Sub 8oz rain jacket reccomendation? Best?

[Stephen M]

I really like the MH Quasar Anorak, my Large comes in just over 10oz.

[Charlie Murphy]

Since others have shown similar complaints about the Mica I will send off an email with a link to this discussion. I don't really care if they send me another. Actually, I really don't want another:) But they should at least hear from their constituents. I am leaving for Chile(hellz-ya) in a week. Hopefully they will respond before I leave. I'll let ya'll know what I find out.

@Christian: I bought mine in 2011 or 2012. It wet through on the first serious rain. Bike commuting might add to the velocity of the rain. I wonder if that could be the cause. Anyway, Gore-Tex paclite for the next jacket.

And no the Mica is not going to Chile.

[michael levi]

I bought the mountain hardware superlight plasmic. I don't want to tell you guys too much about it yet, because I feel like it deserves it's own thread.

But, it has two huge hand pockets with mesh that act like pit zip vents. Fabric is weird, it is comfy on bare skin and seems to breathe exceptionally well…

My medium, 7.4oz.

[michael levi]

Pic, subdued color liked better for now.

[Charlie Murphy]

I emailed them last week and complained. I did not request another jacket. I explained the problems with the Mica, told them of numerous forum post(a few here and other forums), sent them links, explained how the jacket fails etc.. Never heard a single word from them. Just wanted to post before heading out of town.

[Chris Chandler]

I'm resurrecting this thread because this question has been asked a lot since the 2012 SOTM article, and I recently went through this decision making process. I ordered all 3 jackets, which I imagine might all be contenders for others looking for a sub 8 oz jacket. I included hood detail photos because I felt that's really what I couldn't find any information on just by researching on the web. Since I'm super anal retentive (the only one on this site, I'm sure…), maybe my scrutiny can help you make a decision as well. This is purely based on examining the jackets and their fit out of the box, I've done no field testing. I trust all 3 companies enough, and read other reviews, that I don't doubt their water stopping abilities. My DriDucks+Houdini weigh 9.3oz combined, and my hope is to find a jacket that will replace both of those.

If you just want to hear the ending: I went with the Marmot Essence.

All 3 jackets are size medium.

OR Helium II – $100 on sale
I didn't bother taking photos of the OR Helium because I ruled it out immediately based on the hood.

Pros:
– weight. I didn't weigh it, but this should be the middle weight in the bunch around 6.5oz
– simple design. No hand pockets to leak, break, add weight, or get in the way of a hip belt
– I would guess this is the most durable outer. I believe it's a 30D
– can stuff into a pocket, if that's your thing (not a feature I'd ever use, so moot to me)
– of the 3, this is the only one with a zipper chin guard that you can zip the jacket all the way up, one-handed, and have it tuck properly under the chin guard. The guards on the other 2 jackets are too large and flimsy, and get caught in the zipper unless you use a second hand to situate it as you top-up the zipper
– large bill on hood
– price. I believe the normal sticker price is $150, while the other two jackets are $200

Cons:
– I found the hood well below par. It has a large brim, but the only adjuster is a shock cord that wraps around the back of your head. If you tighten it, it leaves gaping holes on the sides of your face and perfect gutters for rain to run down in
– felt clammy very quickly. I don't really put much credence into the "breathability" of a WP/B fabric, but I DO think there's a noticeable difference between how they feel against your skin and how that can create a perception of breathable/not breathable
– no ventilation other than main zipper
– non-adjustable wrist cuffs (some might not care. I'd be happy with this if it were much more snug)

Neutral:
– There's also no storm flap behind the zipper, although I don't know how much this matters with the water resistant YKK zippers. I've never owned a garment with one.

MH Super Light Plasmic – $140 on sale
This is the jacket I planned to get. I've had great success with MH gear in the past, and was more or less sold on this, but thought I should compare the others. And FYI, the first photo that someone posted of this jacket, the light grey one, is actually the standard Plasmic. The second photo that was posted, the dark grey with a red zipper, is a Super Light Plasmic. You can tell by the hand pockets

Pros:
– zipper(s) higher quality molded Vislon (I have no direct experience with either zipper style, I'm basing this off the ProLiteGear summation of them, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBoqJKh7zqA, plus just my general experience of normal molded zippers vs coil)
– adjustable wrist cuffs
– hood very adjustable; has the two adjusters on the front by the chin, and the single-pull style at the back of the head. This lets you adjust the hood to really stick with you as you look around, but…

Cons:
– hood adjustments create rain gutters into the collar
– bill on hood is pretty weak. It's just a small rectangle of heavier fabric, not moldable or anything
– no way to adjust the bill of the hood back so it doesn't encroach on your face as you batten down the hatches
– hand pockets are situated right where my hip belt would be
– weight, but only relative to the other two. Weighed 7.66oz, still pretty light
– annoying zipper chin guard requires 2-hands to zip jacket all the way up. I bet if they put that chin guard on the left side, you could zip the jacket all the way up one-handed.

