3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Better than Aerostitch? It's TWICE the Denier Cordura!, December 16, 2011
This review is from: Carhartt Men's Extremes Arctic Quilt Lined Zip-To-Waist Biberall (Apparel)
Since I couldn't afford the $887.00 Aerostitch Roadcrafter suit, nor could I try some on, for sizing up before ordering, I went to my local Tractor Supply while they were having a sale on all Carhartt. I never really paid no mind to Carhartt, always just thought, "Farmers" and never thought I'd ever rock "Biberalls" in my life.
One day, I was examining my old jeans, and wished they were made of Cordura, and began searching for pants made from Cordura. These things from Carhartt, and the Coveralls, and the two jackets, all in the "Arctic Extremes" series, and all in beautiful black, were the only apparel that google search uncovered, that weren't motorcycle specific gear. I already have a Cordura suit for riding, and that's what got me yearning for Cordura jeans, just regular style that I could wear off the bike. I guess no one really wants to make said pants, because you'd only need to buy one pair, and they'd last the rest of your life, so the company can't keep making money. Cotton wears out quickly enough to constantly need replacing. Motorcycle gear get's crashed and sandblasted by gravel trucks, etc, so they can get away with using Cordura, and still sell their garments.
My Motorcycle Cordura stuff is armored, and isn't really suitable for everyday wear, looking like a power ranger and what not. Anyway, I'm a huge fan of 1000Denier Cordura, i have bags made from the stuff as well. I still need some regular jeans, but anyway...
It's winter, and I like being warm, so I go these things. I like how they can easily be used for motorcycle riding, because of the zip to waist side zips (#10 YKK Brass Metal), but not look like the traditional leather chaps on the Village People. Yet, they are incognito enough to be worn as "regular" clothing, and not be near a bike.
My own personal views differ from all these people here claiming how incredibly warm these things are. Yes, they're warm, but nothing magical. They have a polyester fill (synthetic) insulation, which, if compared to PrimaLoft, (my opinion, and a rough estimate) would be about equal to 120 - 135 grams of PrimaLoft One fill. It's warm, but I'm an exceptionally cold person. I treat this kit as my "shell" for ultimate protection, from wind, rain driblets, flying swarms of hornets, hail, whatever - it's 1000D Cordura! Here, look at this copy and paste of a comparison chart from some website, that may or may not be accurate:
Tear and Abrasion Strength by the numbers
Product / Material Pounds of force until fabric tears Abrasion cycles until fabric fails
Cotton Jeans 4.5 pounds to tear 50 cycles to failure
70 Denier Standard Nylon 4.5 pounds to tear 165 cycles to failure
500 Denier Polyester 8 pounds to tear 180 cycles to failure
200 Denier Standard Nylon 7.5 pounds to tear 275 cycles to failure
500 Denier Cordura 22 pounds to tear 710 cycles to failure
620 Denier Cordura 35 pounds to tear 1200 cycles to failure
Competition Grade Leather 80-110 pounds to tear 1200-1700 cycles to failure
1000 Denier Cordura 110 pounds to tear 1780 cycles to failure
Air Mesh Kevlar 1260 pounds to tear 1800 cycles to failure
Stretch Kevlar Blend 420 pounds to tear 1800 cycles to failure
I love them. They have some caveats, that no one else has mentioned, but let me just tell you. The snaps don't line up right. All of them. It's like they positioned the snaps to work with a thin zipper, then put this huge zipper in there, which makes the pieces that huge zipper width apart, so when you snap them up, you have to struggle, almost like you're trying to crush the zipper. The zipper doesn't lay flat when the snaps are snapped. That's what I'm trying to say. It's very hard to snap any snaps, and all the ones at the store were all the same way.
The huge, burly, metal, toothy fly - it's... um... scary to pee. You don't really want to only utilize that "fly", because it's so high up, almost like belly button height, and doesn't unzip low enough to really be of any use to humans. I have to un-do the top, and lower the entire situation enough to have a LOT of clearance away from that zipper. You would lose that battle. It's hard to keep the huge zipper away from tender parts, without really un-doing most of the bib.
There are a LOT of options out there, for black, insulated bibs (bib overalls, dungarees), but none of the others are Cordura nylon, that melts if you weld, or throw sparks at it, but is eighty million times more stronger than cotton. So, even with the above design flaws, this was the only choice for me.
