All posts in Tactical Clothing

After a few months of moving inventory, customers give you valuable feedback

tru-spec soft shell jacketsNow that Spring is almost upon us here in the Pennsylvania area, it’s almost time to ditch your heavy winter coats and bring out your lighter weight jackets.   Last Fall we were part of the Tru-Spec soft shell jacket promo and this was our first dive into moving outwear that was not Woolrich Elite Series Tactical or Eotac style.   The Tru-Spec product line really gives us a good foot in the door for competing for customers that where the 5.11 tactical product line.  The Tru Spec shirts and pants are similar in style to the poly cotton rip stop designs that have been around for several years.  It seems that most of our Law Enforcement customers prefer this material due to it being easier to keep from being wrinkled.

The soft shell promo helped us fill a whole in our inventory and get a jacket on the market that many of our customers were already wearing.  It’s nice to see people walk in the door that know the Tru-Spec product line and the Tru-Spec soft shell jackets are very cool looking jackets.   The Coyote Brown is a nice eye catching but very tactical looking jacket.   In rainy weather this does give you a very lightweight yet breathable jacket that will keep you dry and is not long and flappy like many rain coats.   These are available in Multicam as well as Olive, Black and Navy.

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Somtimes our style of tactical pants changes for a reason

tactical pants Lately I have been carrying different gear with me at work and during classes.   Recently I was on a road trip and re discovered ankle and shoulder holsters and forgot what it was like to carry in those positions while driving 8hrs in a day.  There are plenty of reasons to consider ankle carry holsters but they are really meant for backups.   One thing I have noticed with various tactical pants is the cut of the pants near the ankles.  Not that I think people need bell bottom pants but this is something to seriously consider when you are carrying in this position.  Some styles of pants will not give you the movement you need and you will end up with your pants riding up on you.

When it comes to carrying handcuffs and batons, wallets and other paperwork, you are going to see huge differences in the types of pants out there.  Call me an old timer but I still don’t have Vertx tactical pants in my wardrobe although in 2013 I plan on getting some.   I have found I have learned to love the  Blackhawk lightweight tactical pants because they are holding up very well to all of the useage I have given them and the only negative I have so far are the lack of a left side wallet or ID pocket.   The pockets are a little too  deep for a wallet and I often feel like I lost it because it’s about 2-3 inches lower than it normally would be.   It’s not just about the material like 100% cotton ripstop or 65/35 poly cotton ripstop.

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Worthy of a walk in a browse at our showroom

truspec combat shirtsAfter the demise of several clothing companies in recent years we tip toed our way through the various tactical clothing brands and asked our customers what they were going to be wearing once the other brands stopped becoming available.  It seems that the 100% cotton rip stop pants that we sold are not really being made by anyone anymore and it’s mostly the 65%/35% poly cotton ripstop pants.  Mostly Law Enforcement prefer that material design for training or off duty work.  We do notice the the majority of our military contractors want cotton ripstop or cotton canvas clothing and according to them, it’s more comfortable to wear.

Sometimes the amount of “new” stuff that comes out each year is overwhelming but I have to force myself to try things on and wear them long enough to be able to speak for myself.  Recently I picked up some body armor that worked for me but I needed to try on the TruSpec combat shirts that so many of our local law enforcement and government departments are wearing.   Even though there has been a major switch over to multicam, several departments here are still using urban digit for combat uniform.  Sometimes it’s more about identifying your department and not trying to hide.

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Another Tru-Spec 3,2,1 Promotion starting March 1st

truspec pantsWe are already under way of another Tru-Spec promotion this year and it’s the same great deal we had last year.  After selling the Woolrich Elite Series and Eotac product lines, we have a customer base that are not sure what they should be wearing since those product lines are drying up. The polycotton ripstop pants are very simliar in feel to the well known 5.11 tactical pants.   Most of our customers all own something from 5.11 because 5.11 tactical has been king for so many years and their products seem to be far more available.   Much of the tactical clothing market, especially tactical pants is all about preference, price points and quality.

We have seen many of our Special Ops guys showing up wearing the Vertx product line but most of our LEO’s don’t want to spend $64 on a pair of pants.   Now is a very good time to try out the TruSpec pants with the 3,2,1 Promotion that is going on until the end of April.   Don’t sit  on  your hands about this promo because many of the dealers are going to sell out of the product line before the promo is over.  I know last year we were out of certain colors and sizes by the end of the first month.  You will get 15% off your first pair, 20% off a second and 25% percent off when you buy 3 or more pants which brings the price down to $29.95.

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Some new observations about tactical pants after a plane trip

Blackhawk tactical pantsThis year I had to do some business trips and I was in and out of cars, hotels, motels and airplanes for several days.   I had the new gunny boot cut tactical pants with me, Woolrich Elite Series Tactical Chinos, Tru-Spec 24/7 pants, and the Blackhawk lightweight tactical pants with me.  I figured this would  be a good time to force myself to try them out because normally I don’t like to switch up my gear.   I always had a flashlight with me and if I wasn’t wearing the Tru-Spec pants I had to find another way of keeping track of where it was so I knew it was always there when I needed it and knew that it didn’t fall off or get lost.

Well, after a long plane trip, I was won over by one of my lease worn tactical pants and that’s because I found the pocket placements to be very useful for what I was doing at the time.   The 65%/35% polycotton ripstop pants from Tru-Spec were very similar to the Blackhawk tactical pants that I was wearing on the plane trip but the leg pockets with the sidezip were very useful while being in the seated position.  I used these pockets for tickets for my flights and it was much easier to access than my hand pockets.  I never really thought about this until I was sitting there drinking a beer and was about to check what time my next flight was.

