I have some of their stuff, good company to deal with. They make a rock solid product and keep the cost down by not having store fronts. My only issue is all there stuff is for taller people. Lots of 34" inseams, in my opinion they put out just as good of a product as Sitka at sometimes half the price. I run a lot of Sitka gear simply because it fits great. I feel that Sitka, kuiu, and first lite are going to dominate, they just need to tap into the Midwest hunter rather than just the mountain hunters.
You know the owners started the Sitka brand, then sold it to Gore and then started Kuiu? I was thinking the same thing. I did a lot more public land hunting this past winter and for the first time weight became an issue as I'm hiking a climber and all my stuff back 2 miles in hilly terrain. What kind of clothing I wore was rarely an issue previously. This past year it became a big deal. All of my deer season clothing is super heavy and doesn't breathe well, which has been fine for walking 100 yards and sitting in a stand. But by the time I got to my spot after walking a couple of miles, I was soaking wet and miserable. I need to put some serious thought into more appropriate clothing if I'm going to keep hunting that area. What they need to come out with is blaze orange in their fabrics. That would really help.
Ya I did know something about the changing of the guard from Sitka and kuiu. I thought it was a split but now reading your right. I will tell you this you'll love making the plunge into breathable gear. I have the Sitka cloud burst pants and jacket. The 90% pants and jacket as well as the kelvin vest. I also have the traverse pants and jacket. Super light, very warm and packs down. I have the kuiu chinook jacket and North Star glove. I have a few first lite merino t's as well. I was always a firm believer in natural fibers like wool, canvas, and cotton. After a ton of field I now now cotton is terrible and merino wool proves God loves us. So I run a all merino base. The synthetic fibers are great just don't get them near a flame. If your going to do it, I know kuiu runs some good sales, as does Sitka I have over $2000 in my Sitka gear but only paid $700 by getting it on sale. I'm going to do a full review on my Sitka gear now that I owned for a season. One thing I did is soaked all my gear in the tub and rang it out and air dried it, 30 minutes for my whole outfit bone dry and it was not windy. As far as orange, Wisconsin is 50% but I wear a vest and hat in orange and never had an issue with the wardens. Not trying to derail your thread by talking about Sitka so much, sorry.
I appreciate all the feedback. I will be switching. I've never regretted spending extra for better gear. Too heavy and not breathable are my main problems right now and looks like Kuiu solves both of them. I will check out Sitka. The benefit of Sitka is I can go to Cabela's and check it out in person. This is the problem with all gear but we spend tons of money on the best camo and then cover it up with a $10 bright orange vest-lol!
Take a look at First Lite as well... I use FL for my merino wool and puffy layers, Sitka pants and jackets. Great stuff... was hesitant to put down that much coin for clothes, but it is well worth it when hiking and hunting.
Didn't you buy a few Sherpas on your last trip up Everest? They could carry your Lazy-Boy into the backcountry, probably with you on it.
All three of the companies make great gear. I have Sitka gear and I switched from my cotton camo a few years back. There is no comparison. My buddy likes Kuiu. All of it is expensive, but like one of the earlier posts stated you can get a lot of it on sale and the end of each season. Rokslide has a good trading post in that forum. I see Kuiu stuff for sale on all the time. The fit on Kuiu and Sitka works great for me. It dries rapidly from sweat, and has been extremely durable. I have pieces that are going on 5 or 6 seasons of hard, brush, bush wacking abuse and except for for few brier snags they look brand new.
I don't really have much to add to the discussion, but I do own some Kuiu and, as mentioned, it is great stuff. That said, for various reasons that I don't need to get into, my money now goes to First Lite and maybe Sitka on occasion. I did wear it on my mountain goat hunt a couple years ago, as well as previous elk and mule deer hunts, and never had a problem what so ever.
