Barbour Waxed Coats?

I've been hearing good things about these coats for a long time, but have never got around to trying one out. I know several members have them and was hoping for some opinions about favorite models and so forth.


I know the Beaufort is popular and the Bedale which is a bit shorter. I am fairly tall (a bit over 6'2") so I am leaning towards the longer Beaufort. There is an Orvis store nearby that I will probably go to for "trying on" purposes.

Any experiences or impressions about the Barbour line of coats are appreciated.

Cmaster03 said:

I've been hearing good things about these coats for a long time, but have never got around to trying one out. I know several members have them and was hoping for some opinions about favorite models and so forth.


I know the Beaufort is popular and the Bedale which is a bit shorter. I am fairly tall (a bit over 6'2") so I am leaning towards the longer Beaufort. There is an Orvis store nearby that I will probably go to for "trying on" purposes.

Any experiences or impressions about the Barbour line of coats are appreciated.

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What activities will you be doing in the garment?

If its going to be used in the field its important to get one that will work.
Also the light weight range and the heavyweight range are quite different.

The Boarder and the Northumbria are a good example of the same pattern with different fabric.

Good point, Jim. I should have said what I was going to do with it.

As far as use, I suppose it would be a general 'walking around town' coat. I don't hunt that much anymore, and when I do I have other clothes for that.

I do see myself also using it for some outdoor activities when they come up, but not really as a dedicated hunting coat, if that makes sense. Might change my mind if I really love it.

Mostly I'm a jacket/coat junkie looking for a new fix.

Cmaster03 said:

Good point, Jim. I should have said what I was going to do with it.

As far as use, I suppose it would be a general 'walking around town' coat. I don't hunt that much anymore, and when I do I have other clothes for that.

I do see myself also using it for some outdoor activities when they come up, but not really as a dedicated hunting coat, if that makes sense. Might change my mind if I really love it.

Mostly I'm a jacket/coat junkie looking for a new fix.

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Get what comfortable then, leave lots of room for the zip in liner and a sweater to extend its usefulness.

I prefer the heavyweight versions they seem to last much longer for me.

They look quite similar to the Australian Driza-Bone jackets. I had a look at a Barbour one, which I found in a second hand store, and it looked pretty good. I didn't buy it though, because I already have a Driza-Bone Brumby jacket that lives in my car and it seems a bit more solidly made.

As Jim said, it really depends what you want to do with the jacket. If it involves working outdoors and things where the jacket is going to get treated roughly, I'd get the Driza-Bone. It might also be a bit cheaper, but you'd have to check the prices locally.

http://www.drizabone.com.au/store.asp?pr=15&ban=M&store=Mens-p-1-c-1250

Thanks gents, great information and just what I was looking for. Please keep it coming.

Very interesting info about the Driza-Bone jackets. New one on me, but that Brumby looks good. Thank you, sir.

Jim, I was leaning towards the heavier coats anyway, now even more so. Thanks for the tip.

Cmaster03 said:

Thanks gents, great information and just what I was looking for. Please keep it coming.

Very interesting info about the Driza-Bone jackets. New one on me, but that Brumby looks good. Thank you, sir.

Jim, I was leaning towards the heavier coats anyway, now even more so. Thanks for the tip.

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Driza-Bone is one of the three brands of bush gear that real Australians actually wear (and swear by, and would accept no substitutes for.) Pretty much any Aussie who does, or has ever had a job working in the country outdoors has at least one. (More often than not the long riding coat, although you look like you just stepped off a bus if you wear that in the city.)

The other two brands are Akubra hats and RM Williams boots. All three are worth paying the extra for, as they last forever, and only get better with age.

legion said:

Driza-Bone is one of the three brands of bush gear that real Australians actually wear (and swear by, and would accept no substitutes for.) Pretty much any Aussie who does, or has ever had a job working in the country outdoors has at least one. (More often than not the long riding coat, although you look like you just stepped off a bus if you wear that in the city.)

The other two brands are Akubra hats and RM Williams boots. All three are worth paying the extra for, as they last forever, and only get better with age.

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Ahh, I see. In this country it sounds like the analogy might be to Carhartt, a coat actually used outdoors by working men.

Been meaning to try an Akubra hat for a while also. Now I s'pose I'll have to look at the RM Williams boots, too.

I have both Beaufort and Northumbria. The Beaufort is a great working coat, the Northumbria has a light wool liner and is a good rainy day coat.
I have had the Beaufort since 1991, a perfect coat for its weight.

In the Southern US I found the thin Beufort incredibly useful. Warm or layer up underneath in the winter. I've hunted in mine alot and worn it over a blue blazer in a tie.

You have to wax it though and do maintenance or it will wear thin and get holes. That was a hard lesson the learn, but their customer support is great and they fixed up a 10 year old jacket.

The price bothers me, but I've gotten tons of wear from mine.

