What's type/brand of camo clothing do you recommend?

[Ry151]

I've decided that its time to upgrade my hunting clothing for something a bit dryer that what i have now. What camo would you recommend for sept-oct weather? So far I'm leaning towards the under-armour camo, any negitives on it?

[jeff]

wallmart camo ,,dont forget the ear flap hat....haha.just kidden ..i got mine for christmas 3 years ago ..remington dual jacket and pants ..been in negative 20,s and held up fine ..

[Sitkaspruce]

re you looking for camo patterns or types of clothes??

if it is camo, I hate camo, but to get the good stuff, most of it comes only in camo.

I use Rivers West, have been for 7-8 years, best stuff i can find for the $$$. Warm, dry, tough and pretty quite. The only thing against it is is is not very breathable, but I rarely wear the jacket anyways, so it does not bother me.

They come in three different weights, from light, early fall to heavy winter styles.

Cheers

SS

[coach]

I like camo - but that's just me. Whatever you choose, make sure it is lightweight, water proof and breathable. Ideally, you will wear a base layer (either poly or marino wool) and a mid layer inside your outer shell for your upper body with no mid layer for your legs. You shell layer (pants in particular) should be tough enough to stand up to the rigors of hunting. Under Armour understands the layering concept and manufacture great products - but you may pay a little more for the name. I have both Rivers West and Sitka - because I got great deals when I purchased them. The Rivers West is exactly as Sitkaspruce described above. Mine is too warm for most September to October days, but is great when the weather cools down later in the season. Breathability is definitely the knock on RW. Sitka is a great product. The layers are well designed, light and fairly snug fitting. The knock on mine is durability (I've got a couple holes in my pant legs after two seasons) and it's noisier than many other products. I believe Sitka has taken steps to improve this since I made my purchase. I'm sure others will chime in. The Remington 3 in 1 parka from Wallyworld is actually pretty good value for the money. I guess it all depends on how much you want to spend. Remember this too: camo base layers aren't gonna make you less visible to the animals - unless you like to hunt in your underwear.

[Ry151]

I actually dont care if it is actually camo pattern but like you said the good stuff seems to come in camo patterns. Next year i just want to be warm and dry so that i can get the whole day in hunting, this year my legs would get cold because my carharts and long johns would soak up the water and in the afternoon i would have to head back to camp early because i was getting cold if i didnt keep moving.



re you looking for camo patterns or types of clothes??

if it is camo, I hate camo, but to get the good stuff, most of it comes only in camo.

I use Rivers West, have been for 7-8 years, best stuff i can find for the $$$. Warm, dry, tough and pretty quite. The only thing against it is is is not very breathable, but I rarely wear the jacket anyways, so it does not bother me.

They come in three different weights, from light, early fall to heavy winter styles.

Cheers

SS

[Benthos]

3 years ago i bought the Whitetail Extreme mt050 camo made by Cabelas. That stuff is great. it is a bit too warm for sept, but great for oct/nov, and i also use it all winter long ice fishing. it is very warm, windproof (so great for atving), gortex/waterproof for both snow and rain, and is quiet in the bush. the quality is top notch and cabelas stands behind their products. for the pants, i opted for the bibs, which are quite nice. it is more expensive than the walmart stuff, but, i have never been wet or cold in the past three years.

[Sitkaspruce]

I actually dont care if it is actually camo pattern but like you said the good stuff seems to come in camo patterns. Next year i just want to be warm and dry so that i can get the whole day in hunting, this year my legs would get cold because my carharts and long johns would soak up the water and in the afternoon i would have to head back to camp early because i was getting cold if i didnt keep moving.

Get rid of everything cotton for hunting purposes. They soak up water, stay wet and get cold fast. You jeans and cotton t shirts are fine for a dry, early season scouting and maybe some light hunting. Once it starts getting cold or wet, switch to a merino wool/poly pro undershirt to wick sweat away and pass it on to the next layer, which should be light fleece/wool. You can vary the weight of your cloths depending on the weather. For bottoms, the same layering and go for light weight wool/synthetic and adjust as the weather gets colder/wetter.