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Tactical vests for range use and for low profile LEO’s

Woolrich Elite tactical vestsWe have seen the tactical clothing market explode in the last 10yrs and have seen companies come and go.   Some of the companies we sold products for were really original and well made but they just didn’t get their foot in the door and gain traction.  Some of the products were, even though well made, not easy to sell online because people wanted to hold it in their hands or try it on to make sure it fit them.  Some of the sizing issues aren’t just about chest sizing it’s also arm lengths and waist tolerances.  I have been using the Woolrich Elite 44903  tactical vest for almost 8yrs and it has very good durability and very comfortable compared to some molle vests.

The 44903 vest is a cotton canvas tactical vest and has so many  pockets that only a well organized individual won’t have problems losing his gear in it.  You will have a place for a radio, water bottles and the Woolrich Elite Series tactical vest has plenty of room to hold 4-8 magpul pmags depending on how  you stack them.  The new Gen 3 pmags are a little thinner so you will easily be able to stack on 8 magazines and even more depending on how crafty you are with your pocket usage.  The rear pocket, I find is good for elbow pads and gloves.

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Expanding our product line based upon customer feedback

Tru-Spec softshell jacketsWe are expanding our tactical clothing line towards Law Enforcement products in 2013.  We have a really good location for many of our police departments and it’s really all about logistics.   This year we have brought in some of the Tru-Spec Extreme Assault Suits which is something we really didn’t know about until we were asked to bring them in.  There are always slight functionality differences between these and other manufacturers that each department might want, but you never know until they ask for it, or walk in and ask us about them.  Having a shoulder or arm pocket that Law Enforcement can use when identifying a person or persons that have a warrant out for their arrest.

Fabric and materials really matter depending on the work you are doing.  We ran a promo on the Tru-Spec Softshell jackets this past fall and they were very popular with our customer base.  They are more useful and practical since they are a Fall and Spring jacket and give you a level of water resistance that other jackets don’t have.   Here in our parts of the Country we can get a  lot of rain in cold and warm temperatures and being able to adapt to whatever you wake up to in the morning means having a very diverse wardrobe.

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Some feedback about Tru-Spec shirts compared to others

truspec shirtsWe’ve had the Tru-Spec product line in our store for a little over a year and  a half and when we bring new things in, we usually let customer tell us what they like and if it’s a good product.  Part of being a good seller of tactical clothing is listing to what your customers are asking for  or complaining about and giving them a good product or products to choose from.  This year we tested the waters and we sold  out certain products and brought in new ones based on feedback.   There still is a great unknown what is going on with the Woolrich Elite customer base we have had for almost 8yrs because it looks like they are not making the product anymore.  There shirts are still well made but you have to alter things based on what your customers ask for.

When it comes to durability and fit, I’d say that after about a year of use my Tru-Spec shirts started to fall apart but I sure got my monies worth.  The major selling point we have with the Tru-Spec shirts we have are they are close to $10-$15 less than their 5.11 tactical comparisons.  Since so many of our customers shop at our store based on their yearly clothing allowances, Tru-Spec products are even more popular.  As a dealer it’s nice to have stuff here that is less money and less dollar amounts of inventory.

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What does Tru-Spec have in store for us in 2013 regarding their tactical pants?

tactical pants We just watched a video about the new stuff coming from Tru-Spec and it was music to our ears to here that what they were primarily going to do is put a less expensive pant on the market.  Who has done something like that in the last 10yrs?  Not a single company that we can think of.  Years ago 5.11 pants were about $30-$40 and when Woolrich Elite Series hit the market they were the first tactical pant we sold that was almost $50 a pair.  You do get what you pay for but now that we see that so many tactical clothing companies have overdone their designs, there is something to be said for simplicity and quality.

We like the Tru-Spec tactical pants and especially the new Gunny boot cut pant, but were looking forward to the new pants that will be well received with our Law Enforcement departments that are always on a budget.   We have not seen these new Tactical Pants yet but I expect our sales rep will be out with them shortly.  The major selling point of the Tru-Spec product line is that it is the best priced tactical product line in comparison to Vertx and 5.11 tactical.  We’ve picked up a lot of customers in the EMS world from 5.11 just based on price points.

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A place to walk into and walk out with the stuff you want

Now that so many people do their shopping on Cyber Monday or just order things from Amazon and Ebay, many small business have been put out of business.  One thing that hasn’t changed though are returns and exchanges.  Sometimes people mis ready technical details about the size of a product or they order a wrong color.  When it comes to buying shoes and certain types of clothing, people really want to walk in a shop, hold it in their hands and then walk out the same day.  We’ve had several people tell us that we should stock certain products and many of our nearest competitors do now.   Nobody wants to walk in a retail store, order something online and then go back in and pick it up when you can easily go home and look it  up on google and get it in a couple days.

With holster sizes, flashlight and laser accessories its very hard to know what you are getting with a gun holster.    In the area we are in we draw a lot of customers looking for Philadelphia Law Enforcement supplies that are willing to drive several hours just to try it on and get it right the first time.  You can be one size in on line of tactical apparel but another size or in between sizes with another and  only when  you are standing in front of a mirror will you know if it’s for you.   Whether you’re looking for a gun holster for your Glock 21 with a TLR-1S light or a new pair of boots, we stock most of what local law enforcement personnel are looking for.

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