Pakamac

I think Peter is entirely correct but I think the aversion to Pakamacs extands to the now older generation too. Maybe they were derided for wearing a plastic mac or just want to fit in with the younger generation. Seeing the adverts for rainwear in the 40s, 50s 60s was possibly something that people of my generation would rebel against. I have experienced that myself, but it didn't put me off. I personally embrace my love of Pakamacs but I think others of my age are either frightened, embarrased or just too boring.

In response to Susan"s question...is there no interest

My personal opinion is...particularly with the younger generation it isn"t "cool" (if that is the right word) to be seen in a mac...irrespective what kind of mac it is

I have been a mac "enthusiast" for more years than I care too admit to and like many others have noticed the decline in those who wear macs and the amount of stores selling them

Me...I regularly wear my mac irrespective if it is raining or not...Why should it have too rain before we wear something that gives us undescribable pleasure

Like many others I say good job we have sites like ebay and yes there are bargains to be had

My latest purchase was a nylon mac(Trenchcoat style) oin Salmon Pink...price £1.99...the pstage cost more than the mac...the label was C & A...and that brings back fond memories too many who bought macs from them...all individually on hangers

There are many who see someone in a mac and inwardly think they would love too wear one but so afraid what others might say

Me...I have worn macs too long now too worry what others say or even think

I drove miles and miles today in the rain and didn't see another person in a pakamac. Is there no interest?

Shona how did the cruise go get in touch please old rascal

If all Mothers were like Anna we could put the Great back into Britain.

I can't help but agree with John-Paul. Where have all those Pakamacs that were sold gone? Good for you and your companions to have worn plastic pakamacs in public. Sometimes I feel that I am the only one going out in one albeit more often than not a nylon one, since my plastic macs are quite precious.
Judging by the bids I see for various mac items on ebay, there must still be a healthy demand for them but I think people will actually have put them on in public to generate a revival.
Wear your Pakamac with pride.

Public Pakamac Pleasures!. Last Sunday there was an open air
Concert by Elton John here in Shrewsbury.... and it poured with rain all day... SO... WHAT to wear ? I hear you all ask...
The answer, of course, as one of my "Genuine Plastic Pakamacs"... with two others lent to my Concert going friends.
Now its a long time since I wore a Pakamac "in public".. usually slipped on for relativly isolated country walks .. but on this occasion my confidence was considerably boosted by my two plastic mac wearing companions.
What was absolutly fascinating was the reactions we got... a LOT of curious staring but by the end of the evening ( and it did actually stop raining, we had been asked about our Pakamacs by twelve people!! "Where did you get them" being the most common question, then a few "Oh I used to have one just like that's". It was a fascinating experiance.Three chaps felt the need to touch them... with the jolly line "Oh I havnt seen one of these for years" as the justification!.
So the moral of this tale is WEAR YOUR PLASTIC MACS OUT!! WEAR THEM WITH PRIDE !!..... and the wish would be... WHY doesnt some manufacturer reintroduce these splendid mackintoshes!!. THe experience also raises the age old question .. WHERE have ALL the THOUSANDS of PLASTIC PAKAMACS that were made GONE??

Anna its good to hear you and your son wearing your macs to Church I just got back from the USA macs are thin on the ground there you sound a wonderful lady keep up the good work.

Well the weather in the Uk has been absolutely awful today, wet and windy, but mild. But perfect pakamac wearing weather, although my son probably didnt agree. He wore his to church and back, and was bone dry at the end of the walk both ways. Not something you could say if he'd been wearing an anorak or cagoule, I daresay

your on Brian, next time I leave sunny Australia for Old Blightey, I will come to Wiggan.
If you love the place enough to run this site, then it will be worth a look.
Cheers
Norman

Thanks for your comment Norman. Glad we clarified things by email. If you visit Wigan I'll buy you a pint.

I would just like to thank the administrator of HistoryWorld for clearing up a matter regarding this site.
I will no longer be posting here for various reasons,one being that this is a very public forum and this should be kept in mind when leaving Email adresses and so on.
Brian you are all right by me and all is forgiven. keep up the good work with HistoryWorld.

Message for Norman: I couldn't add your message for various reasons including swearing. Feel free to email me to clarify your post, brian@wiganworld.co.uk, thanks.

I think the availability of nylon macs here in the UK is getting somewhat worrying

A lady on ebay...trades as Susie High regularly had a wide variety of nylon macs for sale but recently her stock has vanished...now all she seems too have on offer is Plastic and PVC

But I must admit there are still a few come up on ebay like the red Trenchcoat style nylon mac I got for £1.99

I think the rainydays Macs were about 12 Pounds (Sorry no pounds symbol on my keyboard). They come in grey and blue only. I was just supprised that you could get a Mac like that straight out of the packet still. Most of my stuff has been used because of the total unervalability of new Macs in Australia. And even Vintage Macs are getting harder to find.
No chance of buying a Mac on the High Street here.

There is a shop in Midhurst.West Sussex called Rainmac who do some nice nylon macs but they don"t come cheap...I think they are about £39.00 each although you are paying for a thicker quality nylon mac

Are there any shop on the high street that sells nylon macs or have you got to buy online .

