REVIEW: Valken Sierra Pants

       If money is tighter for you, or you're a purist who wants camoflage covering their entire garment (not pictured) and not be absent on the ventilation strips, stretch panels, and you don't want the large V-Tac branding on your pants, then the Sierra line might be just right for you. At your proshop, you'll probably find that these pants are about half the price of the Zulu pants but they certainly aren't lacking in features as a result. They are quite a bit different from the Zulu pants in their general design as well as feel but retain many of the things prospective buyers would want out of a paintball pant.

       First, as mentioned earlier, the Sierra pants do lack a lot of the stretch panelling which covers the crotch and thigh area of the Zulu pant making them a little more restrictive of movement. To compensate for this, the legs feel a little looser than they do on the Zulu pant and have a straighter leg which doesn't taper off so much toward the ankle. It's a nice relaxed fit which I definitely give bonus points for. There is one stretch panel in the crotch of the pants, but I don't follow the reasoning for how it's situated. It's oriented in a way that would suggest it's helpful for going “spread eagle”, a position not often executed by paintballers for fear of a disastrous nut-shot and there's rigid stitching the whole way around which would neutralize any gains delivered by the panel. It probably has some valuable use I haven't ascertained yet because I do know Valken puts a lot of effort into their gear's designs.

       The knee pads of the Sierra pants are softer, wider, and of roughly same length as the knee pads on the Zulu pants but they are thinner as well and so aren't quite as on par protection wise as their more expensive relative. The softer padding here does make it so that the wearer is a lot less conscious of the pads in the knees, and at first try on they do feel a lot less stiff than the Zulus. The knee pads also have less stitching than those on the Zulu pant are overall a much less complicated design. They will not appear as “beefy” but also won't seem as intricate as the knee pad design of the Zulu pant and there's fewer places for a stitch to break here. The material on the Sierra pant is the same polyester cotton blend as on the Zulu pant and this material covers the entire garment, including the knee area and hips. Like the Zulu pants, some have black knee pads(shown) , while other have the same camo material as the rest of the pant covering that area and I believe this has to do with the year they were manufactured. The ones with the black material are of identical design but the black material itself is not the poly cotton blend of the rest of the pant and it is a little tougher, more in line with the knee padding of the Zulu pant.

       The Sierra pants have the same cargo pockets in the same location as on the Zulu pant with the same spot for stashing a barrel swab, and they have the same means of buttoning up in the crotch, as well as the same folded fabric string for tightening the ankle of the pant over top of the users boot. As a result, I have the same complaints about these pants as I do for the Zulu pants, and something I've noticed on both models when squatting down is that the knees seem to have this desire to bow inward away from the wearer's knee caps.

       Unlike the Zulu pants, there are no hip pads to be found on the Sierra model so be careful if you like sliding into bunkers baseball style. There are also no zippers over the pockets on the hips so players should take care to stash valuables somewhere other than their pockets if they plan to do anything particularly acrobatic in the Sierra pant. There is also no ventilation mesh on the pants to speak of so user's won't get the same delightful draft of air going up the ankles on the those hot days. They do make up for the lack of ventilation by having less padding overall to insulate the wearer.

       I read this review back now and find myself saying “Geeze, these sound a lot like the Zulu pant to me suddenly...” but they really aren't. The fit, feel, construction, and ways which they facilitate or hinder movement is totally different. Prospective buyers have to look at their funding and then try the two on to see what feels best for them. The Sierra line isn't Valken's platinum offerings but for what you pay, they might be a slightly better gear deal in my opinion. Still, you are going to get a lot of awesome bells and whistles if you save for the Zulu pants.

      As always, Valken's page (link) also has numerous pictures of all the features of the Sierra pant. The pair which my team mate wears has camoflage over the knee, the one pictured clearly does not however.