Sizing. I don't know how much this will help, but whenever I look for sizing suggestions, I never get enough information, so here goes. I'm six feet tall, 195 lbs, 43" chest when relaxed, and I may have slightly broad shoulders. I wear 36" waist x 32" inseam pants, that fit loosely, but gives me more room in the rear and the thighs and stuff. I tried on a lot of different bib overalls, and I found the perfect size for me, which was 36" waist, 30" inseam. My "real" inseam is 34" measured with a book pressed into my bicycle seat area, and measured against a wall, but I hate when my pants touch the ground and get dirty if I walk in a public restroom. The 36"x30" Carhartt Extremes Arctic Cordura Bib Overalls are SO CLOSE to touching the ground, but the don't. It's about as perfect as they can get. The reason I needed slightly shorter inseam, is because the girth of the leg openings are much more open, so they don't hit my shoes and wrinkle - they fall over more of the shoes and don't "break". While sitting, my 32" inseam jeans stick out the bottom slightly, but while standing, my overalls are longer than the pants, and are millimeters from touching the ground when I walk.
I got the same size waist measurement as my normal jeans, because these are built like a jacket for your pants, I think they're cut for fitting over other clothing, and these fit over my jeans just fine. I'm currently wearing a synthetic vest, under the bib (upper) portion, and it's nice to have all that room for layerings. I was also able to get the size 34" overalls over my pants, and they looked very fitted, but the 36's were just very pajama-like comfortable. Just loose enough. I have a bit of a gut, so while sitting, my stomach fits nicely in the upper portion of these bibs.
Maybe I have a long torso, I don't know how to measure that, but these bibs do not come undone and hit me in the chin, like another reviewer said. I was worried about this, but mine fit so they never come undone while sitting and the top of the bib just goes to the top of my sternum, no where near hitting my chin, and it's all really flush against my front. I thought they looked baggy in the upper portion when I first tried them on, but it seems like they're "breaking in" and molding to my figure or something, the top sits pretty flush now, and I love it.
I do think I'll replace the breast pocket zipper pulls with 550 paracord, because those zipper pulls are bright brass colored and pretty large, and positioned right where nipples would be - so if I move a certain way, I can spin them like pasties, not really - but they do remind me of pasties, or large gold piercings there. Maybe they'll tarnish with age, and not be so blingy, but if not, I'll be paracord knotting those zippers.
As everyone else has talked about the stiffness, but my Cordura motorcycle pants broke in nicely, and they aren't stiff, so I've been wearing these constantly for the last few days, and they're breaking in nicely. They'll never be soft like cotton, but I like it.
Another thing to note, the side "carpenter" pockets, are smaller than on my jeans. All my jeans are that style, so I have an EDC (Every Day Carry) system that fits those pockets, and the smaller side pockets on these bibs messed up my swag. But these did add another similar pocket on the other side, while my jeans are all one-sided.
I got the Coat, with detachable hood and these, instead of the coveralls, for more versatility, but also a lot more insulation in the chest. The bib is insulated, and tall, so it's like a built-in insulated vest, it's really warm, and helps with cold billowing up your jacket. I can layer insulation under and over it.
Be sure to get the PERFECT size, because these will be around the rest of your life, if you keep away from heat/flame. They won't really shrink, like the cotton ones, so find a place to try on with the boots and pants you're going to wear under them, and take your time - really make sure you have enough room for a vest under the top portion, and don't let them drag on the ground, because that's the only way these things could prematurely wear out.
They're not Gore-Tex, but they have a water resistant coating on the underside of the 1000 Denier Cordura, same as Spec Ops Wallets. This coating also protect the material from fraying.
The pockets are DEEP and nice, but I think the interior of the pockets is a cotton, like a linen. It's a nice weave. Like probably a duck cotton, and feels like the inside pockets of a new pair of Dickies Work Pants, like crispy, starchy. I really like how it has both back pockets, but you can access your pants underneath through the top part of the zip to waist side zips.
This jacket and pants are my "shell" layer. For supreme protection. It's also very lightweight, I'm betting a lot lighter than the cotton duck versions. I'm constantly amazed at the lightness of the jacket.
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