3 ms·

I would love to see a return of waxed canvas as an outer shell material.

interroboink 4y ago
I enjoy my Driza-Bone coat — has been going strong for about 8 years now; just re-proofed it. Oil/wax-impregnated cotton is also easily repairable, unlike fancier materials. It is a bit on the heavy side, though. Not really good for sports/cycling/etc, I wouldn't imagine. Also gets a bit ratty/threadbare wherever it gets repeatedly creased and un-creased. But it really does work, and is long-lasting. I had previously been buying a new raincoat every few years due to some tiny crack in the waterproof layer that can't be easily fixed.
giraffe_lady 4y ago
This is what I use because I've had it forever and it's cheap. It's heavy and high maintenance though. And if you're in wet conditions for hours it'll soak up a ton of water and just get even heavier, and take forever to dry. There's probably no perfect solution here but this definitely isn't a direct replacement, though sure it's practical for a lot of applications.
japanuspus 4y ago
Fjällräven is a very well-established Swedish brand that makes exactly this, and even have their own brand of wax. As far as I know, none of their products have any synthetic membranes. Here in Denmark, "Fjällräven" is a household name to the point that it can be used to refer to their small backpack model. [0]: https://www.fjallraven.com/ https://www.fjallraven.com/
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- drewm1980 4y ago
  Their waterproofing wax is a mix of paraffin and bee wax. So if the whole point is to avoid petrochemicals or avoid animal products, this isn't a solution. Perhaps soy wax could be used for this...
  - hackernewds 4y ago
    You either accept natural products (beeswax) or accept unnatural products (pfoas). what's the alternative?
    - ehnto 4y ago
      Get a little wet sometimes I guess. At least if we use beeswax we can approach it sustainably, filling the world with microplastics doesn't seem like a sustainable thing to be doing.
  - hardnose 4y ago
    A combination of beeswax and microcrystalline wax (made from petrolatum) works the best, but beeswax alone will provide fine water repellency, just slightly less durability and ease of application.
Lio 4y ago
You mean like Barbour jackets? They never went away. ;) https://www.barbour.com https://www.barbour.com

I enjoy my Driza-Bone coat — has been going strong for about 8 years now; just re-proofed it. Oil/wax-impregnated cotton is also easily repairable, unlike fancier materials. It is a bit on the heavy side, though. Not really good for sports/cycling/etc, I wouldn't imagine. Also gets a bit ratty/threadbare wherever it gets repeatedly creased and un-creased. But it really does work, and is long-lasting. I had previously been buying a new raincoat every few years due to some tiny crack in the waterproof layer that can't be easily fixed.

giraffe_lady 4y ago

This is what I use because I've had it forever and it's cheap. It's heavy and high maintenance though. And if you're in wet conditions for hours it'll soak up a ton of water and just get even heavier, and take forever to dry. There's probably no perfect solution here but this definitely isn't a direct replacement, though sure it's practical for a lot of applications.

japanuspus 4y ago

Fjällräven is a very well-established Swedish brand that makes exactly this, and even have their own brand of wax. As far as I know, none of their products have any synthetic membranes. Here in Denmark, "Fjällräven" is a household name to the point that it can be used to refer to their small backpack model. [0]: https://www.fjallraven.com/ https://www.fjallraven.com/

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
drewm1980 4y ago
Their waterproofing wax is a mix of paraffin and bee wax. So if the whole point is to avoid petrochemicals or avoid animal products, this isn't a solution. Perhaps soy wax could be used for this...
- hackernewds 4y ago
  You either accept natural products (beeswax) or accept unnatural products (pfoas). what's the alternative?
  - ehnto 4y ago
    Get a little wet sometimes I guess. At least if we use beeswax we can approach it sustainably, filling the world with microplastics doesn't seem like a sustainable thing to be doing.
- hardnose 4y ago
  A combination of beeswax and microcrystalline wax (made from petrolatum) works the best, but beeswax alone will provide fine water repellency, just slightly less durability and ease of application.

Lio 4y ago

You mean like Barbour jackets? They never went away. ;) https://www.barbour.com https://www.barbour.com