Is there a quiet wind breaker

[chindits]

I have been hunting this month and the wind has been howling the last week. When it's really bad I throw my rain jacket on just to maintain my core temperature. However yesterday I had a bull coming in and the wind all of a sudden stopped and I was just trying to imagine how I would be able to draw my bow with a bull within 25 yards while wearing the rain jacket. The fabric is just too noisy.

This got me thinking that I need a quiet wind breaker. I don't care whether water goes right through it since I have a rain jacket I can wear in the rain. I don't need a soft shell because that just limits my flexibility in layering and typically isn't worth the weight. I love everything about the ECWS wind jacket, but the fabric is noisy going through brush and even just drawing a bow. Is there such a thing as a plain uninsulated shirt or jacket that can buck the wind and is quiet. And like I mentioned, I could care less about water resistance and insulation.

Any thoughts on this??

 

[tipsntails7]

I have been hunting this month and the wind has been howling the last week. When it's really bad I throw my rain jacket on just to maintain my core temperature. However yesterday I had a bull coming in and the wind all of a sudden stopped and I was just trying to imagine how I would be able to draw my bow with a bull within 25 yards while wearing the rain jacket. The fabric is just too noisy.

This got me thinking that I need a quiet wind breaker. I don't care whether water goes right through it since I have a rain jacket I can wear in the rain. I don't need a soft shell because that just limits my flexibility in layering and typically isn't worth the weight. I love everything about the ECWS wind jacket, but the fabric is noisy going through brush and even just drawing a bow. Is there such a thing as a plain uninsulated shirt or jacket that can buck the wind and is quiet. And like I mentioned, I could care less about water resistance and insulation.

Any thoughts on this??

The Jetstream is the quietest one that i am aware of, and that because its a softshell that has a wind stopping membrane it in.

most winds shirts get their wind stopping properties from the face fabric itself which makes them inherently loud.
You could take a look at the sitka mountain jacket, its just a shell, with a slight brushed face and windstopper in it. doesn't have a hood, and again may be louder then what your looking for.

You could also where your breaker under a fleece or even an over sized LS shirt, and it would probably quite it down some.

Ive been searching for exactly what your asking for and have yet to find something that fits the bill better than the jetstream unfortunately.

 

[Owenst7]

Back in the mid 90s, I had a fleece jacket that was "windproof". I'm pretty sure it was mil surplus. It was a high pile fleece lining, real similar to the "sherpa" lining that Carhartt sells in the Sierra jacket that kind of mimics a sheepskin jacket. The outside of the jacket was similar to a jersey knit with polyester. It was tight enough of a weave to block wind well, but it was large diameter fibers and was softer than a hardshell...kind of resembled carpet turned inside out. I have no idea how much it weighed, but it was very warm and I'm kind of curious how it would work with lightweight layering now that I'm remembering it. This was before the "wind/waterproof" fleece jackets were on the market, and this jacket was really just intended to be a slightly more versatile/durable liner to a shell. I'd bet it was pretty similar in weight to a fleece pullover, just a bit heavier due to the full length zipper.

In the situation your talking about, I just put my fleece pullover over my rain jacket.

I've yet to see the utility in a windbreaker for me. I wear a lightweight merino/polyester long sleeve from 100F down to about 40-50F. If it's really windy, it's usually threatening to rain around here, so it makes more sense for me to just wear the rain jacket. I'm usually sweating until it drops below 60F though, so any wind is usually welcomed haha.

 

[Akicita]

When noise is a concern and wind is bothering me I wear my rain jacket under a sweater or fleece. This keeps the noise down significantly while keeping the wind from cutting through. My jacket has pit zips that I open to vent heat if necessary.

 

[doverpack12]

If you are near an REI try on a OR Ferrosi jacket. I like mine. There is a very slight noise but I wear it tight enough it really doesn't make much on any noise. I also really like the kuiu peloton 240 but it is closer to a soft shell than a wind shirt. I haven't had the chance to try a Sitka mountain or timberline jacket.

