FORLOH BTM Pro Pant Review
This past fall, I fancied myself an upland hunter and found myself behind my brown dog, trying to pin down wild roosters in the thickest weeds I could find. It became apparent to me that my love for the lightweight nylon pants I wear big game hunting in Colorado wasn’t carrying over to eastern Colorado’s pheasant country. I needed more protection against pokey things like burrs, thorns, corn stalks, and wetting out from snowy vegetation.
Enter the Forloh BTM Pro Pant. BTM stands for Brush To Mountain, and it’s a pant that is fully sourced and 100% made in America, bringing together various materials and numerous features. Attractive to my immediate needs, the BTM offers a 50/50 Cotton/Nylon gridded ripstop paneling on the seat, calves, and from mid-quad down to the ankle. These panels, shown in black in the photo above, are treated with an embedded wax that is also 100% USA sourced/made (wax bar for reapplications not included) that provides increased abrasion and the ability to bead water. The rear of the knees, crotch, and front zipper/jean pocket area, all olive green in the above photo, is constructed of a four-way stretch Polygiene® treated Polyester.
The Forloh BTM Pro Pant is available in both a “regular” and a “tall” inseam length. I physically measure as a 39” waist and about 41” in the hips. Looking at the above sizing chart, I ordered a 36R in Forloh’s gray-on-gray colorway called Magnet. The silicone-lined waistband is of the no-stretch variety, and I intended to leave a little breathing room for an extra merino layer bottom. However, I learned the sizing is a lot more generous than the chart shows, and I believe a smart play would be to size down one or even two waist sizes. I have previously used Forloh’s Exchange/Refund and found it to be simple and hassle-free, but with tucked-in upper base layers and a belt, the pants turned out to be very comfortable with no waistband bunching. Length was great, and the actual weight of my pair was ~1lb9oz.
The Forloh BTM Pro Pant does not have rear pockets, it does, however, have some features I found very useful:
- The front jeans-style pockets are shallow enough that items are easily retrieved.
- Zippered vents on the side of each leg that run from the knee top to the hip joint, amazing…
- Button flap, front of thigh, bellows pockets are constructed from the waxed nylon/cotton ripstop. The left pocket has an additional zipper, while the right pocket has a full-length elastic sleeve sized well for a wallet/phone.
- Knee pad pockets that are exterior accessible, BTM Knee Pads sold separately.
- Knees and crotch are gusseted to allow great articulation and a shockingly athletic fit.
- Fabric Weatherproofing Wax Bar sold separately to retreat the nylon/cotton wax ripstop.
- Bottom cuffs are multi-position snap adjustable to tighten around a boot or ankle if desired.
- Bartacked belt loops in the right locations and able to handle a 2” belt.
- 100% USA sourced and made and backed by Forloh’s Lifetime Guarantee.
On arrival, I was a bit underwhelmed by the BTM pants. I expected the waxed cotton/nylon panels to be stiffer and feel more burly. After all, those panels were the main reason why I was interested in the BTM pants. My tune changed the first day out in mid-January, and I have worn them over twenty-two field days since, from bird hunts to pulling elk cameras, and many days around town or just lounging in the house. The Forloh BTM Pant is genuinely THAT comfortable.
Abrasion Resistance
Light run-ins with barbed wire haven’t caused any issues, and I never had any burr/thron/stalk intrusion other than yucca spines. The fit reminds me of football/baseball pants, and the location of the polyester four-way stretch portions is perfectly placed. True to the name, Brush To Mountain, this pant is going to get worn on just about every hunt I have planned for 2025, whether winged or four-legged.
Re-Waxing
I never washed the pants until mid-May, when I decided to see how re-waxing the BTM’s nylon/cotton panels would work. My wax bar came in at a scoosh over 4oz, and I was curious how many treatments I could get from that bar. The application wasn’t difficult nor easy, and I found the best approach was to rub the bar on the panels dry, and then come back with the heat gun and melt the wax in. I think I put about 15 minutes into the re-treating, and while I likely went overboard, I had 2.6oz remaining. The Forloh BTM Pro Pant arrived not feeling overtly waxy, but if you rubbed the panels with your finger, you could feel some wax start to melt. My retreatment resulted in a drastically different, extreme, wax feel and change in the nylon/cotton panel coloring. Someday I will learn…
Improvements I’d Like To See
Two slight complaints, with one covered above regarding the size chart, and the other regarding the adjustable cuff bottoms. I typically wear ankle-high or lower footwear, and even on the rare occasion I wear more standard “hunting” boots (Hanwag Alverstone), the BTM’s cuff would still ride up over the boot top. The snap-adjustable cuff served no purpose, and a debris gaiter was needed like any other pant.
When used with my tall Hoffman Mountaineer pac boots, the pant cuff stayed down, but that was a product of the boot’s height rather than the adjustable cuff. A lace hook at the front of the cuff to hold it down would be an outstanding addition to the built-in-debris-gaiter concept I believe Forloh is trying to accomplish.
Conclusion
Overall, Forloh’s BTM Pro Pant delivered for me and exceeded my expectations. I was after a protective layer that still allowed me to move freely and athletically, while not overheating. The polyester portions combined with the hip vents allowed me to wear appropriate base layers for single digits, but kept me from sweating when covering ground. I expected an upland pant that I would use on a narrow scope of hunts, and found a pant that will be perfect for so much more. I think that Brush To Mountain is the perfect name for this pant and not an overstatement at all.
Read other Rokslide Clothing reviews here.
See the long term use of the Forloh BTM Pro Pant and ask Kyle questions here.