I wear stanfields superwool for a bottom layer and either Cabelas or MEC poly for tops, then layer with RW lightweight pants for the early season and RW guides pants for late season. For tops, Stanfields Grey wool (West Coast Tuxedo) and if needed, either a Goretex shell or RW lightweight jacket. Don't forget a hat or toque and gloves.

This is just basic layering, you can and will find what works for you and go with it. Just remember to layer so you can add/remove as the temp/weather changes.

Cheers

SS

[Quaz]

After some tinking around, here is what I hunt with clothing wise. I approve of it all and can recommend it both for warmth and comfort:

Socks: Grey with white and red stripe wool.
Boots/Shoes: Viberg. Brown/Merrell. Brown.
Underlayer : Firstlite or Sitka merino wool long underwear top and bottoms. The Firstlite stuff is in ASAT and the Sitka is grey.
Pants: Redhead pants I bought in a bargain bin at Bass Pro Shop. Mossy Oak Break-up.
T-shirt: Carhartt. Realtree AP.
Midlayer: Stanfield. Grey.
Suspenders: Stihl. Orange.
Top Layer: Columbia wool hunting jacket. Generic brown camo pattern.
Raingear: Helly Hansen Impertech. Green.
Gloves: Sitka. Grey.
Hat: Varies.

[todbartell]

Get a decent base layer and Sitka Mountain pants and 90% jacket. Not super waterproof in downpours but you'll be hard pressed to find more comfortable, well fitting clothes

[swampthing]

Like bartell I run merino wool under sitka, works great. I have some under armor base layer stuff which I like but I find it stinks very quickly.

[killman]

I bought some of this http://www.core4element.com/ off camofire. Its nice, very comfortable stuff.

[Jack Russell]

Merino wool from any reputable outdoor shop (even MEC) is a great place to start. Ditch the carharts/jeans - there is nothing worse as SS pointed out. The use of your hat/toque as a thermostat is probably one of the best ways to stay out there longer. When you are warming up, take of the hat, and vice versa. I don't wear camo because I don't think it helps. I wore a floro orange toque in Saskatchewan and had deer within 30 yards looking at me (with some brush behind me to break my outline) for long periods of time, only to just walk away.

Finding QUIET gear that works is the real trick.

[Gun Dog]

I wear Merino wool for skiing and hunting. Great stuff. I also have Columbia microfleece for when it's really cold. For outerwear I picked up a Remington parka and insulated pants from Walmart. Half the price of WSS but the product ids are different so it looks the same but is made just for Walmart. Waterproof-breathable fabrics are cheap as dirt these days so unless you're in a rain storm you don't need the better fabrics and taped seams. I don't care for the modern photo-camo but that's all you can buy these days. i just want a simple breakup pattern. The main problem with hiking clothing is the NOISE.

[fireguy]

sitka gear, layered and i find it very quiet

[spear]

Socks - Lorpen or Teko wool/synthetic blend
Boots - Scarpa EL M3 I think
Base -MEC merino long sleeve top, MEC poly pro base (I get cold easily but forgo the long underwear in sept)
Pants - Sitka Mountain Pants, a lil heavier than the ascent and 90% pants, a lil stretchier too, still very light and two seasons in they are going strong
Mid Layer Top - Arcteryx Alpha sv hoody (coreloft insulation) or sitka traverse top in optifade open country
Outerwear - Helly bib bottoms in green (best rain gear out there I think other than Kuiu maybe?)

I think a good cabelas fleece camo hoody would be great for mulies or white tails int he late season, fleece is nice and quiet and if you can find one with Gore Windstopper it would be perfect. The Sitka Camo stands out on the island but i dont think it makes much of a diffference as long as you do your part.
Sitka Stormfront Jacket
wool toque or ball cap

[338 whisper]

Under Armour
1.Under Armour base layer 3.0 cold gear
2.Under Armour capture fleese pants
3.Under Armour capture fleese jacket
4.Under Armour hoody
5.Under Armour cold gear long sleeve shirt
6.Under Armour socks and beeny hat
I wore this whitetail hunting were I sit for about 2 hours rattling and glassing and it was -20c the only thing that was cold was my feet and my hands and it is very quitet and very comfortable to wear it's not bulky fitts tight to your body like the sitka line of products.

