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Location: Des Moines IA | The Frabill thread got me wondering ...... So, how does the Frabill suit compare to the BPS 100mph, and the Cabela"s Guide wear series? I am in the market for a new rain suit before Eagle this year, and am curious as to what people have the best experiences with? |
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Posts: 1663
Location: Kodiak, AK | 100 MPH, you can't go wrong. It's my cold weather suit. For warmer weather, I wear the Under Armour Full Throttle. |
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Posts: 32886
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | My experience with the Frabill so far has been in two moderate rains, moving around quite a bit for about an hour and a half each time. I was completely dry. The pro staff reports early this year to date have been excellent. I know Marianne Huskey came in off the water after a very a bad weather tournament day during one AIM event and was completely dry and very happy to be warm.
With not much of a search I found 'complaints' about the three top selling suits by the major fishing retailers on OFM. No matter how well the suit is built, a couple things will happen:
1) A warranty issue will eventually crop up with every single product out there, that's why good products carry a warranty. The company will replace the suit. I bet the second one won't have the issue, or the suit wouldn't be a top three suit. That doesn't make the suit bad, it makes the suit's seller customer service good.
2) People will not understand all the suit's functions and how to properly batten down all the hatches, the top three suits out there are not just 'pull on and wear', they are foul weather gear to the extreme. Read the instructions on how to use the suit.
3) People unintentionally and intentionally will abuse the product. Read the instructions for care of the suit.
I have had a 10X suit for more than 20 years and really liked the product. I took very good care of that suit, it was a Skeeter branded suit I received when I worked for the then Texas owned company. It finally began to fail a couple years ago, and is now only good for light to moderate rains following the instructions on 'reviving' the membrane to a T.
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Posts: 181
Location: St.John, Indiana | I use Cabelas Guide wear for my hvy/ cold weather suit with no complaints and next generation Frogg Toggs toadz for my light weight suit. The Toadz has already seen allot of hvy rain this year and for a light weight suit that cost $100 very satisfied. |
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Posts: 299
| I use a Redhead duck hunting bibs and jacket for fishing. I don't think I could get wet if I try with that rainsuit on.... It's lightweight, very easy to put on, comfortable, handles wind with ease and is half the cost of Frabill or Under Armor. It breaths very well too. RedHead makes some top notch gear!!! |
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Posts: 62
Location: Rhinelander,WI | Love my BPS 100 mph rain suit would never buy anything else again. |
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Posts: 69
| Simms Guide Jacket....G3 or G4. IMO by far the best jacket on the market. Only bad thing is they don't sell bibs. They are expensive but you will never buy another rain jacket. |
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Posts: 1663
Location: Kodiak, AK | dblockjr - 6/15/2011 10:21 PM Simms Guide Jacket....G3 or G4. IMO by far the best jacket on the market. Only bad thing is they don't sell bibs. They are expensive but you will never buy another rain jacket. Exactly. I wear the G3 over my UA bibs when it's warm out. It is spendy, but it's an awesome jacket. It is designed for wading (and really shines with waders for steelhead), so it's a bit shorter, so you do need to wear bibs with it and not rain pants. |
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Posts: 458
| Goretex XCR has been great for me. |
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Location: Latitude 41.3016 Longitude 88.6160 | BPS 100MPH and Cabelas are proven !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
They don't leak. |
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| Cabelas Guidewear??????????? Ok, now the truth. Went to take the 1.5 yr old jacket back due to a broken/faulty zipper. Mind you, this is a $230 jacket with a "supposed" Lifetime Warranty. Due to the fact that I didn't have my original receipt, they would only give me the "lowest sale price" in their system and WOULD NOT replace my jacket.This is a 'private label' item with their freakin' name all over it. Now the good part......they offered me $79.99, as this was the "lowest sale price" in the system. This is an absolute joke!!! I will attempt to get something done through corporate as the store level employees wouldn't budge and were very matter of fact about it. |
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Posts: 697
Location: Minnetonka | PIKEMASTER - 6/17/2011 6:19 AM
BPS 100MPH and Cabelas are proven !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
They don't leak.
