Kuiu pro pants - first impression

[Desk Jockey]

Bought a pair in dusty olive to try.

https://www.kuiu.com/hunting-pants/...MI_a-5vv3P4AIVRp7ACh0eRAg9EAQYASABEgJPY_D_BwE

Fit and finish seems good. They are a little more snug than my attacks in the same waist size. They also seem stiffer and louder, thought the attacks are now a couple of year old. Knee pad is thin but shou”d be enough for the occasional kneeling or crawling.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Dug out a pair of 2017 major brown attacks for comparison with the new pro pant. The dusty olive of the pro pants is a fairly dark olive color, darker than the major brown. You can see they have added a bit of nylon tape to reinforce key seams like the crotch. Zippers are beefier across the board and most have rubber pulls instead of knotted cord.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Pocket openings are angular instead of round and lined further into the pocket before they become synthetic mesh.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Hip vents are still there. Sameness basic design but with the beefier zipper. I notice they seemed to catch the interior mesh a bit more but they haven’t been worn or washed yet so maybe that will get better. If you have some sharp eyes you will see some pilling and pulling on the old attacks.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Cargo pockets are the same basic design and capacity, although the slimmer thigh leaves a little less room for gear. The notable change is the direction of the zipper. On the old attacks open was to the rear. The new pants have open toward the front of the thigh. Not sure which I prefer or if it really matters. The top lid edge of the cargo pocket flap is also stiffer. Same with the back pockets.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Last pic shows the leg opening. New pants are 1.5-2” smaller in circumference. Overall fit is slimmer than the attacks. Not quite skinny jeans but these are not going to be great for the husky crowd. I have to size up my waist to get a fit in the thighs already so I put this in the negative column. Wish they would have kept the fit and sizing the same so it would be easier for existing customers to know what they are getting and be consistent across their line. I point this out because in the description of the pants on their site kuiu says they are the same fit as other pants. Maybe they changed he fit on the attacks since I bought my but the pros are a slimmer fitting pant overall.


Final thought, I did a water test on these and they do shed water.

It will be the fall before I have these in the field enough to call this a review, but they seem to be a reasonable evolution of the attacks and a good successor to the alpine pants that I liked until I got them wet. Skinny jeans thing aside, I would like to see a couple more solid colors added tot he line up and these could become my go to pants. I will reserve that judgement until I get them in the field for a few trips.

 

[Benjblt]

thanks for referring me to your review. Quite thorough. I'd be interested in the durability and warmth as compared to the attacks once you get them in the field. It's interesting that they went slimmer then the attacks. I'm a 32 in ALL jeans and I the Attacks are TIGHT! I had to size up to a 34. The tighter pro pants might be a good thing for me as I'm probably more of a 33 in the attacks.

 

[Desk Jockey]

So I took these out for a training hike today. A few miles over rolling terrain with a 60# load. Temps were mid 30s to start and got to low 40s. I wore the pro pants with a pair of boxer briefs.

Fit is more snug than the attacks as I mentioned above. The difference is noticeable but not a nuisance. Snugger fit makes the cargo pockets less functional IMO. I can get my cell phone in there fine but my beanie and gloves were too much. They seem to breath OK. Maybe a little less than my attacks. Things were getting a bit swampy down below when I hit my turn around point. I undid the hip zips while taking a break and left them down the rest of the hike. I have been wearing Sitka pants lately and forgot how much I like those vents. The knee pads are fine. Not super plush and they were in the wrong place a few times when I knelt down.

Overall, they are fine. The slimmer fit is a bit of a bummer for me but it may not bother some. Given the price point, I not sure I would buy again but that is mainly based on the fit.

 

[haleyeah]

Great review, thanks

 

[Venom One]

Thanks for taking the time to do this thorough review. It's exactly what I was looking for today.

 

[Huskermuledeer]

Great review!

 

[Texasbuckeye]

Appreciate the review.

I bet the idea behind the snugger fit is to try and keep the knee pads in place better. Bigger pants will allow more movement of those. Just my thought though as i dont have any insider knowledge