new pieces from Sitka—Alpha Fleece hoody and vest

[mtwarden]

The guys at Sitka sent me a couple of their new pieces from their Alpha Fleece line. A pullover hoody and a vest.

Alpha Fleece is some interesting stuff. It's similar to their Heavyweight Core on the interior, but the exterior is very closely knit, enough so that it appears it's going to really knock down wind—something fleece is not known for. It also has a DWR outer which should shed/slow light precipitation. It's a 280 gram fabric (which is pretty beefy for fleece) with four way stretch. I could be wrong, but the outer on these pieces look like they're going to perform very well in thicker timber.

Not overly light pieces- the hoody is 18 oz, the vest 11 oz, but not overly heavy either considering you're basically getting an insulating layer combined with an outer weather resistant layer.

Anyways, hope to put them through their paces.

https://www.sitkagear.com/products/alpha-fleece-hoodie/olive-green?q=alpha fleece

https://www.sitkagear.com/products/alpha-fleece-vest/optifade-waterfowl-marsh?q=alpha fleece

 

[Samson7x]

Looks like it falls between a heavyweight hoody and traverse hoody then? Is that fair to say?

 

[mtwarden]

Looks like it falls between a heavyweight hoody and traverse hoody then? Is that fair to say?

I have no firsthand experience with the Traverse, but reading through the description—I'd say that's accurate.

What is very interesting to me, is they did this with one fabric—with some very different features from inside to outside. Elven magic perhaps?

 

[fngTony]

Is the outer material more like a softshell or a traditional jersey face fleece?

 

[Team4LongGun]

Mike-I just ordered a large in each to mess around with. The tight knit outer with DWR really intrigues me, as not many "mid layers" can act as an outer in a pinch and cut wind.

If it doesn't work out, I'll simply blame you.....

 

[mtwarden]

Is the outer material more like a softshell or a traditional jersey face fleece?

It feels more like a softshell, but it’s definitely one fabric not two.

 

[Bump79]

Would this be comparable to say a Kuiu 240? Maybe a hair warmer at 280

 

[mtwarden]

Would this be comparable to say a Kuiu 240? Maybe a hair warmer at 280

I don't have experience with the Kuiu piece, but looking at on their site, I would say this would be warmer. Heavier fabric as you allude to, but when you have a weatherproof outer it generally keeps more heat in too.

The Kuiu piece looks very similar to the Sitka Heavyweight Hoodie, this piece will be warmer I'm pretty sure.

 

[slowelk]

I saw this stuff last week. It screamed front country (not that there's anything wrong with that)/lifestyle based on the weight. Could be good for waterfowl.

 

[nnmarcher]

Looking forward to hearing how the pieces perform. The "alpha" in the name doesn't mean they are using Polartech Alpha? I guess their Ambient pieces are Primaloft Evolve. There are a few comparisons above, but it reminds me of Patagonia's Techface fleece (single fabric, weather resistant exterior, fleece interior).

 

[mtwarden]

I saw this stuff last week. It screamed front country (not that there's anything wrong with that)/lifestyle based on the weight. Could be good for waterfowl.

Yeah not sure if it would make the cut for a backpack hunt, but just might be the ticket for day hunts???

Looking forward to hearing how the pieces perform. The "alpha" in the name doesn't mean they are using Polartech Alpha? I guess their Ambient pieces are Primaloft Evolve. There are a few comparisons above, but it reminds me of Patagonia's Techface fleece (single fabric, weather resistant exterior, fleece interior).

Sitka's first Ambient pieces were Alpha, then they moved to Evolve (closer relationship with Gore????). Yeah this definitely not Alpha or Evolve.

I never tried any of the Techface stuff, but from your description guessing it's similar.

 

[SkeeterMcgiblet]

Following, looking forward to hearing your thoughts. I've seen these at my local Scheels for a few months and have been highly intrigued but my wife says I'm not allowed to buy myself gifts around the holidays...

 

[mtwarden]

Well I've been wearing them hiking our local single track trails of late. Haven't used the vest yet, but have used the hoodie on several outings.

What I was using prior— if it was in the 20's and breezy I would wear my MDWi hoody w/ a Mountain vest over the top (Core lightweight hoody as a base layer). With the Alpha piece (and the same conditions) I'm just wearing it over the base layer and no vest— getting roughly the same warmth. The Alpha piece definitely significantly slows the wind, not as much as a Windstopper garment (like Jetstream, the old Mountain pieces, etc), but pretty darn good.

It's also been lightly snowing a couple of times w/ the Alpha piece and the moisture just beads up. It won't be as water resistant as the Windstopper fabric, but again pretty good.

One note on sizing—I'm a pretty solid Large in almost all Sitka stuff and the hoodie fits as expected. I have a little trouble getting it on/off, but I always do with partial zips. The vest I would say is almost a full size larger; I think a Medium would work just fine for me.

 

[SkeeterMcgiblet]

Well I've been wearing them hiking our local single track trails of late. Haven't used the vest yet, but have used the hoodie on several outings.

What I was using prior— if it was in the 20's and breezy I would wear my MDWi hoody w/ a Mountain vest over the top (Core lightweight hoody as a base layer). With the Alpha piece (and the same conditions) I'm just wearing it over the base layer and no vest— getting roughly the same warmth. The Alpha piece definitely significantly slows the wind, not as much as a Windstopper garment (like Jetstream, the old Mountain pieces, etc), but pretty darn good.

It's also been lightly snowing a couple of times w/ the Alpha piece and the moisture just beads up. It won't be as water resistant as the Windstopper fabric, but again pretty good.

One note on sizing—I'm a pretty solid Large in almost all Sitka stuff and the hoodie fits as expected. I have a little trouble getting it on/off, but I always do with partial zips. The vest I would say is almost a full size larger; I think a Medium would work just fine for me.

Any chance this would supplant the MDWI in everyday / normal hunting usage? I love my MDWI but I really like the idea of a tough face fabric that I don't have to baby. The alpha in the store felt like I could beat the hell out of it

 

[mtwarden]

Any chance this would supplant the MDWI in everyday / normal hunting usage? I love my MDWI but I really like the idea of a tough face fabric that I don't have to baby. The alpha in the store felt like I could beat the hell out of it

The Alpha is definitely a "hardier" piece; although in fairness my MDWi has survived pretty well thus far.

The major difference in the two pieces is the MDWi breathes better (while the Alpha offers a tougher fabric with more wind resistance). If a guy is still hunting (or glassing) that breathability might be a non-factor. If you're exerting yourself it will likely be a factor.

 

[h2so4]

I have a vintage Columbia titanium softshell that is made from a very tight weave and it is one of my all time favorites. I can’t say it’s water proof, but it’s never leaked. I just put a new zipper on it, as it’s about 20 yrs old. It’d be very interested to see companies adopt the tight weave approach. They are very comfortable, flexible and mine is quiet.

 

[Team4LongGun]

Got my vest and hoodie today. Not was I was expecting....while it's a tight weave, it's very thin. The vest is a head scratcher, not sure what need this will fill. Seems like they are geared towards lifestyle apparel. I will keep the hoodie to test out.

 

[fngTony]

@Team4LongGun @mtwarden can you post some pictures? They have so many variations I can’t keep up , saw a couple at scheels but don’t know if it’s what y’all have.

 

[Kostrize]

The material seems similar to the Kuiu Strongfleece series. Nice pieces but they didn’t breathe or block the wind very well

 

[Team4LongGun]

@fngTony