Dancing Skeleton

I bought a Gore Tool SO jacket for cold-weather cycling here in the Boston area.
I tried on several different models. and settled on this one due to the fit & promise of blocking winter gusts while allowing perspiration to evaporate with Windstopper fabric.

I've tried it several times in different conditions, and every time I've finished my ride cold & clammy. I use a Craft baselayer, and sometimes an additional cycling jersey.
I've ridden in the jacket with temps as low as 20* & as high as 45*.
Within five miles, I'm sweating like it's summer, and at the end of the ride my baselayer is damp. Opening the armpit vents helps slightly, but eventually makes me cold.

I doubt that my LBS will take it back, I've worn it ~6 times & bought it 2 months ago.
I contacted Gore, and they may do something if I send it back, but I can't be sure that they will exchange it. I think that I just perspire at a greater rate than the jacket vents.

Has anyone had good or bad experiences with Gore Windstopper?
I've had great experiences with Goretex in the past.

Commodus

I can't help you with the Windstopper, but I sympathize with the dilemma. Finding the right layering setup can be a bit of a challenge.

MegaTom

I have the opposite problem with my Windstopper shoe covers. Saturday morning I had to double them up with some sock-like shoe covers to keep any sort of warmth down there. And it was only 40-50º.

njkayaker

https://www.gorebikewear.com/remote/S...1208436857421A

You need more airflow (it seems). I find that a complete windshell doesn't breath enough. What I use is a layer that has Windstopper in the front.

pallen

Yeah, finding the perfect balance of wind stopping and breathability is going to be very difficult. I opted for one that is more breathable and then add more layers under to account for weather when too much wind gets through. I don't think the perfect jacket exists - they will all either steam you up or let air through.

jamesdak 

Yep, most windproof stuff is just not going to breathe well enough. I'd look for something with a windproof fabric on the front but totally breathable on the back. That should serve you best if just trying to deal with wind. Then just add the breathable layers you need underneath for warmth, wool works best for me.

Dancing Skeleton

Thanks for the input.
I thought that the jacket vented through the back panels, but it does not. That's why it feels like a trashbag, even with a great baselayer, not matter what the temp is.
Hopefully I can exchange it.

v0_boulder

I wear a gore jacket what I do for layering is jersey micro fleece and gore jacket. As the ride progresses I unzip the jacket to let air in. There is such a big difference with jacket zipped and unzipped I was surprised also I can remove the sleeves when overheating.

Creatre

Same here with my Gore. Honestly though, I don't care. Because it's frakking cold outside. I'd rather be slightly sweaty than freezing cold like before. I have a lighter Gore jacket that doesn't do it, but I can't wear that one below 40 degrees.

Miller2

I had a Gore Winstopper jacket a few years ago. I had the same issue and posted about it on here. The Gore rep posted a reponse as well and he wasnt happy with me saying their products didnt work as advertised....but it didnt!!!

triumph.1

The windstopper jacket I have is only windstopper in the front and the back vents sweat or moisture. My windstopper jacket actually makes me hot unless I open the vents on the front as well. As mentioned above your holding in moisture and getting cold.

rangerdavid

it's mostly trial and error and trial again. completely eliminating any circulation is going to make you cold and clammy. You may need a good base layer and jersey that will wick away moisture faster than what's being done now. That's a great jacket, it just may not be the one for you, who know. If they won't take it back, or you can't get a good exchange deal worked out, sell it here or on ebay, or just try more alternatives under the jacket.

bored117 

Maybe this should help. I have couple of Gore as well as eVent stuff... and couldn't figure out which gore goes with what. I think the chart do explain rather well on Gore side...

https://www.tgstore.eu/information-fa...6_326_504.html

Yours falls under T4 which in my experience is best served for up to freezing if you are going to do any effort... (for recovery ride, I find them fine to maybe 45F)
I would imagine something in T3 would serve you better for the range of temp.
I can use Xenon AS rated for T2 around 36-50f and comfy for some effort... maybe up to 55-60f for recovery.
Hope this helps... (oh this one really breathes well... a little better than my eVent... thing is... it's more of windshell/rainshell and if going for really cold ride... will need to bring mid layer).

banerjek

I own multiple windstopper jackets, but I find they work best for low to moderate activities -- all windstopper products I've tried are too heavy for cycling (except gloves). I am a GoreTex product tester and while I wear nothing else when I'm out in the snow, I prefer to wear a light windbreaker over wicking layers when cycling in the cold, even when it's wet out.

A lot of what works has to do with your riding conditions and style. Most people here probably ride harder than the people these jackets are designed for. There is a line of products using their Active Shell which might work better for you if you really want a wind and waterproof jacket. The deal with Active Shell is it breathes significantly better, but it's not as durable.

