Sitka thunderhead gaiters question

[Desk Jockey]

Picked up a pair of these from camo fire.

They seem pretty good. Fleece face is quiet-er but not some some ninja whisper quiet.

Question - does anyone else have trouble with the top opening size? I haven’t measure them, have mid size calves on a good day. I can’t get the top opening to close around my calves. I could wear them below the calf on my shin but that takes away from the protection from snow or debris or thorns or whatever. Just curious if others found this an issue.

 

[SkunkCabbage]

Haven’t had that issue. They seem to be tight to put on but as soon as they are zipped and synched they are bomber. I find the hardest part is zipping them over a pair of boots

 

[Stingray]

I’m 6’3 with big calves. No issue however.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Hmmm. Mine are labeled l/xl wonder if they are the wrong size.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Hmmm. Mine are labeled l/xl wonder if they are the wrong size.

So I pulled out a tape measure. My calf is about 16 inches just below my knee and 18 inches at the widest part without pants of any kind. The top of my gaiter is about 16.5 inches from zipper to zipper.

If anyone has a set of large / xl and wants to measure them I would be interested to know if mine are true to size. I will call Sitka and as well.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Closing this out for posterity. So I spoke to sitka and the sizing is right. ~16-17 inch top opening. Nice gaiters but they aren’t going to work for me.

 

[SkunkCabbage]

I bet you they would fit.
I’ll measure mine tomorrow for you.
Pm me specifics if you like and I’ll detail it as best I can

 

[Desk Jockey]

I bet you they would fit.
I’ll measure mine tomorrow for you.
Pm me specifics if you like and I’ll detail it as best I can

Would be interested to know if yours are different. Sitka confirmed that mine are the right dimensions for a L/XL. They are about 19inches at the bottom but that is straight across and the gaiters curve. Mine are 14” tall from the bottom of the heel to the top of the back of the calf. The real issue is the top of the calf is 16-17 inches from the edge of the zipper to the edge of the other zipper which is the circumference. They way I am built means I am trying to close a 16.5” gaiter around an 18 inch calf. The top ends up looking like my jeans immediately after thanks giving dinner - zipper just shy of all the way up and no way they are going to button.

If yours measure out differently then the Sitka guy led me wrong. As it stands I am going to stick with my kuiu gaiters and toss these back.

 

[Desk Jockey]

So, I have been in touch with Sitka and offered a bit of feedback. I am reliably informed that the 2019 version of these addresses some of my issues around the circumference or the leg opening. Seems like they are staying with the low-ish height so these will not interfere with knee pads. Stay tuned.

 

[SkunkCabbage]

Laying mine out flat they are 13.5" from center of the heel to the top.
I will say I wore mine for a week in a very wet spot and they performed excellent.

 

[Desk Jockey]

In case anyone is looking at these, just wanted to update that Sitka CS hooked me up with a set of the latest version. Sweet to see a company stand behind its product.

The new versions are an inch taller as measured in the back. Lower opening is ~20 inches. Big change is they are now about 20 inches across the top so 3-4 inches more room. They also went to a Velcro closure over a zipper. I don’t have any of my heavy, winter boots handy but these slide easily over a bulky set of size 13 danners.

Looking forward to getting some weather to try these out in.

+1 for Sitka for listening to their customers and then going the extra step to make things right.