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Technical Clothing vs Hunting Clothing

justsomedude

justsomedude

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 10, 2014
Messages
2,514
Location
Nashville, TN
I have an ASAT leafy suit as well as a Leafy poncho. I buy plaids/earth tones in clothing but don't put emphasis on it being camo. I own a good bit of wool.

Has any one gotten to compare Sitka or KUII to Technical clothing like Marmot, Northface, REI, Kuhl?
I have a Sitka pack so I am familiar with that material. I mainly wonder about the noise factor of some of the technical hunting stuff.

I have a nice REI Polartec tight fitting jacket that I can layer over merino wool and wear under a wind block vest and the sleeves don't get in the way. I also have a fairly slim fitting softshell insulated jacket that can go over the polartec and I can still shoot comfortably and don't feel like I am wearing an Astronaut suit.

I just got some Softshell insulated snow pants at a local outlet for $15. Very quiet for snow pants but not as quiet as wool of course...but in WIND, I will be happy to have them.

I also have some Windstop Fleece lined soft shell pants that stretch..are warm and were $30. They are a little bit shiny but I haven't washed them or gotten them dirty yet.
 
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I wore a helly Hansen snowboarding jacket and black carhardt bibs hunting last night. I had more than a dozen deer directly under my tree and within 20yds. I was happy that I was comfortable in the cold.

As long as I didn't move it was great. That gear is noisy. It's rifle season though. Staying warm in 40mph wind and 20 degree temps was priority.
 
It's so hard to find things to compare all at the same place.
I've heard people complain that the Sitka gear that is so good for elk hunting does not keep you warm sitting on stand which of course makes sense.
 
I have compiled all kinds of gear hunting, fishing, hiking, snowboarding, and work. I use them interchangeably. As long as it fits comfortably and can handle the situation I'll use it.

Example, I wear Solomon backpacking boots on my hunt out west because I know they are the best suited for my feet and that environment.

Like you said, noise is the only problem I run into with using technical gear.
 
Sitka took a cue out of the mountaineering industries book with how it approaches material in it's hunting garments: Synthetic materials, true layering sizes, etc. and applied it to hunting.

What garments you should be wearing depends entirely on the type of hunting you are doing. Are you a still hunting who stalks game slowly and methodically through hardwoods, open timber, fields, and pasture? Or are you an ambush style hunter hanging from a saddle or tree stand? Both of them require different strategies for the type of clothing you will wear.

More active hunters can get away with layers that are more lightweight because their body is actively generating heat. Guys hunting treestands want bulkier, heavier insulation that traps warm air closer to the body, helping them stay warm on stand.

But if you examine mountaineering clothing you will find that there are wholly different considerations for guys who are hiking to the top of Mt. Everest and guys who are wanting to sit in a tree for 4 hours at a time. Of course you can use technical clothing that weren't made exactly for hunting - there's nobody from stopping you from doing so. But a lot of that clothing is made without any consideration for a hunters needs i.e: quiet. However I don't think you will find much of a price difference between the high-end technical/mounteering brands and high-end hunting clothing.

Gone are days of heavy cotton and bulky wool for hunting though. IMO technical clothing for hunting is one of the best things to happen to the industry in the last 10 years.
 
I wear both. I have a lot of technical hiking stuff and there's no reason not to include it in my hunting lineup. As long as it's clean, scent free, and layered under camo, I'll use it.
 
There is some merit to the technical stuff. I have some Kuiu that I must admit is very nice. It is not, however, designed to sit still in for long periods at cool temps. It's for moving a lot and regulating body temp. Where these products shine is the material weave. I swear I can wear my half zip during a spring rain storm and water just beads up......the whole time I somehow stay dry. No claminess at all. The built in knee pads on the pants are a nice touch too. Big sale on Black Friday.
 
The only technical garment I think I own is my merina wool base layer. Other than that I'm a BIG fan of fleese. I wear heavy weight fleese PJs over my base layer when it gets really cold. As for my upper I have a the bass pro windproof 1856 jacket, Walmart fleese Mossy Oak, polyester t-shirt, and marina wool baselayer. I have a friend who hunts in mostly carharts though and he sees a ton of deer.
 
I just bought a pair of Cabela's Wooltimate wind shear pants used. Supposedly lighter than my Columbia wool and a blend of wool and tech fabric.
Will be interesting
 
The reason I prefer technical mid/insulating layers is they're typically lighter, less bulky, and more packable than comparable hunting gear. A lightweight down puffy jacket from any of the major outdoor retailers (Patagonia, The North Face, Black Diamond, etc.) will keep you VERY warm when layered over a good base layer and under a good outer layer. Plus they pack down so small, they don't take up much room in your pack. My Patagonia Nano Puff packs down to the size of an orange and is warmer than most big jackets. Try doing that with fleece...not. gonna. happen.

My favorite mid layer is my Stoic Hadron Down Sweater. It's got 850 goose down, is crazy warm, and only weighs 7 oz. I layer it under a mid-weight camo jacket.
 
g2outdoors said:
The reason I prefer technical mid/insulating layers is they're typically lighter, less bulky, and more packable than comparable hunting gear. A lightweight down puffy jacket from any of the major outdoor retailers (Patagonia, The North Face, Black Diamond, etc.) will keep you VERY warm when layered over a good base layer and under a good outer layer. Plus they pack down so small, they don't take up much room in your pack. My Patagonia Nano Puff packs down to the size of an orange and is warmer than most big jackets. Try doing that with fleece...not. gonna. happen.

My favorite mid layer is my Stoic Hadron Down Sweater. It's got 850 goose down, is crazy warm, and only weighs 7 oz. I layer it under a mid-weight camo jacket.
Click to expand...

I have a patagonia nano air vest that's super lightweight and amazingly warm that I got from a startup I work for. But that sucker wasn't cheap - $200 bones... but it sure is nice!
 
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