I'm cursed with crotch blowouts! (Or: Help me find some new pants)

Grease

Grease

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May 10, 2012
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Short version: I need pants that won't wear out & start tearing from thigh friction.

Long version: I work at a massive facility built on and built to match a long skinny strip of land. This means that I walk A LOT. I can do anywhere from 4 to 10 miles in a day going back and forth around the campus. I'm also a bit on the heavy side, and I store a lot of it in my thighs. The problem I keep having is the crotch on my jeans. The fabric just to either side of the middle seam just frays and starts unraveling & tearing. I've tried several different brands of jeans, and they all have failed me after a fairly short period of time.

Synthetic material pants such as 511 cargo pants last longer, but at 2-3x the price I'm not convinced they are worth it. I've thought about trying out a pair of the Duluth firehose jeans, but $60-80 is a lot for a potential waste of pants if they aren't an improvement.

Any of you bigger guys have this problem? Any solutions that seem to work well?
 
Yeah. I don't hike in long pants but my hiking shorts get thread-bare on the inside thighs... And in my experience the cheap WalMart cargo shorts last just as long as expensive hiking shorts.

You might try the Propper BDU pants. We have these for our 'uniform' at work, which mostly involves walking in some really horrible conditions. They come in some solid colors, not just camo. Black, khaki, etc. Love the pockets too. :thumbup: And they're about the same price as Levi's blue jeans.
 
Head over to Casual Male in Tukwila and check out their store brand Harbor bay.
 
I have the same issue with jeans. The problem I figured is that the crotch hangs too low and my legs pull at it while walking and squatting. Try finding pants where the crotch is closer to your body. Bdu's and tactical pants are a good bet but you can find normal pants that will work. It just requires trying a bunch of different ones on.
 
I can go through normal blue jeans in a month so I stopped buying them. I now have 3 year old 511's and they get more comfy every time I wash them
 
Have you tried those denim iron-on patches? My pant legs wear out on the thigh in front (from stopping my edges), and these patches reinforce the area and add quite a bit of lifespan to the pants. Don't know how doable it is for crotch area, but they are inexpensive and easy to apply and seem to last years. You just need iron, ironing board, and patches available online.
 
Deluth fire hose pants are killer, I have 5 pair that I wear every week managing a machine shop (so they get beat up), and the ball room jeans are great for squatting and bending because of the extra material sewn in the crotch.
 
I agree with NCCNC you can't go wrong with Duluth. The crotch gusset is nice. Pants are comfy and are decently wear resistant.
 
Another vote for Duluth. They're a bit pricey, but the quality backs it up. Perhaps you should look into Dickies as well; they have Carhartt-like quality, but cost a bunch less.
 
Check with LL Bean. Pretty sure they still guarantee their stuff for life, no questions asked. They will cost you more, but when a pair goes, you can send 'em back for replacement.
 
I'll have to look into Duluth. I'd say Carhartt (I like their shirts and coats, very roomy, durable, and comfortable) but the damn pants for whatever reason, supposed to be working pants, are so tight in the crotch with zero stride they can create some issues...
 
Duluth Fire Hose cloth 5 pocket jeans. I'm 63 and they are the best, tuffest I've seen. Carrharts on steroids! If you wear them out they will replace them.--KV
 
Dickies canvas work pants. Similar material to Carharts- but you can buy them at Walmart for about $20. WAY cheaper than fire-hose pants, too...

I hunt pheasants and a lot of times I would find myself following my dog through MAJOR briar patches. Jeans get torn to shreds, faced jeans get torn to shreds as well. The Dickies are so tough I have yet to even raise a loop in the material (The cuffs get pretty shredded though). I started wearing them for my home remodeling project (pretty major work) and I have yet to damage them during that, either. I have NEVER had a pair of jeans that lasted this long under those kind of conditions...
 
I would stay away from canvas. My experience that it tends to wear fast in areas of repeated flex and abrasion. Canvas excels in thorns and brush.

I find twill to be more durable against abrasion. Polyester twill is the most durable in this regard that I've used.

For what you describe, I would try the standard Dickies work pant. They're a poly/cotton blend and sturdily built.

The other thing about the Dickies work pant is that they are inexpensive. I have a couple of pair of 5.11 pants I picked up on clearance and would recommend the Dickies over them for what you describe.
 
Last edited:
kvaughn said:
Duluth Fire Hose cloth 5 pocket jeans. I'm 63 and they are the best, tuffest I've seen. Carrharts on steroids! If you wear them out they will replace them.--KV
Click to expand...

Yep.. Have one of the shirt/jacs.. Once broken in it is warm and comfy.. Plan on getting some pants in the future!! John
 
I've got several pairs of Carhartt pants and I love 'em. Super comfortable and made to work in
 
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