ecwcs level 7 puffy pants

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Jan 23, 2022
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South Missouri
I'm looking at different puffy pants options and would like to hear a bit more from people who have experience with the ecwcs level 7 pants. I like the info I have found based on my research but still have a few questions I haven't seen addressed. For comparison sake I would be comparing these to an average pair of down puffy pants. Specifically I am curious about durability and noise as these would be primarily used for whitetail stand hunting.
Are they noticeably more durable than down puffy pants?
Are they noticeably quieter than down puffy pants?
Are they noticeably warmer than down puffy pants?
Any other pro/cons that come to mind based on actual field use?
 

Olympics777

Lil-Rokslider
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They are pretty warm, very durable, not particularly quiet. They aren’t meant to be quiet though. Great for the price.
 
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They don’t pack well, I used them quite a bit in the mil. They can be rolled up, but it’ll depend on how much room you want them too take up.
 

chindits

WKR
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Feb 25, 2013
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Westslope, CO
More durable then down puffies which is why I usually wear my rain gear over my down pants.

If you’re just wearing them in a stand no issues with either since you really aren’t beating your self up in a stand. If you ever get into backpacking or mountain hunting go down and you’ll save a lot of weight. The military doesn’t care about clothing weight much.

However, the new Arctic clothing system is 5 layers and I think weight and mobility were factored in. I just haven’t seen them yet.
 
OP
H
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They are pretty warm, very durable, not particularly quiet. They aren’t meant to be quiet though. Great for the price.
Do you think you could get away with the noise archery hunting assuming you aren't moving around much, or does any slight brush or movement become to noticeable if they are your outer layer? The price is about the most tempting thing!
 
OP
H
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More durable then down puffies which is why I usually wear my rain gear over my down pants.

If you’re just wearing them in a stand no issues with either since you really aren’t beating your self up in a stand. If you ever get into backpacking or mountain hunting go down and you’ll save a lot of weight. The military doesn’t care about clothing weight much.

However, the new Arctic clothing system is 5 layers and I think weight and mobility were factored in. I just haven’t seen them yet.
For durability I would be happy if I didn't really need to worry about it rubbing on the tree some or walking 50 yards to a downed deer without feeling like I would rip them. Are they a similar material to down pants just a thicker version, or is it a different material all together?
 
Joined
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I have a set. They are heavy and bulky, but also warm. I wouldn’t say they are more or less noisy than my Sitka puffy pants. Generally that nylon outer layer isn’t going to be that quiet. For $50-60 they are dirt cheap And they work.
 
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For durability I would be happy if I didn't really need to worry about it rubbing on the tree some or walking 50 yards to a downed deer without feeling like I would rip them. Are they a similar material to down pants just a thicker version, or is it a different material all together?
They are nylon and fairly thick compared to my sitkas. They also have reinforcing patches.

I think durability is a bit dependent on use. IMO They are too warm to do a lot of walking in so for my use they aren’t likely to see much wear and tear.
 
OP
H
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A thermos doesn't sound to bad size wise, doable for day hunts but it would be more of a challenge if you were living out of your pack.
 
OP
H
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I have a set. They are heavy and bulky, but also warm. I wouldn’t say they are more or less noisy than my Sitka puffy pants. Generally that nylon outer layer isn’t going to be that quiet. For $50-60 they are dirt cheap And they work.
So it sounds like it would still be good to have something over them for bow range, I have a pretty loose pair of mil surplus wool pants they may for under.
I can imagine ever trying to move to far in them but to move 1-200 yards to a new spot it sounds like they would be tough enough to make it that far, or to climb out of a tree before taking them off.
 

Htm84

WKR
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Jun 16, 2019
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SO if you were going to do the Nalgene comparison would they be close to the space of 2 Nalgene's, 3 or more?
I’ve posted this before but it’s a pic for size comparison.
The level 7 pants are in the green bag and the yellow bag is a pair of OR synthetic pants.

The sizing on them is kinda big in my opinion.
 

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chindits

WKR
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Are they a similar material to down pants

No, definitely different material than my down pants but all my puffy gear is for sitting in be it camp or glassing and not for bushwhacking. It is some of the lightest gear I could find, feather friends and goose feet.

I didn’t walk much in the military stuff it was just for guard duty winter nights, we didn’t patrol in it. If you’re sitting in a stand with a rifle you will be fine, a bow might have issues with noise but I never thought about that back then.
 

gburk

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they’re good, not as packable or as light as down but tough and worth having. Cheap. Beware the sizing, medium is huge since they’re sized to fit over everything.
 

*zap*

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I have a few pair and they are ok. I say it depends on the temps. Under freezing wearing them while sitting for hours = no go for me.
You can size a level 5 pant to wear over them for more warmth and wind protection. I keep one set like that for cold weather camping.

Sitka fanatic bibs would be my recommendation.
 
OP
H
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South Missouri
Thanks for all the input guys. These seem like they will work pretty well for whitetail use, especially with being able to get a pant to fit over them to muffle some of the noise. If these were the same price as down pants I don't think I would spend much time considering them but for the price they seem worth the weight and space penalty for the budget minded hunter.
If I do end up getting them ill try to remember to update the post so it has more info for others searching in the future.
Any other input from guys who have used them in the past?
 

just.mark

FNG
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Jun 17, 2022
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The gen3 is made of primaloft and like others have said isnt the lightest or most packable but the trade off is its very durable and warm. Having said that the warmth factor is extremely high. I will use them when tempatures get below 15degs and I am going from active and moving to static for long periods of time. One of the advantages is you don't need any other warming layers including a sleeping bag to about neg 5. When the tempatutes get that low the clothing options are going to get much more bulky. Down is lighter and more compressible but doesn't work when its wet and looses the ability to loft over time which these won't do. if you can still find them the SOCOM pcu variant is slightly lighter and packs down better. They also issued the jacket in like 5xl so you didn't really need tbe pants to save size and weight.
 

Huntin_GI

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I got set which, come hell or high water, I will find a way to pack during late season hunts. Mind you, this is Colorado. Backpacking or not, those pieces are necessary when you are out and that weather is starting to dump and you are trying to stay on the glassing knob.

I say this as a Sitka fanatic. At some point, lightweight, packable, blah blah blah isn't going to cut it.
 
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