Archive for March, 2012

Still cleaning up after Eotac closing down

It’s been almost a year since Eotac closed down and because people are still seeing re-runs of the Outdoor channel and competition shooters wearing clothing with the Eotac name, people are looking them up and only finding us.  We thought it would be a good idea to direct our customers or those interested in the Eotac line to check out the Woolrich Elite Series product line.  It should be no secret to those in the business that the Founder and many of the investors with Eotac were original with Woolrich Elite and the product lines were very Similiar.

Here is a break down of the tactical pants and how they compare.  If you are looking for the Eotac 203 lightweight pants and can’t find your size, see the Woolrich Elite Series lightweight tactical pants Style 44441 pants and you will see how close they are.  The fit on the Woolrich Elite pants is somewhat loser compared to Eotac.   The Eotac Style 201 pants are similar to the Woolrich Elite Style 44447 pants and the Eotac Style 202 pants are almost identical to the Woolrich Elite Style 44429 pants.  Unfortunately there is no comparison to the Eotac 205 denim pants, Woolrich did have a Style 4909 pant years ago but they have been discontinued.  Check out the Woolrich Elite Chino pants for CCW non-tactical pants.

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Get in on the deal before our prices go up

Some of our products are at discounts below cost because it’s not worth it for us to move our inventory and spend time and energy doing it.   We have several lines of apparel at discounted prices and one of them is the Blackhawk lightweight tactical pants.  These were some of our best selling lightweight pants last year and we will be stock them again at a later date, but in the mean time you can get them for $34.99 for only a few more days.  All tactical pants sales are for pants that we already have in stock.   The Blackhawk tactical pants are a 65/35 poly cotton rip stop material and very good for outdoor use.

There is definitely a debate out there about which style of tactical pants is better, but that’s not our decision to make it’s yours.   The Woolrich and Eotac pants were the lightwest tactical pants but some of our customers did not like having to iron them.   100% cotton ripstop is a great thing for really hot weather but for those that have to worry about the looks, they are more work if you want to make them look right.   5.11 tactical pants, Tru spec and Blackhawk all have a very similar look and feel to them but the differences in pocket designs is considerable.  I would say that the Tru Spec have a better fit but they do not have a gusseted crotch.

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Tactical pants that keep you dry

If you are looking for something that keep your dry and gives you moisture resistance, you’ll probable want to try out the 5.11 taclite pro pants, Blackhawk lightweight tactical pants or the Tru Spec 24/7 pants.  There are plenty of other options out there, but for those shopping online that don’t want to have to go through a fiasco to find a stocking dealer in the Country where you can stop by and try something out, those are probable your best options.   We sell a lot of tactical clothing to people that are hunters and recently sold several pairs of Blackhawk lightweight tactical pants to some guys heading out for hunting season.  They liked the Blackhawk pants because they gave a level of moisture resistance but not rain gear.

For someone that knows what its like to wear tactical pants in warm climates, you know that it’s still going to be hot wearing pants, but you still may need some protection from bugs, sun or shrubs and sticks.  Our newest product line are the Tru spec tactical pants and they are also a poly cotton ripstop material.  The Tru Spec 24/7 pants our Atlanco’s number one selling tactical pant and from what we are seeing their claims of being tru to sizing is accurate.  The pocket designs on these pants are very unique compared to Woolrich, 5.11 and Blackhawk.  Some of those tactical pants are hard to tell the difference between because the pocket designs are so similar.

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Whatever it is you want from your clothing, you can probable get now

I still hear the complaining from people that have been wearing 5.11 tactical clothing and just don’t want to wear it anymore because they are tired of the spotting quality control and the sizing and shrinkage issues.   It’s kind of funny that the last of the Eotac apparel had shrinkage issues and many compared it to the issues with 5.11 but that was because the guys at Eotac had trouble with quality control at the factory in China.   It’s amazing to hear the feedback from customers about the changes they wish woule take place with tactical clothing, just minor tweaks of pockets or fit would make a lot of the stuff out there to be perfect.

There are still tactical clothing products coming on the market but most of them are either poorly made or ridiculously expensive.   Most of our tactical pants customers have told us that they really don’t like to spend more than $40 a pair because most people really need atleast 3 pairs of pants and just a few bucks less on clothing means something.   Considering how much clothing is out there now,  you’re probable atleast going to find the style or fit you want, but you might have to pay for it.   We’ve watched Vertx grow but their product line still has some production issue which makes us want to sit it out for awhile.

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What do you want with a pocket holster?

This is one of those issues that I have lots of first hand experience with but you would think that it’s a simple way of carrying a firearm.   I still run into  people that don’t use holsters but in the age of Glocks and firearms with no safeties, I do not think it’s a good idea to have a firearm in tow that does not have it’s trigger covered.   If you wouldn’t carry a knife that is un sheathed why would you carry a fiream without a holster?   I have tried to carry firearms in my pants pockets several times in the past but I have had several failed attempts.   Both times I was carrying j-frame revolvers and either the gun didn’t sit deep enough or I had snagging that was unacceptable.

