The Argali Clothing Project

[Brad@Argali]

What kind of timeline are you looking at for an ultralight puffy?

I’m assuming you’ll have a couple down puffy jackets, a vest and pants ?

We have a synthetic insulation jacket, a hybrid active insulation jacket as well as a "big" puffy jacket and down pants in the works. the First two jackets will be available first but won't be until later 2026. I'm not currently working on an ultrlight puffy. Personally I've found the weight, warmth and packability of a good synthetic insulation jacket to be superior to an ultralight puffy like the down sweater style.

 

[K_pem]

We have a synthetic insulation jacket, a hybrid active insulation jacket as well as a "big" puffy jacket and down pants in the works. the First two jackets will be available first but won't be until later 2026. I'm not currently working on an ultrlight puffy. Personally I've found the weight, warmth and packability of a good synthetic insulation jacket to be superior to an ultralight puffy like the down sweater style.

The hybrid active sounds super interesting. I’m thinking like mapped 60gsm “Sitka Ambient” meets the new OV hoody. I much prefer jackets to pullovers so that would be rad.

I’m not opposed to a synthetic puffy and appreciate the versatility for certain hunts/conditions (I have a Sitka Aerolite I rotate in; but i can definitively say for a lightweight kinda “just in case/always in the pack” jacket, they typically don’t pack as well and aren’t nearly as light. For example the SG Grumman is about 12oz but has 5+ oz of down fill and is significantly warmer than the Sitka Aerolite at 16oz.

A “big” puffy will be cool to see! I’m thinking like full blown sleeping bag damn near haha. I kinda envision like the old FL Chamberlin but lighter and better fit. I just picked up a Sitka Hyperdown jacket and that thing is RIDICULOUS for a 20 ish oz jacket, it’s just a big wearable sleeping bag. I want to say it has about 8oz of down fill. I’ll be curious to see what you put together to compete in that space too. Hopefully with puffy pants to match.

 

[MT_Wyatt]

We have a synthetic insulation jacket, a hybrid active insulation jacket as well as a "big" puffy jacket and down pants in the works. the First two jackets will be available first but won't be until later 2026. I'm not currently working on an ultrlight puffy. Personally I've found the weight, warmth and packability of a good synthetic insulation jacket to be superior to an ultralight puffy like the down sweater style.

I’d like to hear more about “why” that’s been your experience with the synthetic jacket. I don’t disagree but would appreciate hearing how you got to that conclusion for sure. I lean down for space/weight but have found it’s always nice to have a synthetic option for truly wet times.

Sounds like you have an awesome roadmap planning on the clothing front, can’t wait! Thanks for sharing

 

[HunterGatherer]

Just so I don’t bury the lead, we (Argali) are making a technical clothing line that will be available in early 2026, and this is my *official* announcement of our clothing line. (For all of you that saw my previous thread on the problems with current hunting clothing brands, this won’t come as a surprise).

The Argali Clothing Project is our approach to creating the most functional, layerable western big game hunting clothing line on the market through an open, transparent R&D process that you get to participate in and follow along as we design, test, build and revise. Sign up for our email list (The Thread), and follow along on this post to participate and provide feedback to us along the way. The link above will also take you to a survey that will help us tremendously, so please take that if you’re so inclined.

The goal is not to make clothing for everyone. Our goal is to make clothing for western backcountry hunters that want premium products that maximize performance and minimize weight with simple, functional designs, premium (quiet) fabrics and proper fit.

GET CLOSER is our motto for the Clothing Project. Ultimately, getting close is always the goal when hunting, and that idea permeates all of the clothing we will make as well as the design of the individual pieces.

Why get into clothing? The original idea for Argali was a clothing company back in 2010 when I was in graduate school. I didn’t know what I know now, nor was I in a position to fund a clothing line back then, but I got really far down the road. In some ways this is like coming back to what I wanted to do from the start.

I will also be using this thread to post photos, design sketches and ask for feedback for the next 6 months at least. So if you are interested in that, sign up for notifications on this thread as well. This thread will also be where Rokslide testers that have sample products will post photos, thoughts and experiences throughout the season.

We have 3 pieces we are going to be releasing first (with a lot more in the works). Two pairs of pants, and a midlayer fleece. I’ll post more about each of them, but here is the cliff notes:

VESPER PANT
Designed to be the ideal archery season pant for warmer weather with a quiet, lightweight 2-way stretch nylon fabric—built for comfort and stealth on early season archery hunts with the ability to use through October.

TOREX PANT
Mid-to-late season pant with quiet, comfortable 4-way stretch polyester fabric. Can be used in September, but built for mid-season performance with the ability to layer under for cold weather hunts.

GUIDE AIR FLEECE
Breathable fleece midlayer with a soft brushed interior and durable face—worn next to skin or over a baselayer. This versatile midlayer has built in air channels between insulating baffles to maximize air and moisture movement for use in a wide variety of environments.

Fire away with any initial thoughts or questions, but I’ll have more to say in the coming months.

I “joined” the project and submitted survey responses on your site but I want to say it here as well…

PLEASE make silent apparel for the early archery guys. I believe this would be the Vesper line you have outlined …
Apparel has gotten so noisy over the years to the point I can’t even find silent gear anymore. Manufacturers definition of “Quiet” just doesn’t cut it IME. I realize silence probably comes at the cost of durability and that’s okay with me. I don’t mind replacing things like pants frequently if durability is the compromise for silence. I’m not sure the 2-way stretch you have listed for the Vesper will be quiet enough for me. Maybe consider putting a soft fabric like fleece on the lower leg portion of the pants for example. Legs rubbing together and rubbing on brush is what tends to make the most noise…
Looking forward to see what you come up with!