windshirt with a good waranty or a decent cheap one?

Warranty wise look at Eddie Bauer and outdoor Research.

OR only has stuff up to XL with a 25" torso which is not enough for me. EB/FA used to have an XLT wind jacket but they haven't made that for a year or so now. I have one but don't expect them to make another one.

Most of the major manufacturers will have a good warranty. Where you buy it will help too.

As far as cheap and good, the running brands like Brooks have models that are perfectly useable, but the weight can creep up to the 10oz range. You can find them at liquidators like Ross/Marshalls/TJMaxx.

What you want is good breathability and DWR. Ventilation features can help make up for less breathable fabrics. Going forth with that information, you might find something cheap that will work.

The state of the market seems to be super light shells with ~2CFM breathability and good DWR *or* heavier but more breathable models that also have healthy price tags. I have yet to see anyone point to a particular current model as the Holy Grail of Windshirts.

True. I don't think any of the sellers are offering a warranty beyond 1 year anymore and for manufacturers all there is is Patagonia and OR. Decent and cheap is probably just an unlined nylon jacket from a box store. Or something like OR's Ferrosi wich is more like a thin softshell. I had an older Houdini but it really couldn't take much wear after a year or so of constant use. Too bad my TJMaxx really doesn't have much of a selection at any time.

Probably the best thing would be some nylon hikng shirt/wind shirt hybrid

Here's a thought:

"You get what you pay for…
And pay for what you get"

And another:

"You can't afford cheap stuff"

In other words, you need to decide what "value" you want to place on it.

Time and time again, I have witnessed first hand the benefits of "good value".

If something feels "too cheap" to me, I'm (or my offspring) are probably paying for it at another time or in another way.

Finally:

"What I buy, I support."

I owned my Patagonia Houdini for exactly 1.5 weeks. Then I crashed my bike… now it's shredded. Patagonia says they'll repair it at my cost, if I ship it, but I'm looking at it and thinking that it's dead and gone. Probably 15 holes.

I just bought an Arcteryx Squamish, but i'm squeamish at the idea of crashing in it…

One of my partner posted that he fell off easy slab to his everlasting shame

He slid down 50 feet in his dead bird squamish

It ended up with dirt marks and scuffs, but still intact … He even has pics

Im not a huge fan of dead bird normally … But thats quite impressive

Its one ofthe older ones, so who knows about the new fabric

Once he told me he was oki laughed my head off …. No one falls off that slab

;)

"I owned my Patagonia Houdini for exactly 1.5 weeks. Then I crashed my bike… now it's shredded."

Bummer! That is why us motorcyclists wear leather. Not so the material will last, but to protect our skin.

One would expect the sewing, zippers, and other construction to last. I can look at a garment and see whether or not it will last, but know that sliding down scree or granite slabs will normally do serious damage to a light garment and probably my skin ;)

I've had mine for a year or so, and it's been great. Picke duit up at Backcountry for somethign like $50. Why not just buy a decent jacket from a good vendor, and see what happens. If it falls apart in less that a year, most will happily take them back. If it lasts more than a year then either you got your money's worth or you're not getting outdoors enough ;-)

The thing is I see my wind jacket also as a layering piece for out and about when it is cool out and of the different ones I have owned I know if I try to use them like this for 4-5 months they will just not hold up and that seems a bit expensive for a $60+ piece of nylon.

I got a Stoic Wraith for a very low price during one of their sale events. Something like 40 bucks. I know they changed the name from Stoic to Backcountry now, but I would keep an eye on that product line.

There are compromises. If you want light weight, durability is going to drop. The thin softshell-like tops may work better for you, but will climb to the 10-12oz range.

Once you're up to a 10oz weight, I could make a case for button down nylon shirts. They are handy, breathable, available in many brands and feature sets. We tend to look past them as they aren't the 2oz high performance sports cars of the hiking clothing world.

There is a whole class of "windbreakers" that are in the 12oz range. The trick is to find one that is breathable. Many of the jackets offered at this weight have such water resistant PU coatings that they are essentially rain jackets without the seam sealing. Halfway to nowhere, IMHO. search Cabelas or LL Bean for "windbreaker" and you'll see a bunch.

