Taped and sealed seams
What are taped and sealed seams?
Waterproof tape heat-bonded over the stitch lines inside a garment. Without it, water walks straight through the needle holes.
Every stitch is a hole punched through a waterproof membrane. A jacket can be made of the best fabric available and still leak like a colander if the seams are left bare, which is exactly how cheap rain gear fails.
Fully taped means every seam is covered. Critically taped means only the seams most exposed to rain, usually the shoulders and hood, are done. Critically taped is a real cost saving and a real compromise.
Tape also fails with age. Delaminating tape shows as peeling strips inside the jacket and is not practically repairable, which is usually the end of that garment's waterproof life.
Heat and storage accelerate it. A jacket left folded in a hot car or stored damp will delaminate years earlier than one hung dry in a closet.
Turn a jacket inside out in the shop. You should see tape over every seam, not just the shoulders.
Where this comes up
The guides that use taped and sealed seams and show it on real gear.
Last reviewed . Taped and sealed seams is one of 222 terms in the fishing glossary.