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When faced with bitter cold, wet conditions, like those found during waterfowl season – especially sea duck hunting – the key to staying warm is to stay dry and to layer up. With duck hunting that often means sporting a base layer and mid layer under neoprene waders – and that’s all it takes to keep the bottom half of your body warm and dry. Doing the same with the upper half has always been a matter of the right coat combined with the right layers – not always an easy thing to do.
Now, Stormr brand clothing has introduced an all-neoprene hunting coat called the Stealth. The company, a division of Henderson Sport Group, which has made wet suits for more than 50 years, came on the scene in 2012 and produced fishing-focused gear. They’ve since turned their attention to the hunting market and have produced the neoprene coat and a pair of bib overalls.
The coat features magnetic-closing cargo pockets on the front that supposedly hold a box of shells, Velcro-tightening cuffs, a drawstring hood, fleece-lined pockets, chest pockets with weatherproof zippers, interior cell phone pocket, call holders and a tether. It comes in Realtree Max-4.
With the company’s bib overalls or a pair of waders (the company is working toward making their own) in combination with the Stealth jacket, you can now be covered from head to toe in neoprene. It’s undeniable that short of going under, you’ll stay dry. You’ll also stay warm, even if sitting still (like in a layout blind) for hours.
What remains to be seen is the comfort (how does the neoprene move with a hunter, and if there are any gun-mounting issues), functionality (quickly grabbing shells from the cargo pockets) and the ability to regulate your temperature – the coat could be so warm as to cause you to sweat with too much exertion (walk-in hunters).
In addition to the coat and bibs, Stormr also makes the prerequisite decoy and gauntlet gloves and a neoprene watch cap for hunters – they’ve got some pretty cool items in their other lines, too (like a neoprene hoodie).
The coat retails for about $375 and the bibs go for about $350.