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So it looks like the axis and the Jetstream look promising.
Would be nice if somewhere had these to go see and try on.
I’m a little concerned about Kuiu’s athletic fit. Don’t know if my 41” chest, 41” belly, and 38” waist barrel shape fit the mold.
Both are basically the same price now. Sitka so called on sale at Midway, Black Orvis , etc.
Kuiu from their site.
When and if are better deals available for either ?
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A couple of things. Both are cut 'athletic', Kuiu a bit more so. I'm 5 ft 8 about 155-160, 41" chest, 33" waist. Both Large jackets fit, the Kuiu is a bit snug in the arms with a light puffy under, the Sitka fits well with a Kelvin Lite hoody underneath. Pants seem to be right on with Kuiu maybe being a bit more generous than Sitka. I have a size 32 Mountain pant, size 33 Timberline. I wear one with base layer, one without, fit is perfect.
I would call both companies, discuss your size and they'll guide you. Black Ovis is also really good to deal with. I would order a set from both companies, try them, don't wear them outside. Keep the one you like, send the other back. Or send both back if you don't like them. For your measurements, I'd throw First Lite in the mix. They are cut way more generously than Kuiu or Sitka and make as good as quality. In FL, I wear medium in their jackets and have room for puffy under. I have a couple pieces of their gear, notably the woodbury jacket. Its my whitetail stand jacket.
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Would be nice if somewhere had these to go see and try on.
Cabelas usually has a lot of Sitka Gear in stock if you have one close by.
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Today was the type of day in Northern VA where a shell is useful. Started as snow, went to sleet then a wet mess all why staying below 30deg.
Ive gone away from using them in the Rockies because I haven’t felt they offered anything I needed. But if the forecast was was wet snow I could see taking one again.
I did try a Kuiu Axis Hybid. Like about everything about it except the fit. A large fit well in the body, allowing room for layering underneath, but the arms were way too long. Returned it. If I decide to add another shell it will have to be a Jetstream.
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A couple of things. Both are cut 'athletic', Kuiu a bit more so. I'm 5 ft 8 about 155-160, 41" chest, 33" waist. Both Large jackets fit, the Kuiu is a bit snug in the arms with a light puffy under, the Sitka fits well with a Kelvin Lite hoody underneath. Pants seem to be right on with Kuiu maybe being a bit more generous than Sitka. I have a size 32 Mountain pant, size 33 Timberline. I wear one with base layer, one without, fit is perfect.
I would call both companies, discuss your size and they'll guide you. Black Ovis is also really good to deal with. I would order a set from both companies, try them, don't wear them outside. Keep the one you like, send the other back. Or send both back if you don't like them. For your measurements, I'd throw First Lite in the mix. They are cut way more generously than Kuiu or Sitka and make as good as quality. In FL, I wear medium in their jackets and have room for puffy under. I have a couple pieces of their gear, notably the woodbury jacket. Its my whitetail stand jacket. Yes what I would do. Kuiu sleeves suck azz, and that is putting it lightly.Both in length and in width. specially in the forearms.
Eat Fish, Wear Grundens, Drink Alaskan.
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Will 80 gm. Polar tec alpha be as warm as 80 gm. Primaloft ?
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Will 80 gm. Polar tec alpha be as warm as 80 gm. Primaloft ? Ford vs Chevy. Doubt anyone could tell the difference if you switched the tags on them.
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Are you comparing Sitka's Kelvin Active Jacket and the Kelvin Lite Hoody? I had both in my hands and could not feel a difference. I went with the active jacket just because its suppose to breath better.
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I had a brainfart earlier and am going to change my tune a little bit. Disclaimer that this is all internet research that comes from way too much time looking at backpacking gear.
Polartec Alpha was designed as an active insulation. Its basically equivalent to a fleece material encased by a breathable ultralight wind shirt.
Primaloft is a synthetic insulation designed to get as close to down as possible with a man made material. Typically used for static insulation.
Somewhere online you can find clo values for each insulation. Primaloft (or at least the better versions) has a higher clo/gram value than Alpha. Much like 850 down has a higher clo/gram value than any synthetic insulation. For the same weight of insulation and everything else being equal, the primaloft SHOULD be warmer. Whether than translates to a noticeable difference in the real world is up for debate and people like bwinters have taken the time to try a lot of them.
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80g of Polartech Alpha is what’s in a Kelvin Active. I would not consider that a warm jacket. It’s great if hiking, as in pressing to get from point A to pt B. Not so great if slowly stalking through woods. Obviously layering can shift things, but I’d consider the Kelvin Active a great jacket through September. As much as I love the fit and feel, I need a layering piece that works for lower activity levels in Oct/Nov temps then I add real insulation for sitting and glassing. If I go archery elk this Fall in CO my Kelvin Active will be with me. The one light primaloft jacket I have is warmer (no idea what the fill amount is), but doesn’t breath anywhere near as well as the polartech alpha.
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The one light primaloft jacket I have is warmer (no idea what the fill amount is), but doesn’t breath anywhere near as well as the polartech alpha. Talking about your Atom LT? If so those are 60 gram
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No, some old Cabelas’s primaloft jacket. The Atom is Coreloft. It breathes quite well. But not quite as well as Kelvin Active, though it is warmer than KA.
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No, some old Cabelas’s primaloft jacket. The Atom is Coreloft. It breathes quite well. But not quite as well as Kelvin Active, though it is warmer than KA. I always get confused between primaloft and coreloft.
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Ive never owned a Kelvin active but the the reason I say the Kelvin active and Kelvin lite are similar is due to the fact that the Kelvin lite has both primaloft hi-loft and polartec alpha. I think the Alpha is in side panels of the jacket.
Both have 80 grams of insulation. The primaloft hi-loft has a clo value of 0.65. I cant find a clo value for alpha but doubt it's a whole lot less. Primaloft gold and silver are the high warmth primaloft products with clo value of 0.92 and 0.78. Primaloft gold is comparatively really warm.
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I’ve seen a value of .496 clo for the 60 gram alpha, obviously 80 gram would be higher
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I have used the Jetstream for over two years on a number of hunts. I can't say enough good about it. It is warmer than it should be. With weather in the teens, I layer underneath, a couple polypro long sleeve shirts (using Kryptek now), then a fleece vest under the Jetstream. I carry a Sitka puffy in my pack if I'm going to sit awhile, as well as Dewpoint rain suit. The hood is a great feature also, especially in the wind.
I strongly recommend the Jetstream. Be sure to size it right; I usually wear a large, and the extra large hits me just right.
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I have used the Jetstream for over two years on a number of hunts. I can't say enough good about it. It is warmer than it should be. With weather in the teens, I layer underneath, a couple polypro long sleeve shirts (using Kryptek now), then a fleece vest under the Jetstream. I carry a Sitka puffy in my pack if I'm going to sit awhile, as well as Dewpoint rain suit. The hood is a great feature also, especially in the wind.
I strongly recommend the Jetstream. Be sure to size it right; I usually wear a large, and the extra large hits me just right. Which puffy are you using ? Kelvin Lite or Kelvin Down?
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I’m just trying to figure how and if the Kelvin active jacket (KAJ) works in a cold weather system ?
Would it work better as a second layer over a base layer instead of a R1, or core heavyweight ?
Then the Jetstream , kelvin lite hoody in the pack if needed.
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I’m just trying to figure how and if the Kelvin active jacket (KAJ) works in a cold weather system ?
Would it work better as a second layer over a base layer instead of a R1, or core heavyweight ?
Then the Jetstream , kelvin lite hoody in the pack if needed. That’s exactly what Polartec Alpha was designed for
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