Men's Original Airbase 120 mesh bottoms

“I bought my Airbase set almost by chance several years ago. Without much in the way of expectations, it simply proved itself trip after trip and became part of my basic kit on long expeditions.”

Sakke Raappana, wilderness hiker and expedition leader

Airbase – the bottoms you forget you're wearing

The men's Original Airbase 120 mesh bottoms are a next-to-skin mesh layer whose knit solves one of the toughest challenges of dressing for the outdoors: how to stay dry and comfortable when your body keeps warming up and cooling down. The loops of the 120 g/m² mesh knit breathe and trap air, which cools you when it's hot and warms you when it's colder. The fabric feels light on your skin, almost as if you weren't wearing the bottoms at all, yet it still regulates your temperature.

Airbase doesn't absorb moisture. Instead, it wicks it away to the layers on top, so you stay dry the whole time. No wet, chilled lower body, no damp fabric against your skin. Just a dry, light feel that lets you focus on what you're doing.

The 100% polypropylene yarn in Airbase is treated to resist odour. So when you take the bottoms off in the afternoon, you're not greeted by that familiar sportswear smell. They feel as fresh as when you put them on. The treatment sits in the core of the fibre, so the odour-resistant effect lasts for the whole life of the bottoms and doesn't wash out.

Original Airbase 120 mesh bottoms come with a 100-day satisfaction guarantee. We want to give you time to try them properly: wear them as you normally would for 100 days. If you're not happy with them for any reason, you'll get your money back.

Pro-tested Original Airbase 120 mesh bottoms for any situation

These close-fitting but stretchy men's mesh bottoms move with you without feeling tight. Squat, lift your leg or climb, and the bottoms follow your movements instead of slipping down or holding you back. The anatomically shaped design ensures freedom of movement and a good fit whatever your thigh size, so you won't notice them whether you're on the move or standing still.

The rib knit at the front adds extra protection and coverage without affecting how the mesh knit works. The mesh knit around the seat and thighs ventilates effectively and helps keep your skin dry, even on long trips when your lower body has time to sweat as much as your upper body. The soft, flexible elastic waistband with the Svala logo stops the bottoms slipping down, so you don't have to keep pulling them back up as you move or reach under your layers to adjust them. And it won't leave a red mark on your waist.

Rib cuffs at the ankles keep the legs in place: no riding up when you sit down, no twisting when you get dressed, and no reaching under your layers to fix them during the day. The full-length legs protect your whole lower body, so on trips you no longer have to worry about outer trousers chafing or the cold. All seams are soft flatlock seams that lie flat and won't rub your skin, even with repeated wear.

Wear the Original Airbase 120 mesh bottoms as your first layer, under everything else. In the Svala AIR System™, these bottoms are the Zero Layer: the moisture-wicking layer next to your skin. In freezing weather, for example, add a Base Layer on top for extra warmth, such as the Merino Extreme base layer bottoms. Pair the mesh bottoms with the Original Airbase 120 mesh shirt to keep your whole body warm and dry.

Thoughts from the designer

“The problem with long johns is that the legs ride up when you move or pull on other layers. I wanted to design men's bottoms with rib cuffs at the ankles that keep the legs where they belong, while the bottoms keep you dry and warm. A good first layer isn't the one you notice, but the one you forget.”

Ninni Pohto, designer at Svala

Polypropylene mesh: a material honed over decades

Polypropylene is a fibre that wicks moisture away from your skin instead of absorbing it. In practice, this means your skin doesn't stay damp after you've been sweating, the bottoms don't cling to your thighs, and a cold wind doesn't chill you to the bone when you stop for a break. You stay dry even when you're pushing hard and, more importantly, afterwards too.

A silver-ion treatment in the core of the fibre prevents bacteria from multiplying, so your bottoms stay odour-free and fresh for a long time. That means you can pack one pair for a trip instead of five. The treatment is applied during manufacturing and lasts for the whole life of the bottoms, so it doesn't lose its effect in the wash.

The 3D mesh knit in Airbase is very stretchy and follows the shape of your body. Its structure creates air pockets against your skin, and the trapped air cools you when it's hot and warms you when it's cold. It works like a small regulating system on your skin, running in the background however active you are. During strenuous exercise, Airbase works in temperatures as low as −15 °C. In colder weather, we recommend adding Svala Merino Extreme base layer bottoms on top as a second layer for extra warmth.

Original Airbase 120 mesh bottoms are made from 100% polypropylene, which can be fully recycled into new raw material at the end of its life. Before that, you'll get years of wear out of them. The bottoms are made at the Svala factory in Kärsämäki, Finland, with skills honed over decades.

Mesh base layer developed in Finland for Finnish weather

Packing your rucksack for a weekend trip where temperatures change from morning to evening? Hiking to a lean-to shelter to grill sausages? Hauling in nets on a frozen lake? Airbase is made for moments like these.

Airbase products suit almost any hobby on land, on water and in the air, as well as leisure time outside. Your gear no longer decides how much you enjoy being outdoors.

Original Airbase 120 mesh bottoms are at their best:

• At work
• Hiking and trekking
• Running
• Cycling
• Cross-country skiing
• Canoeing or boating
• Fishing and ice fishing
• Everyday wear

Svala's 3D mesh knit was developed in Finland and has been tested in professional use for decades. In other words, it has proven itself on people who show their clothes no mercy: on long shifts, on week-long wilderness trips, and in wet, cold conditions where your gear decides how comfortable your day is. If the bottoms have stood up to them, they'll stand up to you too.