Paul_detrick Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 I been thinking about getting some climbing pants, I have been wearing sweats for ten years now, and want to go yuppy. So what works? I love sweats but the ass wears out too fast. I don't want to spend yuppy prices tho, I'm just trailer trash. Quote
Fairweather Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 Try "The Fox Hole" army surplus. 3 ply Gore Tex, seam sealed...good stuff. New =$99 or "surplus" (used) $49. They only come in cammo. I finally gave up spending big $$$ on "nice" pants after missing out on too many good glissades for fear of ruining them, and then eventually doing just that in one or two trips. I hear Helly-Hansen makes some reasonably priced pants as well. Quote
Paul_detrick Posted April 25, 2002 Author Posted April 25, 2002 Thanks, but I should have been more clear, rockclimbing pants. Quote
Gimpy Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 I have some LaSportiva climbing pants and some jersey type sweats from K-Mart. I paid $40 more for the Sportivas and wonder why. Actually, since the K-Mart jobs fit better and have pockets I tend to favor them anyway and at only $10-15 bucks I don't care much if I trash them. Wallyword (Walmart) has the same type of light weight sweats for $12.00 all year long. Quote
Ced Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 Try a pair of Ferrata pants, there are great for summer and warmer winter days. You can pick them up at MEC. Cheers Chris. Quote
Guest Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 ive given up wearing pants altogether, just the occasional mumu or just some briefs. with cotton briefs you can just take em off and wring em out when you need. Quote
Dru Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 silly cascadecrimer, mumus are for ice fests not rock climbing. personally i have found carharrts work good for wide crack and OW but then you look like a trendy like Erik. best climbing pants ever are the stretch polyester ones you get at Value village Goodwill or Sally Ann for $2.99. you will finf they accessorize well with the polyester sport jacket because when you road trip in them you are well dressed enough to go stand in the soup kitchen line after with all the other bums. Quote
jkrueger Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 Shop around in the bargain bins of online retailers. Most of the stuff has been discontinued, so you won't be the height of fashion, but if you shop around and don't mind wearing hideous colors you can find killer deals. REI Outlet Sierra Trading Post Planet Outdoors Quote
sayjay Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 I found a great pair of durable pants and a pile shirt at Value Village that I climb in. Total damage: $10. Both so far are holding up great to all the flailing I've been doing in cracks lately...including at Joshua Tree, home of the sharpest rock on the planet. But even if they do get ripped to shreds, no great loss! Quote
sayjay Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 I found a great pair of durable pants and a pile shirt at Value Village that I climb in. Total damage: $10. Both so far are holding up great to all the flailing I've been doing in cracks lately...including at Joshua Tree, home of the sharpest rock on the planet. But even if they do get ripped to shreds, no great loss! Quote
Country_Jake Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 I where shorts while climbing..... all the time every time.... some nice baggy cargos.... If it is cold, i where long johns on under them.... no need to get expencive, trendy climbing pants, unless that is you work at REI..... Quote
Country_Jake Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 Speeking of JT, Sayjay how was your last trip to JT???? Quote
iain Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 quote: Originally posted by Country Jake: I where shorts while climbing..... If it is cold, i where long johns on under them.... But then you will be mistaken for a Mountaineer or Mazama. Polypro under shorts is their official uniform. Quote
Country_Jake Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 Really???? what a bunch of queers... oops.. Quote
Doug_Hutchinson Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 If you want to spend money and get the real deal, buy a pair made out of Shoeller (sp?) dryskin. All big name companies have them now (it's all the rage these days). At $100 to $200 a pair, it may seem crazy, but I've climbed and skied in one pair for over five years and they are one of the best investments I have ever made. Light, strong, mostly windproof, etc. MEC used to sell a generic pair for about $70 USD. You wouldn't regret this purchase if your credit is up to it. Quote
sayjay Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 Thanks for asking, CJ. It was GREAT! Gotta love that place -- gorgeous and endless climbing to be had. Even found a camp spot right in Hidden Valley CG. So spent the first day and a half just climbing stuff around there -- mostly cracks. No Hands, Double Cross, Dog Leg, Papa Woolsey, other stuff I don't remember the names of. Rock is sharp but dang do the cracks take gear nicely! Hit some stuff near Ryan CG on Saturday then headed into Wonderland of Rocks. AMAZING AREA. Unfortunately we were kinda late getting in there and by the time we found what we wanted to climb it was hitting evening and there were lots of others on the climbs. So added em to the 'to do' list for the next trip... Got serenaded by Tom Petty back at the CG -- reminiscent of a night at Vantage a few years back. Only this time TP got shut down by the park ranger ~10pm; at