Indeed there are some bargains on ebay...I was lucky enough too win a gorgeous Trench style nylon mac in red...price £1.99

Just in case anyone is interested, there's a large 100% nylon mac on e-bay starting at 99p!

Just incase anybody is interested I discovered a shop on EBay called tshirts4fans.I found them under the listings for kalgool.
I purchased two long raincoats (Knee Length) from them in the Pakamac style.
The add said they were Polyester, but too my surprise when I got them they were Nylon.
The manufacturer is Rainydays and I got a blue one and a Grey one.
So have a look and tell me what you think. Like I said, they were a lot better than I thought they would be and isn't it nice pulling a traditional nylon mac straight out of the packaging for the first time.
I have no idea how waterproof they are, but they look and feel grrrrrrrrrreat. (O:

thank you Anna sounds like very good advice.

hello gareth - A good dose of sensible traditional discipline usually helps

On reading Brian"s comments as regards nylon macs...I have been a nylon mac enthusiast for many years and know the thrill one can achieve wearing one but how many times do we see anyone else in a nylon mac?

On Sunday with nothing planned I thought a walk into town just to browse...no plans too buy

No rain but quite a cooling wind so I thought the ideal opportunity too wear my nylon mac

In front of me was a lady in a.....red nylon mac...a lady in her early 60"s and indeed it was a joy too see someone else in a nylon mac

Too many mac enthusiasts and there are a lot out there nylon macs are the bottom of the popularity list but for me the rustle....the feel of it..just the thought of wearing it whatever the weather is a must for me

Some more wonderful news. I have ordered two more male navy nylon macs, fully styled, which will be ideal for outdoor macking this summer. The retailer describes them as "very rustly when worn", so you can imagine my excitement. I hope they will inspire me to write many more contributions to this wonderful website. Thanks to Susan's persuasive enthusiasm, I am loving male nylon macs as much as I do male plastic Pakamacs. Indeed, I am wearing one of my beloved Stay Dry mackintoshes as I write this, all lightweight, swishy and rustly.
Susan, I am in the process of writing another e mail which I hope to despatch within the next few days. It would be really lovely to go mackintosh-shopping together at Weathervain, sometime, but do I wear a plastic mac or a nylon mac when we meet? Something for you to think about before I contact you again!
Thank heavens for this wonderful website and the ability to share so many waterproof thoughts, emotions and experiences. There are some really fantastic people here, all united by the basic Pakamac idea. I never thought those sessions in the boy's school cloakroom, trying on as many boy's plastic macs as possible, would lead to anything as lovely and lasting as this......

Anna you must be a great Mother how do you get him to wear it if he dislikes so much email me and tell me how please Gareth.

Two more brands of nylon mac are worthy of note, both retailed by Rackham’s, Birmingham(now House of Fraser) in the 70s and 80s. I do hope you are reading this, Susan, as our mutual love of plastic and nylon macs is growing with every e-mail. Thank you for every one of them and I will be responding to your latest message as soon as I have finished this one(Yes, I did receive it!)
“Stourmac” of Queenborough, in Kent, were particularly beautiful. I remember going into Rackham’s girl’s schoolwear department, and seeing an array of smooth, lustrous, lightweight, girl’s nylon mackintoshes in both navy and brown. However, the way in which the fluorescent lighting impinged on the brown macs made them appear greyish, and almost plastic-like, and, for a moment, I thought they were genuine Pakamacs. These Stourmacs were lovely, and had a shiny cire inner proofing. One or two girls provocatively wore their nylon macs inside out with this shiny proofing facing outwards, unbuttoned, of course. They were also beautifully rustly and pulsated with many folds when the girls walked along wearing their nylon macs. The macs also appeared in a golden-brown colour, again designed for girl’s school uniforms. However, there were adult’s sizes too, and these have been known to turn up on e-bay. I vividly remember seeing a young lady, in her thirties perhaps, wearing a navy nylon mackintosh, glistening in the sun. What identified it as a Stourmac was the very wide sexy collar, and, indeed, these macs bore that mark of real quality in the best Pakamac traditions. And they rolled up to a really small size
And then there was “Graham” of Manchester, although I only ever saw these in girl’s sizes. There was a lovely range of colours-navy(of course!), dark green, brown, beige and grey. Unlike Stourmacs, these were hooded(and both brands were belted). It was whilst dealing with these Graham macs that one of the lady sales staff twigged on to my interest in rainwear-and she accepted it without question. She would have been a marvellous with whom to share my interest, but-yes, you’ve guessed it!-she was MARRIED!!

Anna nice to hear that he is a lucky boy.

Gareth - Yes we do, invaluable at this time of the year when a sudden downpour can suddenly appear. He doesnt like wearing it at all but its a very practical coat, and keeps him dry when needed

I have just discovered this site by sheer accident and reading many of the comments it really brings back wonderful memories of days gone by when everyone...from adults to little ones wore macs

I have been a mac enthusiast for many years...my preference like many is macs designed for ladies

Nylon macs for me are the tops although I suppose I am an all rounder when it comes to macs loving all kinds

Do any others ever wear them indoors..I am lucky...on my own since 1999 after 25 years of marriage I wear them all day every day unless I have to go out then as soon as I get home off with my gent"s mac and on with my ladies ones

Anna are you and your son still wearing your macs.