Flatland Crusoe
Member
- Joined
- Oct 7, 2014
- Messages
- 572
Kuiu, First Lite and Sitka are really the only really good current hunting clothing manufacturers. Similarly you will see a lot of mountaineering outdoor gear from companies like Marmot, Patagonia and the like used heavily by people in the know. Within Kuiu/Sitka/First Lite they each have their strengths and weaknesses. You can see each company is branching out to cover some of the bases of what their competitors are good at. Under Armour really isn't in the mix, but they are trying like Cabelas is with their Instinct line to catch up because they were all caught with their pants down the last few years. Here is a brief summary of the 3 that matter.
Sitka Gear: These guys were really the first game with a full line of technical gear for hunting both synthetic, merino and auxiliary gear like packs. They have a huge product line now for big game, whitetail and waterfowl with their own optifade patterns. They were bought by Gore so they have a lot of proprietary stuff going on with patterns and fabrics, but are also somewhat limited in that they are limited by not being able to source from different companies technology. Their stuff is really solid, has good durability and is the most available to buy at a given point in time. Their stuff is typical of Gore in that it costs a lot and is really good. Their pieces tend to be the most specialized and can border on gimmicky, but they have the most tiny detail built into every piece. The problem is they don't send a manual for anything or really have decent video's online so you find a lot by trial and error. Generally the pieces except for the whitetail lines are pretty form fitting, you will see a lot of their gear on the return rack because their sizing is more like dress clothes and is tailored. At the Scheels in Iowa city they don't bother stocking stuff usually smaller than a large for this reason. I see a lot of guys wearing Sitka a size or 2 too big because they are used to sloppy hunting clothing. Sitka is the big corporate juggernaut of the companies and is very established.
Kuiu: This the Sitka founder's second company. They make really good gear, but its never in stock and they customer service is mediocre. Its probably the best gear for the money and maybe the best outright. They source the best materials from anyone who will sell them to them (aka anything but Gore). Their gear is very minimalist in style especially compared to Sitka. Fewer pockets and zippers and a huge emphasis on lightweight gear. The fit is similar to Sitka. Durability is generally decent but since they outsource a lot of work there is more variability and there are historically a few items with a higher failure rate and there are a lot of issues with color matching on different materials. My hold up is the wait times and returns really suck and that's a problem when I can't try stuff on. All of their camo is one of 2 house brands. Kuiu is the really talented up and comer than may not be able to handle the demand, basically really heavily sought out, but hard to get.
First Lite: These guys were initially the Merino company, but have really gotten into the synthetics game notable with their rain gear, the corrugate pants and their soft shell jackets like the north branch. Their gear is very good, but the merino is definitely prone to tearing in the field as an outer layer. They make the best base and mid layers of the listed companies and offer the most camo and solid color options both with their camo and traditional Mossy Oak/Realtree patterns. They seem to be the understated company as a lot of their gear doesn't stand out whereas you know when people have Sitka and KUIU on just based on the patterns. I feel that the first lite fit is somewhat more forgiving just based on the nature of the material forming to your body at least on the Merino pieces. First lite seems to be middle of the road on price and supply chain availability. First lite is a small quirky company compared to the other 2 companies and is just a little offbeat in a good way.
Sitka Gear: These guys were really the first game with a full line of technical gear for hunting both synthetic, merino and auxiliary gear like packs. They have a huge product line now for big game, whitetail and waterfowl with their own optifade patterns. They were bought by Gore so they have a lot of proprietary stuff going on with patterns and fabrics, but are also somewhat limited in that they are limited by not being able to source from different companies technology. Their stuff is really solid, has good durability and is the most available to buy at a given point in time. Their stuff is typical of Gore in that it costs a lot and is really good. Their pieces tend to be the most specialized and can border on gimmicky, but they have the most tiny detail built into every piece. The problem is they don't send a manual for anything or really have decent video's online so you find a lot by trial and error. Generally the pieces except for the whitetail lines are pretty form fitting, you will see a lot of their gear on the return rack because their sizing is more like dress clothes and is tailored. At the Scheels in Iowa city they don't bother stocking stuff usually smaller than a large for this reason. I see a lot of guys wearing Sitka a size or 2 too big because they are used to sloppy hunting clothing. Sitka is the big corporate juggernaut of the companies and is very established.
Kuiu: This the Sitka founder's second company. They make really good gear, but its never in stock and they customer service is mediocre. Its probably the best gear for the money and maybe the best outright. They source the best materials from anyone who will sell them to them (aka anything but Gore). Their gear is very minimalist in style especially compared to Sitka. Fewer pockets and zippers and a huge emphasis on lightweight gear. The fit is similar to Sitka. Durability is generally decent but since they outsource a lot of work there is more variability and there are historically a few items with a higher failure rate and there are a lot of issues with color matching on different materials. My hold up is the wait times and returns really suck and that's a problem when I can't try stuff on. All of their camo is one of 2 house brands. Kuiu is the really talented up and comer than may not be able to handle the demand, basically really heavily sought out, but hard to get.
First Lite: These guys were initially the Merino company, but have really gotten into the synthetics game notable with their rain gear, the corrugate pants and their soft shell jackets like the north branch. Their gear is very good, but the merino is definitely prone to tearing in the field as an outer layer. They make the best base and mid layers of the listed companies and offer the most camo and solid color options both with their camo and traditional Mossy Oak/Realtree patterns. They seem to be the understated company as a lot of their gear doesn't stand out whereas you know when people have Sitka and KUIU on just based on the patterns. I feel that the first lite fit is somewhat more forgiving just based on the nature of the material forming to your body at least on the Merino pieces. First lite seems to be middle of the road on price and supply chain availability. First lite is a small quirky company compared to the other 2 companies and is just a little offbeat in a good way.
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