protective pants

[treewhisperer]

hey guys-
how many of you guys wear protective pants or chaps while climbing? i have a pair of husky pro forest pants i wear on removals or when working in the mountains (lots of tree dropping), they are REALLY HOT and i sweat my balls of everytime i wear them. forget wearing them in the summer!!!
any suggestions?

 

[rborist1]

:Eye:

 

[treewhisperer]

yeah in the summer monthes here its about 95* everyday from june to sept. im hoping to find something lighter weight and vented maybe!

 

[Jumper]

We wear pants year round here as well-I just like the feel of them better than chaps, though the chaps are easier to remove when you are not running a saw. I never have seen anyone wear chaps in a tree, think they would get hung up at times?? Depends on the climber I guess, though if you ever had a leg injury in a tree when not wearing them, and the Workmans Comp found out about that, especially when the employer had provided the PPE, watch out, you will get squat. Yes the pants were hotter than (pick your expletive) last summer on a couple of days when the temp hit 95F+ and the humidex in the mid 1teens, so y'all down south are in a dilemma, wear the PPE and get heat stroke, or do not wear it and take the risk. (PS rborist1 summer in Alberta was a lot more pleasant, it was the winters that were the killers, especially Wainwright in a tent in January. Wish I was back there!)

 

[heartland]

I wear the Husky pants now. You can see em in my pic at "training pics" thread.

I am dreading the summer months.... not sure if I'll be able to keep using em when we hit the 100's here in TX. It seems that "cool protective pants" is an oxymoron though. I'm also open to suggestions.

 

[treeclimber165]

Tim,
If you plan on wearing them when you come to Clermont this summer, you better bring your own. I've never seen any here in Florida.
Our 90* days start in April and go into November. June 1- Sept 30 is guaranteed to be over 90* every day, usually high 90's.

 

[Jumper]

Originally posted by heartland
I wear the Husky pants now. You can see em in my pic at "training pics" thread.

I am dreading the summer months.... not sure if I'll be able to keep using em when we hit the 100's here in TX. It seems that "cool protective pants" is an oxymoron though. I'm also open to suggestions.

See if you can borrow a few sets of NASA cooled underwear from Houston; they are not likely to be using them for a while unfortunately Seriously, I once saw an article on these, someplace like Popular Science or Mechanics. I would not want to be working there, let alone be outdoors period in the kind of heat you get down there. Perhaps we have that to look forward to with global warming if last summer was any indication, second hottest on record by just a hair.

 

[treewhisperer]

does anyone know if someone makes a lighter weight pant? what kind do you guys wear? husky? stihl? i saw some johnsered at the fresco site.
may i will just have to suck it up! i could lose some weight quick wearing those this summer! it gonna be really hot here this summer(serious drought) they're saying we are going to have a worse fire season here in colorado than last year!

 

[hillbilly]

If you're working from the ground (not wearing a tight saddle)
a good thing is to buy pants a size or two too big.
Keep them up with suspenders and the hot air won't get
stuck around your waist, ie. it will be able to escape from
your pants.

There are French chainsaw pants called "Zip" or maybe "Sip"
something like that. Only seen them once. They are supposed
to be lighter, the lays are more compact, and still offer
the same protection. They are red and black in color, if that
might help you locate them.

 

[rborist1]

:Eye:

 

[monkeypuzzle]

I like the Husky bib style what have yahs. Will try the pants someday.

www.commercialcutters.com has all the Husky pants.

 

[Tom Dunlap]

I have Husky and Jonny pants. The Jonny's are WAY more comfortable. The material on the backs of the legs is tough yet breaths really well. The panel of material in the crotch is mesh so air circulates. The zippers that Husky uses are famous for trashing. I know a fellow who gets Husky pants from his employer and he has more with trashed zippers than not. He has to look sharp for the trainings so he just gives away the older pants. Jonny pants use YKK zippers. Also, the back waist on the Jonny is a little higher and that keeps out more sawdust.

Tom

 

[Jumper]

Originally posted by rborist1
Jumper,

If you were tent camping in Wainwright in Jan. you must have had a buzz cut. I hope you were wearing a toque.

Yup buzz cut and later, a maroon beret. It was an interesting introduction to "life in the field" with the PPCLI: up to that point I had been a Navy plug, and all my ex shipmates were leaving for Hawaii at the same time I was packing my ruck. Goose Bay Labrador was even colder

As for zippers in pants, I have a pair with a broken zip, so just had the opening sewed up! Good pants for a hot day because you sweat out all your liquid and do not have to use the zipper! I never owned a pair but my first boss swore by the blue Huskie pants-they appeared well made, at least the ones that were available here, which could be different from those on the US and other foreign markets.

 

[Acer]

Originally posted by hillbilly


There are French chainsaw pants called "Zip" or maybe "Sip"
something like that. Only seen them once. They are supposed
to be lighter, the lays are more compact, and still offer
the same protection. They are red and black in color, if that
might help you locate them.

They're called SIPs. I use them now..they are lighter, and a lot more bearable than the Huskys, which were my last pair.

Look for Chainsaw Clothing>SIP innovation Pro for a good description of the range. Good news for skinny people with long legs..you can order a tall fit trouser from these people, too!

 

[Treeman14]

Those SIPs pants are a bit pricey, no? $113 US.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Pants in the US run around 100, good chaps are 60-75.

 

[UNBforester]

When looking for chainsaw pants go for the best...kevlar. I just bought a new pair of STIHL with 6 layers of the stuff and they are extremely more comfortable than the pair of HUSKY pants I had last year (12 layers of ballistic nylon).

Hillbilly brought up a good point about getting them a size or two larger and wear suspenders. It does make the difference.

There is a company out of Quebec that carries "arborist pants".
Safety Landry carries some good stuff. Friends of mine like the pants and I'm considering getting a pair sometime this year.

http://www.securitelandry.com/english/

Dave

 

[UNBforester]

Because of that Nice American dollar buying Canadian looks better and better

Dave

 

[treeclimber165]

What a crappy online catalog! Between the flash player eating up my available bandwidth and NO prices listed (They all say 'Contact Us') it doesn't seem like a very good place to browse. I've seen all those items before, the only thing I'd like to see is PRICES!

 

[Kevin]

I've been wearing Husky chaps in the trees and on the ground for a few years now, they work for me.
There was a company at TCI that was touting a new type of chainsaw wear .
Much lighter, I believe he was waiting for the UL certification before marketing them.
Can't think of the company but I bought a first aid kit from him.