Where have all the trousers gone...

[Barblade]

I'm currently looking for some trousers that meet the following criteria:

Durable material
Water/windproof
Flame resistant
"Silent" fabric

The closest match I have come up with that matches this are the Harkila Kodiaks w/leather fronting- http://www.bushwear.co.uk/ProductDetails.aspx?product_id=51

but at £230 these are a bit on the expensive side - does anyone know of any good alternatives or even somewhere that might be able to source them cheaper

Barblade

 

[addyb]

Fjallraven G-1000 fabric.


Or.....anything wool, like German army trousers.

Or....take an old pair of Levi's and spray 'em with Scotchguard.

That's the best I can do for ya!

Adam

 

[Nemisis]

These are the German army ones http://www.surplusandadventure.com/ishop/800/shopscr2377.html

 

[Ahjno]

I'm currently looking for some trousers that meet the following criteria:

Durable material
Water/windproof
Flame resistant
"Silent" fabric

The closest match I have come up with that matches this are the Harkila Kodiaks w/leather fronting- http://www.bushwear.co.uk/ProductDetails.aspx?product_id=51

but at £230 these are a bit on the expensive side - does anyone know of any good alternatives or even somewhere that might be able to source them cheaper

Barblade

Most of us wear simple (DPM) army trousers: strong, cheap (compared to the one you mention), dry quickly and is doesn't matter when you end up having a cut in it when you pushed yourself trough some thorny brushes ... You don't want to do that with a 230 GBP pair of trousers, do you?

Waterproof - well, this army trouser dries relatively fast. But when you have a spare one, that's all sorted, isn't it? Of course you can invest in a GTX trousers, which you wear when it really pours down ... or, when you've got money to spare: a ventile trouser - which are wind- & waterproof and hardwearing.

Flame resistant - as long as you don't plan to do some firewalking, IMHO this isn't really necessary. Just be sure you don't wear trousers that can smoulder in you skin when a log in the fire spits at you ...
Main reason why lots of people wear wool / cotton: doesn't smoulder, compared to a lot of modern synthetics.

Hope this helps!

 

[Barblade]

Thanks for the resonses guys
addyb - the G-1000 by Fjallraven has some pretty good reviews. Fabric looks pretty good so I think I'll put that in my "for consideration" list (as well as a jumbo can of stochguard)

Ahjno - The harkila kodiaks are specifically designed for thorny bushwear which is why I picked them out. Regarding flame resistance, I currently wear army-issue BDU's as well, with a pair of ECWCS gore-tex overtrousers (£30 for a 3-ply goretex), this is my second pair due to stray sparks melting through the fabric and don't get me wrong, this is a good setup. However, if I have to lay-up somewhere and the goretex gets dirty, the DWR finish soon starts letting water through and would much prefer to use a "silent" fabric as the gore-tex overs are pretty rustly

Barblade

 

[falcon]

I'm with Anjho - plain army-type trousers for me - £8 from the farm store. They take a hell of a battering and keep coming back for more.

 

[Spacemonkey]

I bought a smock from www.sasskit.co.uk in water resistant/windproof olive green MOD material and asked them to make some S95 pattern trousers in the same material which they did for about £50 or so. They will send you a fabric sample if you wish.

Anyway, both are totally windproof, and if you place them under a running tap the water flows off. Heavy mist does seem to get in eventually, but then they are resistant not proof. They do dry quick though. I might treat them with a teflon treatment, if i can ever find one...

Bear in mind though, that they like to give a baggy cut. The smock and strides appeared very baggy when i first got them-much baggier than the items i took the measurements off, but you get used to it and appreciate the extra space after a while!

 

[Ahjno]

Thanks for the resonses guys
addyb - the G-1000 by Fjallraven has some pretty good reviews. Fabric looks pretty good so I think I'll put that in my "for consideration" list (as well as a jumbo can of stochguard)

Ahjno - The harkila kodiaks are specifically designed for thorny bushwear which is why I picked them out. Regarding flame resistance, I currently wear army-issue BDU's as well, with a pair of ECWCS gore-tex overtrousers (£30 for a 3-ply goretex), this is my second pair due to stray sparks melting through the fabric and don't get me wrong, this is a good setup. However, if I have to lay-up somewhere and the goretex gets dirty, the DWR finish soon starts letting water through and would much prefer to use a "silent" fabric as the gore-tex overs are pretty rustly
Barblade

In that case a Ventile overtrouser (is that the correct word for it?) would be best I reckon. Don't know about the trouser you describe above, but Westwinds do a overtouser (double layer Ventile) for "only" 105 GBP, which means (if my maths is right), you've got 125 GBP left to buy more goodies ... (that's 50%+ of a AW Woodlore knife)
Do you know this is the very first time (your post) Harkila is mentioned on this site?

Spacemonkey has another good option though!

