Photon Pant - Men's

I wrote a review on these pants a while back but Rab didn’t post my thoughts. First off, the pants are incredibly warm. Once on, you can feel the heat retention. I returned a pair of Mountain Hardwear for the Photons and glad I did because of the weight ratio, packability and heat retention. Plus the reinforced material at the butt and scuff area near the feet. However, there are some features that I liked more about the Mtn Hardwears that I wish these Photons had. For example, the button at the waist sucks. It’s terrible to click together and impossible to do so with gloves on. When it’s 12 degrees with 30 mph winds, the last thing you want to do is expose your hands. Secondly, the flap at the waist is on the inside of the pants rather than on the outside where it’s more accessible. My two big recommendations is this. Get rid of the button and replace it with Velcro (easier to navigate and won’t break), second, place the waist flap outside of the pants so it can be tightened down when someone isn’t wearing thick layers underneath and the pants need to cinch down a bit more. Hopefully you all actually post this so people can understand what I do and don’t like about these pants.

I bought the Rab Photon pants for late season elk hunting, specifically in January. I needed a pair of packable insulated pants that I can zip on and off when sitting and glassing. I actually returned a pair of the Mountain Hardwear Compressor Pants for the Photons because the Compressors weren’t very warm but they actually have better design features over the a Photons. For reference, I’ve worn the Photons in the teens with high winds and the pants kept my legs comfortable while idle. From a warmth standpoint, they are amazing plus they do pack down very small. However, there are some major design flaws, that make these pants four stars rather than five, and features that the Compressor Pants actually have. 1. Rab needs to ditch the buttons at the waist and replace them with Velcro. I had to strip my outer gloves each time I needed to put the pants on or off because the buttons are impossible to snap otherwise. This leaves the hands exposed. Plus buttons are prone to breaking and a major spot I would consider as a failure point. 2. Switch the button flap from the inside of the waist to the outside of the waist. This will also allow the waist to be tightened down when not layering and it will also easier be easier to manage with gloves on.