Who makes the perfect softshell ski pants??

[sf]

Dynafit Radical anyone?

Comments regarding fit and features appreciated

[MagnificentUnicorn]

Recently got a pair of the Eddie Bauer Mountain Ops Ski Tour pants. I don't know if their perfect, but they are going to be good for my purpose, mainly lift served skiing and cold weather chores around the house.

They are heavy duty and would not be the best for touring. No thigh vent zips. Plenty of pockets, two zippered beside the thigh, two wallet pockets, even a small "leatherman" pocket. Belt loops and gaiters. Side zipper outside the ankle. Double layered over the knees. No issues fitting over alpine ski boots. Think if Carhartt built a ski pant, this is what they would be.

At 6', and 215lbs, I got the XL. Inseam is perfect. EB advertises them as athletic fit. They have no snugness IMO, as I am not built for anything euro-fit. I have an older EB Nail Driver pant. They are not really anything like that. Nail Driver's you could tour in, these I wouldn't.

Personally I like a softshell pant for most of my ski days, and save the expensive gore-tex gear for when you really need it. These would be good for you peeps that snowmobile-tour.

two thumbs up!

This is good info, my Nail Drivers are getting a little threadbare.


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[John_B]

I just bought some used Rab Khroma softshells that hit all of my criteria so far. Side zip vents with no mesh(I usually just cut this out, right thigh beacon pocket, two front high pockets and a rear zip pocket for my wallet. The only pocket I might add is a rear thigh pocket for my phone on the left side for my phone.

Plus they've got a high waist and kind of a bell bottom fit so they go over ski boots well and don't have an extra zipper. Plus they've got internal snow gaiters. They seem like they'd do decently with crampons but are not a very tight fit around my boots.

[GoSlowGoFar]

Still digging the Stio Upslope pant here. Nice fit, not too baggy or tight, transceiver pocket, true double weave softshell as opposed to being a “softshell”.

[funkendrenchman]

Anyone find something close to the Strafe Recon? They’re out until next year. 400-500g with leg vents.

[grinch]

I always figured soft shell allowed me to skip leg vents and that added weight. I gave older black arc teryx gamma's. Functiinally they seem good. The velcro still works on the cargo pockets but i wish they were zippered.
I have a pair of Jones high sierra soft shell pants showing up today. No cargo pockets but they have 2 rear zippered pockets and i wanted a lighter color for spring. Dirt cheap right now on the last hunt. With the further 25% off they have right now they were 160 cad and free ship. Im really impressed with the quality and design of the Jones surf parka, and also a smokin deal on the last hunt. I sold a couple pairs of older pants to try the jones pants. Ill update after i try them

Edit: i like them. Maybe ever so slightly thicker soft shell than my older arc t gamma's but similar thickness , which is fairly light and about tge same thickness of a patagonia ready mix light soft shell. They have better stretch to them. Waist is yrue to size and inseam is close but i'd say 3/4 inch shorter than listed. Nice deep front pockets ate ez to get into. Definitely less baggy than my gamma's. Older gammas are baggy. The fit reminds me a bit of the classic mammut soft shell pants from the 90's with maybe a touch more shape, wider elastic cuff and inside cuff protection patch. Should be good.

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[caulfield]

Dynafit Radical anyone?

Comments regarding fit and features appreciated

dynafit has kinda overloaded that name lately, assume you mean this year's "radical softshell?"

No experience with that one, but I ordered both "radical infinium hybrid" and "radical 2 gtx" last year. Returned the gtx, kept the hybrid. They fit differently enough that I'm not sure my observations are useful at all, but here you go.

I'm 5'11"/170, usually medium and 32x30. Was replacing old arc procline AR which were pretty much perfect for me. I toured with them almost all the time, unless it was raining, or June/July.

hybrid radical: fit is similar, good room in the butt/thighs, without being baggy. Cuffs fit well over boots and have a zipper in the back. Infinium might just be a new name for windstopper, I don't really know. It's stretchier and feels less durable, less water-resistant than the arcs but I haven't put it through all its paces yet. I did some June volcano skiing in them and they breathed well for that. Side vents are fine. Pocket layout is adequate--two zippered hand pockets and a zippered thigh one with beacon loop. Beacon ends up riding a little out on the front of the thigh, but I don't notice it during use. I miss the big glove-sized pocket on the proclines. These have proper belt loops, so that's real nice.

radical 2 gtx: these are a hard shell, so wrong thread I guess. They were way tighter in the thighs and crotch for me. Way less stretchy and not comfy without a baselayer (kinda obvious for a hardshell, but I was optimistic). Beacon pocket was even more out on the knee than the hybrids. Far less touring-friendly than the other pants with similar name, so I guess my advice is to try out this year's model but make sure you buy from a place with good return policy.

[kootenayskier]

Dynafit Radical anyone?

