Ten Thousand Tactical Pant Review | Great Hiking Pant for Lifters?

The Ten Thousand Tactical Pant is a follow-up to the popular Ten Thousand Tactical Short in the Ten Thousand Pro Line. The Tactical Short is marketed as being tailored towards the outdoor-focused guy who’s regularly tackling things like hiking, rucking, and working outdoors. Similar to the Tactical Short, the Tactical Pant is marketed as an outdoor enthusiast’s best friend.

As a fan of most Ten Thousand Shorts, I was curious how the Tactical Pant would compare to how good the Tactical Short is. The pants from Ten Thousand can be a bit hit or miss, in my opinion. For example, the Interval Pant is solid, but the Session Pant misses the mark. Thus far, I’ve enjoyed the Tactical Pant for reasons that I didn’t originally expect, which I’ll discuss below.

In this Ten Thousand Tactical Pant review, I’ll be breaking down all of the key performance details that you need to know about these pants before investing in them.

Who Should Invest In the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant?

The Ten Thousand Tactical Pant is designed for a very specific type of guy and it won’t be the best fit for everyone. That being said, if you’re someone who works outside, hikes or rucks a lot, or wants a solid pair of pants for things like hunting and wearing casually for outdoor activities, then the Tactical Pant will be a good pick for you.

For example, there are times here in Denver, Colorado, when I want to wear a pant for a hike but not be limited in mobility or functionality, as most of my joggers and sweats lack the pocket system I need. Additionally, some of the other hiking-focused pants that I own from REI are a bit limited due to them not being specifically made for athletes (they’re a bit too tight on me).

The Tactical Pant is great because it’s durable and waterproof, has good mobility and stretch to it, and has plenty of pockets for bringing different things with me when tackling hikes and outdoor activities. It basically fills the void of being an athletic-focused outdoor pant that has versatility.

Ten Thousand Tactical Pant

$128

4.7

Versatility

4.6

Durability

4.8

Quality

4.7

Best For

• Hiking and Rucking
• Outdoor Work Activities
• Casual Wear

Falls Short

• For Running and Training

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Ten Thousand Tactical Pant Pros

Over the course of my wear testing, I’ve found a few key pros that I really enjoy about the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant.

1. Good Mobility for Athletes and Lifters
2. Durable Material for Abrasion and Weather Resistance
3. Adequate Pocket System and Casual

The first thing to like about the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant is that it’s built with a 4-way stretch canvas. This is super nice for anyone that has slightly more muscular legs or that likes to wear compression tights under their pants on cold days like myself. The stretch in this pant never feels limiting or pulls down the waistband.

I have a couple of pairs of hiking pants from REI and constantly find myself adjusting their waistband on hikes due to the legs being a bit too tight for my quads. When stepping up on large rocks or doing scrambles I never found these pants to limit my movement and that’s accounting for having things in my pockets as well.

Another perk of these pants is that overall they’ve been really durable which was something I was nervous about heading into this model. Since their price point is higher than the other models, then you want to know that their material is going to last and thus far despite scraping them on rocks and logs fairly often.

These pants are treated with a water repellent DWR which is a must and nice touch. These pants don’t hold water which is nice for using them on snowy hikes or on days where you might run into some rain. The reinforced belt loops and abrasion tested material are also nice additions for the durability of these pants.

The last aspect to like is that these pants have a solid pocket system and they look good on a casual wear basis. This helps justify their price point, too, which I think is a nice add-on to this pair of pant’s potential. Some of my hiking pants fall short for daily and casual wear, but these tick the box if you want to wear them casually.

The pockets are also nice because the front pockets are deep enough to keep valuables secure and the back pockets have a nice casual look to them. There are additional zipper pockets as well for things like keys, cards, and money that you may not want to put in a bag.

Ten Thousand Tactical Pant Cons

As a whole, I like the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant, but there are a couple of areas where this pant can fall somewhat short.

1. Limited Sizing Options
2. Zipper Pockets Could Be Wider

The first drawback to the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant is that they’re pretty limited in size options. For the Tactical Pant, you can select either a 30, 32, 34, or 36-inch waistband, and all of these pants have the same inseam length of 30.5″.

