Arc'teryx  Gamma SL 9" Shorts - Men's

First purchase of an Arcteryx product. Was looking for a quick dry abrasion resistant pair of shorts for hiking. Liked the features of these shorts with 5 zippered pockets to retain personal items, adjustable waist belt and the 9 inch inseam. Price was very high but the brand has a reputation of high quality technical gear so I though I would give them a try. Overall they have performed reasonably well until recently when I was getting ready to go on a hike. Put my personal identification in the lower left pocket was collecting water and towels for the hike when suddenly my personal items were all over the floor. Upon inspection the lower left pocket seam had failed becasue they are not sewn in but attached we seam tape. From a construction perspective I find this unacceptable for a technical pair of shorts in this price range. To those of you who have a pair of these or considering them make sure to inspect your pocket seams regularly or you may be missing a dirvers license or keys somewhere on the trail. To Arcteryx I would suggest you re-think how the lower pockets are attached to the main fabric to deliver a reliable and high qulity techincal product worthy of the price being charged.

Hello everyone, I have 4 pairs of these shorts, basically my favourite shorts, daily driver since a few years, usually I would give 5/5 review, but I 100% lost trust in them. I love the zipper pockets, you can think they give you trust. Except the bottom ones, they're not stiched! So in one of my pairs they delaminated and have a hole I didn't notice. Lost my stuff, and need to an adventure to find it. Do not trust these shorts, super comfy and functional, built-in belt, great material. But even with zippers, you cannot trust the pockets. Getting rid of mine.

I thought these were the perfect hiking shorts. Good fit, good length, enough pockets.... They were perfect, until they weren't. I was hiking along the other day and all of a sudden my key purse hits the ground. It was in the lower pocket on left side. When I checked the pocket .. the lower and side edges of the pockets had come unglued. WTH. Why just glue in a pocket unless it is absolutely, positively going to stayed glued nearly forever. Now I cannot trust these shorts. When will another pocket fail, dropping stuff out who knews where. If I cannot trust the integrity of the pockets, I cannot trust the shorts.

Have a pair of the old quick dry shorts and used them for 3 months hiking on and off and they are faultless and so comfortable and easy to wash. This old model has two lower front pockets and a back pocket. Just bought the new SL equivalent and this model has one lower front pocket and no back pocket. I really miss not having the back pocket and second lower pocket. Both are really useful and provide extra utility for storing small stuff on the move where you don’t want to take off your back pack. Small point but really makes a difference and would really recommend going back to the old design. Can’t imagine it would cost much more to make and the customer only benefits.

My take is that they are good shorts. Good for backpacking, travel, and around the house on a hot day in Texas. These hiking shorts have gone down in quality since the last pair that I bought four years ago. However, it seems like just about everything in the retail market has gone Less quality over the last four years. I love the color and the fit. I am disappointed that you got rid of the zip pocket in the back. Please bring that back. And gluing in the front pocket I don’t think was a good idea either. However overall, I am happy with the purchase.

Good: The fit, quality of the fabric, wash and wear. Really good for travel. Not so good: For those of us who are vertically challenged, a shorter version would fit better in terms of not being below my knees and requiring shorting the length by a few inches. A 5-inch version would be nice to have.

These shorts are meant to be worn, To be used and to be washed. They fit great and have a small stretch. However, the right side pocket Is not stitched to the fabric and will come loose when washing the garment. They used iron-on hem tape for the pocket that will eventually come loose when washing.

I bought these because I have a pair of Gamma Lightweight shorts, which I like. These are even better, with the same comfortable lightweight feel and a slightly more durable feel. I really like the added security of the integral belt. Well constructed. I’d buy additional pairs when I need some.

This is the best short Arcteryx has ever built, I have owned a pair of Gamma LT for 7 years and they are my favourite short. They fit perfect are super comfortable (with my fit issues that is a huge compliment). When will you be offering more shorts, please make that soon

The previous version of these shorts were better. The new mesh pockets are a downgrade because they dog ear whenever you pull things out of your pocket. The new, bigger belt is fine, but the sleeker integrated belt on the last version made the shorts feel more athletic