datepalm3@earth

Sorry to revisit the rain coat topic, but I wanted to find out if anyone had any actual experience with the Bellwether Aqua-No and if it's sufficiently waterproof and breatheable.

I've researched and tried on a number of coats (Showers Pass Club, Pearl Izumi Instinct, Sugoi Defiant, etc.) so I don't need more info on those. I think I simply liked the way the Bellwether fit and felt...but didn't know if it was a quality jacket. I don't need a tight racing fit as I'm just commuting, and I personally like the inner mesh lining as it seems to provide to room for air to move and ventilate.

Anyhow, I've never seen any feedback on this one so if you can comment I'd appreciate it.

Thanks

Old Breadbutt

I'd like to hear about these too, they're cheaper than the ShowersPass

thdave

That makes three of us.

balto charlie

I wear one. Has decent venting, pit zips, rear vent. The zippers are very small which prevents rain from getting in but I don't like small zippers. Too hard to open with gloves. It is a good windbreak. Keeps me dry from the rain. I do sweat in it, though less than others I've tried(not tried many). I only paid $40.00 at a bike show in Maryland. I don't think you can beat it at that price. Does it compare with Showerspass?? Can't say but am thinking about asking Showerspass if I can compare their brand to mine. If there's is significantly superior then I'll buy it if not I'll return it.
FWIW: Aqua-no is decent but not perfect.

dedhed

I've had one for about a season now. Seems OK, although I've never worn it in a major downpour yet. Good wind resistance, I've worn it in the 30's F. Breathes OK, although I've never found anything to be "waterproof" & "breathable" yet for anything other than minor activity. As said, zippers are small and hard to do with gloves. I have to grab the collar in my teeth and pull down with the other hand.

datepalm3@earth

Well, it was my post and I did in fact end up buying the Aqua-No jacket, so I thought I should at least report my findings.

The first thing that drew me to this coat was that it felt cool and airy when I put it on. I realize there are many higher quality coats out there, but some of them, to me, felt clammy and non-breatheable the instant I tried them on in the store or had an unpleasant rubbery-coated fabric inside. Maybe I just prefer having a mesh liner as it puts a layer between your skin and these fabrics, and seems to provide a cooler (temp) feel as there's space for air to move around. Now that I've commuted in it -- both in rain and not -- I have to say I'm pretty happy with the ventillation in the real world as well. My opinion might be skewed as I'm just used to my windstopper jacket which is pretty non-breathable, but the Aqua-No is surprisingly well ventilated and comfortable.

Water-proofness (the point of the coat, of course) has been good so far as well. Quite frankly, with all these raincoats it's hard to tell where rain ends and sweat begins, but it seems to be pretty good (and I'm the type who would take it back immediately if it weren't). I can only compare to a Performance brand coat that leaked water (and thus got returned), but even in solid rain for my 25-minute commute I don't feel like any water's getting in.

I only paid $70 for this and when I asked one of the salespeople about Bellwether quality, he described them as the "Old Navy of bike clothes." True or not, like the others stated above, I think this certainly shows through in the zippers. They're inexcuseably small -- so small you can barely grasp them while wearing gloves. I wouldn't mind that so much if they at least had hole in the zipper handle where you could run a little loop through to grab onto, but they don't. Also, I was keeping my keys in the back pocket until I twice had to take the coat off as the zipper had simply got stuck on itself and wouldn't open...again, not very good quality. (For that matter, put the pockets on the front of the coat where people can more easily reach them!) Anyhow, I'd be pretty surprised if these zippers lasted long. My only other comment is safety. I personally feel ALL raincoats should be retina-frying yellow and have reflective tape in the proper places. The color is so-so, kind of #2 pencil yellow, but reflective "piping" ain't gonna do much on a dark rainy day.

That's it. Everything has its pros and cons, but all in all, for $70 I'm pretty happy: it seems to be keeping the water out and it's sufficiently well ventilated.