[Jack Russell]

Where does one find this Under Armour gear?
Thanks,
JR

[rhinogeek]

I know that WSS has a small selection in Langley - online at Cabelas (or in store, but there isn't one anywhere near where I live) - http://cabelas.ca has quite a bit.

[KevinB]

Most of the camo marketed to hunters, that I've seen, sucks badly as far as performance goes. My advice would be to steer clear of most of the "hunting" clothing you see on most store racks, although there are some gems if you know what you're looking for. Most of the decent hiking/mountaineering stuff is quite good, and sometimes you can even find it in grey or brown, and on sale for pretty cheap. If you're set on camo then your choices for good performing clothing will be narrowed to a few, like the Sitka, Kuiu, etc. stuff. It's probably good but I don't own any.

My typical setup:
Legs:
-base: thin merino or capilene - MEC's merino is nice and good value
-insulating layer: 100 weight fleece type long underwear - mine come from Costco, they were really cheap and 100% polyester fleeces is all the same
-old pair of MEC soft shell pants - made from Schoeller Dryskin, in grey. It breathes like your favorite t-shirt, is wind resistant, water resistant, dries reasonably fast, thin, stretchy, and light. Bought them used for $30. What more can you ask for? I just picked up an as new second pair from the MEC gear swap :mrgreen:
If it's cold I'll add a second set of thin long underwear.

Torso:
-again, a thin base layer. Liking the MEC merino!
-Thin 100 weight fleece pullover - again cheap from Costco.
-insulation - if it's cold, I have an old Moonstone thermolite puffy synthetic jacket. It's the bees knees.
-outer - either, my very very lucky, grey button up fleece shirt that I bought for 5 bucks at Value Village years ago, or one of the two used Schoeller Dryskin softshell jackets (one grey, one tan) I've picked up for very cheap at used clothing stores.
I really, really like softshell stuff - but it has to be one of the very breathable ones (Dryskin is extremely breathable and still pretty weather resistant), and a bunch of the more common ones aren't very breathable, in favor of water resistance.

Miscellaneous:
grey fleece toque using one of the polartec hardface type fabrics; Outdoor Research Gripper gloves (nearly the perfect hunting glove IMO); miscellaneous synthetic balaclava for sitting; boots - either typical hiking boots, or Sorel felt packs for cold or sitting.

With this setup, I can stay comfortable over a very wide temperature range, and stay dry in most conditions. Insulation layers, toque, and gloves come off and on depending on activity level or temperature. If I get wet I don't stay wet long, since my insulating layers are pretty hydrophobic. I might carry a light rain shell if conditions dictate. Of course, if you're hunting somewhere really wet, this might not work. If it's below freezing then water becomes much less of a concern and you need to focus on insulation and breathability.

here's a couple of great reads.

http://www.verber.com/mark/outdoors/gear/clothing.html

http://www.andy-kirkpatrick.com/articles/view/the_art_of_not_suffering

[Jack Russell]

I know that WSS has a small selection in Langley - online at Cabelas (or in store, but there isn't one anywhere near where I live) - http://cabelas.ca has quite a bit.

Thanks! I haven't seen it around. Will have to check out WSS.

[338 whisper]

Jack Russell
look at wholesale they should have it if there is one close to you. Where do you live? If you live close to calgary you could look at Bass pro shops they sell it. You could check Amazon.com,E-bay,Cabelas. At Cabelas and bas pro they have sales at this time of year to get rid of old invetory. Amazom.com just had a big christmas sale. What I do find the who has look at in person then find out who has the best buy on what I want. When I got my pant I had seen them on line very cheep but was not pleased with pic or the write up so the next time I went to bass pro I gat ot see the pants and they were what I wanted I also get to see othe clothing that I had been looking at and thay were not any were near what I thought they were from what I had seen from catalogs and from the internet stores. I got my Jacket on sale at wholsale sports saved $50.00 hope this helps. if not P.M me

[500grhollowpoint]

What a bunch of prima donnas. Army surplus camo and stanfields. If it's really cold, under armour.