Back in the days before the SUL windshirts, there were many Supplex nylon anorak style wind shells that were quite breathable, water repellent, and durable. The downside is simply the weight, quickly adding an half pound to your kit, which is sacrilegious here of course.

Ain't no free lunch!

> button down nylon shirts. They are handy, breathable

From my closet, all my nylon button-down shirts had very low air permeability. I was quite surprised.

> There is a whole class of "windbreakers" that are in the 12oz range.
> The trick is to find one that is breathable.

The Outdoor Ferrosi has high air permeability, excellent warranty, and can be found for a good price. It has negatives though. You can search for my impressions of it in other threads. The Mountain Hardwear Chocklite has a reputation for being breathable too. I think it is discontinued though.

The Stoic Wraith has been unavailable for some time, and is not expected to return.

The Wild Things WT 1.0 Windshirt is a durable, breathable (see Richard's measurements), but expensive option.

Wild Things has another hoodless model on sale, but I don't know anything about the fabric:
http://www.wildthingsgear.com/collections/steals-and-deals/products/m-pullover-windshirt

I would love to find a button down nylon hiking shirt that didn't cost $60+ or that was a sauna. Tried out a Railriders Adventure shirt and would sweat in that thing just walking around above 90F.

Actually I just went on an excursion looking for a hiking shirt and a wind jacket to Goowill, Salvation Army, Dick's, Target, TJmaxx and finally found this at Wal-Mart, http://www.walmart.com/ip/Russell-Men-s-Woven-Track-Jacket/33651540
Weighs 8.2oz for an XL after you remove some of the mesh on the inside but keep the two pockets. Fits me decently as an XLT. Not breathable, maybe 2-3CFM but the pockets are mesh and the back uses a flap system to ventilate and feels as breathable as my Momentum jacket (CFM 4-5). Nice thing is I tried my water test where I put a cup of water onto of the jacket over my 1L stein. Momentum (3.9oz) lasted a minte or two before it began to drip through. The First Ascent (6.1oz) maybe a minute or two more than that. Old Houdini was maybe 5-6 after the DWR. This thing is on 20 minutes right now and still going strong. Looks like I have a great around wherever wind/light rain jacket that can take some abuse and is cheap. Not really light and okay on breathability if you don't exert yourself (which I don't). $18.40 out the door. Seems like it will be great for setting up a poncho/tarp in the rain.

Didn't find any nylon shirts. Best was a 55/45 poly cotton dres shirt. If anyone knows of any, please let me know.

Upon further reflection, it is only less than 4 ounces less than my rain jacket so maybe not. I think I was just excited that I actually fond something that kinda fit for under $50. Going to go look at the expensive nylon hiking shirts today at the local camping store.

And what was wrong with the OR Ferrosi other than it possibly being too warm for some occasions?

>And what was wrong with the OR Ferrosi other than it possibly being too warm for some occasions?

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=87307&skip_to_post=750251#750251

I cycle in a North Face Verto because the weight is less of a concern when on the bike and it is more substantial than my Marmot Driclime or certainly the Ion. It would hold up to some small measures of accident but I don't hold out hope for a real road slide.

For hiking I have a Marmot Ion (light) and Driclime (colder) both of which I got at Sierra Trading Post using a 35% coupon the cost for both was below $40. The Ion is a really nicely made windshirt with excellent ventillation. The Driclime is a terrific piece of kit but I wish I'd gotten one with a hood (assuming they make one with a hood).

Wearing technical gear everyday is a poor choice. Get a nice wool or canvas coat for breezy days around town, and save the expensive stuff for what it's meant for; it'll last longer. Bonus: you won't look like a fred.

Yeah, but most of the clothing I have is technical as I really don't want to have a set for each. I see how a windshirt would be a poor choice for everday use and my First Ascent one will be relegated to the pack from now on. I did stop by the local camping store and they had some of the Columbia Silver Ridge Long Sleeve nylon shirts in and XXL and they seem to fit for the most part, just a bit short on the sleeves but not by much. $35 was a pretty decent price but they only had white and I kow my white will not stay white so I have been looking online at light tan ones to use in place of a windshirt and a bug/sunshirt and also as a light layer for about town. I can just you my rainshell for around town also but t would be nice to have a lightweight/durable/cheap windshirt to layer over the R2 but oh well.