All the gear, no idea

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thecommander

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As you will have gathered from my other threads, I'm quite new to this sailing malarkey so please forgive me.

SWMBO and I popped into Force4 today to have a look at their clothing gear as we particularly need jackets and trousers/ salopettes. By christ we were shocked! 300 smackeroos for a jacket, 180 quid for a pair of trousers, 150 quid for a pair of welly boots. Times that by 2 and another mortgage might have to taken out just to pay for the clothing.

Do we need to pay this sort of money on branded (Gill, Musto, Henri Lloyd etc) sailing clothing or would a waterproof jacket and a pair of waterproof trousers from Decathlon or GoOutdoors suffice? SWMBO is very keen on buying some of these sailing brands - "I mean who would want to been seen in Cowes wearing a Tribord coat from Decathlon!". I get the feeling we may become the latest members of the all the gear, no idea club!

Are these sailing brands worth the money despite the high outlay, in other words are they value for money?

I must add, we intend to do all year round coastal sailing in the Solent.

Thanks
 
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We sail in the wilds of the Hebrides, so farmers waterproofs and green wellies are fine.
But just as "When in Rome etc", when in the Solent, it's gonna cost ya. :D
Or you can just do your own thing, and to hell with 'em. Your choice.
 
We do a bit of both. I have never needed more than Gill inshore stuff in the Solent and I've usually waited for a sale of last years kit on eBay. £60 jacket, £70 salopetes, etc. We also have standard waterproofs from sport shops. All used mix and match. There is also plenty of second hand stuff comes up at the end of the season from people who bought it all and never used it.

Remember, unless you are pretty experienced, you won't be going out in more than a f5/6 and in limited visibility (Like when it's throwing it down).

As for cowes, nobody cares what your wearing in shepherds wharf. Anyway when was the last time you went to the pub in full sailing gear? D

Just been reminded that boat shoes come from Next winter sale. Jumpers from Woolover and the best gloves I've got are cycling gloves from CycleWorld online, second best from the Esso garage for less than a fiver. Thermals are, of course, from Marks and Spencer.
 
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Personally speaking I bought everything I sail in, with the exception of my boots, off Ebay. It's full of stuff from people who thought it would be a great idea to take up sailing, bought all the gear.... then decided it wasn't for them after all. I haven't paid out £100 yet, and I started 3 years ago.
 
Yellow wellies and a Fladen flotation suit (it gets cold up here)- lets you blend in with the fishermen. It would be frightfully embarrassing to look like a yachtie.
 
Thanks for the replies. Glad others aren't spending too much. Now to convince the wife!!

I'm thinking/hoping we might pick up second hand stuff at Beaulieu boat jumble.

P.S. Seen plenty of members of the Henri Lloyd brigade in Cowes.
 
many of the functions of sailing clothing are also needed for the fishing, agricultural, and land-based recreational industries such as shooting.


You might find the functionality of mainstream sailing clothes replicated in other sectors by such manufacturers such as Guy Cotten.

http://www.guycotten.co.uk/shop/


It is, however, unlikely that you will find all the sailing safety and performance functions in one of the other categories. (Sea) horses for courses.


I suppose that the Pareto principle applies: for 80% of the functionality you pay 20% of the price; the remaining 20% of functionality requires the other 80% of price.
 
For what it's worth, here is our family view of the situation!

We have a wet boat with a very exposed helmsman's position. Whoever is on the helm needs good kit. Boots are massively important to us. So goretex and leather boots (Orca Bay are our current favourite, having tried Dubarry for a number of years) are critical. Next up is decent waterproof trousers. Sitting in the cold with a wet bum is miserable. We buy these new. Current favourites are Gill offshore stuff. Next up is a decent jacket. Mine's an ancient Musto HPX job, bought second hand. Its head protection rocks. No ski jacket can touch it for face protection in high wind and spray conditions. All in all, I've spent £650 on clothing in the last 10 years. I spend 100 nights on board a year, so I reckon that's ok. My wife's spent about £450 and the children have had stuff too, but as they grow that's probably not relevant to this discussion. Cheap gear is ok as long as you're able to stay dry and warm when it all goes to ratshit. I'd rather compromise on other stuff than clothing, although as stated above, second hand clothing does not have to be a compromise.
 
