Sitka claim to fame?

[firebird]

I’ll buy and pay for Sitka cause it fits me well and is comfortable, and better gear than most. And that makes me happy plain and simple.

I have called them about a warranty issue and they replaced the item. I tore my puffy and they sent me gearaid

I wait for sales, buy items second hand, and trade.


I buy it for the warranty and customer service and shut up about the price cause so far they stand behind it.

 

[Meridian90]

It could be me misremembering, but everything I've observed and seen is that Sitka was largely the first company to merge mountaineering and hunting. Before that you had clothing that was for hunting, and clothing that was for mountaineering.

As a lot of hunters started using mountaineering clothing for hunting, they brought those two together.

 

[ToeJoe]

All good information here.

 

[Meridian90]

All good information here.

Ultimately the price you pay for this gear is tied to presumed quality. I say presumed because you can still snag a piece of rain gear on a barb wire fence and it will rip like any other clothes. Some pieces are designed for a specific purpose (tough to bust through brush, light for when just out in open areas, etc etc) and that makes them very specialized and dialed in.

In general, I notice I can pound on my gear from Sitka/FirstLite/Kuiu within it's intended purpose without much concern. When I have used lower end brand gear, I may only get a season out of them. So really it's whether you want to spend 50 bucks once a year, or 250 bucks once every 5-10 years. There are definitely exceptions.

Sitka also has a slight price hike over their main competitors (First Lite, Kuiu) because they do distribute their gear and sell in places like Bass Pro and Cabelas. First Lite stopped carrying at vendors in order to, according to them, lower the price to the consumer.

My advice on Sitka or any high end hunting apparel is to find deals. You can usually find everything at one time or another for 20-50% off on several websites as well as in stores. Just know what you are targeting and wait for a good enough deal.

When you are talking 500 dollar jackets and you can save 200 bucks, it becomes more affordable.

 

[robby denning]

I personally think that their gear is among the best, if not the best at being well thought out, super comfortable and durable enough. I also understand that with higher end camo comes the trade off of durability. I used to be the guy that wore cheaper camo because it was good enough and honestly could not justify the cost of Kuiu, Sitka or FL. After wearing some of the higher end camo, I changed my opinion.

I shy away from the word "best" only because I haven't tried everything, but my Sitka Apex stuff did very well for me...durable, quiet.

Sometimes the price leaders are those that were first to market. Think onX.

 

[robby denning]

View attachment 156494

 

[Pathfinder27]

I believe (someone correct me if I'm wrong) that Sitka is actually owned by Gore, the company responsible for Gore-Tex. Having a direct lineage to that company means they can afford the R&D, customer service, etc that goes into making high dollar merchandise. I don't own any of their because it's out of my price range but I can understand why they cost that much.

 

[wapitibob]

Over a decade ago I went to Sportsmans and bought a core zip t, Traverse zip t, ascent pants, and a 90% jacket. It still looks almost new and continues to work as advertised. I have worn that 90% jacket, 90% of the time I've worn a jacket, whether hunting or around town. It's still my favorite piece of clothing. To say that stuff was worth the price is an understatement. Since then I've picked up a bunch more pieces, all on sale, and have no doubt it will serve me well.

 

[Middleofnowhere]

I’m sure the Sitka gear is great, I try to keep as much of $$ from being spent on stuff made in China as possible. I’ll pay double for Made in USA even if it is an inferior product LOL.

 

[unclericco]

I’m sure the Sitka gear is great, I try to keep as much of $$ from being spent on stuff made in China as possible. I’ll pay double for Made in USA even if it is an inferior product LOL.

Post pics of your clothing that you use for hunting.

 

[unclericco]

I'll post mine if you post yours?

 

[TREE ‘EM]

Sitka customer service is pure crap and their “Warranty” is worthless.

I had a zipper fail on a Jetstream vest that was about a year old. Sent it to them and they wanted to charge me $80 to replace the zipper. They even said there is no visible sign of excessive wear or abuse on the garment but it HAD to be abused for a tooth to fall out of the zipper.

I told them to just send it back as is.

It now hangs on the wall of my hunting camp with a transcript of their warranty and the warranty claim denial as a warning to others.

Since then every bit of Sitka hunting clothes I had has failed and has gone in the dog box for bedding, save for the Jetstream hat. Nothing like having the crotch seam on your pants unravel a couple miles up a mountain following the dogs.

The cost isn’t justified and you certainly don’t get what you pay for.

 

[sneaky]

Sitka customer service is pure crap and their “Warranty” is worthless.

I had a zipper fail on a Jetstream vest that was about a year old. Sent it to them and they wanted to charge me $80 to replace the zipper. They even said there is no visible sign of excessive wear or abuse on the garment but it HAD to be abused for a tooth to fall out of the zipper.

I told them to just send it back as is.

It now hangs on the wall of my hunting camp with a transcript of their warranty and the warranty claim denial as a warning to others.

Since then every bit of Sitka hunting clothes I had has failed and has gone in the dog box for bedding, save for the Jetstream hat. Nothing like having the crotch seam on your pants unravel a couple miles up a mountain following the dogs.

The cost isn’t justified and you certainly don’t get what you pay for.

I'm calling BS as I've never heard a single other person claim that literally every single piece of their Sitka gear has failed and hasn't been taken care of under warranty. Any seamstress worth a crap can replace a zipper for about $10.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[sneaky]

You wanna talk about crotch seams coming undone, you should have bought the first couple of generations of First Lite Kanabs. You couldn't get out of the truck before they blew out.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[TREE ‘EM]

I'm calling BS as I've never heard a single other person claim that literally every single piece of their Sitka gear has failed and hasn't been taken care of under warranty. Any seamstress worth a crap can replace a zipper for about $10.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

The next time I’m out to my camp, I’ll snap a couple of pics and post them here for non-believers such as yourself. I never wasted my time with a warranty claim after the first one. Sitka didn’t need to slap me in the face with that skunk twice, I smelled it the first time. I know several others who will tell you the exact same thing.

I hunt a little harder than most so maybe that’s why yours haven’t failed and mine have.

Best pants I’ve had so far I’ve been 511. I have no idea about their warranty, but I have three pairs that have hundreds of wareings on them in the field and at work with no issues.

 

[tracker12]

How did we ever get any hunting done before these overpriced hunting apparel companies showed up?

We did just as as comfortable