Vantage we'd had it pounded into our heads til 5am... Sunday hit Lost Horse Wall and had our first day of REAL WARMTH. It was sunny the whole trip but dang cold, at least compared to what we were expecting. Sunshine every day (except Friday afternoon when it actually looked like it might rain!) and a cold north wind. One of those in-the-sun-outta-the-wind and you could wear shorts, but getting outta the wind was tough so it was more like long pants and pile top and hat...Sunday was sunny, 80's, light breeze, perrrrfect. And not only was Sunday gorgeous, but scored 5 beaners where someone had recently bagged off a climb! Ended the trip w/ beers and a big Thai meal. Guess the bright side of the cold weather was that I wore heavy jeans climbing most of the time and minimized the damage to my legs from flailing around on the crystalline rock... :-) Decided one of the things I liked about JTree was the lack of belay/rappel anchors; made for good alpine practice and seemed to keep people climbing w/in their ability... Quote
Dru Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 quote: Originally posted by Doug Hutchinson: If you want to spend money and get the real deal, buy a pair made out of Shoeller (sp?) dryskin. All big name companies have them now (it's all the rage these days). At $100 to $200 a pair, it may seem crazy, but I've climbed and skied in one pair for over five years and they are one of the best investments I have ever made. Light, strong, mostly windproof, etc. MEC used to sell a generic pair for about $70 USD. You wouldn't regret this purchase if your credit is up to it. You know for traditional rock climbing a gusseted pair of heavyweight canvas pants will work much better than Schoeller. An alternative to cotton, bit more spendy but more durable is CORDURA, the stuff they make packs out of. Schoeller isnt much more durable than heavyweight canvas. It does stretch a bit but a real good way to wreck a pair of Schoeller pants is to climb offwidths in them. Quote
sayjay Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 Hey AlpineK, what were those pants you were wearing at Smith the other day? The arborist ones I mean... Are they $$$? They looked like they'd put up w/ all kinds of abuse... *and* they were sexy! [ 04-25-2002, 10:13 AM: Message edited by: sayjay ] Quote
Tod Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 I've got these pants from Patagonia that are incredibly durable that I've used for rock, aid, hiking, Backcountry skiing. In their original version I think they were made out of Supplex, but when I bought a second pair after 5 years of hard use Patagonia called them their "Baggy" pants. My second pair I've been using for 3-4 years now. They are VERY light, super tough, semi loose fit for great mobility, breathable yet still wind and water resistant enough to be used as a shell in almost all conditions. This is the pant that I climb in (actually do anything in) and with all the slide alder, devils club, aiding, grunting up off-widths they don't seem all that worn. No holes of any concern or size that I can find. For winter use I put some lightweight fleece on underneath and they breath enough to stay dry, yet act like a shell in nasty conditions. Pretty cool pants to say the least and a pant I would buy over and over again. Sorry if I sound like an advertisment. The closest description on Patagonia's website that I can find on the pant that I have is the Talus pant, but from the description they have they have a stretchy characteristic and a lower thigh pocket and the pants that I have do not have either of these. Other than that, the look and the style is similar, khaki, elastic drawstring waist. Tod Quote
jordop Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 As per Dru's advice, schoeller kicks ass for general mountaineering and skiing, but for rock, especially gritty Squmaish, it rips worse than any canvas. Besides, you should be climbing in shorts to give you more motivation not to fall on run out slabs. Schoeller is expensive, skin heals. Quote
max Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 When I climb offwidths, I just wear a pair of saw chaps. And nothing else. Quote
Dru Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 I remember the S7 ad for their Mushin pants with a model girl wearing them, "WOULDNT YOU LIKE TO GET IN HER PANTS" Quote
Honkeydong Posted April 25, 2002 Posted April 25, 2002 quote: best climbing pants ever are the stretch polyester ones you get at Value village Goodwill or Sally Ann for $2.99. This is great advice. I would add that the entire Don Knotts/3's company leisure suit can be had for a mere 5-spot. Hey, it's polyester (rather than mortiferous cotton), comes in bright colors, and best of all--looks simply smashing with a yellow pair of Koflachs. Quote
bellemontagne Posted April 26, 2002 Posted April 26, 2002 Ripstop camo BDU pants aren't too bad. You can buy them from just about any surplus store. They're not as durable as Schoeller, but you can wear them huntin' when you're done craggin. Quote
allthumbs Posted April 26, 2002 Posted April 26, 2002 quote: Originally posted by AlpineK: quote:Originally posted by sayjay: Hey AlpineK, what were those pants you were wearing at Smith the other day? The arborist ones I mean... Are they $$$? They looked like they'd put up w/ all kinds of abuse... *and* they were sexy! Arborwear pants about $50/pair. You can only get them from tree guy supply places. They take a beating pretty well. You can find them at Sherrill Arborist Supply Sherrill or better yet pants [ 04-25-2002, 09:14 PM: Message edited by: trask ] Quote
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