Uniform | Military Times GearScout

Norrøna releases tactical Gore-Tex.

By: Rob Curtis

01-05-2012

The high-end, European outdoor clothing firm Norrøna will release an update to their military-specific Recon Gore-Tex shell set in July, 2012. Norrøna says they developed the Recon line with Norwegian, Swedish and Danish Special Forces. Norwegians, with their hyper healthy/active lifestyles, pretty much live in the outdoors so I’m sure they understand and appreciate fine outdoor clothing. Norrøna is a spendy brand (the jacket and pants presented here will run you $1600 retail!) but I hear they are close to a deal with their Swedish kin to sell their clothing at a discount through IKEA. The clothing will come as flat-packed, pre-cut fabric swatches and you’ll have to sew them yourself from pictogram instructions.

Specs after the break.

via Soldier Systems

Crye updates: Magclip, all weather clothing

By: Rob Curtis

30-04-2012

Product Announcement

Crye Precision quietly released new G3 All weather Combat shirt and pants, and G3 All Weather Field Pants. Also, they have begun shipping MagClip, the AR magazine holder they first showed at SHOT Show in 2011.

VERTX Smock: Hands on

By: Rob Curtis

12-11-2011

Photo Recon, Product Preview

Here’s an exclusive first look at the VERTX Smock. As a soft shell, this smock is the modern American embodiment of the WWII era British combat smock. In sentimental terms, think of the combat smock as the European equivalent of our M65 field jacket and you get an idea of the garment’s appeal.

It’s an distinctive piece that adds modern styling and function to a vintage design. I think this will be the first in a resurgent wave of combat smocks marketed in the States.

Features:
Vertx gave the smock a full cut so it can be worn over a chest rig or a plate carrier. It’s going to be a bit of a stretch to wear over full-on body armor, though. It’s designed for layering and wear in a broad spectrum of environments. That’s why it’s only insulation is in the fleece lined hood and handwarmer pockets. Lined pit zips keep debris out and prevent you from sticking your arm through an open pitzip when donning the smock. There’s adjusters at the waist and hem to keep out drafts, reenforced elbows, a removable hood, and big Canadian style buttons on the hand warmer pocket flaps and the hood attachment are functional but impart an old school look.

Ghuille suit in a can?

By: Rob Curtis

18-09-2010

Business News, video

Scientists and fashion designers have teamed up over in the UK to develop a spray-on fabric. Fabrican says the stuff is a combination of short staple fibers and polymers held in solvent suspension. After it’s applied, the solvent evaporates, leaving the liquid polymer to gel and hold the fibers together on the surface of whatever it’s sprayed on.

While they show it in a fashion setting, the first thing I though of when I saw the story on Wired was what it would look like if the fibers were some kind of IR absorbing material and they were sprayed on to a uniform. Durability might be an issue, but Fabrican says the fabric is strong enough to be removed and washed after it sets up. This might not replace your concealment kit, but it might make a decent addition to a bailout bag someday.

ManJams – Afghanistan GearPorn X

By: Rob Curtis

24-03-2010

GearPorn, Review

Before there were black track suits and balaclavas, there were ManJams. The original uniform for the middle eastern and southwest Asian guerrilla warrior, the ManJam has many features that make it suitable for nearly any casual or tactical situation.

The freeflowing top is light and produces a cooling draft in the summer, and can be cinched down for warmth with a stylish sash in the winter. Seen in different weights and lengths, the longer length offers reinforced protection for the knees and butt. Though not quite as protective as knee pads, what you lose in protection, you gain in comfort since there’s nothing strapped to your knees. The shorter length, shown above on some local workers at a coalition base in eastern Afghanistan, is more casual and practical.

For load carriage. Just reach down and grab the hem of the ManJam top. As you lift it up, it creates a wide open, easily accessible pouch as long as you can hold it up. I’m guessing there are tactical ManJams that have been modified with a webbing loop tacked at each end inside the hem so that it can be looped over the head to make a hands free ManJam chest rig.

ManJam bottoms are usually light, loose fitting pants with an elastic waistband. The baggy outline is cut for comfort and freedom of motion.

Camo is suprisingly effective. It can be harder to see someone in ManJams at a glance, since the silouette has a long trunk and short legs. Earth-toned ManJams can really hide a person in the rocks when viewed from a couple hundred meters.

MultiCam Combat Shirt – Afghanistan GearPorn Part VIII

By: Rob Curtis

20-03-2010

GearPorn

Tru-Spec combat shirt in MultiCam. 2-12 INF Soldiers were issued UCP combat shirts so some turned to the internet to buy MultiCam versions.

