My wardrobe could probably be summed up by spitting out some brand names. Carhartt, Redhead (Bass Pro brand), Under Armour Heatgear, Polo, Cabela's, Levi, Wrangler, Merrell, Rockport, Danner, Vans and Converse.
I only have a few tips that I can share that someone might be interested in. No one's going to care that I wear grey plaid Vans cargo shorts, Converse shoes or a Browning t-shirt all summer long in an attempt to escape the heat. So I'll try to keep this more informational/educational and less '
Dear Diary, ...'
One tip I can give everyone is that Carhartt is awesome. Doesn't matter what it is, jackets, pants, t-shirts or whatever, it's well made. I probably won't be wearing their overalls, but I'm betting those are well made too.
Jackets : The best jacket I've ever owned is a Carhartt 'Quick Duck' jacket. It's warm as hell, but it actually breathes and it's not like being wrapped in a plastic bag. It's warm without being restrictive. I got the jacket as an Christmas present, I would have chosen another color besides black but I love the jacket itself.
It's this one . . .
I really want to get one of the Carhartt or Redhead mid-tone color hoody type quilted jackets as they're a little looser and they won't attract lint and dog hair like black does (I hate that covered-in-dog-hair look, so I have lint rollers in my truck, bedside table, by the entryway and in the bathroom).
The other jackets I have are a few old style EMS windbreaker type that an old company I used to work for discontinued where I ripped the patches off, but kept the reflectors on one and took them off on another. I don't get cold all that easy so that's the one I generally go with. Also have a way comfortable black 'Red Jacket Firearms' hoodie (that I probably won't be wearing anymore because of their close association with a cho-mo ... Unsure of blue text here).
Gloves : I have several different pairs but these are the two that have stayed in the rotation the longest. A set of black flight gloves that are thin enough where they're like a second skin and they're great when shooting and a set of Stanley gloves in my truck.
I've been looking at a few different cold weather gloves at Bass Pro and Cabela's, any recommendations on those?
Shirts : Mostly I'm a t-shirt and jeans or button up loose shirt and cargo pants kind of guy. Nothing generally real special about most of my shirts. Usually just plain or something gun related (although I've been gradually weeding the gun related ones out to be a little more anonymous).
The only type of shirts that might be of a tiny bit of interest are the Under-Armour Heatgear/Coldgear ones or their thermals as a base layer. Here the heat is more a consideration than the cold. Don't get me wrong, it gets cold here too, but it doesn't last as long or get as bad. I learned about Under-Armour Heatgear type shirts as an under shirt for class A uniform shirts. They kind of wick the sweat away and as a consequence it's way better than 100% cotton or 50/50 cotton and polyester and you won't sweat or stink as bad.
When I started carrying a pistol I also learned that wearing two shirts (one, a loose over shirt ... t-shirt, polo or button up) and having the other one be a more form fitting UA t-shirt and you won't print as much. Before UA was out I used plain form fitting T-shirts underneath a looser fitting shirt and that worked too. Less comfortable when it's hot though. People are always complaining about 'printing' full size guns, that's pretty much the secret...two shirts.
Try it, shit works.
Under Armor also makes thermal type shirts that I love.
Belt : My belt is just a plain black leather belt from Galco. Looks ordinary. Hell, it is ordinary except it's a little thicker than the average dress belt from Dillard's or Sears or wherever you buy your belts and a little more sturdy. Having a decent belt helps if you're going to carry concealed. I looked it up again for this thread and it's a Galco SB5 '
Sports Belt' in black. I like the tan better, but black goes with just about everything and the tan stands out a bit and draws a little more attention.
Pants or Shorts : I like wider than normal pockets to be able to fish stuff out without my hand getting stuck. Plus I hate tight pants, uncomfortable.
With pants I like them with a little more room and slightly larger pockets and openings so it's easy to get stuff out. Mostly I'm going with Carhartt, Kuhl, Levi's, Redhead, Wrangler or Cabela's cargo or carpenter pants or jeans. I don't really like stuff that wears out easy, so the tougher the better.
When it's hot it's either cargo shorts from the above list or this one pair of of grey plaid Vans shorts with one left hand cargo pocket (shut up, I am from So Cal
).
Socks : When hunting in fall or winter I generally wear these no-name wool socks I got at Bass-Pro or these really warm Dickies socks.
Footwear : My Merrell Moab Hiking Boots get the most use. Going to the park with my son or taking him to story time at the library, hiking in the rain forest in St Lucia or hog hunting. These have been everywhere (Just for the record I spend more time with my 42 and 1/2 inch homie than I do tramping through the rain forest).
For not being leather the Merrell's have lasted a long time, 4 and 1/2 years and counting. Normally I thrash on ****ting boots and they're gone in a year and a half.
After that 2nd and 3rd most worn footwear are just regular Vans or Converse. Boots get kinda hot in warm weather.
When I really need to protect my tootsies I have Danner Striker II GTX Men's Quarter Boots and Rockport 'Tactical' Side-Zip Boots. Those boots have both refused to die. I've had the Danner's for 9 years. They don't get as much use as they used to and mostly they're currently being tested in the closet, but they've seen a lot of use. Only reason that I got the Rockport's after the Danner's is that they're side-zip and easy to get on in the middle of the night. The Rockport's are now my bump-in-the-night I-need-something-on-my-feet-now boots.
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Frog-Toggs : You guys were mentioning them earlier and I'll tell you right out of the gate that I don't really like them much. Someone I know that worked for them got some for my wife and I (which was very nice of them), but they don't breathe very well and they just didn't work for me. My wife didn't like her set either. It was like donning plastic, you immediately started sweating something awful and it doesn't stop. I was bound and determined to make use of mine as everyone said that they were great and I kept mine at work and each time after about 10 mins it didn't matter that the rain didn't get in, I was soaking wet from sweat on the inside.
In fact we still have the same couple sets of their rain gear in our closet that I'll give to anyone on here that wants them (if I can find the jacket for mine, if not there's the pants from mine and the women's set). Mine are a green and I think that they're XL. I saw the pants a few days ago, but I'd have to try to find the jacket. I think they're stuffed in this bag labeled 'Don't ever use'. My wife doesn't like her set either and her's are in medium and are together (jacket and the pants). If you aren't familiar with them you might want to try a set on and walk around for a few mins before buying.
Edit : The Frog-togg pants of mine.
This is the med jacket/pants for your wife
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Alright, so in summary.
[*]Carhartt, Carhartt, Carhartt
[*]If you want your full size pistol to remain concealed wear two shirts. One form fitting and the other looser and your roscoe won't be spotted. Under Armour works especially well for this.
[*]Galco rocks for belts.
[*] Flight gloves are great for performing tasks where you still need some tactile sensation, but aren't that great for cold weather.
[*]Carhartt, Kuhl, Levi's, Redhead, Wrangler or Cabela's cargo or carpenter pants or jeans will last practically forever and even when the cuffs do start to wear out you can just make shorts for around the house out of them.
[*]Merrell, Rockport and Danner are awesome boots.
[*]Dickies and Basspro wool socks are the shiznit and will keep your feet toasty warm even if the rest of you is not.
[*]And last but not least, Frog Toggs kinda sucked and does someone want two sets of them (XL and Med) where (if I can find it) the men's jacket will have been sweated in profusely but will have been washed and dried prior to arrival? (Again, if I can find the jacket)