Seattle Forrest

Well, there's your problem. Dump the gimmicky high tech layers. Get a merino base layer and a cashmere mid layer, and your sweat problems will be solved.

nhluhr

Active Shell is a waterproof-breathable membrane similar to eVent. It is less breathable than windstopper.

bored117 

Merino wool mid layer such as smartwool TML light is wonderful to use indeed. I typically use those for my commute. Thing is, if you have significant descent... forget the wind blocking...
While I do like craft stuff in general, I do like merino wool even better when there are range of temperatures and effort I will be riding...

I am not sure about this. My Oxygen GT AS jacket is the most breathable gore bike wear one I have tried (actually a little better than eVent one I have). And yes, I did have few wind stopper to compare to. Only reason I am keeping the eVent jacket is because it is more off the bike one, and I sold all wind stopper at this point except one which is for much colder ride than I normally do... probably will actually end up using mid layer instead though.

banerjek

Unlike Active Shell which does use the same base technology as eVent as you point out, windstopper is not waterproof.

However, the windstopper products I've seen are really heavy and you'll manage to get them filled with sweat in no time. The jacket in my avatar is one of them and is supposedly for runners. But there's no way I'd consider wearing it for running or cycling.

The key is to keep things really light. If you attach high tech material with great properties to a heavy shell/liner or make a fabric with the right properties too thick, you still will get wet from sweat. Most cyclists way overdress for the cold.

nhluhr

Nobody said Windstopper was waterproof... Windstopper is specifically NOT waterproof. The Windstopper membrane is essentially a goretex membrane that has been stretched out so that instead of 9 billion truly microscopic pores per inch, you have 1.4 billion larger pores. Water won't pour through it but it will seep through it readily, and it's a lot more breathable, given similar laminations, than a goretex membraned product.

Goretex Active Shell just means it's the Goretex membrane laminated to ultra-thin fabrics (and uniquely does NOT have a PU backing like other Goretex products). Windstopper Active Shell (which also exists) is a Windstopper membrane laminated to ultra-thin fabrics. The Goretex ActiveShell's lack of a PU backing is the number one thing that makes it breathe well, since all PU backed or based membranes require solid state diffusion for moisture transport, which is very slow relative to pure vapor breathing in a truly porous laminate like eVent and Goretex AS.

I don't really blame anybody for having a hard time choosing the right fabrics for dealing with sweat and precipitation. If you look at the cute diagrams they put on everything, all products are totally waterproof while breath like fishnets. The reality is far less satisfying.

banerjek

Correct on all counts -- the existence of pit zips and vents on products produced by a variety of companies is tacit admission of this. Heck, my favorite snow bibs can be opened the entire length of your leg (which begs the question of why you'd even bother as any fall will fill everything with snow). But they're great when it's particularly cold/windy and I don't care if I get a bit of snow on me the rest of the time.

The only process I've found that works for choosing stuff that's right for you is trial and error. But except for short hops, I think the way to go is super light and not even consider windproofness or waterproofness to be desirable as the tradeoffs are inevitably undesirable.

nhluhr

My favorite ski pants have those thigh vents... I leave them open almost 100% of the time while skinning up, unless the wind is just too severe.

blacksquid

I've had a Gore Tool II jacket for a couple of years now and only really wear it for very cold temps; those below 32F. There are a couple of sources for ventilation; the pit zips, the vest pocket and the front zip. Try working with the vest pocket as well as the pit zips if you can't exchange the jacket or get your money back.

Seattle Forrest

So how much less durable is this new Goretex than ProShell, and how much more breathable?

banerjek

It's not a ProShell replacement.

I don't know exactly how much less durable it is, but this is the stuff they want you to turn to when PacLite is still too heavy which is itself not suitable for applications where ProShell is the right tool.

For backcountry skiing, I like my ProShell gear. If it warms up a bit, open the vents, and if you're still too warm, stow it in your pack. But when it gets cold and windy, it's fantastic. The night before last, I went snow camping in temps that were around 15°F. Below, I just had some thin convertible REI pants and ProShell bibs, above, I wore a light merino wool base layer and shell (also ProShell), though once we quit moving for the evening, I added a fleece layer on top. It was pretty windy -- I think they were reporting about 40mph. But I was comfortable.

Seattle Forrest

I've got an Arc'teryx Beta AR, which is ProShell. I do a lot of hiking and some backpacking in it, and I'm going to summit Mount Baker in the spring, plus it's a good shell for kayaking and for cycling on really cold, windy days. I saw they have the same jacket available in ActiveShell now. I've always wished the thing breathed better. Hiking in the mountains with an aggressive pace means sweating, with or without a pack.