I’ve used Uncle Mike’s pocket holsters in the past and they were OK, but I’ve taken fabric scissors to them and had to make adjustments to avoid the snagging issue.   One of my favorite new Desantis holsters is the Desantis Nemesis, they are more money than the Uncle  Mikes pocket holsters but they do a better job of slipping free when you pull your firearm.    Pocket carry is something you really have try out with your clothing and your method of carry.  I’ve seen guns fall  out of pockets when people go to picnics and that is bad.

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Do you want a plinking gun or a combat durable firearm?

I am still a big fan of SWAT magazine even though print magazines seem to get written off as gun rags, but I find this to be utter bull shit.   Not all gun magazines the are the same and I for one mostly follow about a dozen gun writers because I want to hear their opinions on some of the products out there.  Yes, the gun industry is full of materialism and novelties, but there is a real world out there and I want to hear from real world individuals about hardware that can cut it.   Much of the firearm industry is about preference, whether it’s tactical pants or firearms.

There is cheap crap out there, although I’d say it’s not so bad anymore because gun acceessories like Magpul have pretty much buried the competition.   Everyone and their dog is putting out a gun or AR15 upper receivers with the Magpul acessories on them.   They are not that expensive and they hold up.  Proper mounting is always a big deal with gun accessories but I’ve already cracked quite a few gun parts and none of them were Magpul accessories.

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Summer options for lightweight clothing

It’s been a very mild Winter this year and hitting 70 degrees in March is a good sign that Winter is over.   About 19 years ago we had one of the biggest snow storms that has ever hit Pennsylvania and it’s nice that we’ve pretty past the period where snow storms usually hit.   Lots of winter clothing is going to be packed up and put in a closet soon because in these parts of the Country we can get all 4 seasons and Summers can be pretty hard for Law Enforcement because lightweight clothing is hard to find.   Everyone knows that a t-shirt is about as light as you can get but there are some tactical shirt options out there.

The Woolrich Elite lightweight tactical shirts in style 44914 are very popular with our Military Contractors because they need the lightweight material and still need sun protection.   The next biggest sellers are the tactical pants that are 100% cotton ripstop also and are the lightest tactical pants we sell.  The Woolrich Elite style 44441 pants and style 44447 pants have very different pocket designs, but we’ll see how well the Tru-Spec tactical pants compete with them this year.  The 5.11 tac lite pro pants are also a new product and we’ll watching our customer feedback.

 

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Upcoming National Sale from Tru-Spec

We are going to be onboard with a major announcement about a 2 month sale on tru-spec 24/7 tactical pants.   Ever since Gunny signed on as the Official spokesperson for Tru-Spec we realized that the company really had some legs in the industry and due to customer responses, we decided to carry the line.  We’ve been in the tactical clothing business for a very long time and many people ask us about sizing questions.   We can tell you that if you wore Woolrich Elite or Eotac pants, that the Tru Spec pants that we have been wearing are all very consistent to that sizing.   I tried on Blackhawk, 5.11 tactical, Eotac, Woolrich Elite and others and there was a sizing variation.

If you wear 5.11 tac lite pro pants you won’t have a problem liking the Tru Spec tactical pants.  In our opinion Tru Spec actually lives up to their name and they have a very good style of tactical pants available.  We’re not  sure of the exact date of the Promo ad hitting but on April 1st through May 31st there will be a 15%-25% off sale on the Tru Spec 24-7 tactical pants.   I expect that inventories will be depleted around the Country by the middle of that promo so get in early if you can.   Khaki colors are usually the first to go and usually Black colors are next.

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Combat and Defensive experiences with the Trijicon optics

A few years ago I witnessed a shoot out in Iraq where a few of our troops took fire from an individual that was shooting wildly after our guys just finished clearing out another building.   At first there was confusion on whether or not we were being shot at or just hearing something going on a few miles away.  When the bullets started hitting us, it took a few seconds to realize that it was just across the street that an idiot with an AK was just spraying gunfire at us.   Most of the guys on our team had ACOGS and could positively identify him and returned fire, but I did hear an individual running a red dot optic call out that he had no shot.

It’s kind of odd to hear something like that with modern weaponry but some of the best close quarters fighting optics are terrible at medium range engagements.   On the flip side some of the Trijicon rifle scopes that are geared to close up fighting like the Trijicon Reflex sights are outstanding for close up engagements.  There are always tradeoffs to combat optics and until they get a zero magnification optic that can zoom in on targets at 600yds reliable, there won’t be a do it all optic.   Pick your guns and gear for the appropriate mission.

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Gun magazines and tactical vests and accessories

Every time you make a modification to a firearm you might have to either learn how to adapt to the the changes with your body or move things around.  I have always preferred to use a standard rifleman grip when shooting an AR15, but I stepped into the M4 Carbine world and messed around with various styles of foregrips.   I tried the Magpul, CAA, and some others that I can’t seem to remember.   I had a folding fore grip that I liked a lot but after about a year of using it, I noticed that it was cracking around the screw that locks it on and that was a real bummer because I didn’t trust the setup anymore.

Recently I started messing around with the Magpul products because we sell so much of them that I ought to start learning about them.  The Magpul accessories for the AR15 are very tough and I have yet to have anything break or crack on me.  All firearm accessories will break if you slam them around enough, but some products out there just royally suck.   One thing that I am in a bit of  a bind about is what to do about light placements.   There are some very unique flashlight mounts out there and they can really move the lights out of the way of your hands and give you more space to move especially during weapons transitions.

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