what about your synthetic Insulating pants

[dirtbag]

Looking for a pair of synthetic insulating pants for hanging around camp in winter here in NY. I have a pair of Borah Gear down pants but am considering synthetic for the damp wet nights. I checked out RAB Photons.. Seemed heavy at over 17 ozs.. but I like the side zips. I am leaning towards EE Torrid Apex pants.. Custom coming in at 6.4 ozs, which is tempting me that way, but no side zips. I would like to be able to put these on and off without having to take shoes/boots off.  Not a deal breaker though, but a luxury I would prefer. Anyone own any of these? Something else to consider? Montbell? Patagonia? Bueller.. Bueller..Bueller.. Thoughts and ideas? Recommendations?

[Stephen M]

Rab Photons are nice, some buddies have them and really like them. I use Patagonia Mico Puff Pants when weight/bulk is not an issue and Arteryx Atom LT pants when it is. They are both great pieces.</p>

[Russ W]

Interesting…I have some Borah down pants, which I love, and was mulling the same question about a synthetic alternative. In addition to your possibilities, Nanatak has an Apex option, Smartwool has a heavier option with wool and synthetic, Patagonia has Nanopuff and Nanoair offerings. Perhaps the most intriguing, I found prior dicussion on this site about the M-65 Pant Liner from military surplus sites…less than $10, about 10 ounces claimed. I have no experience but it might be woth checking out.

[William Chilton]

Montane Prism? Mountain Equipment Compressor?

[dirtbag]

• The Arcteryx Atom LT pant? I can not find them anywhere, not even Arteryx site. I have the best and love it.
• I was eyeballing Patagonia nanopuff also.. And the nanoair. I use the nano air light hybrid hoody which has become one of my favorite pieces of clothing!  Not sure about the pants though..

[dirtbag]

Vest.. Not best. Dang spell check

[Duane Hall]

I have Montbell insulated pants in both down and synthetic versions. I tend to use the synthetic in damper conditions, but I have been satisfied with both types of insulation.  I have never had to hike in them, but they are very useful at a cool campsite and as an augmentation to my sleeping system.  Don’t always take ’em but when I do I don’t regret it.

[Paul McLaughlin]

Mine are myog, so no help there, but on the side zip question I say not needed. I only put on the pants once I am settled in at camp, and have never felt the need for side zips. When the pants go on, so do the booties.

[David P]

Hey dirtbag- bueller lol

I have and love the torrid apex pants. I got in size XL even though I’m a Large in order to pull over everything else.  I can get them over trail runners pretty easily but not boots.  The EE team may be willing to add an ankle/side zip onto the pants if you ask.  I mostly use them to augment sleeping system so I rarely have footwear on when putting them on, but just double checked with a couple pairs of shoes/boots.  You could employ the one-boot-off-hop-on-one-foot method :) I do this a lot when changing over my running shoes to ski boots at the top of our ski hill. Bonus to the torrid pant, they are pretty much reversible so you can have two different colors outer and inner , a bright and a muted depending on the sitch … mine are bright @## yellow and grey.

i also own and love the nano air light pants and hoody.  They are less insulated then torrid pants and very breathable so I use those more for extreme cold “active insulation” below zero F  and also to sleep in in conjunction with the torrid pants usually < 10F. The ankles are snug on the nano lights so no chance of getting those over footwear.

 

[dirtbag]

David P.. thank you so much!!! That is what i needed to hear! That is perfect for me. I do not need the side zip. I actually will get black outside and orange inside.. figure for winter use, if i ever get into any trouble i could reverse to orange for better visibility. I did this with my 0 degree winter quilts also. Looks like I will go ahead and get them.. just wondering now.. i am 5 ft 10, 190 – 200 lbs.. fairly lean at about 17% body fat.. my waist is a 34-36 depends on manufacturers.. and I wear a medium to large.. sometimes xtra large , again depends on style. I was going to get the large.. hmmm..
And now I am also going to get those Patagonia Nano Air pants too!!!!
Thanks again

[David P]

Dirtbag I just doubled checked the size, they are actually a size LARGE not XL. so sorry I misremembered !__!

To put in perspective I am 6’2” & 180lbs 32”- 34” waist I think The large should fit you well with some room for layers if needed. If I stretch the waist out while wearing them there is a good 7” of space there. Plenty of length, even a touch long.

[dirtbag]

Thanks again David P for the extra info.. And thanks to everyone else who chimed in, really Appreciate all the feedback and opinions. It’s always interesting and nice to hear what everyone else is doing and using our there!

[Edward John M]

I currently have Patagonia DAS pants and the L7 US Army pants clone. The surplus are very warm and very heavy but the Patagonia seem to be in the sweet spot, but production is intermittent and not available at the moment I have had the OR pants but on-sold because they are too lightly insulated in the knee region [ 40GSM] and at 60GSM above the knee not warm enough

I tried the Patagonia Nanopuff pants in store but I wanted full length zippers so I didn’t need to take off my boots; I consider those more as deep cold liners/intermediate layer than a static warm layer

Note tho that Australian snow conditions are wet-cold and need more insulation than places that get below -20C

[Eric Blumensaadt]

I’ve had synthetic insulated Thermolite Micro pants for two decades and used them very few times. But they were great for camp use and for extending the range of my 20 F. overstuffed WM Megalite (along with a puffy jacket) down into the 10 F. range.

I’d now try to get a pair of light DWR treated down pants instead B/C I’m desperately trying to lighten my winter load. Even with full length side zippers the weight would bel less than my current synthetic pants. Warmth would be about the same.

For synthetic pants I would try to get a pair made with Climashield as it has much better resistance to losing loft when repeatedly stuffed than Primaloft insulations.

[Edward John M]

I have to second the M-65 pants liners as very good value for money, yes a little heavy compared to most UL stuff and only a Clo but don’t discount their value worn under a windpant to take advantage of the trapped air layer

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Oh, yeah,  Then there’s my fleece lined Duluth Trading nylon cargo pants. Very warm over medium to heavy poly or wool base layers, as in warm to 0 F. if you keep moving moderately.

[Edward John M]

Here’s a thought if; like me; you are dirt poor where new gear is concerned.

Cheap “Ski jeans” are warm, wind proof and quite water resistant but a bit on the heavy side for UL walking.

However a lot of the extra weight is in all the extra bits below the knee that downhill skiers need.

If you bought a cheap pair of these insulated ski pants [ second hand is good] you could cut off the big boot flare at the ankle and reduce the weight considerably. After all you only need to insulate the thigh area and knees if your footwear is adequate, buy them oversized to pull on over your boots and wear suspenders to keep the things from falling down

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