BDU's and camo patterns. T&E, etc, lots of pics.

[Hawkeye]

I've posted this on a couple of other forums last year over a few months... thought I'd post it here as well. Maybe it will be of some use to someone. This is a culmination of numerous posts. Hopefully it will be easy to follow.

The following is just something that I decided to do for my own T&E purposes. Most of it is just my opinion and mine alone, based on my likes, dislikes, and personal observations via my own first hand experiences, or first hand of a trusted friend. I urge you to try things out for yourselves, and come to your own conclusions. If your results and observations are different, then they are different.

First, I wanted to say a few things about BDU

[Hawkeye]

2nd view………..

[Hawkeye]

3rd view……….

[Hawkeye]

Here are 2 extra’s I took of the X-Camo digital…….






And one extra of the Woodland digital…………





Random thoughts so far…. The Propper Woodland digital was really impressive in a number of spots that I placed it and really surprised me. I plan on getting some more of it for sure. I am really liking the material, the construction, and the price. I had hoped the Multicam would produce slightly better results. We’ll see how things play out with the future things I plan to try.

[Hawkeye]

I have a number of things planned to do.... not going to all be overnight, as this will be an ongoing thing.

Here are all the patterns together.





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A note regarding the X-Camo. The tan in the X-Camo is very bright. Thats something that my buddy and I mentioned to the folks at MOC when we spoke with them at the SHOT show back in January (2009). They commented that they were actually in the process of toning it down a bit. The last time I was at the store here locally that sells it, I noticed that they had new stock on the shelves, and it seemed to have the changes they mentioned at SHOT. I plan on picking up a newer pair and comparing them as well.

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I've been experimenting with various colors/patterns for several years now, and with a good friend for the last 7 months or so. Just finally decided to start putting some of it all down and sharing a little. I hope someone might get a little useful info out of it all. As you note, terrain, vegetation, lighting, etc..., all affect how well a pattern/color combo will work in an area.
As for my area? If I had to pick one, right now it would be the digital woodland. Multicam would be a very close second. That said, the X-camo does hold some promise, but I need to experiment with it a little more. Even the digital desert can be effective when used properly (something I hope to be able to show as well). For me, its more than just the pattern though. The material its available in is a big thing for me, as well as cost. Someone could come out with a great pattern/color combo, but if its only available in 100% cotton, I most likely wont use it. Perfect example. A few years ago I came across Desert Tiger Stripe. It works really well in my area (see pic below).....however, its 100% cotton ripstop and it sucks in the heat, sucks in the cold, and fades easily. If someone would come out with it in a 50/50 NYCO ripstop, 60/40 Cotton/Poly ripstop, or a lighter 65/35 Poly/Cotton ripstop (like Propper's Battlerip...hint hint Propper), I think it would be a very viable choice for a number of area's.

[Hawkeye]

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Picked up a new X-Camo top and Boonie. They newer version is a definite improvement to me. They took the previous tan area, and made it slightly darker shade, closer to khaki (but not quite), more green and brown was added, and the overall "tone" of the colors is a little more subdued. I need to get some better pics taken (the lighting is off on these below), and obviously some outside in use, but here are a couple I just snapped real quick.

Old version on the left, new version on the right.

[Hawkeye]

Multicam and the New X.

[Hawkeye]

Couple of pics with the newer X-Camo.....



Same pic, but just a few inches further into the brush..... lighting and shadows, they can really affect how well something does or doesnt work. Something to keep in mind.

[Hawkeye]

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Did a few today with the Digital Woodland.

Just showing how it tends to take on background colors, almost similar to multicam.



Exposed skin can be a killer when it comes to camo effect. As an example........

Sleeves rolled up with arms exposed.




Sleeves rolled down.

[Hawkeye]

Sleeves up.




Sleeves down.





And one last one.....

[Hawkeye]

Here are a few shots of the Digital Desert pattern in a somewhat wooded environment. Now, we all know that tan, khaki, light browns, etc., colors most people think of as "desert" colors, all only work in the actual desert.......right?

As with ANY pattern/color, if you just stand in the open and expect to either disappear or look like a bush, you'll fail. Instead of disappearing or suddenly looking like bush, you'll just look like a guy standing there in camo clothes.




But add just a little bit of something in front of you, and things begin to change quickly.

[Hawkeye]

Out in the open.........




And not so open.....




Even in darker/shadowy area's, "Desert" colors/patterns CAN be effective..........






Are they as effective as say Multicam or the Digital Woodland in this type of environment? No. Can they work though to some degree? Yes.

** Just a side note on these pics... they were taken late in the afternoon, whereas the Digital Woodland pics were taken in the middle of the day. Just want to point this out as the difference in the time of day makes it not a true apples to apples comparison.

[Hawkeye]

Finally had some time to do a few more. Here are some Multicam shots (late afternoon sun, partly cloudy).......... Impressive as always.

[Hawkeye]

[Hawkeye]

Multicam and Digital Woodland/MARPAT Woodland are fast becoming my favorites.

Some shots from the same locations.... (unfortunately different times of day so the lighting is a bit different)

Multicam



Digital Woodland



Multicam



Digital Woodland