From time to time I see the threads like "Sitka vs. First Lite" and "Kuiu vs. Sitka" and so on. Since I was more or less finished with buying anymore Sitka and have completed my system, I thought I would share with you the costs involved with purchasing their system, so to speak. I must say that the clothing below is THE MOST COMFORTABLE outdoor clothing I have ever worn. I come from many years (decades) of mountaineering, backpacking, and hiking. This whole system has allowed me to remain comfortable from -20 degree temperatures all the way up to 95 degrees. (Anything higher than 95 is just not comfortable in my book, but that isn't the clothing's fault.) I wear these in any kind of weather, which has allowed me to continue my fitness and recovery of my shoulder injury. No longer do I call a hike on account of the weather. Another positive aspect is how each piece of clothing integrates with another. I can wear ALL of this clothing without much trouble at all.
That being said, it comes at a cost mind you. Below you will find the item I purchased, the MSRP, the discount I found and then my final price:
Item Price Discount% Final Price
Cloudburst Jacket $ 349.00 0% $ 349.00
Dewpoint Pant $ 369.00 20% $ 295.20
Mountain Pant $ 199.00 24% $ 151.20
Ascent Pant $ 189.00 45% $ 104.03
Kelvin Lite Hoody $ 249.00 20% $ 200.00
Kelvin Down Hoody $ 389.00 32% $ 264.52
Kelvin Primaloft Vest $ 189.00 40% $ 112.50
Stormfront Glove $ 149.00 34% $ 99.00
Sitka Beanie x 2 $ 60.00 50% $ 30.00
Core Heavyweight Balaclava $ 40.00 20% $ 32.00
Neck Gaiter $ 35.00 0% $ 35.00
Bivy 30 $ 349.00 20% $ 279.19
Core Lightweight LS x 2 $ 138.00 0% $ 138.00
Core Midweight Zip T $ 89.00 20% $ 71.20
Core Heavyweight Zip T $ 129.00 22% $ 100.00
Core Lightweight Bottom $ 69.00 30% $ 48.30
Core Midweight Bottom $ 99.00 30% $ 69.30
Traverse Glove $ 35.00 0% $ 35.00
Coldfront GTX Glove $ 149.00 20% $ 119.20
Mountain WS Glove $ 89.00 21% $ 70.00
90% Jacket $ 289.00 41% $ 171.69
Pack Cover $ 79.00 0% $ 79.00
Sitka Core Gloves x 2 $ 50.00 40% $ 29.98
Sitka Shooter Glove $ 59.00 45% $ 32.50
Sitka Cap $ 30.00 20% $ 24.00
Total $ 3,870.00 24% $ 2,939.81
My thoughts were, while spending the last 2 years buying this stuff, that I would only buy when either the items were on sale or I absolutely needed them. What surprised me was how, after all of that time, I only saved on average 24%. It certainly makes me think about how, had I known which item worked best for my situation, I would have just purchased everything from Blackovis.com or something and had been done with it. However, this would have been impossible since I would not know which item works best in each situation.
I imagine a few of you will see this and have sticker shock, a little like I did. But the main point of this post is to make people aware how much a system can cost. When people are walking into this sport, they should know the end cost. Yeh, you can mix and match, like I have seen people do. But maybe if more people might post on how much their KUIU system cost, or their First Lite system, we can truly compare and contrast the differences. I am pretty sure that Sitka will cost the most but hopefully some people can determine by sharing these costs whether it is worth it or not. To me, it is not that expensive when I consider how I spend nothing for a gym membership and I am really healthy for a middle aged parent. The costs above is minimal in comparison.
So.. how much have you spent on your gear?
That being said, it comes at a cost mind you. Below you will find the item I purchased, the MSRP, the discount I found and then my final price:
Item Price Discount% Final Price
Cloudburst Jacket $ 349.00 0% $ 349.00
Dewpoint Pant $ 369.00 20% $ 295.20
Mountain Pant $ 199.00 24% $ 151.20
Ascent Pant $ 189.00 45% $ 104.03
Kelvin Lite Hoody $ 249.00 20% $ 200.00
Kelvin Down Hoody $ 389.00 32% $ 264.52
Kelvin Primaloft Vest $ 189.00 40% $ 112.50
Stormfront Glove $ 149.00 34% $ 99.00
Sitka Beanie x 2 $ 60.00 50% $ 30.00
Core Heavyweight Balaclava $ 40.00 20% $ 32.00
Neck Gaiter $ 35.00 0% $ 35.00
Bivy 30 $ 349.00 20% $ 279.19
Core Lightweight LS x 2 $ 138.00 0% $ 138.00
Core Midweight Zip T $ 89.00 20% $ 71.20
Core Heavyweight Zip T $ 129.00 22% $ 100.00
Core Lightweight Bottom $ 69.00 30% $ 48.30
Core Midweight Bottom $ 99.00 30% $ 69.30
Traverse Glove $ 35.00 0% $ 35.00
Coldfront GTX Glove $ 149.00 20% $ 119.20
Mountain WS Glove $ 89.00 21% $ 70.00
90% Jacket $ 289.00 41% $ 171.69
Pack Cover $ 79.00 0% $ 79.00
Sitka Core Gloves x 2 $ 50.00 40% $ 29.98
Sitka Shooter Glove $ 59.00 45% $ 32.50
Sitka Cap $ 30.00 20% $ 24.00
Total $ 3,870.00 24% $ 2,939.81
My thoughts were, while spending the last 2 years buying this stuff, that I would only buy when either the items were on sale or I absolutely needed them. What surprised me was how, after all of that time, I only saved on average 24%. It certainly makes me think about how, had I known which item worked best for my situation, I would have just purchased everything from Blackovis.com or something and had been done with it. However, this would have been impossible since I would not know which item works best in each situation.
I imagine a few of you will see this and have sticker shock, a little like I did. But the main point of this post is to make people aware how much a system can cost. When people are walking into this sport, they should know the end cost. Yeh, you can mix and match, like I have seen people do. But maybe if more people might post on how much their KUIU system cost, or their First Lite system, we can truly compare and contrast the differences. I am pretty sure that Sitka will cost the most but hopefully some people can determine by sharing these costs whether it is worth it or not. To me, it is not that expensive when I consider how I spend nothing for a gym membership and I am really healthy for a middle aged parent. The costs above is minimal in comparison.
So.. how much have you spent on your gear?
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