light, packable down pants?

[Macintosh]

I have a set of stand-hunting bibs that are quite warm, nice and quiet, etc, but they are extremely bulky. Thinking of keeping these for ice fishing and winter PRS matches, etc, and getting a pair of down pants. Something like the kuiu "super down ultra pant" (clearest the superest, most ultra down pants out there, judging by the name...). These would live in my pack most of the time and come out once at a stand, or while sitting in the AM or PM when rifle hunting. Has anyone used these or similar, and have any thoughts on noise of the fabric for archery hunting? Any other options I should check out?

 

[Plebe]

I have a set of stand-hunting bibs that are quite warm, nice and quiet, etc, but they are extremely bulky. Thinking of keeping these for ice fishing and winter PRS matches, etc, and getting a pair of down pants. Something like the kuiu "super down ultra pant" (clearest the superest, most ultra down pants out there, judging by the name...). These would live in my pack most of the time and come out once at a stand, or while sitting in the AM or PM when rifle hunting. Has anyone used these or similar, and have any thoughts on noise of the fabric for archery hunting? Any other options I should check out?

I had a good interest in these and went a different direction. Maybe someone who has personal experience with them can chime in.

My major hang up was wind resistance. Kuiu advertises this, but I don't see a material listed that truly stops wind.

As such, my impression is they are most aptly an insulating layer.

I have a jacket of theirs, Kenai maybe, that has stretch fabric that I believe is the same or similar to their Ultra Down series. It is dead quiet. That is an advantage of the Kuiu Down set over many alternative puffy clothes.

And while I still feel like I'd trust my life to synthetics in the most adverse conditions, quixdown is reasonably well regarded so far as hydrophobic downs go and has some warmth/weight advantages.

On a calm cold day, they might be the ticket.

 

[Vtbow]

Patagonia makes a nano puff synthetic and used to make the micro puff. Mountain hardware makes the ghost whisperer pants which are superb. I think Raab makes a good pair as well. These would be part of a layer systmem for sure. The micro puff could be worn by themself, and I think were full zip.

 

[Dcomer55]

I used the uncompagrhe pants from first lite - these would be most similar to the new Kuiu kenia pants. While the packability was awesome, the wind cuts right through them. They were supposed to be 100 grams of insulation, but certainly didn't feel all that warm.

Did not have any issues with noise

 

[Plebe]

Patagonia makes a nano puff synthetic and used to make the micro puff. Mountain hardware makes the ghost whisperer pants which are superb. I think Raab makes a good pair as well. These would be part of a layer systmem for sure. The micro puff could be worn by themself, and I think were full zip.

When I was researching insulating layers, the nano puff came up often.

I did buy a ghost whisperer jacket, and have never worn it. I kinda feel like it'd be ok underneath some fleece, but otherwise crinkly and shiny. Nevertheless, warm and can be folded into it's own pocket at least smaller than a softball.

Raab seemed to have the middle ground.

 

[Vtbow]

When I was researching insulating layers, the nano puff came up often.

I did buy a ghost whisperer jacket, and have never worn it. I kinda feel like it'd be ok underneath some fleece, but otherwise crinkly and shiny. Nevertheless, warm and can be folded into it's own pocket at least smaller than a softball.

Raab seemed to have the middle ground.

The old micropuff stuff was great, I've got a pullover micropuff jaceket. I opfent wear it under a shell as a mid layer, it is TOASTY! I like the full zip sides.

I"d agree on the ghost whisperer pants, if you wore them under a pair of chamois or saddle cloth pants they'd probably be ridiculously warm, but have the classic ripstop nylon draw backs...

 

[Macintosh]

yeah, I have plenty of lighter down jackets so I'm well acquainted with patagoinia, mtn hardwear, rab, mammut and similar stuff. Most are fairly "loud" fabrics. I'm not counting on them for wind proofness, if its that windy I will pull a wind layer on over it, but thats not an issue for my bow hunting. This would really be just for sitting still in stupidly cold weather, so also no problem with getting wet...any water is frozen at those temps and I sit on a little foam pad, so down being more packable than synthetic is fine by me. I also am not worried much about durability or sweating in it--they are all pretty fragile, but if I'm moving I wont want to be wearing these anyway.
I have a down jacket I like that packs into its own pocket, it's maybe the size of a small grapefruit on the "universal fruit size scale", I can wear it under a quieter jacket and pretty much get away with drawing my bow, but was wondering about these particular pants or other similar ones--wasnt sure if it was a fairly standard fabric compared to most outdoor down jackets, or if its different. I will probably try them anyway, I figure I wont make as much noise as drawing a bow with a deer 10 yards away as my jacket will since I dont move legs much in that case, and if nothing else I will certainly end up using them rifle hunting, just wondering if anyone has firsthand experience they can share.