It’s official: Army adopts MultiCam for use in OEF

By: Rob Curtis

22-02-2010

Programatics

Updated: Now with more details from our Friday morning interview.

According to Matt Cox at Army Times, the Army announced Friday morning that it will begin fielding MultiCam ACUs to forces flowing into Afghanistan as soon as this summer. Program officials told us explicitly that we would begin to see MultiCam fielding in August. The Army plans to begin the fielding in two overlapping stages.

The initial push will be to get MultiCam on 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, at Fort Polk, La., and the Iowa National Guard’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division, both deploying for OEF this summer. Once that effort is underway, the Army will then concentrate on getting new ACU-MultiCam and selected OCIE to currently deployed OEF-A soldiers.

Boom.

According to the Army’s test results, MultiCam was the only camo pattern to rank first in all three categories of the Army’s photosimulation evaluation.

… UCP-Delta did well in the detectability, not as well as MultiCam, but pretty well. UCP-Delta did perform significantly better than UCP and it would have been cheap, but we didn’t want to go ‘cheap Charlie’ on the soldiers. If we can give them an edge, we wanted to give them an edge even if that meant spending some extra money.

Colonel Bill Cole, Project manager for Soldier Protection and Individual Equipment, U.S. Army, PEO Soldier

The MultiCam uniforms will have a few other improvements that are already headed for future ACU contracts. OEF-A bound soldiers will receive about $4,000 worth of gear including four sets of MultiCam uniforms, four combat shirts and matching combat equipment.

Win your next ribbon argument with the Ribbon Checker

By: Rob Curtis

07-02-2010

Link

We just came across this M.R. Gustafson’s handy Ribbon Checker for USMC, Navy and Coast Guard uniforms. If you aren’t sure where your new ribbon goes, check it with this page. Just check off the ribbons from the list presented, and the site presents a visual guide to help you get them in the right order. Nifty.

Read the slides and FAQ from the ACU conference here

By: Rob Curtis

31-12-2009

Contracts, Programatics

It’s not as cool as being there, but the DLA just shared their PowerPoint presentation and a FAQ from the Dec 10, 2009 industry conference in Philadelphia about the Flame Resistant ACU (FRACU; a favorite on the Colonial Fleet’s Battlestar Galactica) and the Flame Resistant Permethrin (FRP-ACU). It answers a few questions about the uniforms itself and lots of questions about the acquisition process such as:

When will the Solicitation be issued?
How do we prevent knockoffs?
Is the Army planning on fabric solicitation to coincide with the decision on “New” Camo pattern?
Does the Government plan to license the IP on the current FRACU product to ensure multiple sources, or make this a performance based specification, thus eliminating the sole source situation that currently exists?
Has the fly pattern issues been corrected with the latest pattern?

Congress Doesn’t Dig UCP – Orders New Camo for A’stan

By: Rob Curtis

15-06-2009

Programatics

Congress is jumping into the camo debate. They’re ordering new combat uniforms for troops in Afghanistan after hearing complaints that UCP doesn’t work as well as it does in Iraq.

Army Times’ congressional corespondent Rick Maze found the language in a report accompanying HR 2346, the 2009 supplemental appropriations act. Missing, however, is the source of funding for such a refit. Here’s the whole article.

From the HR 2346 Conference Report:

The conferees understand that soldiers deployed to Afghanistan have serious concerns about the current combat uniform which they indicate provides ineffective camouflage given the environment in Afghanistan. Accordingly, the conferees direct that within funding made available the Department of Defense take immediate action to provide combat unifonns to personnel deployed to Afghanistan with a camouflage pattern that is suited to the environment of Afghanistan.

The conferees further direct the Secretary ofthe Anny to provide a report on the program plans and budgetary adjustments necessary to provide appropriate unifonns to deployed and deploying troops to Afghanistan. The report shall be submitted to the congressional defense committees by the end of fiscal year 2009.

Norrøna releases tactical Gore-Tex.

Crye updates: Magclip, all weather clothing

VERTX Smock: Hands on

Ghuille suit in a can?

ManJams – Afghanistan GearPorn X

MultiCam Combat Shirt – Afghanistan GearPorn Part VIII

It’s official: Army adopts MultiCam for use in OEF

Win your next ribbon argument with the Ribbon Checker

Read the slides and FAQ from the ACU conference here

Congress Doesn’t Dig UCP – Orders New Camo for A’stan

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