Comments regarding fit and features appreciated

This year’s Radical Softshell pants seem to be a very close evolution of my Mercury Pro Softshell pants, which gets all the details right, and which I hope to replace with the same when the time comes. Assuming (and from the description) they’re the same, they’re pretty standard softshell pants, but (compared to options from OR, Patagonia and Arc’teryx I’ve checked out) they fit (Med)my tall, lean (6’1” 175lbs) physique well (don’t crush my balls, and are adequately long), have tabs for my belt (essential), have lots of stretch so are unrestrictive when striding, the brushed fabric seems to add the right amount of warmth that they work perfectly with just a light merino underlayer on most days, the hem fits snugly over my (Hoji Free) boots, and the the rear hem zip is designed to work compatibly with the Hoji lock mechanism. The only downside for me is that they’re a little loud in their colours and branding, but I can live with it for functionality.

[ptavv]

I bought a pair of the new OR Trailbreaker II pants and as far as I can tell in my bedroom they seem great.

Update on these pants after a dozen or so days: They're pretty dang great. I haven't had the otherwise mentioned problems about the hardshell fabric glopping snow (maybe that was a Trailbreaker I problem?). I did wear them one day that turned out to be a few degrees warmer and sloppier with lower mountain snain and upper mountain hot pow where they wetted out and were pretty damp by the end of day, but that was a poor choice on my part (should've worn a hardshell pant) more than a failure on the pants part

[bean]

New season bump. My the stitching is disintegrating on my decade+ old Arc' Gamma SKs and I need something new. What's the best out there?

Considering Arc'teryx Rush, Norrona lyngen flex 1 light, ...? Ortovox has 4 different softshell pants and all I can tell from the descriptions is that I don't want the col becchei.

[skis_the_trees]

Dude bad news IMHO: your arc Gamma SK were a high water mark for softshell ski touring pants. There are acceptable alternatives today but the Gamma SK with suspender were everything you need and nothing you don’t. Buy another set if you can.


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[Jongle]

Yep, the old Gamma SK was a real gem. Nothing in the current Arc lineup that really compares. The BD Dawn Patrol pant is somewhat similar. RIP Gamma SK.

[concierge]

We have something coming over at Raide that’s worth checking out. Launching Thursday. Hybrid softshell/hardshell with a super breathable low bib. I felt like the perfect touring pant didn’t exist and I’ve seen this thread going for far too long so I decided to make my ideal pant.


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[whyturn]

Bought a pair of Arcteryx rush softshell from our local outlet for $150 Side vents and shape was a good fit. Look forward to trying them for snowshoe and touring this early winter


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[Meadow Skipper]

Check out Stio. Really nice SS pants.

[~mikey b]

I really like my BD Dawn Patrol pants - fit great, good pockets, good ventilation

trying out some OR Trailbreaker II this season - the hardshell / softshell combo seems worth a try for some days

we sell Rab at the shop I work at and their pants look great

[bean]

Dude bad news IMHO: your arc Gamma SK were a high water mark for softshell ski touring pants. There are acceptable alternatives today but the Gamma SK with suspender were everything you need and nothing you don’t. Buy another set if you can.

Wish it were as easy as "buy another pair" but given they've been discontinued for over 10 years...

I do have a pair lying around that's a size too big. I might take them to a tailor and have them take a few inches out of the waist. Then maybe by 2035 someone will have achieved the level of pants that we saw in 2010.

[GoSlowGoFar]

Bought a pair of Arcteryx rush softshell from our local outlet for $150 Side vents and shape was a good fit. Look forward to trying them for snowshoe and touring this early winter


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Are the newer Rush pants the same as the Rush FLs from 3-4 years ago?

[zion zig zag]

We have something coming over at Raide that’s worth checking out. Launching Thursday. Hybrid softshell/hardshell with a super breathable low bib. I felt like the perfect touring pant didn’t exist and I’ve seen this thread going for far too long so I decided to make my ideal pant.


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Please post up and let us know when these go live.

[whyturn]

Are the newer Rush pants the same as the Rush FLs from 3-4 years ago?

Not sure can post pics

Side vents with gaiters and built in belt

Fabric is pretty thick

They are a cool ghost grey


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[whyturn]

Has taped seams, gaiters and 3 pockets

Arcteryx rush softshell











Worked well hiking in this area




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[XXX-er]

White ?

do I look like Barry fucking Manilow

[Meadow Skipper]

White ?

do I look like Barry fucking Manilow

A lot of women look great in white ski pants…from behind.

[XXX-er]

black is the slimming color always for women

and dentists who do more root canals than recreation

[meter-man]

Why do people like mixed hardshell/softshell touring pants?

For where I do most of my touring (California Sierra Nevada), I either want hardshell (because it’s precipitating) or softshell (because it’s not).

It’s probably a dumb question, but just not sure why you’d want the sweaty part of your lower body under a hardshell while your calves are under the softshell. On the flip side, if it’s precipitating, why don’t you want the hardshell protection for your calves?

My BD Dawn Patrol pants are not the sexiest but damn are they functional and get a ton of use.

If it’s precipitating, I have a pair of Trew Roam (low) bibs. Love those too, except when I have to dump (see: bibs). Stretchy, great pockets.


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