 

[danarnold]

my mountain jacket is great, way lighter and more packable than jetstream(unless its cold enough for the JS weight penalty), love my flash pullover also which could def be worn under anything making it quiet(wearing it outside is a bit noisy)

 

[chindits]

Sorry for the my delayed reply as I had to drain the ditch pump and close up the crawl space vents as we are dipping well into the 20s around here. So that illustrates the typical temp fluctuations around here of early morning temps in the 20s and day time temps reaching the 60s with winds well over 20 mph up high, so layering is still the time proven concept around here. I appreciate all of your responses. I have never reversed layered, with my insulation over a shell rather than under the shell. I will have to give that a try as on face value it doesn't seem like you are trapping the air the insulation layer should be trapping. After all that is the concept of insulation, trapping warm air. I do recall many years back in the Army some folks talking about wearing rain gear under the regular uniform to quiet it down, but the units I was in didn't have time to deal with clothing tactically like that so we just skipped rain gear for the most part and suffered as some sort of pathetic badge of honor. The closest I recall to a carpet back fleece type insulation in the Army was the old brown fleece suits back in the 90s that we called buffalo fleece. I just don't recall it being all that windproof. It was the deepest pile fleece that I ever recall.

I do recognize the dilemma of having a tightly woven fabric that is windproof and yet not having that tell tale rustling noise when the wind suddenly stops. I haven't checked out some of the weights of the products suggested so I will do some more research and thanks for the heads up on the Flash not mitigating the noise issue. For its price it should have a stealth mode button. On the KUIU peloton 240, I find the wind cuts right through it and it is fine outerwear on calm days despite it's pockets being located at hip belt level. I added slash pockets to the upper torso, but I am slightly bitter that the manufacturer couldn't think of that concept originally.

 

[Kotaman]

Sitka Timberline.

 

[rjf611]

My Sitka Downpour jacket is as quiet as my Eddie Bauer guide pants. Not as quiet as wool but quieter than any hard shell.

 

[wesfromky]

Hill People Gear windcheater. Super quiet, does great with the wind, pit zips if you need them. It is basically the same thing as the First Spear version, but you can attach a coyote ruff to the hood.

 

[Rdog]

Take a look at the Sitka Thunderhead stuff, it is gore tex so it's wind and waterproof but it has a knit face to make it quieter. It seems like its quieter than the jetstream jacket at the store but I have heard that the jetstream gets quieter after use.

 

[the0thermrt]

UA Early Season 03 Jacket

 

[chindits]

theothermrt, would you provide more detail on how windproof and how quiet the UA 03 jacket is? They tout it as a 6.3 oz breathable fabric. Breathable fabric doesn't mean it does well in the wind.

 

[chindits]

Here is some info I have compiled. My ECWS wind jacket is 12.4 oz. I will typically have a ECWS mid weight grid at 13.4 oz or Peoloton 240 underneath at 14.7 oz. I can adjust the layers unlike a softshell or windproof fleece.

Advertised weights or Company inquiry:
Sitka Thunderhead 25.5 oz
" Timberline 18.3
" Mnt Jacket 12.4
" Flash 7.8

Natural Gear Windstopper Fleece Jacket 32 oz

UA 03 Early Season Jacket 6.3 oz

 

[FreeRange]

The two I switch between are the OR Ferrosi and Black Diamond Alpine Start, both are really similar in that they're more like light/ultralight soft shells if that gives you an idea of what the fabric feels like. As mentioned above, still a bit of noise, but they're far quieter than any rain jacket. I generally use the Ferrosi starting mid-late October if I'm hunting. For other cold weather activities with sustained output the Alpine Start is good in all but the worst of weather. The BD breathes incredibly well, its biggest shortcoming is the lack of water resistance which you already mentioned isn't a concern and the tradeoff to that is the great breath ability.

 

[the0thermrt]

theothermrt, would you provide more detail on how windproof and how quiet the UA 03 jacket is? They tout it as a 6.3 oz breathable fabric. Breathable fabric doesn't mean it does well in the wind.

Chindits
It's not wind proof. I would compare it with the PCU level 5 system and the HPG windcheater. It's no gore windstopper. It's quiet enough for a shell, would be quieter if it were a brushed fabric but that would sacrifice water resistance.

 

[chindits]

Freerange, it looks like those softshells have come a long ways from the weights of traditional softshells of years ago.

I did did take a look at a UA 03 at the local shop. I didn’t feel that the advertised weights are accurate and the material seemed similar to the military options with less useful pockets. I didn’t bring a scale so I can’t give a definitive weight.

 

[JollyRoger]

I got my archery mule deer buck while wearing the Sitka Flash pullover this year. It's not a quiet as fleece, but I was 15 yards away... I ranged, nocked, drew and shot without a problem.

I have an old TAD Gear Ranger hoodie that is made from Windstopper fleece. It's warm, cozy, 100% quiet but is only offered in solids. Mine is dark green. Too bulky for me to pack backpacking (that's what puffys are for) but it's a great jacket.

 

[wapitibob]

Just buy a wind shirt. I got mine at Pearl Izumi for $20. I put it on under my outermost layer and it stopped Wyoming wind in it's tracks.