I guarantee if I used it long enough it would leak. That doesn't mean letting it sit in my closet for 6 years, but it doesn't mean running it over with my truck either. That means going out fishing in the rain and moving around in it. The seams weaken and leak, no matter what "technology" they used on it.
I'm getting a yellow rubber Helly Hansen suit... I don't care how unbreathable, uncomfortable or uncool they are. If they're good enough for the Time Bandit, they're good enough for me. |
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Posts: 313
Location: Bemidji, Lake Vermilion | Your awesome Hammskie!! |
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| I have to defend Cabelas Guidwear. It has been the best suit I have ever had hands down. I tend to fish in a lot of bad weather and in my 7 years in this suit it has been absolutely dry in heavy downpours and all day rain. I also have Bass Pro Suits and other suits but none compare. |
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Posts: 432
Location: mpls | Patagonia guidewater jacket is the best jacket I have ever owned.no leaks,it stretches( stretch material) and has low profile pockets that don't get in the way. The cuffs are sealskin,so no leaks there either.
The only problem is that they are SUPER spendy. The good thing is unconditional warrantee . I exchanged my 3 year old jacket for a new one becuase I ripped the mesh insert in the inside of a chest pocket. No questions. Just handed me a new $400+ jacket and said ," no problem".
Now I need to find bibs that I like. Cabelas guidewear have all leaked. 
Joe
Trueglide |
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| after canada in late october the last 3 years with wind, rain, snow, etc., i'm more than happy with the guidewear. the new BPS pro qualifier is pretty nice too. i'd probably get that if i was in the market...little cheaper than the guidewear or 100mph. a friend has it and he's happy after a few tough trips. in the summer, i go with ligher stuff if its over 75 or so. |
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Posts: 670
Location: Otsego, MN | Helley Hansen is great. Ive had my jacket and bibs for 5 years. Summer fishing, ice fishing, hunting, and I am still dry. I ordered the suit actually from Ranger but it is made by Helley Hanson. Ive abused the heck out of it, it has been worth every penny! |
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| StevieJ - 6/17/2011 10:59 AM
Cabelas Guidewear??????????? Ok, now the truth. Went to take the 1.5 yr old jacket back due to a broken/faulty zipper. Mind you, this is a $230 jacket with a "supposed" Lifetime Warranty. Due to the fact that I didn't have my original receipt, they would only give me the "lowest sale price" in their system and WOULD NOT replace my jacket.This is a 'private label' item with their freakin' name all over it. Now the good part......they offered me $79.99, as this was the "lowest sale price" in the system. This is an absolute joke!!! I will attempt to get something done through corporate as the store level employees wouldn't budge and were very matter of fact about it.
i had a similiar problem. bought the guidewear classic a two years ago when it went on sale. total price was about $250 for bibs and jacket as opposed to over $400 not on sale. the classic pair is now called x300. the zipper on my classic pair went and they wouldn't replace it with the x300 and would only give me a credit for what i paid for my bibs, which was like $130 or something. after going back and forth for months with customer service over email, they sent me a pair of x300 bibs for $40. I didn't return my old bibs so i feel like i won. it aggrevated me as a lifetime warranty is a lifetime warranty right? my argument was the bibs should be replaced with the comparable bibs, now the x300. If that happened free of charge, i would of been happy to hand over my old bibs. |
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Posts: 752
| Hammskie speaks the truth. Given time and use and all suits will leak (well maybe not vulcanized rubber). The more you wear gear the more stress you put on the seams and eventually it all leaks (even really good stuff) Odd's are if someone says they have used product X for the last 3 years and it does not leak it means they do not fish in the rain that often...
I have the Storm Suit and for what its worth last night I was on Tonka in rain that varied from Torrentail to Mist including zipping many miles from spot to spot for 5 hours last night and when I took off the gear I was bone dry... I also used this on Walleye Opener on Leech in the monsoon that was opener and another rain/hail filled day on Tonka and the results have been consistant. For me it still is a question of how long this suit stays waterproof. Before the Storum Suit I used Northface bib and jackets made from Gortex that rocked but are about $800.00 combined rather than the $300.00 for the Storm Suit.
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