2024 SKRE Gear reviews

[realunlucky]

The other review threads are pretty lengthy you can check them out here-

So let's kick off a new review thread to incorporate SKRE Gear newest releases and other reviews.

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[realunlucky]

I've tried most of the SKRE pieces so can probably help answer any questions.

Sent from my SM-S926U using Tapatalk

 

[Bump79]

I've tried most of the SKRE pieces so can probably help answer any questions.

Sent from my SM-S926U using Tapatalk

Is their new pack affiliated with AKEK?

 

[Jn78]

I was one of the lucky winners of the SKRE Venture Flex pants. So, first I want to give SKRE a big thank you for the pants. I am excited to see how these pants hold up. I have high expectations, and I will update this writeup once I have worn them in the field. So, here are my first impressions.

For starters, I will say that I am not an expert in outdoor apparel, but I have worn many hunting/hiking pants over the years and most have performed quite well. Generally, for a person like me, I think there is going to be no discernable difference in the performance of most of the similarly priced pants on the market. Also, I am going to survive just fine in a pair of $20 Costco hiking pants. So, I think decisions about pants usually come down to personal preference regarding fit and details like pockets, hip vents, knee pads, etc.

Fit: I am 6’2” 215 pounds, athletic build. Most of my pants are 34-inch waist and 32 inch inseam. I reached out to customer service, and they suggested I get a 36 inch waist, which was probably the correct size, but they are a bit big everywhere. I definitely have room to wear long johns and tuck my shirt in. The fit is bit baggy. I am not one of those guys who doesn’t have an ass, so some pants are pretty tight through the ass and crotch. That is not the case with these pants. Not at all. Moving down the legs, the pants are big into the calves. Again, I don’t have small legs. I would prefer a more athletic fit, but this is personal preference. The fit may be perfect for someone else. Here is the thing that is not perfect for almost anyone, other than LeBron James – the inseam. The inseam of these pants is so long. Like so long. Off the shelf, these pants will be too long for like 99% of men. I am 6’2” and I look like a kid in my dad’s pajamas. As points of comparison, the length is perfect on my First Lite Corrugate Guide pants in a size large, long. The length is also perfect on my Kryptek Alaios in a 36x32. The SKRE pants are about as baggy as the Kryptek, although the waist in the Kryptek is an inch or two larger. I think these Kryptek pants have been updated – I have an older version with two integrated Velcro adjustments each hip. The SKRE Venture Flex pants are about as baggy as my First Lite Corrugate Guide pants.

Fabric: The fabric is not very soft, but it is comfortable enough. I have gone back and forth about what I should say about this fabric. It may not be fair to compare the feel of these pants to the feel of my Corrugate Guide pants and my Alaios pants. I probably have more than 100 days in each of those pants, so they are softer now than they were when I bought them. With that said, I think the feel of the fabric of the SKRE pants is less comfortable than the others, even when the others were new. However, I don’t think this is necessarily a bad thing. I think the comfort of the other pants is largely because of their high spandex content and that will come at the expense of drying time and durability. The SKRE pants have no spandex, so they probably dry faster and will last longer. Also, it didn’t take long for the First Lite Pants to develop significant pilling. I don’t think that will happen with the SKRE pants. Next, the SKRE pants definitely don’t stretch as much as the First Lite or Kryptek pants. Again, the spandex, I am sure. Finally, the First Lite and Kryptek pants tend to feel overly stretched out after a few days in the field. I don’t remember this happening to a pair of Kuiu Pro pants I had several years ago. The Kuiu pants had no spandex. My gut tells me the SKRE pants will hold their shape like the Kuiu pants did because of the lack of spandex. The DWR seems great. I ran water over the pants for a while and it did not penetrate.

Pockets: I think the hip pockets and thigh pockets are as good as any I have had. The thigh pockets have no zipper and are plenty deep to safely contain anything reasonable. I have an iPhone 15 plus with a quad lock case with a card holder attached. It fits with room to spare. The thigh pockets are large and unobtrusive. I typically carry Sitka Traverse gloves in one thigh pocket and a First Lite Wind River balaclava in the other pocket. These fit easily. I don’t understand two back pockets in hunting pants, but all the companies seem to have them, so I am probably missing something. These have two zippered rear pockets. These are plenty big for my gigantic wallet.

Other: The stitching is certainly better than First Lite, but I am probably biased because I did an entire hunt with the crotch seam blown out in an older pair of Corrugates. It seems better than the Kryptek pants as well. No loose threads. There is a little strip of rubber inside the waistband, which seems to help keep shirts tucked a bit. The hip vents are big and nice. The zippers are smooth, and the zipper pulls are substantial enough to use with gloves, but not obtrusive. These pants have no kneepad.

Price: they end up being the same price as most of the competition. The regular price of these pants is less expensive. (Yeah, everyone runs sales, so be patient and you can save 30-40 percent with any of the companies.) But with SKRE, unless you are a giant, you will always have to pay to get these things hemmed. So, the price is actually the same as the competition.

