School me on ponchos

[rightisright]

I have a Helly Hansen poncho that's been in my work truck for several years. Like most of their stuff, it's very well constructed. I bought it as a 2nd at TJ Maxx or the like...can't remember specifically.

[First Shirt]

Back on topic, one of the best nights sleep I can remember was the last night in the woods at SERE under a poncho shelter falling asleep listening to the rain. (sure exhaustion may have had something to do with it ).

And no, you can't have my (OD green) one.

They swore that a bear came through our camp that last night. Couldn't prove it by me. A Chinese marching band could have come through, playing the Washington Post March, and you still couldn't prove it by me.

[blackeagle603]

oh man, SERE... About this time of October in Maine, raining all week. BLISS shelter in a poncho puddle burrowed under a windfall.
The Explorer scout years in western WA weren't a complete waste.I did better than most at staying dry but just one more time I swore someday I'd never be damp cold again.

[First Shirt]

I can be cold. Or, I can be wet.

But if I'm cold AND wet, I'm also miserable. So glad I did Fairchild in the summer!!!!

[Denis]

I also have an Alpenflage Swiss Surplus that is very good.

Those Swiss Army ponchos are what I use. I buy them any time I'm in Switzerland at the army-surplus shop, on the basis that when they're gone, they're gone. I probably own half a dozen, and I have given some around to friends and family too.

One lives folded flat in my hunting rucksack all the time. They're not particularly light, but they are robust and pretty tear- and thorn-proof. They're roomy enough to keep your rucksack and rifle dry, and they have arm slots so you can get the rifle and your hands out fast. They are a decent shelter from wind and/or driving rain, and two would make a tent. Mine has saved me from misery on several occasions, just by keeping the cold wind off me and sparing me the windchill factor. A minor mod which is a good improvement is to replace (or add to) the top snap-button with a grommet and some paracord, so you can tie the neck closed. Somehow the top button seems to snap open too easily otherwise.

Another good bit of raingear, but probably impossible to find these days is the ex east-German army poncho. It's more of a cloak-like garment with a big raimproof cowl for head and shoulders. If you ever see one for sale, snap it up.

[Rich Jordan]

I've also got the Swiss Alpenflage poncho; although I've not had the kind of need for it some of you posted, it was very nice for those times when the dog needed walking and we were in the middle of a deluge (no yard so the dog needed to be accompanied and leashed). It worked great.

You could check Old Grouch; they had some very nice copies of the military poncho made but I think many of them are no longer in stock.

[Jered]

Another good bit of raingear, but probably impossible to find these days is the ex east-German army poncho. It's more of a cloak-like garment with a big raimproof cowl for head and shoulders. If you ever see one for sale, snap it up.

Denis, this thing?

[Denis]

Another good bit of raingear, but probably impossible to find these days is the ex east-German army poncho. It's more of a cloak-like garment with a big raimproof cowl for head and shoulders. If you ever see one for sale, snap it up.

Denis, this thing?

Yes. Fantastic. Now to see if I can get some...

[PawPaw]

More important than the poncho itself is the poncho liner. LINKY HERE. It came out during the Vietnam unpleasantness, intended as a mild-weather epedient when temps were just a little bit cool. It's a lightweight nylon shell with poly interior, and it was immediately accepted by GIs worldwide as an essential piece of military equipment.

In the '70s, tank crews were issued OD Rain Parkas as part of the BII. These things were cold, being constructed of rubberized material. Some enterprising seamstresses devised a method of cutting up the poncho liner and lining the rain parka with the insulated material. Oh, My God! It was perfect. The ne plus ultra of military tanker's attire. It would keep you warm in the winter and dry on the wash-rack.

But, the poncho liner used alone was the military equivalent of Lunus' security blanket. No GI left home without one.

[Weetabix]

Oh, I already have a couple of woobies! They're great.