Columbia Men's Watertight Packable Rain Jacket

I bought this jacket last minute for my boyfriend before our trip to the jungle/beaches of Thailand.This jacket held up during a month of intensive wear which would generally mean 5 stars.However, I am comparing the jacket to my own gore-tex and his trapped a lot of heat. I would still be comfortable (well as much as you can be during otherwise drenching rainstorms) yet he would be sweating underneath his jacket.Also I wished this folded up nicely in a compact way - either into the pocket or a pouch which would make this easier for travel.So for a cheaper priced rain jacket this is durable but what do you expect from a jacket? I think it served the purpose overall of keeping him dry, I would recommend it, but if you do have the extra cash I would suggest investing in a higher-end piece that will last for years.

I'm glad I read through the other reviews and ordered a size smaller than normal. I normally wear 2XL or 3XL shirts/jackets. I ordered this in XL and it fits nicely. I am 6' 0" and 250 lbs, 42 waist and 48 chest. XL is my size in these jackets.I got mine for my bicycle commutes on cold & rainy days. Today it was 45 and light rain with 10 mph wind. This jacket over a thin polyester shirt was just right for that weather on the bicycle. Any warmer than that and it might be too hot for cycling. I wore it on a couple of walks in the same weather, over a golf shirt, and it was good for that too (I normally like cooler temps than most people, so you might find this jacket useful at higher temps). This will be my jacket for cold & rainy weather. Under 40 or stronger wind and I will add a layer underneath, either more polyester or a merino wool shirt.The jacket looks nice, and the quality seems very good. I was happy to find it in "Laser Lemon" color here on Amazon, which is a bright, light lemon yellow color, perfect for safety when bicycling in traffic in low light conditions. When I checked again a moment ago, that color was no longer available on the Amazon site. The light gold would have been my second choice.I would give it 5 stars if it had pitzips that could be opened up as I get warmer on the bicycle. As it is, it breathes fairly well for a waterproof jacket. I probably won't use the hood much, but it is there if needed. This jacket is a good value.

Okay, so I've put this jacket to the test through 1 rainy season in Japan and here's what I have to report.1. The build quality of this Jacket is sloppy. I've had zippers malfunction in the most horrible of ways, seams come apart in the pockets, and water come through my zippers.2. It's not AT ALL waterproof. Somehow stuff in the pockets still manages to get wet. Requires babying in the wash and copious amounts of ReviveX in order to be even somewhat useful.3. If 1 and 2 weren't an issue I'd still get soaked from the inside out. This thing breathes like a dead fish. If I could go back in time I would not have purchased this jacket, but I was cheap and needed something for commuting on a bike in rain. If it was a constant drizzle and 50 odd degrees without humidity like it is in the Pac NW then maybe it'd be okay. But then I'd still be carrying my wallet and phone in a ziploc baggy in my pocket because the water gets in.4. 1 2 and 3 don't matter much now because I don't even use the thing as a raincoat anymore. It makes an adequate windbreaker in chilly weather I've discovered, but I didn't buy a windbreaker, I bought a 'watertight' jacket.Seriously? Did I get a defective jacket or something? This thing should not be 4.5 stars.If I could go back I would've spent a little extra and gotten like, a cycling specific jacket from J&G or something.

First impression: this is a nice medium-gray nylon jacket with three zippered outside pockets and one Velcro-closed inside pocket. The hood is large enough to form a "shelf" at the top, which should help keep the rain off my eyeglasses. Front has both a zipper and plastic snaps. Other reviewers warned that this jacket was sized on the large side, so I ordered a size smaller than usual and it is about right. The sleeves are quite long, but the cuffs have Velcro straps so that you can adjust them if needed.I was looking for a very lightweight jacket to wear during warm weather showers, but the polyester mesh lining on this one makes it seem heavier and bulkier than I was hoping for. It is probably more suited to cooler weather, but I will have plenty of chances to test it this summer. The labels warn that it is flammable\meltable and that it should be cold-washed separately with powdered detergent.

I see there have been many positive reviews of this item. I feel I need to give the down side. However Columbia mimicked gore-tex in their Omni-Tech fabric, this jacket is crinkly as if there is tissue paper between the layers. It is literally loud to put on and take off. The hood is HUGE, so much so that it is hard to get it out of the way when going to hang it up. There is just much too much fabric in it, and other brands create helpful hoods without this overabundance of material. Finally, if you remember those Columbia adds about the mother who checked every stitch and was hard to please, she must have passed on. The first time I got into rain and wind, I went to cinch the side-elastics to tighten the waist, and was greeted by no built-in catch mechanism of any kind for this function, There was just a little plastic sleeve with no way of cinching the elastic-and it quickly became a moot point as the elastic ripped free almost immediately upon my trying to tighten it and I was left with a dangling 15 inch piece of unattached elastic cord. They couldn't afford a couple of more stitches or a knot? Or a real cinching mechanism? Too many cheap shortcuts here for me. I tried to return it but was beyond my 30 day window, so I guess I have to live with it.