Yes, these sizes will work for a majority of athletes and lifters, but they are excluding some with these limited-size options. For example, if you have longer legs or a waste that doesn’t fall within their four options, then you’re going to be somewhat out of luck with the Tactical Pant.

Another drawback to these pants is that while I like the zipper pockets for stashing smaller objects, they’re a bit limited with their functionality due to their opening being pretty small. This can be a pain for grabbing and getting out things like keys that you may put into these pockets pre-hike, ruck, etc.

I didn’t realize that this was a drawback until I used these pants on a cold day and I had a seriously tough time getting my cold hands in them to grab my keys and cards. It was a blend of limited dexterity and the tight pocket opening that made me realize I would prefer the pockets to be an inch or so wider. It’s a niche ask, but something to consider nonetheless.

Performance

To assess the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant performance, I’m going to break down how this pant performs in a variety of contexts to help you contextualize if this pant is a good option for you.

Ten Thousand Tactical Pant for Hiking, Working, and Rucking

The Tactical Pant excels for hiking, rucking, and working outdoors. This is due to its material, fit, and overall functionality. I like the stretch canvas used in this model and if you’re going into deep hip flexion or moving laterally the legs on this pant shouldn’t ride up a ton if you have your sizing right.

I also like that this pant has features like the lay-flat waistband and anti-odor tech. Features like this help give these pants an edge over my traditional outdoor-focused pants because they lack niche features like this. My REI pants for example start stinking after 2-3 wears, but this pants I can rock for a solid 4-5 before I wash them.

Outside of these features, the water-repellent DWR finish is also a nice touch for anyone using these pants in wetter climates or in the winter months where snow may be present.

Ten Thousand Tactical Pant for Casual and Daily Wear

One of the more subtle perks of the Tactical Pant is that it does look good on a casual wear basis. Some outdoor-focused pants, especially those that take the more “tactical” approach to their construction, can fall short in this category due to baggy pockets and legs.

This pant is a good option for daily wear especially if you live in a place where you’ll be splitting your time between indoor and outdoor wear. These perform well in both settings and the colorways and fits of these pants look subtle and casual.

Ten Thousand Tactical Pant Sizing

For the Tactical Pant, you should be going true-to-size and using Ten Thousand’s short size recommendation as a good barometer for finding your fit. I’m somewhat of an in-between size for medium and large, so I went with both the 32″ and 34″ pant options to see which fits best.

The 32″ in waist is definitely the better call in my context and the 34″ waist was just a tad too large around the waistband and I didn’t like that I had to crank my belt a bit to keep them super secure.

Below, I’m going to provide my sizes so you can hopefully reference them and see how the Tactical Pant fits on me to make the best pants sizing call for your needs.

• Waist: 32-33″
• Hip Width: 39-40″
• Mid-Thigh: 24″
• Height: 6′ 0″
• Weight: 180 lbs

If you have additional questions on sizing or have other Ten Thousand gear and want to compare sizes, drop a comment below or reach out to me personally.

Construction Details

If you’re interested in the construction details for the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant, then check out the specs below. I’ve provided what I think are the most important construction features for performance.

• Waist Size Options: 30″, 32″, 34″, 36″
• Inseam: 30.5″
• 4-Way Stretch Canvas
• Quick Dry and Anti-Odor Tech
• Water Repellent DWR Finish
• Front, Back, and Two Side Zip Utility Pockets
• Knit Leg Gussets
• Hidden Back Zip Pocket
• Front Knife Pocket

If you want to see more about the Tactical Pant’s construction, then definitely check out their product page to read more about this pant’s specs.

Takeaway Thoughts

Going into the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant, I had no idea what to expect. Overall, I’m a fan of the Tactical Pant and they’ll be replacing a couple of my other hiking-focused pants due to their mobility and athletic-focused build and fit.

If you need a good pair of pants for outdoor work or activities, then I think the Ten Thousand Tactical Pant is a good option to look into.

If you have additional questions on the Tactical Pant, drop a comment below or reach out to me personally via Instagram (@jake_boly).