Charles River Apparel New Englander Rain Jacket VS Watertown Rain Jacket
Picking a rain jacket can be tricky – especially if you are buying it online. In this article, I want to review the Men’s New Englander Rain Jacket vs the Men’s Watertown Rain Jacket. I’ve owned both for a while now and like them both. However, both jackets are designed differently and as a result, will most likely be used differently.
Both jackets are black and size small so the comparison should be true representation for the review.
Note: I wrote a specific article/review of the New Englander 9199 which you can read HERE.
When comparing the two jackets we will look at the following features of each jacket.
1- Body Design
2- Hoodie
3- Cuffs
4- Color Options
5- Sizes
Men’s New Englander 9199
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Men’s Watertown 9680
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9199 Body Design:The body is designed with a slightly wider and straighter design around the chest and abdomen area. This is helpful for when you need to have extra layering added under the jacket. In fact, when I wore this jacket fishing in the snow/rain I was able to add a few layers under the jacket without making the jacket feel poufy or tight. Yet, I have worn this jacket several times without any layers underneath. There are drawstrings located near the inner-bottom of the jacket that allow you to tighten the jacket around your body. The jackets inner lining is a mesh material that is soft, comfortable and allows for greater ventilation to prevent overheating. There are also two large vents located in the front chest area and two armpit holes/vents. The jacket has a 1” inch reflective strip that runs along the back of the jacket and a thin ¼ reflective strip that runs along the front chest. The pockets for the hands are lined with a warmer material to keep your hand warm. The zippers are not waterproof but they do have an extended “flap” that covers the zippers so they don’t get wet in the rain. |
9680 Body Design:The body design of the Watertown 9680 is more slimming and form-fitting. If you are planning on adding layers or have a belly then I would not recommend this jacket. The design is more of a summer jacket design. Lightweight and extremely compact for easy travel. There is no mesh lining. In fact, the jacket only has one layer which is 100% Nylon Rip-stop laminate. The jacket isn’t designed with any ventilation features. So, if you need to cool down or let some air out then you need to unzip the jacket. If you find that the form-fitting design doesn’t snug around you as well as you would like, you can tighten the brim of the jacket by pulling the drawstrings tighter around you which is located near the inner-bottom of the jacket. The pockets for the hands are lined with a warmer material with coated waterproof zippers to keep your valuables dry. |
9199 Hoodie:The hoodie features a three-piece hoodie design which allows for the hoodie to sit more comfortably around the wearer’s head. If the wind is blowing hard or the rain is really coming down, you can simply pull the hoodie drawstrings (located at the bottom of the hoodie near the chin) tight around your face. |
9680 Hoodie:The hoodie, like the new Englander rain jacket, features a three-piece hoodie design which allows for the hoodie to sit more comfortably around the wearer’s head. If the wind is blowing hard or the rain is really coming down, you can simply pull the hoodie drawstrings (located at the bottom of the hoodie near the chin) tight around your face. |
9199 Cuffs:The cuffs are designed with a simple adjustable Velcro strap around the wrist. |
9680 Cuffs:The cuffs are designed with both an adjustable Velcro strap and an elastic band that allows for the cuffs to fit more tightly around the wrist. |
9199 Color Options:The New Englander has nine (9) different color options available, they are: |
9680 Color Options:There are only two color options available. |
9199 Sizes:
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9680 Sizes:XS, Small, Medium, Large, XL, 2XL, and 3XL. |
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I really like both of these jackets. They both fit well, look great and completely block out the wind and rain.
In my opinion, the New Englander is slightly more versatile and has more features like the vents and reflective strip and it comes with several more color options while the Watertown jacket is more classy. The Watertown has a sharp look and a form-fitting design making it perfect for an evening out or to wear to the office in either the black or the gray option.
