jpg

It was windy, chilly & rainy outside the jacket & inside I was dry & warm.

I also used it as an outer shell during the blizzard in Chicagoland this year.
2011-02-01202740.jpg

winds in excess of 60mph, over 20 inches of snow, me with the side of my face/beard frozen in ice.
2011-02-01224401.jpg


I give :thumbup::thumbup: to eVent. That's just my 2¢.
 
My Integral Designs eVent does say right on the tag "WASH ME FREQUENTLY", and I've heard that too about performance/dirty. Upside is, on an extended trip you could simply give it a quick wash in a creek(?).

watersculptor said:
Also some folk who used it on extended expeditions / wilderness trips noticed that the Event efficiency was effected when the fabric was no longer clean (more so than Gore-tex).
Click to expand...
 
I've got an eVent hardshell jacket and find it far superior in terms of performance than any of the Goretex ones I've had previously.

IMO Goretex is yesterdays technology but because they have brand recognition price and perceived prestige has remained higher than it's real value. There are better choices now and eVent is one of them IMO. I wish more manufacturers would adopt eVent because choice is a bit limited ATM.
 
I've had a Montane Superfly XT jacket for a few years, I bought it because I was never that impressed with Gore-Tex, and wanted to try the eVent material and I really liked the design features of the 'XT.

It regulates heat better than any jacket that I've ever owned, and I generate a lot of heat due to the effort of walking (I'm disabled).

I often wear just a short sleeve polo shirt under it, even in winter, without feeling cold. This applies when I'm not walking much, so not generating that much heat.

Given my experiences of eVent, I'm very impressed with it and can recommend it.
happy0034.gif


Superfly%20XT.jpg


EXTREME CONDITIONS, MOUNTAINEERING SHELL

Designed and constructed to withstand the toughest of conditions, the Super-Fly XT is built to endure in the mountains. Used by guides and mountain rescue teams across Europe this hard shell features a multiplicity of pocket options, extra vents, climbing helmet compatible hood and reinforced shoulders, elbows and hips for extra protection. This is our longest fitting shell designed to maximise coverage and accommodate winter insulation.

Fabric: eVent® Lightweight 3 Layer
Reinforcement: eVent® Lightweight Abrasion 3 Layer
Click to expand...
 
I won't spend any of my money on gore-Tex. After having to rely on it when it's pouring, and being severely let down, I will look elsewhere.

In my experience with it, Gore-Tex is Stiffling, and not nearly water proof.
 
I just got the TAD gear Spectre and i couldnt be more pleased, it does seem a bit heavy to me so i am also now in the market for a lighter weight more minimalist Hard shell for short hikes and trips to the grocery store because im too dumb to get in out of the rain :)
 
I have an Otte Gear event hard-shell. I don’t need it often where I live but some of the places I travel to its nice.
 
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