Neutral:
– hand pockets can act as ventilation. I think this is redundant, though. They are vertical zippers, and the pockets are mesh, and they are on the front of the jacket. If conditions permitted you to open vertical zippers to mesh pockets and not get wet, then you could just as easily open the main zipper

decent coverage in a relaxed mode

Goofy face, but goofier bill on the hood

cinched down–bill pulls down onto forehead, rain gutters form around ears

bill in eyes, gutters around ears

pull adjuster at back

Marmot Essence – $200, couldn't find it on sale anywhere

Despite the price, I thought it was worth a comparison if only for the glowing reviews from Outdoor Gear Lab, and the good things I've heard about Marmot's higher end membrane and DWR effectiveness

Pros:
– weighed at 5.90 oz
– same simple design as the OR; no hand pockets to get in the way
– slight stretch to the fabric
– pretty nice hand to the fabric. It doesn't feel as plasticy as either of the others
– pit vents – no bulk or weight of pit zips, but tugging on the body of the jacket sucks fresh air into the vents
– great hood brim. Stiffer plastic than the MH, but also must have wire at the front because you can mold it. It's so large that I can adjust the hood to fit over my entire visor that I hike in, but there really wouldn't be a need to keep the visor on under it
– great hood adjustment. The velcro adjuster at the back works well to pull the brim out of your eyes. It doesn't "grip" your head quite as well as the around-the-head pull adjuster like the MH and OR have, which really aids side-to-side movement, but between the front adjustments and the velcro volume adjuster, I was able to get to a point where it moved with my head almost as well.
– based on my very scientific "blow air through the fabric" test, this was the most breathable, followed by the MH. I take that with a grain of salt, it was mostly something I did out of curiosity. The pit vents do the real venting

Cons:
– annoying zipper chin guard requires 2-hands to zip jacket all the way up, just like MH
– non-adjustable elastic wrist cuffs. Fit just like the OR, wish they were more snug
– cost, because it wasn't on sale. The MH has the same normal sticker price, though
– water resistant coil zippers not as strong and reliable as the Vislons on the MH
– can also develop rain gutters around the ears depending on hood adjustment, but while the MH had channels that directed right into the collar, the Marmot sort of created a lip of fabric around my face that I think would help mitigate this. I think that's due to the larger brim pulling the fabric out to the sides, and the rear pull adjuster on the MH exacerbating the gutters on that jacket's hood

Neutral:
– doesn't feel as fragile as the MH. I think this is just perception, because it's a 12D face vs the MH 15D

relaxed hood. good coverage

large brim provides great face coverage

storm mode. I don't know how to take nice photos

brim large enough even to provide coverage for my big nose

also prone to rain-gutters around the ears, but notice the "lip" that's formed along the edge of the hood

velcro volume adjuster. In a past life, I remember hating these. I was pleasantly surprised at how well it worked. Maybe I just finally learned to work one

[Serge Giachetti]

I can vouch for the marmot essence. I've been very pleased with mine so far. I think its at least as breathable as the 3L event jacket I owned before it. Its also stretchy and fairly soft and comfortable for a UL rain shell. I've also had it through a completely drenching rainstorm and stayed dry. I've heard not the best stuff about the mica either, but this one has been great. I think I paid about $140 on sale for mine. With this piece you don't have to choice between 'price, weight and breathability'.

[J-L]

That Marmot Essence looks great. It's encroaching on the weight of the ZPacks rain jackets. Does it pack down small? My white ZPacks jacket seems bulky compared to my OR Helium II, so I normally take the Helium II, even though its hood is terrible.

[Serge Giachetti]

It packs small, but it lacks a stuff sack. I dont think it packs quite as small as the helium, but close.

[Anton Solovyev]

Thanks for pulling up this thread. Is the hood on Marmot Essence going to fit over a climbing helmet?

[Owen McMurrey]

"got an OR Helium II on deep discount. Nice fitting jacket. I mostly used it as a wind shirt in cold, windy conditions in the mountains with a very good level of breathability. It wetted out and leaked in the shoulders the first time I used it in sustained heavy rain. I contacted OR and they promptly replaced it."
Hopefully the new one will do better. I consider pit zips a must, and bought the Helium HD(also discounted-$88 on STP). Haven't used it heavily, but it did fine in two days of rain for its first real use.

[Katherine .]

Glad you found something that works for you.

Interesting to read all the stuff about the Marmot Mica failings — wish I had before. I bought the women's version, the Crystalline or some such, without much research this summer. The specs looked great and I liked the color.

Fortunately it was absolutely pouring the night *before* I was headed out on a trip. Could tell immediately that I couldn't trust it and decided to add a sil-nylon poncho as back-up. (The Crystalline went back to REI.)

But yeah, I was looking at the specs and puzzling: How that could be so? Did it really soak through or was I just imagining it?? How could it be sweat if I was just walking from my car to my friend's house??? Gaslighted by Marmot.

So thanks for the validation. Sticking with DriDucks for the short run.

[Chris Chandler]

Hey Anton–

I don't have a helmet to personally test it, but I see that Outdoor Gear Lab rated it a "Good" for helmet compatibility, and given the amount of volume to the hood, I think it would fit over a helmet pretty easily. I'm not sure how it would do with side-to-side head movement with a helmet on, though. It's pretty hard to beat those rear-pull adjusters for that type of movement.

[Author]

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