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I have tested other wind shirts, but I strayed away from them because they are often too hot to wear while hiking and because I can save some weight by wearing my lightweight rain jacket and pants if I really need wind protection. Then I had the opportunity to test the new MontBell Tachyon Anorak and Dynamo Wind Pants and rediscovered how useful a wind shirt (and pants) can be. These are super-light, so they have little impact on my pack weight. Is there really a place for a wind shirt and wind pants in an ultralight backpacking kit?
ARTICLE OUTLINE
- Introduction
- Description
- Performance
- Assessment
- Specifications and Features
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Thanks, Greg and Eugene.
I had a pair of these wind pants. Wore them during laundry times on the Hayduke. Also took to wearing them every day on a cdt section this year.
The fabric at the inseam wore out after about 500 miles. I was always mindful of them as I knew such thin fabric couldn't stand hard use. No pushing through brush or rock climbing.
That said, I've worn holes (same place) in rail riders pants in about 1k miles… They weigh about four times as much.
These were very comfortable. Packed tiny. Light enough to take as "town clothes". I just hope that next pair I buy I can stick to only wearing around camp and while doing laundry because every day wear I would happily use up a pair every month or so on a thru.
–Bill
Will, well written and fun-to-read article. Definitely makes me want one. Anyway, I am in the same camp as Jeff. He lives in Central CA and I live in SoCal. We both like the Sierras and so we probably see fairly similar three-season walking conditions. Trail walking and adventuring this year I often wore a l/s Exofficio shirt of similar design to what Jeff is talking about above. It was excellent at blocking sun and mosquito protection and also provided added warmth when an insulating layer was too much. I carried it everywhere and often just slipped it over my base layer (s/s t-shirt) and found it to be a must have. Really good when walking on granite too to provide sun protection. My question is, can this Tachyon Montbell wind shirt or the other Montbell products of similar fabric weight be substitued for the Exofficio? I do not have that Exofficio shirt anymore because it was a loaner. I even tried to buy it from my friend, but he didn't want to sell it! I need to make a choice now. Will the Tachyon or UL Wind Jacket be breathable enough for Jeff and I? And do you know if it has any sun-blocking qualities and if so would you care to venture a guess? Thanks for your help Will.
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