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Ice Armour Suit vs. Vexilar Ice Suit


JBMasterAngler

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Looking to buy an ice suit, would like to know which is better? Ice gear seems to be more popular and available, however vexilar looks to be around $40 cheaper. Would like to know what all your guys' opinions are on the 2 suits?

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Don't know about those two or what their prices are, but I would go with Arctic Armour. Warm and it floats you if you fall in. You get warmth and safety all in one.

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The vexilar bibs are simply awesome. I don't like the new color schemes they have, but I have last years models (which will prolly last 5 years). No shortcuts on velcro, zippers, or material like some others. No it does not float, but 32 years on the ice I haven't needed to float.

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I had carhart's they get wet and frozen....bought the vex suit last spring for like $110(bibs and jacket) used it a few times to clear the driveway and such and it is awesome!!!! The carhart's can stay in the closet cause they aren't getting used.........Very warm alot of pockets and zippers and very comfortable (I used in the rain once this spring and it kept me dry also). I guess by lucy1205 's way of thinking I am a yuppy, but a warm and dry one......get off the political way of thinking and enjoy life!!!!!! tongue.gif

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I've been using the "generic" stuff for about 15 years now, and for the most part have stayed moderately warm. The last couple years I've wanted to get an ice armour suit (they look better), but money is an issue so looks like I'm pointing at a vexilar suit. So far it looks like the popular choice anyway.

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you won't regret it......I got my suit and put it on and the bibs seemed to rip...contacted strikmaster and they sent out a new pair and returned the ones I had....haven't had a problem since.....good bang for your buck

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Got a good chuckle there. Early ice sucks! LOL!

Vexilar's Cold Snap Suit, Strikemaster's Icessentials Suit, Clam's Ice Armour, Cabela's Guidewear, and IDI Gear's Arctic Armor are all of the same design for the most part.

The basic idea with all suits is lightweight, windproof, waterproof, breathable, technical outerwear. I'm really not sure why some suits, such as the Vex suit, are so cheap other than you have to wear a big old Vexilar logo on your back. Pretty cheap advertising for them.

I'm an Arctic Armor guy. Got on the "bandwagon" about 1 year ago shortly after the product hit the market. Its the only suit that will help save your life (it floats!) if you ever fall through. For a bit more money than the competitor's products, thats a great insurance policy!

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Well I went to joe's sporting goods and bought the ice armour suit. Wore it while shoveling once I got home...LOVE IT!!! I bought an XL, which is just a bit big, although I didn't have as many layers as I would while on the ice. This year's vexilar suit is just not attractive to me at all...I just couldn't resist the ice armour blue...now I have to figure out how to explain this $250 purchase to the mrs. frown.gif

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I've seen these suits at various places, and have never owned one. I have a hard time believing the jackets can be that warm when the material is so thin (seems more like a windbreaker than a winter jacket). Maybe somebody can explain this to me. Or atleast convince me that they will keep me warm.

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I can't speak for the other suits but if I wear anything more than a T-shirt and Hooded Sweatshirt under my Arctic Armor jacket, I'll be too warm in fishing situations.

The insulation in Arctic Armor, along with a lot of other technical outerwear, is designed to trap your body heat in.

Ideally, one would wear a technical base layer (Under Armour Cold Gear) which gets the moisture off your skin, then an insulation layer (Fleece), followed by your shell.

What I've noticed with my Arctic Armor jacket is I don't really need that insulation layer. The more active I am out ice fishing, the warmer I get, and that is regardless of the outside air temp and wind chill. I've spent plenty of days on Upper Red Lake last winter fishing from sunrise to sunset on the ice with no shelter. Good outerwear can change the way you fish as you don't need a house, unless the conditions are seriously poor.

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I thought about getting a vexilar suit and then decided to upgrade my deer hunting stuff to Browning hydrofleece. It rocks, Waterproof, Warm and I can use it for more than just icefishing. Check into it, You won't regret it.

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I just bought an Artic Armour suit last weekend at the Ice Fishing Expo. I have worn it on Saturday night, all day Sunday and Wednesday for snow removal and just getting my ice fishing gear in order. I am completely impressed with warmth of the suit. It is hard to remove the mindset of thickness of the suit equates to warmth, but this suit really does work. I definitely am liking the buoyancy factor. Wow - that will keep the Mrs. from giving me the speech about falling through the ice. Now I'm waiting for Insultex to be installed in cars so she won't yell at me for that too.

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Walleyerube-

Welcome to FM! You are going to love your Arctic Armor suit!

I wore my AA jacket the other night while shoveling the driveway and I worked up a sweat that almost completely soaked my hooded sweatshirt that I was wearing underneath!

The jacket traps and holds your body heat, the more heat you build up, the more it retains.

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bought the vex bibs on sale the day after thanksgiving for $49. They are now $109 at FF. They are great!!!

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I picked up the whole Vex Cold Snap suit on "Black Friday" for $100 at Fleet. Saved myself over a hundred bucks thanks to one of my buddies who was out there shopping hard looking for deals and gave me a call. cool.gif I put the suit to the test the next morning walleye fishing. I think it was about 20 degrees and windy at 6 am and I felt fine the whole time. I really would have liked the Artic Armor suit, but this one will have to do for now. I'll just have to use a life jacket early ice so I can float. tongue.gif

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Not happy so far with Arctic Armor. Way too wet, regardless of the combination I wear. (I have extensive experience with cold weather gear). I've used silk. polypro, and a variety of fleece and other base layer sets and I'm still soaked when I get off the ice. Advertised as breathable, and I know that nothing is truly breathable, but I hadn't banked on this level of moisture retention. I like the bibs, and the surface is very durable, and it's well made, but I haven't tuned in the proper combination yet short of swapping out underlayers in the middle of the day.

ice

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one question I have about arctic armor and maybe others is ... you are not supposed to put them in a dryer or get them to a certain temp otherwise u wreck the insulation? So you are in a portable one man with a heater where do u sit without wrecking your $300 suit? would have bought a suit already but I always see steam coming of a warm pantleg sometime during a sit in the portable. Good luck

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