Driducks - affordable UL rain gear

Frogg Toggs Driducks are often mentioned when people discuss ul rain gear. They're supposed to be affordable, waterproof, breathable and light. Sounds like the perfect piece of kit right?

Well, they're certainly affordable, especially if you live in the states. I managed to acquire a jacket and pant set for 12.95 US dollars from ebay, but had to pay 15 dollars postage to have it sent to Norway. Still, I just had to check this gear out, especially since it is so light. The jacket only weighs 148 grams or 5.2 ounces.

The fabric is a "microporous polypropylene waterproof-breathable nonwoven" according to www.backpackinglight.com. I read in a discussion thread somewhere that it will eventually wet through, but I don't know the conditions when that was experienced.

The jacket features a hood with drawstring, main zipper with storm flap, elastics at the wrists/cuffs and "Ultra-Sonically Sealed Seams for Waterproof Protection" (how does that work?), as well as a baggy cut for the streetwise among us...or maybe not :).

First impression was that it looked pretty cheap and had a paper like feel to it, not for the fashionista thats for sure, but then again I don't think there are many of those in UL circles.

The stitching is kind of rough and I am not surprised since I guess they have to produce these pieces in record time to be able to get some profit. The zipper is generic and looks ok, as well as the cord lock.

Sizing is a bit strange. I am 178 cm tall (5"10), 78.5 kgs (173 pounds), chest size of 39+ inches and a waist of about 35 inches. Normally I would wear a size medium or large, but this time I had went for a size small after reading some discussion threads and looking at the sizing chart.

Here are some photos of me wearing it. It fits ok I think, but it is kind of baggy:

Look forward to trying it out once it starts to rain again. Right now we're having really, really cold weather here in Norway, kind of the same as Hendrik in Finland is experiencing. Kind of sick of it to be honest, but seems to be getting milder now.

Well, that's the first blog post out of the way, a very geeky one for sure. Thought driducks could be interesting, especially seeing some closeup photos that I haven't been able to find many of on the Internet.

Take care.