Does anyone have any experience of whether wearing a reflective vest on top of a decent waterproof jacket affects it's performance.
Yes it does. I wore a Poundland reflective gilet in France last year, over a Goretex Paclite jacket that is usually waterproof enough for me, in a day of steady rain. It was definitely less waterproof with the gilet on top. ...........
I use an Altura reflective gilet, often over a Goretex jacket. I haven't noticed any dimninution of the jacket's waterproofedness as a consequence, although I confess that since the things tend in my experience not to be wholly waterproof in sustained rain anyway, I'd perhaps not notice!
The Altura gilet has a useful mesh pocket on the back which I find helpful when stopping in the dark, usually used briefly for gloves etc. whilst shopping, "getting comfortable" etc. It folds fairly small but not really "pocket size" - the reflective strips are plasticky and a bit stiff, although they will fold if you try hard enough. I usually carry it rolled and toe-strapped to the top of the Carradice. The material is fairly breathable and it has a good double action zip which doesn't jam. Although I take the point made above that ideally one would have something that didn't change the insulation of your existing clothing, in practice I find that the modest extra layer of the Altura gilet merely offsets the usual slight drop in temperature come nightfall; in other words, if I'm not overheating before dusk, I don't overheat after dusk as a consequence of putting the thing on!
I would wish to have something a little more stylish/less nerdish though!