Camo Pattern: To me, this doesn’t really matter, but some people care. It looks good – better in person than on the computer. There are a lot of different shades of greens, grays, and browns, so it will match basically any solid earth-tone color if you care about that.

In the end, I like everything about these pants, but the inseam. My inseam rants feel a bit picky, but I have a busy, demanding job. I have a wife who has a busy, demanding job. I have kids that play tons of sports. I have hobbies. The thing that I do not have at this time in my life is time. Time is the reason I would rather buy a product off the internet than from a store. So, the very last thing I want to do is buy an item from the internet that I know will not fit me and then take it to a seamstress and then go back to the seamstress in a few days to pick it up. And inseam length matters. Water will migrate up pants and then into socks and boots. So, my first impression is, these stack up well to pants I have worn.

I will put them through the paces and then update this thread.

Again, Thanks SKRE. I will probably look more closely at your lineup in the future.

 

[Aaron-in-CO]

I am the other lucky winner of the SKRE Venture pants giveaway. I’ll be taking them out for an extended weekend CO bear hunt in a few days. Will report back next week with my feedback. First impressions are positive, and I’m looking forward to putting them to the test.

Great initial description, Jn78!

 

[fishinpox]

I've been very happy with all my SKRE clothing. Seems as if the quality is high, and a fraction of the cost of some of the others.

 

[Aaron-in-CO]

Thanks to SKRE for being a Rokslide sponsor and giving away some gear!
Thanks to Rokslide for coordinating the giveaway and being an awesome place on the internet!

I just wore my SKRE Venture Flex Pants for 4 consecutive days on a Colorado bear hunt. Conditions were:
- Last 4 days of September
- Sunny, hot, dry
- 7k-10k ft
- highs in the 70s/80s, lows in the 40s/50s

TLDR:
- Great pants! I plan to continue using them for anything from spring turkey to late-season elk.
- Construction seems solid. I hope and expect to get many dozens or even hundreds of days in the field with these.
- Quite comfortable. Great range of motion. Not skinny, not baggy.
- Pockets make sense and do the job well. On the bigger side (a good thing IMO) but not too big and not too small.
- Beware of the tall inseam.
- I wish the hip vents allowed more airflow. Not the best hot weather option.

--------------------------

@Jn78 already provided a ton of great and very accurate details. I'll try to give my own impressions and not repeat too much of what's been said.

For what it's worth, I'm a cheapskate and this is my first pair of pants from a respectable hunting clothing brand. I'm a Wrangler ATG, Costco, buy-whatever-is-on-clearance kind of guy when it comes to clothing. I'm not picky and I don't have any other experience with high-end pants.

INSEAM:
I'm 6'4", 225 lbs, bigger thighs. I wear 34x34 pants 99% of the time. The SKRE pants I got were size 34. They don't offer any inseam sizing options. This initially worried me. Turns out they fit perfectly. For me, at least.

For others they will be long. The bottom of the legs is reasonably tapered, so I'm thinking that when wearing a boot, the excess length would bunch around the ankles rather than drag on the ground. When wearing sneakers or sandals, I would think the pants would be dragging on the ground. This is speculation.

TAPER/SHAPE:
For me, they are not too skinny and not too baggy. They are definitely baggier than what I would casually wear (I like a tapered fit), but I never thought "man, these are baggy". Granted, I would say that my legs are on the thicker side. For comparison, when brand new my beloved 34x34 Wrangler ATGs were definitely a slimmer fit than these SKREs are. And now, after a couple seasons and many wears and washes they fit me like skinny jeans.

CUFFS:
One of my biggest pet peeves with hiking/hunting pants is when the cuffs don't stay on the outside of my boot tops which then lets seeds, pebbles, etc. into the boots. On this trip I was wearing some high-top trail runners and Salomon Quests. These pant cuffs did pretty well at staying put while I high-stepped over logs or moved through brush. My skinny-leg ATGs and another pair of 36" inseam pants do a better job of this, but I am satisfied with how these SKREs held in place.

BRUSH/THORN BUSTING:
I did some oak brush busting on this trip and these pants seemed to handle it perfectly fine. I also encountered some lightly thorned brush. I could feel some thorns/spines coming through, but not so much that I wanted to turn around at every encounter. I would call the pant material a happy medium in weight, durability, and thickness. For the vegetation that I regularly encounter here in CO, it will serve me well.

VENTS/HOT WEATHER PERFORMANCE:
This is my biggest gripe. I was disappointed with how hot and sweaty my legs were while wearing these pants. Granted, it was a warm and sunny weekend in CO, and I tend to run on the warm/sweaty side as well. These pants didn't strike me as particularly breathable. I'm no fabric expert, but it may have to do with these being 100% polyester. My other preferred outdoor activity pants are nylon and they don't leave my legs feeling as muggy.

The side vents were surprisingly ineffective. I kept the side vents wide open all weekend and never got the oh-so-refreshing feeling of dry, cool air coming in and pushing out the hot, humid air. In the name of science, I kept one vent open and one vent closed for several hours and couldn't really notice a difference. I think the mesh in the vents hinders the exchange of air. I have another pair of pants with side vents that are slightly longer and do not have a mesh barrier, and the difference in performance is night and day. I will say however, I believe I will greatly appreciate the vents when the temps drop and I'm hiking hard in November and need to let out some steam.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
I am really glad to have these pants in my closet. These will be my default hunting pants going forward. In September, it is likely I'll wear my other pants with better side vents, but I look forward to many more days in these pants throughout the fall, winter, and spring in CO.

