Kuiu Gila gear

[Olsolitaire1]

How does it compare to the Enduro line?








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[ChrisAU]

I broke down and ordered one with my b-day discount last week before they went out of stock. Will post my thoughts on it vs the Sitka LW and FL Wick.

 

[Cliffy65]

I was asked privately a few days ago about my opinion, so I will share it here in case it is of any interest to others.

I’m an Australian that usually spends half of each year in Montana before Rona hit. For those that are unaware, we can hunt wild introduced species year round (yes, I know I can’t hunt hog deer year round) and most of the time where I hunt it is hot to mild conditions, snow occasionally.

I came back from Cape York AU about a week ago. Bowhunting as well as flicking a few lures on a property that I’ve been to a few times before. Temperature tops were around 95 each day, very little breeze and humidity was also around 95% which is extremely high for this time of year, that humidity level is usually in September/October or there about. The weather was consistent the entire time I was there.

We spent a lot of time in UTV’s etc and walked around 11 miles each day looking for what I was after. There is more water around than usual for this time of year which meant we had to work hard to find them.

My thoughts on the gear that I have had over the years and recently purchased -

I had a hunters element set that did not collect seeds, but was extremely noisy, retained more heat than any other and restricted my forearms and calf muscles (I’m average build, never been to a gym) which is why I got rid of them after a very short time.

I had a scentblocker set back in the day that was also too hot in these conditions.

I settled on Tusx for quite a few years and had at least two sets for hot weather sets back in the day. The pants breathed quite well, didn’t catch on much, but when they did they tore easily. The shirt did not breathe as well as I had hoped and would get saturated in sweat quite quickly, which sent me in search of something better.

I switched to under armour and still have 2 sets from years ago and have worn them up here in trips before, but not this trip because I know how they perform. The heat gear and coolswitch shirts were great in the heat, but the pants do not breathe anywhere near sufficiently enough to be worn in these conditions. They are more suited to our fallow deer rut time of year because of this. They retain far too much heat in these conditions.

I then bought Sitka ascent pants and shirt about 4 years now I guess. They have been my go to sets for hot weather hunting which is a lot in Australia. I also wear them chasing elk with a kelvin vest and/or thermals when needed in archery season. I bowhunt chital (axis) in high temperatures,118 was the highest recorded temperature I hunted in but the truck said 132 across the scorched land as we drove back to the house for lunch. UNFATHOMABLY HOT, no breeze and humid too.
I wore the ascent set again this trip. The pants are my favourite as they do not catch on anything and breathe as well as can be expected from a material that does this. If they put vents in them, I would rate the pants at 100% for my needs. The ascent shirt has the collar I like and doesn’t pick up grass seeds unless it’s in the arm pit area which is extremely rare anyway. Under normal conditions of summer it feels cool and vents well. In the extreme heat, it gets saturated with sweat and it seems unable to dump it, but I am talking about conditions that I probably should stay at home!
I didn’t get to wear the Sitka UL hoody this time as we camped out some nights at random places on the property rather than drive 2&1/2 hours back to base camp, so I have no comparison for this top in these conditions yet. I have worn the UL shirt from about 5 years ago or so and on previous trips, it didn’t perform as well as the ascent in the heat and it also didn’t have a collar to protect my neck from the sun.

I needed to replace a hot weather set, which is the reason I purchased the first lite and Kuiu sets. Nobody I know had more than one brand and I was curious if something else handled our extremes better.

The first lite wick top retains more body heat and stinks easily (no other item retained any odour worth mentioning and this is the only garment that I have ever found to smell that quickly and the worst smell I’ve ever encountered in any item of clothing EVER). For me, it needs either a collar or a hood to protect the back of my neck from getting sunburned. The top also catches grass seeds etc very easily. The guide lite pants don’t catch any grass seeds or anything, but don’t breathe quite as well as the other top players. They were also noisier when new, though I’m certain this will reduce with use. I will most likely leave this set at my place in Montana as a spare when I can get back there.

The Kuiu tiburon pants breathe well but do catch grass seeds more than any of the others. The vents in the pants were always open for me and wish the others had them. The gila top removes body heat extremely well and feels cool on the body, but feels hot on your skin in the sun. I read someone else said they prefer it in the sun, but my neck was already sunburned from wearing the wick without a collar for two days and the only part of me that was feeling the sun was my shoulders? It’s not a deal breaker, it is just the only shirt that I felt the sun on my shoulders and my shoulders were not sunburned at all. I didn’t get to wear the ultra tiburon hybrid shirt on this trip unfortunately.

I conclude that my favourite for hot weather hunts is the Sitka Ascent, though I will give the ultra tiburon hybrid and Sitka UL hoody a good run when I can in case the material has changed since my UL shirt. Nothing wrong with the other sets and they will all get copious amounts of blood on them through use, though I won’t be wearing the FL wick on any hot weather or multi day hunts due to the smell alone.

My opinion only. Take or leave it.

 

[Cliffy65]

Next time I’ll try Skre and Kings

 

[Sobrbiker]

I got a Gila hoodie and Tiburon pants for this upcoming AZ OTC season.
Last year I ran a Kuiu merino LS, that I got here on the classifieds that the PO had a hood sewn on to. It did great wicking/cooling but I have high hopes for the Gila.

For the AZ guys that have gotten the Gila: does it get hot to the touch in direct AZ sun? I’ve tried other synthetics and always hated the way they felt in direct sun...

 

[ChrisAU]

Well, nevermind. Whole point of my order was the Gila shirt. I'm guessing I'm up shit creek with my 20% code and $50 gift card from my wife that I used, added a Gila neck gaiter to go with the shirt and a spare Peloton 97 neck gaiter. I've asked to cancel the whole thing, but guessing I'll be stuck with my new neck gaiters and no gift card/code while I wait on a 2022 re-stock...

Hi Christopher,

I am reaching out regarding your order. Unfortunately, the below item on your recent purchase is oversold and had to be removed from your order. We shipped the available balance. Since the final payment collection does not occur until the order ships, you will not be charged for this unavailable piece.

Oversold item: Gila LS Crew

We sincerely apologize for this inconvenience, and compassionately understand the disappointment when you're excited to receive the new gear you purchased. We do our absolute best to ensure accurate inventory levels on our website, yet there are numerous factors beyond our control that can lead to this situation.

If you'd like to order a different item instead, please respond back and I'll be glad to provide you with a Free Shipping promo code to use on a replacement order.

We truly appreciate your business and understanding.



Adriana
KUIU Customer Service
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[ScreamingPotato]

That happened to a buddy of mine planning his first Western hunt, shopped a Kuiu sale and ordered a full kit. They shipped it and sent him a message that the two pretty much most important pieces were oversold and tough luck.