Klymit - another hightech clothes

Just found these guys by accident: http://www.klymit.com/index.php/
No affiliation, just love any innovations in outdoors clothing department. In short: among the other stuff, they are making inflatable with the Argon (noble gas) vests and jackets (just one model of jacket actually so far), which can be inflated/deflated as you go to regulate the body core heat dissipation. They are claiming about 3 times improvement of insulation compared to the ordinary fabrics at the same weight mark. Also I saw a third party vendors making compatible shells (windbreaker type jackets) for these.

Here is the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mg0qXTDeeKk&feature=player_embedded

I think it's really neat idea. I believe that in addition to the insulation, the individually inflated vest could also minimize (and regulate) air circulation between the skin and clothing as an additional benefit.

Interesting. What is the base insulation value, without argon gas inflating the clothing? And I couldn't determine the weight on the argon gas canisters, that should be factored in to our carry weight or summit weight. I guess I'm hinky about becoming dependent on a noble gas for my insulation, but that doesn't mean it might not have value for others.

I have no answer to that. It's better to ask them or search on their site. For the argon - you can always opt for the dry air hand pump (included by default, as far as I understood). Here is the comparison chart: http://www.klymit.com/index.php/technology/nobletek-technology.html

Are there any reports/evaluations from field use? I am just a bit skeptical.....

Argon is relatively standard insulation inside the diving dry suit for those who dive on helium mixes since helium has very bad insulation characteristics. There is less difference in the insulation between argon and air/nitrox but people still like to use it for an extra warm (some experiments show no difference between air and argon).

The question is how it will work on the surface. Most likely it should work good enough on air and argon will just add complexity without noticeable improvement in the insulation.

I am extremely skeptical. One thing to keep in mind is that any material impermeable enough to hold argon would presumably also be impermeable to water vapor. In other words, this clothing would likely not be "breathable" at all.

Also, one would also need to carry the "Quickshot" refill cannisters and "Klymitizer" valve to adjust the amount of argon filling. Interestingly enough, the website fails to note the weight of these accessories.

It all looks like a pile of steer poop to me.

At least you don't have to contend with cactus spines in Alaska. I believe that is correct...Are there any Alaskan cacti?

We have lots down here in the SW corner of the US. We could probably spare a few....

I looked at these a year or so back.. All I could think of was "As soon as those batteries run out, I'm gonna hate that jacket.." and "I just don't see those wires standing up to too many washings..."..

Regardless of subject: most innovations will require a certain change in habits. Use dry cleaning instead of washing. Make sure you have enough (i.e. double what you might need) battery power with you on an outing, that's all. Sure thing, some technologies are not for an average Joe.

True enough. It is also true that some technologies do not perform as claimed. Some technologies also prove to be ineffectve and/or impractical for their suggested use.