by Bearwood » Mon Feb 17, 2014 8:03 pm
As with any technical fabrics, they need care for them to 'work' properly, and in my experience such fabrics such as Goretex, e - Vent etc only work well when there is a good differential between the outside air and the inside layer.
The only Goretex branded jacket I have now is one made by Arktis which I've had from new and it's clearly better than the other branded breathable tech fabrics, but it still suffers when the external humidity is high or I haven't layered up properly underneath.
I've had standard issue goretex stuff (or seyntex as it was known by its manufacturer) and it was unremarkable if I'm honest, being neither 100% waterproof or breathable. The Arktis stuff uses genuine Goretex which is better all-round, but probably heavier on your wallet.
For what it's worth, I've settled on and regularly use Ventile; a fabric originally designed to prolong the life of WW2 fighter pilots when they ditched in the North Sea. It's essentially a very densely woven cotton, and upon becoming wet, the individual threads swell to prevent the water ingress whilst remaining breathable. I'll be the first to admit that it's not 100% waterproof as most folks think it is, but a double layer Ventile garment is probably on a par with my Goretex Arctis smock. The best thing about Ventile, in my opinion, is its not as flammable as the tech fabric alternatives. I've had embers scorch through most jackets I've owned, but not a mark on my Ventile through use in the same circumstances.
