I'm looking for a pair of rugged and durable soft-shell pants for alpine climbing, to replace my torn Marmot Screes. I have a hard time finding pants that fit me, as I am tall and relatively thin. Medium-Long is my ideal size.
It is somewhat easier to find military surplus soft-shell pants, from the PCU layering system. Some of these are quite expensive, especially those made by Beyond Fusion. The ones made by Patagonia, however, are surprisingly affordable on eBay.
I'm wondering if anyone here has used any level 5 gear from the military PCU system for alpine climbing and can give feedback? Thanks!
Mil-spec softshell pants by Patagonia for alpine climbing?
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Sangye
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gjohnston89
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Re: Mil-spec softshell pants by Patagonia for alpine climbin
Depepnds, ive used the gen 7 ecwcs system for the military. The big gray puffy ones are outstanding until even a few degrees below zero. Anything with a pattern on it though is just the bare minimum for survival in most conditions. I paid 90 dollars on ebay for a pair one time but usually they run around 115 and up. In terms of durability im not 100% i never really took them out for any movements. They do tend to make you over heat a little if you begin moving in them and it is still over around 10 degrees. Just my opinion of them, if you can get a good deal at a surplus store for 75 ish dollars they might be worth it.
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djkest
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Re: Mil-spec softshell pants by Patagonia for alpine climbin
The Patagonia stuff is used by the special forces units. My neighbor is a Green Beret and he has tons of military uniforms and clothing from Patagonia. Says he loves all of it and they are very hard on their gear. It may be a touch heavier than civilian versions. I can ask him about the softshell pants.
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AyeYo
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Re: Mil-spec softshell pants by Patagonia for alpine climbin
Best and most durable soft shell pants I've ever owned.
http://www.backcountry.com/black-diamon ... lsrc=aw.ds" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.backcountry.com/black-diamon ... lsrc=aw.ds" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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gjohnston89
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Re: Mil-spec softshell pants by Patagonia for alpine climbin
If its good enough for sf you should probably take that opinion pretty seriously. They get the benefit of being able to shop around a little for their gear.
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Hiker Mike
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Re: Mil-spec softshell pants by Patagonia for alpine climbin
I have the Beyond Tactical PCU Level 5 soft shell jacket. Nice piece of gear, really vents well. It is expensive but I bought mine on sale in an after Christmas sale. I also have their Gore-Tex pants but I have not used them yet.
I also have some of the Patagonia PCU SF issue gear. It is of high quality and light weight. I have not done any mountain hiking in any of the gear but the Special Forces guys don't use junk. However, make sure you get the Gen II versions as they have improvements over the first Gen I models.
Mike
I also have some of the Patagonia PCU SF issue gear. It is of high quality and light weight. I have not done any mountain hiking in any of the gear but the Special Forces guys don't use junk. However, make sure you get the Gen II versions as they have improvements over the first Gen I models.
Mike
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jscully
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Re: Mil-spec softshell pants by Patagonia for alpine climbin
I own a Patagonia Mars softshell jacket used by SF. If you dont mind OD green and velcro its a pretty good jacket. Im assuming the pants are made of the same material. I prefer Arcteryx LEAF for tactical gear. Its on a completely different level. The softshell Drac Pants have been extremely durable, water resistant, warm and are smartly designed. They have an outlet in Castle Rock but its really hard finding a normal size i.e S,M,L.