 

[Vtbow]

yeah, I have plenty of lighter down jackets so I'm well acquainted with patagoinia, mtn hardwear, rab, mammut and similar stuff. Most are fairly "loud" fabrics. I'm not counting on them for wind proofness, if its that windy I will pull a wind layer on over it, but thats not an issue for my bow hunting. This would really be just for sitting still in stupidly cold weather, so also no problem with getting wet...any water is frozen at those temps and I sit on a little foam pad, so down being more packable than synthetic is fine by me. I also am not worried much about durability or sweating in it--they are all pretty fragile, but if I'm moving I wont want to be wearing these anyway.
I have a down jacket I like that packs into its own pocket, it's maybe the size of a small grapefruit on the "universal fruit size scale", I can wear it under a quieter jacket and pretty much get away with drawing my bow, but was wondering about these particular pants or other similar ones--wasnt sure if it was a fairly standard fabric compared to most outdoor down jackets, or if its different. I will probably try them anyway, I figure I wont make as much noise as drawing a bow with a deer 10 yards away as my jacket will since I dont move legs much in that case, and if nothing else I will certainly end up using them rifle hunting, just wondering if anyone has firsthand experience they can share.

I"ve got an old cabelas down "bomber" jacket that is like a light saddle cloth on the outside and nylon on the inside. Its crazy warm. I wear that with a pair of primaloft (redhead maybe?) bibs that are the same-ish soft material. they work great in the 10 degree and below temps for bow. I find the key a quiet down jacket is NO HOOD and a cotton trim around the neck, no stand up collar. If it's above 10 degrees, I sweat my butt off, even jus tsitting in them...

 

[Still Kicking]

I have the super down pro set and have used it as a mid layer as, in my opinion, it is too noisy for an outer layer at bow ranges. It is perfect for firearm outer layer and really easy to pack and put on once at the stand. It is warm and does stop a fair amount of wind but it don't cope well with much over 15MPH stuff.

 

[Still Kicking]

I think you would be okay with the pants as an outer layer if you didn't have to reposition for a shot at 30 yards or less. Just my thinking.

 

[Maverick1]

Down is a great insulating layer. Unfortunately it does not perform particularly well as an outer layer for hunting as most of the materials used in down garments are not particularly quiet.

Look into non-hunting brands for the highest value for your dollar. Kuiu down garments tend to rank near dead last in the amount of insulation per dollar, even when one considers the cute names they give things, such as the “stunner stretch crotch zips”.

 

[Stump06]

I caught some OR tradecraft pants on sale for $90. They're synthetic but really warm prolly not the quietest but I did kill a buck at 20 yds in them. Excellent cold weather saddle pants for the price

 

[raisins]

I have a set of stand-hunting bibs that are quite warm, nice and quiet, etc, but they are extremely bulky. Thinking of keeping these for ice fishing and winter PRS matches, etc, and getting a pair of down pants. Something like the kuiu "super down ultra pant" (clearest the superest, most ultra down pants out there, judging by the name...). These would live in my pack most of the time and come out once at a stand, or while sitting in the AM or PM when rifle hunting. Has anyone used these or similar, and have any thoughts on noise of the fabric for archery hunting? Any other options I should check out?

nah, get the pro

Super Down PRO Pant | Verde

The Super Down PRO Pants are purpose built for low-level activity when temperatures plunge. Sized to fit over your mid-layers and insulated with 3.2 oz of 850+FP Quixdown, they are our warmest down pants. Our down is treated with TORAY's DWR, so each individual down cluster is impervious to...

www.kuiu.com

i have these and almost got the lighter one, but i'm glad i didn't

i'm a gear hound, so i can see myself getting the lighter weight ones one day just in case they become useful for some reason

anyways, i put those and my down top layers in a sea to summit compression sack and carry them in

here's why i love those pants

i can walk in with base layer bottoms and ultralight bib overalls, even though they are just jean weight, the camo overalls keep everything together and wind not blasting up your backside

climb the tree with the saddle over the bibs

then pull out the kuiu down pants, they are full zip sides so you can either zip down half way top and bottom or fully unzip and put on like diaper, put them on right over your bibs and saddle without removing boots or anything

once adjusted, just the bridge of my saddle is sticking out

super warm and no sweat on the way in, one of the few things i've bought full price and not regretted

they aren't super quiet, but clothing noise (unless crazy) is a bit of nonissue (if you can barely hear it from 1 foot, then a deer can't hear it 10 yards away enough to be alarmed), and plus your upper body is what you move most when shooting....sound intensity drops with the square of the distance, so at 1 foot the sound is around 100 times more than at 10 feet

i never thought they were loud enough to cost me an animal...deer have better hearing than a human, but it is nothing compared to their nose

hiking companies make these also for way cheaper, but most are a noisier pure nylon shell and most don't completely unzip....they might unzip all the way to the hips but they don't disconnect fully if you want to do that