 

[Jn78]

Thanks to SKRE for being a Rokslide sponsor and giving away some gear!
Thanks to Rokslide for coordinating the giveaway and being an awesome place on the internet!

I just wore my SKRE Venture Flex Pants for 4 consecutive days on a Colorado bear hunt. Conditions were:
- Last 4 days of September
- Sunny, hot, dry
- 7k-10k ft
- highs in the 70s/80s, lows in the 40s/50s

TLDR:
- Great pants! I plan to continue using them for anything from spring turkey to late-season elk.
- Construction seems solid. I hope and expect to get many dozens or even hundreds of days in the field with these.
- Quite comfortable. Great range of motion. Not skinny, not baggy.
- Pockets make sense and do the job well. On the bigger side (a good thing IMO) but not too big and not too small.
- Beware of the tall inseam.
- I wish the hip vents allowed more airflow. Not the best hot weather option.

--------------------------

@Jn78 already provided a ton of great and very accurate details. I'll try to give my own impressions and not repeat too much of what's been said.

For what it's worth, I'm a cheapskate and this is my first pair of pants from a respectable hunting clothing brand. I'm a Wrangler ATG, Costco, buy-whatever-is-on-clearance kind of guy when it comes to clothing. I'm not picky and I don't have any other experience with high-end pants.

INSEAM:
I'm 6'4", 225 lbs, bigger thighs. I wear 34x34 pants 99% of the time. The SKRE pants I got were size 34. They don't offer any inseam sizing options. This initially worried me. Turns out they fit perfectly. For me, at least.

For others they will be long. The bottom of the legs is reasonably tapered, so I'm thinking that when wearing a boot, the excess length would bunch around the ankles rather than drag on the ground. When wearing sneakers or sandals, I would think the pants would be dragging on the ground. This is speculation.

TAPER/SHAPE:
For me, they are not too skinny and not too baggy. They are definitely baggier than what I would casually wear (I like a tapered fit), but I never thought "man, these are baggy". Granted, I would say that my legs are on the thicker side. For comparison, when brand new my beloved 34x34 Wrangler ATGs were definitely a slimmer fit than these SKREs are. And now, after a couple seasons and many wears and washes they fit me like skinny jeans.

CUFFS:
One of my biggest pet peeves with hiking/hunting pants is when the cuffs don't stay on the outside of my boot tops which then lets seeds, pebbles, etc. into the boots. On this trip I was wearing some high-top trail runners and Salomon Quests. These pant cuffs did pretty well at staying put while I high-stepped over logs or moved through brush. My skinny-leg ATGs and another pair of 36" inseam pants do a better job of this, but I am satisfied with how these SKREs held in place.

BRUSH/THORN BUSTING:
I did some oak brush busting on this trip and these pants seemed to handle it perfectly fine. I also encountered some lightly thorned brush. I could feel some thorns/spines coming through, but not so much that I wanted to turn around at every encounter. I would call the pant material a happy medium in weight, durability, and thickness. For the vegetation that I regularly encounter here in CO, it will serve me well.

VENTS/HOT WEATHER PERFORMANCE:
This is my biggest gripe. I was disappointed with how hot and sweaty my legs were while wearing these pants. Granted, it was a warm and sunny weekend in CO, and I tend to run on the warm/sweaty side as well. These pants didn't strike me as particularly breathable. I'm no fabric expert, but it may have to do with these being 100% polyester. My other preferred outdoor activity pants are nylon and they don't leave my legs feeling as muggy.

The side vents were surprisingly ineffective. I kept the side vents wide open all weekend and never got the oh-so-refreshing feeling of dry, cool air coming in and pushing out the hot, humid air. In the name of science, I kept one vent open and one vent closed for several hours and couldn't really notice a difference. I think the mesh in the vents hinders the exchange of air. I have another pair of pants with side vents that are slightly longer and do not have a mesh barrier, and the difference in performance is night and day. I will say however, I believe I will greatly appreciate the vents when the temps drop and I'm hiking hard in November and need to let out some steam.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
I am really glad to have these pants in my closet. These will be my default hunting pants going forward. In September, it is likely I'll wear my other pants with better side vents, but I look forward to many more days in these pants throughout the fall, winter, and spring in CO.

Yeah - I agree about the breathability of these pants. I wore them a couple of weeks ago and they felt a bit swampy even with it was pretty cool out - early morning 30 degree weather. It was very noticeable by the time it hit the 60s and 70s. Far more so than my other pants, even with the side zips open.

Also, as to my comments about the fit, they felt even more baggy after a couple of days. I have come to the conclusion that I probably should have bought these pants in a 34.

I agree your brush/thorn busting comments.

 

[IBen]

Is their new pack affiliated with AKEK?

No