Firstlite disappointment

[Wyomuleskinner]

Tried out my storm tight pants yesterday and the firstlite label peels off within a couple of minutes. I bought a brooks down jacket for a friend as a gift for a favor he had done for me. I noticed tonight his label is peeling off. I'm truly embarrassed as I wanted to get him something nice. I left a message with firstlite but haven't heard back. I realize it doesn't affect the function but it just seems cheap and cheesy when the label just falls off. I would never recommend firstlite or buy another piece. I better stop because I'm just getting more angry.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Made in China gonna made in China.

 

[Cameron.25]

Both pieces i got from them seemed quite overpriced and unimpressive as well. Zipper on my wifes puffy jacket pocket fell off within a week and she was just wearing it in the car ride to and from work lol

 

[KBrangers]

Buy forloh. Made in America and top notch quality. Sorry about your luck with first lite. I had a pair of their pants and they were garbage.

 

[Carolina elk]

I've been really impressed with outdoor adventure style pants I've ordered from Propper. Very similar to KÜHL, but much cheaper. I think they're called Lithos. Super heavy duty hiking pants.

 

[Jbxl20]

I like their merino compared to others. But that’s about it.

 

[Cameron.25]

Buy forloh. Made in America and top notch quality. Sorry about your luck with first lite. I had a pair of their pants and they were garbage.

My full kit is now forloh, the gear is way better IMO. Maybe the new origin stuff will be good too, i hear good things about their everyday clothing. Forloh is using recco reflectors, and now insect repellent and temp cooling clothing stuff is very cool. They're definitely innovative

 

[Billy Goat]

Heck I used to try to remove the labels from my stuff.

Never realized it not being there was a problem.



Sticker fall off the back of the truck too?

 

[toadmeister]

Made in China gonna made in China.

We all joke about that, however quality has everything to do with the standard FL management establishes.

I work designing and sourcing parts globally. I set the standards and the supplier must meet them. You can get quality out of China, but you must demand it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[dieselchessy]

Wear your Storm tight anywhere it actually rains and you’ll really be disappointed.

 

[Mosby]

I stopped buying First Lite a few years ago. The best stuff they made was early on and I am still using the heck out of it but quality seems to go down with the price increases. My wife has sewn up my original FL Kanab pants multiple times. I can't find anything I like better and I kill stuff when I wear them.

 

[PNW bow hunter]

Heck I used to try to remove the labels from my stuff.

Never realized it not being there was a problem.



Sticker fall off the back of the truck too?

When you spend over $500 on a set of rain gear it would be pretty troubling to have it falling apart before even getting it out in the field.

Imagine buying a brand new Toyota Tacoma, and as you pull out of the dealership driveway all the Toyota emblems fall off!

I bet you would be second guessing your purchase

 

[Mike Islander]

Only FirstLite I own is my Gen 1 Uncompahgre. Love the jacket. Nothing about it is durable. Couple tears, which I don't mind, because I am hard on gear. Two elastic cinch cords pulled loose. No excuse for that.

 

[Desk Jockey]

I am a Firstlite fan. my hunting clothes are about even between FL and Sitka with a few other names mixed in. I used the hell out of my solitudes this year and became a fan of their corrugate foundry pants so far.

I have had some issues with some rain gear that ripped pretty easily, a couple blown crotches in Kananbs and a pocket that failed on my catalyst jacket. Their CS has been pretty good, but I have honestly had to use it more than I would like. I can’t think of a warranty issue I have had with Sitka and I have only had one with KUIU (their CS sucked back then). i have a few pieces of theirs I really like and use - (uncomphgre, corrugate pants, obsidians, grid fleece - and I really wanted to continue to support them but I find myself tilting toward other brands more and more.

 

[Billy Goat]

When you spend over $500 on a set of rain gear it would be pretty troubling to have it falling apart before even getting it out in the field.

Imagine buying a brand new Toyota Tacoma, and as you pull out of the dealership driveway all the Toyota emblems fall off!

I bet you would be second guessing your purchase

Emblems and things that amount to free advertising for a company are things I don't worry about.

If my Toyota came off the lot and locked up I'd be pissed. If be happy if the Emblems fell off.

 

[PNW bow hunter]

I had a set and it was pretty much garbage. The zippers on the pant leges would quite functioning properly. If I could get the pants zipped back shut after putting on, they would separate around my knee.

The jacket also began leaking water very fast.

Both were replaced under warranty.

On the jacket there is a chest pocket with a zipper. The adhesive that is used to “glue” it to the inside of the jacket failed very fast, so water would come in there. This was after using the warranty rain jacket for one season.

It also seemed like a lot off the water proof was was from the spray on coating on the outside of the material. After several days of hunting in heavy rains, the rain gear just never really worked again.

I only used mine during a few archery elk seasons in September. It’s not pouring rain every day of the season. So maybe it gets used 6-10 days per elk season. The only reason I even made it 3 years is because the pants and jacket were replaced under warranty after the first year. The third year is used the first light gear I just stuffed through all the issues because I was still pissed about spending so much on junk.

Pretty crappy to have rain gear fail on long back pack hunts, leaving you with wet clothes until the sun comes back out.

I bought the light weight KUIU rain gear 2 years ago. Zero issues

 

[ODB]

I am very gentle with my first lite gear - especially zippers.

I bought my daughter a pair of FjallRaven Keb pants this year - those are very nice. Very well made and thought out. But not cheap.

 

[ReddingArcher]

Their stuff has gone down hill in the last few years for sure. I have some older merino shirts and boxers and love that stuff. I bought a pair of the merino pants, I cant remember the name of them, and the crotch blew out on the first hunt I used them on, hunted the rest of the day in them and the hole got bigger with every step it felt like. I did buy another pair of their pants on the cheap a few months back to try out but havent used them yet. The quality just isnt there anymore.

 

[Titan_Bow]

I have some old Kanabs that I love and they have held up really well. I think all these hunting clothing brands are sort of pulling the wool over our eyes with their marketing, thinking the stuff is super high quality and worth their asking price. When you look at it, most of the major hunting brands, are selling lower grade stuff but marketing and selling it as higher end. My Kuiu merino hoody I bought this year already has holes all through it. Pants from Kryptek and Sitka with single stitching in areas that should be triple or at least double stitched. Threading coming out, zippers breaking, etc.
for the most part, I guess I just have come to expect that, and so I don’t ever pay full price for stuff, only buy it in clearance, and usually end up researching what fabrics, etc. work best and finding alternatives in non-hunting brands, which are usually cheaper and higher quality


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[thinhorn_AK]

I’ve never gotten into first kite because their sizing seemed awkward. All of their size L stuff was tight on me but their XL was waaaaaay too baggy. I havnt messed with first lite in several years now.