I've worn a Driza-bone for 16 years and with rewaxing every few years it only looks better and performs as well as when I first got it. Mine has a zip/snap in real sheepskin liner which makes it incredibly versatile. Be sure to size it to your needs-over a sweater with the liner, over a sport coat etc. It is a heavy coat esp after waxing but you really feel protected in it. I simply hose it down outside in the summer, mayby use a wet sponge and let it dry in the sun, inside out and outside out. For rewaxing I let the jacket heat up in the sun along with the can of wax on a sunny day to liquify it and use a paint brush, working it into the coat. Let cool off in the shade but still outside (on a hot day) to let the wax really soak in. It dries with that wonderful feel.

I have two Barbours, a Border Jacket I bought in the late 1980's, so this is now about 22 or 23 years old, and I still wear it. Has a few hole on the sleeves where the material had creases and folds, but it is still my #1 jacket for going fishing in crappy weather. The second is a Bedale, I wear here when it rains in the fall and spring. Its shorter, so it is better when I drive.

I have a Border jacket as my casual November-March jacket in Chicago. It's a wonderful jacket and one that I could never live without. BTW, I'm 6'1" and the extra length is perfect.

+1 on the Border. It's great for the wet & wild weather we get in LA once a year. But I do wear it when on business in NYC or Chicago rather than my cashmere greatcoat (which has brought me no luck at Christie's or Sothebys anyways). Buy the hood too, it's great.

For full disclosure, my standby jacket for about 15 years was the old Bean field coat. I smuggled much booze in its game pocket into movies and parties during college. Barbour is higher quality imo, but it would be harder to put a handle of Tanqueray + 1 or 2 bottles of tonic in the Border's game pockets, as I did many times in the Bean. Barbour's pockets are more suited to Basil Hayden or Eagle Rare, and, now, so am I.

furious1 said:

+1 on the Border. It's great for the wet & wild weather we get in LA once a year. But I do wear it when on business in NYC or Chicago rather than my cashmere greatcoat (which has brought me no luck at Christie's or Sothebys anyways). Buy the hood too, it's great.

For full disclosure, my standby jacket for about 15 years was the old Bean field coat. I smuggled much booze in its game pocket into movies and parties during college. Barbour is higher quality imo, but it would be harder to put a handle of Tanqueray + 1 or 2 bottles of tonic in the Border's game pockets, as I did many times in the Bean. Barbour's pockets are more suited to Basil Hayden or Eagle Rare, and, now, so am I.

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Dude, is your avatar Nick Cave?

furious1 said:

For full disclosure, my standby jacket for about 15 years was the old Bean field coat. I smuggled much booze in its game pocket into movies and parties during college. Barbour is higher quality imo, but it would be harder to put a handle of Tanqueray + 1 or 2 bottles of tonic in the Border's game pockets, as I did many times in the Bean. Barbour's pockets are more suited to Basil Hayden or Eagle Rare, and, now, so am I.

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Now that, sir, is what I call useful information. Aside from preferring scotch to the excellent bourbons you mentioned, you're obviously a man after my own heart. I also have a lightweight Bean barn coat that is a very nice jacket in fact.

Looking seriously at the Border now. (Must be something with a big hidden game pocket anyway.)

I've got something similar to a Barbour, but mine's by Hoggs Of Fife...a fraction of the price and it's what the farmers and gamekeepers wear here (which is a pretty good recommendation given the weather in Scotland).

Go for a jacket that hangs below your hips. If it's properly maintained and waxed, any rain will run straight off...if it's too short you'll end up with very wet legs! Similarly, make sure the sleeves are long enough.

Generally all waxed jackets look better with a bit of wear...feel free to lay your new jacket on a muddy track and drive over it with a Land Rover, it will look a bit more "lived in"

Pumpkin said:

I've got something similar to a Barbour, but mine's by Hoggs Of Fife...a fraction of the price and it's what the farmers and gamekeepers wear here (which is a pretty good recommendation given the weather in Scotland).

Go for a jacket that hangs below your hips. If it's properly maintained and waxed, any rain will run straight off...if it's too short you'll end up with very wet legs! Similarly, make sure the sleeves are long enough.

Generally all waxed jackets look better with a bit of wear...feel free to lay your new jacket on a muddy track and drive over it with a Land Rover, it will look a bit more "lived in"

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Thanks for the great tip, Peter. I just looked at a vendor's site in Scotland and they appeared to have a very nice and serviceable waxed cotton coat for fifty pounds...very tempting.

God bless the internet. Thanks my friend for another wonderful option I had not heard of before today.

I have a Beaufort that is at least 20+ years old. Great cool weather walking around, rainy day, windy, crappy day coat. I find if I do too much work when wearing it I tend to get hot pretty quickly with the waxed fab. Every year or two send it to Barbour with $35 and they will rewax and repair any problems and it will come back looking good as new.

I have a Border, purchased 16 years ago in London, I think at Marks and Spencer. I don't remember the price being nearly as high as I see advertised now, but even at the current U.S. asking price, it's one great coat. I like the length and wear it fall, winter and spring here in Dallas, especially with a threat of rain. And best of all, the more you wear it, the better it looks. Every bump and scar gives it even more character.

I also have a couple of Driz-a-Bone items -- a baseball cap, again, wonderful on a damp day, and a zip vest that's perfect over a sweater or fleece. Equally durable.

Now, as for that Scottish line, I think it's time to take a closer look ...