The Ray-Way Shell Pants Kit

Our Shell Pants come as a Kit that you sew yourself. And as a bonus, the kit comes with cut-out pieces, so you don't have to mess with patterns or any cutting of fabric!

The Kit comes with detailed instructions that walk you through the sewing construction, step by step.

Fitting Guidelines

Measure around the widest part of the hips (not the waist)

Ray-Way Shell Pants Kit
Small	Medium	Large	Extra-Large	2X-Large
28" - 31"	31" - 34"	34" - 37"	37" - 40"	40" - 44"

The Shell Pants (Kit) comes in five sizes (S, M, L, XL, 2XL), and feature an elastic waist band that can be adjusted to fit the waist more snugly or loosely.

The instructions tell you how, during the construction of the pants, to adjust the height of the waistband for a custom fit around the waist, and and how to adjust the length of the pant legs.

Please note that these sizes pertain to our Ray-Way Clothing Kits, and do not necessarily correlate to standard store-bought clothing.

"I just completed my shell pants and shorts kits. They both fit very well, and I enjoyed making them. Both fit comfortably loose, but not too loose, with adequate material for movement and sitting/squatting/kneeling in various positions on the ground. I REALLY like the fit and feel. I really enjoyed not having to cut the fabric to a pattern. Thanks for putting these kits out there. I really enjoyed them! I'll probably be making a set for my wife, too, and I'm actually pretty excited about the Sleeping Hat Kits. I like the idea of keeping my face cozy by breathing through the fabric. Thanks for all your work. My backpacking experience would be far less fulfilling without your books and kits. They've been very formative for me, on a lot of levels." - Kerry R., MI

Weight

Weight for the size large: 2.5 oz

Color

Note the blue color of the pants in the photo above. This is the signature color of the Ray-Way Shell Pants, and the only color we have right now.

Extremely Fast Drying

These Shell Pants are lightweight and highly breathable so they are very fast drying. On a warm day, they allow the sweat to evaporate. On a wet day, you can wear them in the rain, and when the rain stops the shells will dry in 10 minutes. If they are wet or damp at camp, you can wear them at night under a quilt, and by morning they will be dry.

Tick-Proof

The Shell Pants are also tick-proof, and we think this could be a game changer in the hiking world. Granted, we are not making any guarantees or claims; but we can't imagine a tick getting through this new fabric. I know that they have changed my hiking adventures. When I (Ray) hiked the AT in 2009 in shorts, without shell pants, I saw ticks by the dozens, all along the trail, and in fact I was bitten a few times, and even contracted Lyme. The following year I thru-hiked the AT again, wearing shell pants made of our first batch of experimental fabric. I hiked in these pants for three months, and did not find a single tick on me. I found them absolutely superb.

So in the ensuing seven years of experience, I have gained tremendous confidence in these Shell Pants.

However, we are making no guarantees. The pants can be misused, for example by not tucking the pant legs into the socks - and we can think of a slew of other examples of people letting ticks get on them by not being careful. So we have written a New Essay: "Avoiding Ticks". Please read.

Tucking the pants into the socks prevents any ticks from getting under the pants and crawling up your legs. I also recommend, when in tick country, that you spray the socks and shoes with Permethrin. I don't see the need to spray the pants. But I do think it wise to spray the bottom of the shoes, not just the sides and tops.

A few years ago we developed a new and improved fabric, and I tested this for a few months on the AT in 2016. The old fabric had a few minor problems, but the new fabric works great: Breathable, lightweight, fast-drying, tick-proof and...

Mosquito-Proof

The new shells are also mosquito-proof. Again, we are not making any guarantees, but I have worn these pants while often hiking in clouds of mosquitoes and black flies and have not received any bites through this new material. Of course the Shell Pants also work great at blocking almost all flying pests - blackflies, gnats, horseflies, deerflies...

My "AT Gear Video" shows me wearing these shell pants when making camp, when I need to crawl around on the forest litter, under the tarp to preen the sleeping area and set-up the Spitfire. This requires the knee areas of my pants be in contact with the ground. The Ray-Way Shell Pants fabric is bug-proof, very light in weight, and extremely quick drying, and also a little sheer (somewhat translucent). Not see-though, by any means, but it does require hiking shorts worn under over the shell pants. And that is why we are offering our Hiking Shorts Kit. These shorts were designed to be worn under the Ray-Way Shell Pants. The two were designed for each other, and are intended to be worn together.

You can also wear your favorite commercial hiking shorts over the shell pants.

When its raining lightly, the Ray-Way Hiking Shorts and Shell Pants combo is just the ticket. As long as it is not freezing cold. The combo is remarkably fast drying, so you will stay much dryer and warmer than if you were wearing WB pants. I have had a lot of practice with this! :) On the other hand, if the sky starts pouring with rain, I remove the Shell Pants and put on a pair of WB pants over the Hiking Shorts. Then at the first hint of the rain letting off, I remove the WB pants (because they are so clumsy to hike in) and put on the Shell Pants.

Washing Instructions

When distance hiking, typically I like to rinse out my shell pants every few days. The Shell Pants are easy to launder. You can wash by hand, using laundry soap, dishwashing soap or even shampoo. If using washing machine, use cold or warm water, not hot. The fabric is thin; and hot water, or the hot air of a dryer, can ruin the fabric (shrink and stiffen it). The Shell Pants are fast drying; so after washing you can put them on, wet. They will air-dry in minutes.

"I have made my shell pants. I wanted the largest size in case I made mistakes and also so that I could wear them over regular cargo shorts, not just yoga shorts. And also because all pants out there are always too small in the thighs for me. I think I did a pretty good job sewing them. The instructions were very clear. After nearly ruining my leggings with the little plant stickers and watching ticks crawl up my legs, I was able to give the shell pants a good test. The ticks can't hang on, and the little plant stickers and burrs don't ruin my leggings. I also like that you can see my fancy yoga shorts underneath." - Diane S.