 

[Andy]

when it's cooler I wear a pair of Ron Hill DXBs under some cheap trousers, they will keep the wind and rain out fairly well, the outer trousers take the battering. In summer The same light weight trousers will dry fast do it's not such a problem

 

[addyb]

Ajhno,

I completely agree with you, I too feel that waterproof trousers in the bush are redundant. I mean, if you keep the furnace warm (chest/core area) the rest of your body stays warm. My usual wet weather trekking gear is an anorak of some kind and a pair of gaiters. My trousers will get soaked eventually, but they're extremely quick to dry, and very hard wearing. I suppose one could buy Ventile salopettes, but everyone knows that trousers get soaked much much faster than a jacket, even if they're highly water resistant.

BDU pants (combats: as we call 'em in Canada) are great for hot weather expeditions. Canadian surplus ones are incredibly tough, and very hard wearing. They're woven in an interesting way, they have a polyester core, with cotton woven on both sides, in a loose "aertex" weave. The cotton I guess is for hygenic reasons, and the polyester plus the weave makes them dry like lightning, as well as making them tough. I wear them in the summer for hikes.

In the fall/winter, I have a pair of nylon trekking pants, coated with some sort of DWR. They have re-inforced knees, and a double *ahem* rear end. I would never trust cotton at this time of year, neither would I go for wool, namely because I'm not strong enough to hump the bush in wet wool.

(I guess that's where you huge Newcastle miner-types with your wool come into the picture)

Cheers,

Adam

 

[Barblade]

Spacemonkey: Thanks for the idea, I guess you got something like the combat trousers in Ripstop Cotton-Garberdine @ £55 - I've heard quite a few good reviews about Sasskit but never bough anything off them - they basically use MOD suppliers to manufacture their own garments as well as selling unissued kit is that right? - Have you tried using something like Nikwax cotton proof on it? i've heard quite a few good comments about the results with other outerwear

Ahjno: Yeah I did know, I think i've searched just about everywhere for reviews on harkila, the only one I can find is at deer-uk (a hunting site I think)
I had considered Ventile, but had just assumed all the products were outer-gear - so the double layer trousers at £150 might definately be an option :You_Rock_

Again, thanks for all the advice guys. I'm pretty new to "getting outdoors" but am enjoying it a helluva lot, so whatever kit I get thanks for making sure i'm making an informed decision

 

[Spacemonkey]

Barblade, I got this http://www.sasskit.co.uk/products/militaryclothing/sassmock.htm in olive green gaberdene and these http://www.sasskit.co.uk/products/militaryclothing/dpmcombattrousers.htm
in the same olive green gaberdene. It isn't Ripstop but it is great fabric as far as I'm concerned. They are the £55 ones.

As far as I know, they use MOD suppliers to get the fabrics and materials, but make them themselves to order.

I also have a pair of these http://www.sasskit.co.uk/products/militarywebbing/sassbeltpouch.htm in olive green but with the buckles fitted as here http://www.sasskit.co.uk/products/militarywebbing/sassbuckles.htm and they fit the Swedish army trangia perfectly. I also added a utility strap to clip on the buckles so I have a shoulder strap or I can carry it on a PLCE type belt. It is very well made and would pass for PLCE kit anyday. You can fit a pair of 58 bottles in there instead if you wish or a Crusader mug/stove/bottle with room for tea bags/powdered milk/KFS/food next to it. A very versatile pouch.

The jacket and trousers took a week to make. The pouches were the last 2 in stock then, but I'm sure they would have mroe now. I specified a D ring above each top pocket on the jacket to attach a lanyard and another internal pocket. The trousers didn't come with any back pocket which i would have liked but I can live without it I guess...

Just noticed your comments on cotton proofing. From what I have researched, the best one to get is the ones that contain PTFE or Teflon to you and me, or even fleurocarbon if you like. I think Grangers or Storm (??) do them? Is the Grangers that you can get in Blakcs etc the stuff? It doesn't say anything on the label as to what it's active ingredient is..

 

[Barblade]

Yeah, I think Grangers is the one you can get in blacks (Silver cans - Called Xtreme clean or something) Nikwax uses different fluorocarbons. I've also heard good reviews of McNett's Gore Revivex which is recommended by the company that makes goretex but I can't find any stockists in the UK for it.

Just as an update I found a supplier (Non-internet unfortunately - a friend of a friend who runs a s Sports shop up in glasgow) who managed to source me a pair og the Harkila's for £180 which I was pretty pleased with, and another friend has bought the Ventile double layer trousers so I'll post a comparision and review when they arrive.

 

[Barblade]

Just an Update...
My Harkila's arrived finally! Unfortunately after a quick wear and after a basic test they don't live up to my expectations

1 - Although advertised as a "Silent fabric" they do still rustle, probably due to the goretex membrane inside the fabric of the trousers

2 - They don't seem anywhere near as durable as claimed, the pants are not doublestitched or re-enforced anywhere I can see, I'm also slightly concerned about the leather protection on the front of the trousers, the layer seems very thin to able to provide any real protection

3 - Trouser fabric seems to be a weird sort of velour material, probably to make it more silent, this raised concerns about spark resistance.

This said the trousers do have a lot of features going for them, just nothing I need

£180 is a lot of cash for me to be in 2 minds about keeping them, so I think I'll probably do a few more tests and see how they fair and send 'em back if they don't change my mind.

I will photograph them when I get a chance for all to see.