Reviews > Clothing > Pants and Shorts > Big Sky Products Warm-n-Cozy Epic Pants > Thomas Vickers > Long Term Report

Big Sky Products Warm-N-Cozy Full Zip Epic Pants Long Term Report

June 12, 2006

Tester Background:
I grew up in the piney woods of southeast Texas. Camping was a quick trip into the mosquito-infested woods behind the house. My style has evolved and over the last 4 or 5 years, I have begun to take a lighter weight approach to hiking gear (I still use sleeping bags and tents, just lighter versions). While I have flirted with lightweight hiking, I feel that I am more of a mid-weight hiker now. My philosophy is one of comfort, while carrying the lightest load possible.

And the pants return:
Big Sky Products requested that the Warm-N-Cozy Epic Full Zip Pants be returned during the Long Term Report phase so that the zippers could be replaced by the factory. Apparently the wrong zippers had been originally installed and this is what made them so difficult, if not impossible to unzip.  When the pants were returned, I had ample time to find out if the zippers were going to work better. 

A last go at testing:
Once the pants were returned, it was late spring and I figured I was going to have very little use for them. Lucky for me, the Texas weather threw me a fast one and provided an entire week of rain to give these pants a great last round of testing. This allowed me to fish and day hike in light rain to heavy rain and see just what these pants had to offer.  I feel that this last round of testing really gave me the best possible feel for these pants are capable of.

FIT
1. How well do the Warm-N-Cozy Full Zip Epic Pants fit? Are they too tight or too baggy?
The fit was just right, especially since the waist was very adjustable.  The only concern I had was that the length seemed a bit long. This was only a problem if I wore athletic shoes or sandals, not with hiking boots. They were not too baggy and they were not too tight to layer under.

2. Do the Velcro tabs allow me to comfortably adjust the pants at the waist?
Yes. It did not matter if I was wearing the pants with only skivvies underneath or with another layer of pants underneath it.  The waist (and velcro) were easy to adjust.  The only problem I encountered was that the velcro could snag on a branch or other obstacle and pull the pants off of my waist.

3. Does the waist  hold the pants up during differing levels of activity?
Once again, yes. They didn't slip or get in the way.  The performed rather well in all the different activities I took part in.

4. Can I layer under these pants?
Yes. There was plenty of room in the legs and in the seat area to wear shorts or long pants under the Warm-N-Cozy pants.  I wore shorts, a swimsuit, and long hiking pants under these pants without any issues.

COMFORT
1. How well does the Epic fabric breathe?
2. How well do the pants vent?
I have to say that I feel that the Epic fabric breathes very well. I spent the day at a water park swimming and brought the Warm-N-Cozy Full Zip Epic Pants along to wear over my swim suit. At the end of the day I came out of the water, soaking wet, and pulled the Warm-N-Cozy pants on over the top. At first I was afraid since the temperature was easily 95 F (35 C) and it was the perfect situation to turn the pants into a mini sauna.  Within 45 minutes I realized that I was dry underneath the pants and I was not muggy or sweaty.  The water that evaporated off me and my underlayer either vented via the cuffs  or through the Epic fabric.  Due to the fact that I was seated for a portion of this time, the water vapor had to exit through the Epic fabric.  In short, it vents and rather well in my opinion.

3. Can I use these pants during all activity levels without overheating?
Yes. Especially with the new zippers.  The ability to unzip the sides of the pants allowed me to take part in a variety of activities in a wide range of temperatures.

4. Do they  keep me warm?
In colder weather I was able to quickly and easily heat up inside the pants. Even if I was just standing around, they did an adequate job in keeping me warm.

PERFORMANCE
1. How well do the zippers work? Do they slide easily? Do they stay shut?
The first set of zippers were stiff. They were hard to work and I was worried about damaging the pants.  After the factory replaced the zippers, they worked great. They were easy to open and close and I no longer feared damaging the pants by using the zippers.

2. Are the zippers waterproof?
I used the pants during a week of constant rain.  I never had any issues with water leaking in around or through the zippers.  I never gave them the shower test, but after spending that much time in the rain, I didn't feel that it was necessary.

3. Can I work the zippers while wearing the pants?
Old zippers no, new zippers yes.  The new zippers worked extremely well and I finally decided that not having pockets on the Warm-N-Cozy Pants was no longer an issue.  It was very easy (with the new zippers) to unzip the pants and reach into the pockets of the shorts that I wore underneath.

4. How water resistant are these pants? Does the fabric ever get wet?
After spending the better part of week outside in the rain, I never had the Epic fabric "wet through" on me.  Several times I thought this had happened, but when I opened the zippers to look at my skin, I realized that I was feeling the coolness of the rain through the pants, but I was not actually wet.  The water rolled off of the fabric rather well after I was out of the rain, which proved to me that the pants were water resistant without getting them or myself truly 'wet'.

5. How wind resistant are they?
This is one of the best aspects of these pants. All during the testing period I was able to wear them in windy conditions. During one nasty day of ropes course training I wore them just to keep the wind off of my legs.  I honestly feel that the wind resistance is a major selling point for me.  It was nice to know that when the wind picked up and I was freezing, all I had to do was walk to the car, get the Warm-N-Cozy Pants, and return to my training. 

6. How durable is the Epic fabric? Will it hold up to normal wear? Will it hold up to being worn under a pack? What is Epic?
The fabric of these pants has held up very well to a variety of conditions.  There were no rips or snags from my dayhiking or geocaching and the waist area didn't show any wear after being worn under daypacks and lumbar packs.   The only area of concern I have is the bottom of the legs, in the cuff area.   Due to the length of these pants, this area tended to drag the ground when I wasn't wearing hiking boots. There has been no damage to the fabric yet, but I do have several spots that look like wear spots, but no serious damage has occurred yet. As for Epic, I have found out that is a process that encapsulates the individual threads/yarns of a fabric to make it water resistant.  It is not a coating on the fabric, but a coating/treatment on every single thread in the fabric.  As a final note, Big Sky Products emailed this tester and informed me that care information for their Epic clothing will be posted on the website. 

Reviews > Clothing > Pants and Shorts > Big Sky Products Warm-n-Cozy Epic Pants > Thomas Vickers > Long Term Report