Most packable rain shell

[damond]

Long story short - I am going to Pyrenees in a couple weeks for a few days of riding and there is something lacking in my wardrobe.

What's the smallest (most packable but effective) rain jacket that you are aware of?
I need something that i can store in my back pocket (without too much volume) that i can wear on the top of the climbs before the descends or if the weather changes.

I am think about something like the Exteondo Busti with an advertised weight of 115gr and looks to fit inside a rear pocket:



Too bad Gore discontinued the Shakedry fabric...

Is there anywehere else i should look at?

thanks

[jdecraene85]

I think the 7Mesh Oro jacket is fantastic. Standard shakedry fabric, but for me a better fit than the shakedry jackets from other brands. It's also the most packable rain jacket I've ever had: more or less equal to 2 energy bars if you fold it nicely. Maybe you can still find it in your size.

[damond]

thanks!

That would be exactly what i am looking for! Too bad they don't sell them anymore

[voicycle]

If you can find any remaining stock of a Shakedry jacket then that will be smallest by a lot (Gore/Rapha/7Mesh all similar, Castelli Idro normal version also ok but Idro Pro has lots of stretch panels and doesn't pack as small). If it's not intended as primarily a rain jacket then probably ok to buy secondhand too, but most of them end up with little tiny pinholes in them once they've been scrunched into pockets a few dozen times during normal use, so they'll be a decent riding waterproof but not outright water*proof* anymore.

I'm not totally au fait with the current crop of replacements but at the tail end of the shakedry era I bought and returned quite a few whilst looking for the ideal solution for me. Here's what I ended up with in the end and why:

• Gore 1985 (or C5 - viz version for me) - bikepacking waterproof - tiny pack size but fit is generous enough to go over a slim down jacket in a pinch, and both front and tail are long enough to cover said down jacket. Flaps around a bit in the wind due to the same fit parameters so not ideal unless the extra coverage is needed.
• Gore Race (or C7) - slimmer more aero fit but didn't pack as small. Returned due to fit preference with another brand but was a solid contender.
• 7mesh Oro - returned because I'd already missed prime availability of my size, but I think was the actual lightest/smallest of the lot.
• Castelli Idro Pro - far from smallest pack size as had lots of stretch panels which are bulky, but seemed like the most comfortable/aero fit for me. Kept it for a few years thinking it would be my 'ride in rain all day' jacket but then found I actually preferred something like a Gabba for those conditions. Just sold it BNWT on marketplace for a modest loss.
• Castelli Idro (normal) - returned due to uneffective compromise between stretch panels, fit, and pack size for me.
• Rapha Pro Team - I missed out getting my hands on one of these but I now have one of the Gore Active successors to it which is the same fabric pattern/fit I think. For me this was the sweet spot in terms of a roadie waterproof - fit is more aero than the Gore 1985, no stretch panels to bulk it up like the Idro Pro or the Gore C7, and slightly fuller-featured than the 7Mesh. Does not have enough coverage for off-bike bikepacking use keeping an insulating layer dry underneath, but even the 2-layer Gore Active version I have now packs down to almost exactly the same size as the more generously-fitting Gore shakedry C5.

I know I've just given detailed description of a lot of discontinued/unavailable products, but I think most of those brands kept their shakedry garment patterns alive in successor products, most of which are using 2-layer Gore Active like the Rapha that I currently have. Not sure what product names the successors picked up but shouldn't be hard to find.

To put those in order from smallest pack size to largest (for the same fabric type), I think they were:

1. 7mesh Oro
2. Rapha PT
3. Gore 1985 C5
4. Gore C7 Race
5. Castelli Idro
6. Castelli Idro Pro

And in order from most aero fit to most coverage:

1. 7mesh Oro
2. Rapha PT
3. Gore C7 Race
4. Castelli Idro Pro
5. Castelli Idro
6. Gore 1985 C5

Also pretty confident that I ended up being a Medium in all of those, so that should be comparing sizes like-for-like.

[boblewis]

Hello

That would be exactly what i am looking for!

[pushpush]

The 7mesh Oro is a delight. The downside is that it is very expensive and feels very fragile. I am very careful when I wear it. It sure looks/fits/works well though!

True to the name, it really is dry after you shake it.

[Mr.Gib]

The OP (who is probably already on his trip) asks about a packable rain jacket and the replies are a basically a list of jackets that are not, and never will be available. (If you are femaile or wear size small or Xsmall, you might find the odd Gore brand shakedry).

So for proper rain jackets I see two options. Gore Spin Shift or Castelli Tempesta Lite. Bulkier than shake dry but still can fit in a pocket. That Exteondo glorified wind jacket pictured might keep you a bit warmer on a descent, but you'd be in trouble if you had any rain. Snow on the Tourmalet in July and August can happen. Even with a good weather forecast, afternoon thunderstorms are common which can mean single digit temperatures and severe downpours at altitude. Best to be fully prepared.

[damond]

The OP (who is probably already on his trip) asks about a packable rain jacket and the replies are a basically a list of jackets that are not, and never will be available. (If you are femaile or wear size small or Xsmall, you might find the odd Gore brand shakedry).

So for proper rain jackets I see two options. Gore Spin Shift or Castelli Tempesta Lite. Bulkier than shake dry but still can fit in a pocket. That Exteondo glorified wind jacket pictured might keep you a bit warmer on a descent, but you'd be in trouble if you had any rain. Snow on the Tourmalet in July and August can happen. Even with a good weather forecast, afternoon thunderstorms are common which can mean single digit temperatures and severe downpours at altitude. Best to be fully prepared.

Thanks for your input. Indeed the shakedry would be the perfect choice but there was zero availability so i needed to look somewhere else.

In the end i got a Gobik Pluvia (similar to the etxeondo i as looking for in the beginning)



And i also got one of these insultation layers



It ended up being the perfect combination. Both are higly packable ( i could fit them both in one pocket) and still provide that right amount of protection while going down. I was really lucky with the weather though, having only got a little shower on my way up the Col D'Aspin and the another one going down the Tourmalet.

[Prusoli]

Love several Rapha products but the rapha PT rain doesn't fit well for me at all (like most of rapha jaclet by the way)
My top rain jacquet is a Castelli 1st generation IDRO vest : fit perfect, keep dry, very breathable, and very small packed. It's not far from the idro 2, and may be close to the "tempesta lite jacket" I guess.
You should try.
the castelli idro , the GOR and the rapha were made of the same fabric but only the fillting of the castelli was fine for me
love rapha for bibs, jersey and accessoires, but only castelli for vest suit me.