[Apolonius]

It all depends on what type of hunting you do.Camo styles and colours is for the liking of you.Newer styles are good and fresh.Big names are more pricey but also good.Look for two things...wind proof....waterproof.Sitka has a nice tight fit but is it what you want or comfort?90% is still 10% sort and out there...realy out there 10% kills.If you like being out side 24/7 buy the best you can afford.Think ahead two years at least from now...will it be good?Then you buy it.Cabelas has great deals and with the dollar where it is get it there.Dry plus has served me very well.Some times sheep hunting for two weeks...rain snow cold.One jacket one pair of pants.No extras.And no polypropylene........it stinks.Merino is the way to go.Under armour is not to my liking....i do own some of that too.Happy hunting....and always stand to be corrected

[Fishhound]

Browning wool, with marino wool underwear when its cold, silvermax early in the fall

[sakofinnlight]

90% sitka pants and sitka stratus jacket. Best 2 pieces of outdoor clothing I have ever bought, Iam definately looking into a lighter jacket from sitka for early september. I have hunted hard in this gear for 2 years now and not a stitch has came out. Well worth the money IMO

[2x4x16]

Kuiu gear all the way. I have the entire line in both camo for hunting and non camo for snow shoeing and hiking. I wear this gear for my sons soccer games and practices. In the lower mainland the rain doesn't stop but I'm dry and warm with light weight gear. The pants are by far the best piece of clothing I have purchased. The pants breathing incredibly well and dry out super fast. For what the gear is and compare it to other quality mountain clothing, it well priced.

[Ry151]

Thanks for all the advice, Now have a pretty good idea of what I'm in need of to stay warmer and enjoy longer days in the cold wet weeks

[KevinB]

[QUOTE=2x4x16;1057169]Kuiu gear all the way. QUOTE]

I'd be interested in your feedback of how noisy their Toray fabric is. Some soft shell material is quite noisy, and others are pretty quiet. Their stuff does look pretty good and it would be great if they have chosen one of the quieter fabrics. They also need to add the option for a couple of breast or arm pockets to their jacket, as I find regular handwarmer pockets are usually blocked by pack waistbelts.

cheers

[Husky7mm]

90% sitka pants and sitka stratus jacket. Best 2 pieces of outdoor clothing I have ever bought, Iam definately looking into a lighter jacket from sitka for early september. I have hunted hard in this gear for 2 years now and not a stitch has came out. Well worth the money IMO

They must have sold out, every stitch has come out of mine... I have one shirt made by the orginal Sitka, its been wore for 4 years, good as new, my new system bought last year has been repaired all over and it will be done by next seasons end. Before warned!

[2x4x16]

[QUOTE=2x4x16;1057169]Kuiu gear all the way. QUOTE]

I'd be interested in your feedback of how noisy their Toray fabric is. Some soft shell material is quite noisy, and others are pretty quiet. Their stuff does look pretty good and it would be great if they have chosen one of the quieter fabrics. They also need to add the option for a couple of breast or arm pockets to their jacket, as I find regular handwarmer pockets are usually blocked by pack waistbelts.

The material is not to bad - It isn't fleece. But what you give up for noise you more than make up in performance. Ie, range of motion, stretch, water resistance and breathablity and dry time. At no time did it cross my mind that the jacket or pants where noisy. It is certainly a quieter than a Gortex shell.
I understand about pockets, their is one on the inside chest, that is actually fairly deep. Minimal = less weight, and that's what their gear is about
cheers

[KevinB]

Ok, thanks.

[ufishifish2]

So far I have a bought only a bunch of Sitka stuff. After wearing it for the last 8-10 months almost every day I have decided that I like it.
In the future I will purchase KUIU gear instead simply because it is made in Vancouver instead of China. BOO to Sitka Gear greed. KUIU from now on!!!

[2x4x16]

[QUOTE=KevinB;1057985]

I was just out for a hike with my Kuiu jacket and Kuiu pack. I did notice that the jacket pockets are fairly high up on the body. When your pack is on the majority of the pocket is still accessible. I have a large jacket, I'm 6' tall. In case you wanted to know.

[KevinB]

Ok, thanks, good to know. I have a pretty short torso, so handwarmer pockets are usually pretty low for me.