You may call yourself the commander, but sailing a First 235 does not put you into the mega yachting league. So buy what you feel comfortable with and remember it is not the clothes you wear, but who you are, that is important. You admit you are not experienced, so do not dress in the latest fashion or you will automatically attract even more attention when you make an error (yes, there will be plenty of errors and mistakes). Once you feel confident in your boat handling skills and understand your real requirements then will be the time to choose a well known brand, but in the meantime choose something cheaper/secondhand.
 
Another good source of excellent gear at excellent prices is the yacht charter companies that throng the Hamble and nearby honeypots. Almost all of them have dozens of 'suits' of foul-weather clothing, comprising their 'for hire' wardrobes from last year.

They sell this stuff off ahead of next year's branded stuff arriving and needing handing space. It's nearly always high-quality gear, almost never worn. Check 'em out - give 'em a ring!

I have had a suit of tough, very weatherproof 'foulies' I got from a charter co. at QAB/Plymouth for nearly 10 years now, which had never been worn...... and which cost me £80.
 
Bought my Henri Lloyd Ocean Racers back in the late 80s. Eyewatering money. [ 700 quid ?? ] But they are still keeping me warm and dry on the now rare occasions they get dragged out of the locker. I reckon top quality foulies are a good investment.

Mind you I don't need them much in the Eastern Carib nearly always just T shirt and shorts and I have a good dodger and bimini for when it rains.
 
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thecommander said:
As you will have gathered from my other threads, I'm quite new to this sailing malarkey so please forgive me.

SWMBO and I popped into Force4 today to have a look at their clothing gear as we particularly need jackets and trousers/ salopettes. By christ we were shocked! 300 smackeroos for a jacket, 180 quid for a pair of trousers, 150 quid for a pair of welly boots. Times that by 2 and another mortgage might have to taken out just to pay for the clothing.

Do we need to pay this sort of money on branded (Gill, Musto, Henri Lloyd etc) sailing clothing or would a waterproof jacket and a pair of waterproof trousers from Decathlon or GoOutdoors suffice? SWMBO is very keen on buying some of these sailing brands - "I mean who would want to been seen in Cowes wearing a Tribord coat from Decathlon!". I get the feeling we may become the latest members of the all the gear, no idea club!

Are these sailing brands worth the money despite the high outlay, in other words are they value for money?

I must add, we intend to do all year round coastal sailing in the Solent.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Fully agree with the Decathlon, Guy Cotten, Mountain Warehouse approach. Your wife may well appreciate ladies (drop seat) salopettes though...
 
You'll quickly appreciate the functionality of good quality non-sweating oilies when you're ready for longer passages beyond the Solent - mine were already 5 year old high-end Mustos when I got them 2nd hand 9 years ago, but still excellent. I've recently added relatively inexpensive SLAM breathable overtrousers for most sailing conditions - reinforced where needed but easier to get on/off for when you need to leak or jettison ballast.

What you wear underneath is entirely up to you. I personally can't be earsed with the so-called technical layer carp. In cold weather I wear wool - the original hi-tech supertextile, never beaten for warmth even when wet. My mud-brown sleeveless fleece cost £15 in the local streetmarket.

With incipient arthritis in my ankle, I like goretex-lined leather seaboots (wellies slip on my decks), worn over thick100% wool socks. Non-slip deck shoes are also necessary, but their expensive soles wear quickly on pavements, so I just don ordinarily footwear for runs ahore.

So, its pick-and-mix for me, avoid false economies, and stamp your own identity over the whole setup by wearing a bone through your nose.

:)
 
Tribord from decathlon is not bad stuff. You're not going Volvo ocean racing and I wouldn't care what everyone else is wearing
 
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