 

[Plebe]

nah, get the pro

Super Down PRO Pant | Verde

The Super Down PRO Pants are purpose built for low-level activity when temperatures plunge. Sized to fit over your mid-layers and insulated with 3.2 oz of 850+FP Quixdown, they are our warmest down pants. Our down is treated with TORAY's DWR, so each individual down cluster is impervious to...

www.kuiu.com

i have these and almost got the lighter one, but i'm glad i didn't

i'm a gear hound, so i can see myself getting the lighter weight ones one day just in case they become useful for some reason

anyways, i put those and my down top layers in a sea to summit compression sack and carry them in

here's why i love those pants

i can walk in with base layer bottoms and ultralight bib overalls, even though they are just jean weight, the camo overalls keep everything together and wind not blasting up your backside

climb the tree with the saddle over the bibs

then pull out the kuiu down pants, they are full zip sides so you can either zip down half way top and bottom or fully unzip and put on like diaper, put them on right over your bibs and saddle without removing boots or anything

once adjusted, just the bridge of my saddle is sticking out

super warm and no sweat on the way in, one of the few things i've bought full price and not regretted

they aren't super quiet, but clothing noise (unless crazy) is a bit of nonissue (if you can barely hear it from 1 foot, then a deer can't hear it 10 yards away enough to be alarmed), and plus your upper body is what you move most when shooting....sound intensity drops with the square of the distance, so at 1 foot the sound is around 100 times more than at 10 feet

i never thought they were loud enough to cost me an animal...deer have better hearing than a human, but it is nothing compared to their nose

hiking companies make these also for way cheaper, but most are a noisier pure nylon shell and most don't completely unzip....they might unzip all the way to the hips but they don't disconnect fully if you want to do that

I enjoyed your 1st hand review as informative, as well it made me think of Zoolander's walk off scene.

I'm going to have to take a look at my coat to see what fabric it is, but there's little doubt the Kuiu -eye roll- "stunner stretch" is going to outperform a lot of other gear in the noise catagory, including really great stuff, like for instance, Western Mountaineering.

 

[raisins]

I enjoyed your 1st hand review as informative, as well it made me think of Zoolander's walk off scene.

I'm going to have to take a look at my coat to see what fabric it is, but there's little doubt the Kuiu -eye roll- "stunner stretch" is going to outperform a lot of other gear in the noise catagory, including really great stuff, like for instance, Western Mountaineering.

now you have me watching that scene on youtube...8 minutes long

 

[Maverick1]

I caught some OR tradecraft pants on sale for $90. They're synthetic but really warm prolly not the quietest but I did kill a buck at 20 yds in them. Excellent cold weather saddle pants for the price

Yes, the Tradecraft pants WERE very nice. Primaloft gold insulation. They're discontinued.

 

[USMC5831]

I don’t have the zip off down pants, but will probably pick them up eventually. I don’t hunt much after Christmas, so LATE season is a bit of a non issue for me.
that being said, I have some zip off kuiu heavyweight merino wool bottoms, and absolutely love them. I can walk two miles, and not sweat up my base layer.
simply drop trou, boots still on, and add a heavy base layer. Makes a big difference to me when it’s 12 degrees out.

 

[raisins]

I don’t have the zip off down pants, but will probably pick them up eventually. I don’t hunt much after Christmas, so LATE season is a bit of a non issue for me.
that being said, I have some zip off kuiu heavyweight merino wool bottoms, and absolutely love them. I can walk two miles, and not sweat up my base layer.
simply drop trou, boots still on, and add a heavy base layer. Makes a big difference to me when it’s 12 degrees out.

attracts the does in estrous also.....

 

[Plebe]

attracts the does in estrous also.....

It's 12 degrees, lol.

 

[Weldabeast]

I don't know anything about puffy pants but whenever I am looking for specific piece of gear like u are I always look to see what surplus offers....liner pants are cheap...like 2 or 3 pairs for 15 bucks....they might be just as good quality as the name brand stuff ...might not be an option for u but I just letting u know....

https://www.sportsmansguide.com/productlist?k=Surplus%20pant%20liner

GENUINE US ARMY Military M-65 M65 OD PANT Trouser LINER LINERS NEW / UNISSUED 154876 0

camping fishing hunting hiking outdoors gear supplies us genuine issue surplus army survival M-1965 OD PANT LINER

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