With my trusty Wal-Mart (Duxbak brand) sourced camo pants finally giving it up after 21 seasons, I decided to take the plunge into some tech gear. Ever since I got an out of the blue Schnee's catalog in the mail back in the day and saw the early Sitka stuff in Mountain Mimicry, I have always wanted to get some, but always felt that "what I have is good enough" and combined with the cost, I never took the plunge. I've always gotten away with what I had around me. For example, I raid my baseball gear for hunting....padded Under Armour sliding shorts are nice for glassing and brush busting cuz they are padded as well as having the usual synthetic UA "attributes." I also use my Easton slide on knee pads, which are basically a compression sleeve type deal with padding on the front. Anyhow, point being, I've made due all these years. I do have some heavier fleece stuff from Cabela's that I use for coyote calling and such, where I'm not covering a lot of ground, but it's cold.
Anyhow, I am very fortunate to live in an area where I am in very close proximity to some great hunting, which allows me to primarily "day hunt." Even if I have to camp out, we always have access to the vehicle, so we are able to pack enough clothes for several days. That being said, even as day hunters, we tend to put on quite a few miles per day, especially when hunting Muleys, where we often times don't return to the vehicle until after sun down. So....I thought to myself, since I have to buy new pants, I may as well look into the tech gear, especially with the pants, as their performance is a big deal.
About 3 years ago, I picked up some Kryptek Alaois pants, but they didn't fit well at all. I love the design, but there was no stretch, way too tight, and the waist was way too low for my taste. The worst part was that when I would lift my leg, it would grab my knee and bind up, so it was both tiring and annoying. So I went back to my old faithfuls. After they gave up the ghost this past season, I started researching, and thanks to the Easton buyout of C4E, their Mountain Mimicry stuff can be had for pretty cheap, so here's what I got:
Pants: Switchback and Element. Currently looking for some Highline pants. I realize the first two, when combined with under layers should cover most situations....but I'm just trying to be comprehensive. First impressions - The fit is great, and I can feel the stretch when I move...so far so good. Haven't had a long term outing yet. I'm thinking the elements would be for 40* and lower...gotta test them first on a warm day with the vents open. Their thickness would be great for brush busting.
Shirts: Pivot 1/4 zip; Assault 1/4 zip; Selway 1/4 zip. First impressions - The Assault and Selway are awesome, if they weren't camo, I would wear them to work! Still getting a feel for the pivot, as I haven't had a chance to wear it out.
Vests: Mid-Mountain; Selway. First Impressions - Both seem great. I haven't really hunted in a vest all that much, but I took a chance with the low prices, and I'm thinking it may change the way I dress, as I really like the arm freedom. The Selway seems like the better "vest" while the mid-mountain seems more like an under layer. In fact I've already used it that way and it was great.
Jacket: Element jacket. Haven't had a chance to test it out yet, but it seems like a good garment. Not sure if I'm going to struggle between that and the Selway vest as my go to setup. As I mentioned earlier, the prices were good and I wanted to be comprehensive.
That's it so far. Question:
1 - What am I missing? I didn't get any merino, rain gear or insulating layers. I've got plenty of UA and UA type stuff from other brands and it has served me well so far....remember, I'm a day hunter primarily. It doesn't really get that cold here in NM, so the insulating layers were a question mark for me, and I just haven't had an opportunity to recoup some funds to look at the rain gear.
2 - Merino is expensive, and the UA stuff is very durable. As a day hunter, is this an item that I can add later as needs dictate, or am I missing out on the holy grail?
3 - Did I screw up in my other purchases? The prices were good, so I did get a little excited, and I think I may have some redundancies, but....you never know.
Anyhow, any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
Anyhow, I am very fortunate to live in an area where I am in very close proximity to some great hunting, which allows me to primarily "day hunt." Even if I have to camp out, we always have access to the vehicle, so we are able to pack enough clothes for several days. That being said, even as day hunters, we tend to put on quite a few miles per day, especially when hunting Muleys, where we often times don't return to the vehicle until after sun down. So....I thought to myself, since I have to buy new pants, I may as well look into the tech gear, especially with the pants, as their performance is a big deal.
About 3 years ago, I picked up some Kryptek Alaois pants, but they didn't fit well at all. I love the design, but there was no stretch, way too tight, and the waist was way too low for my taste. The worst part was that when I would lift my leg, it would grab my knee and bind up, so it was both tiring and annoying. So I went back to my old faithfuls. After they gave up the ghost this past season, I started researching, and thanks to the Easton buyout of C4E, their Mountain Mimicry stuff can be had for pretty cheap, so here's what I got:
Pants: Switchback and Element. Currently looking for some Highline pants. I realize the first two, when combined with under layers should cover most situations....but I'm just trying to be comprehensive. First impressions - The fit is great, and I can feel the stretch when I move...so far so good. Haven't had a long term outing yet. I'm thinking the elements would be for 40* and lower...gotta test them first on a warm day with the vents open. Their thickness would be great for brush busting.
Shirts: Pivot 1/4 zip; Assault 1/4 zip; Selway 1/4 zip. First impressions - The Assault and Selway are awesome, if they weren't camo, I would wear them to work! Still getting a feel for the pivot, as I haven't had a chance to wear it out.
Vests: Mid-Mountain; Selway. First Impressions - Both seem great. I haven't really hunted in a vest all that much, but I took a chance with the low prices, and I'm thinking it may change the way I dress, as I really like the arm freedom. The Selway seems like the better "vest" while the mid-mountain seems more like an under layer. In fact I've already used it that way and it was great.
Jacket: Element jacket. Haven't had a chance to test it out yet, but it seems like a good garment. Not sure if I'm going to struggle between that and the Selway vest as my go to setup. As I mentioned earlier, the prices were good and I wanted to be comprehensive.
That's it so far. Question:
1 - What am I missing? I didn't get any merino, rain gear or insulating layers. I've got plenty of UA and UA type stuff from other brands and it has served me well so far....remember, I'm a day hunter primarily. It doesn't really get that cold here in NM, so the insulating layers were a question mark for me, and I just haven't had an opportunity to recoup some funds to look at the rain gear.
2 - Merino is expensive, and the UA stuff is very durable. As a day hunter, is this an item that I can add later as needs dictate, or am I missing out on the holy grail?
3 - Did I screw up in my other purchases? The prices were good, so I did get a little excited, and I think I may have some redundancies, but....you never know.
Anyhow, any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
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