All posts tagged Blackhawk lightweight tactical pants

What to do about tactical shorts?

We have been selling the Woolrich Elite product line for almost 7yrs now and one of our favorite shorts is the style 4905 which later became the 44905.   There was something that happened at Woolrich a few years ago where all of the products had numbers added to the sku number and an extra digit was made so some long time customers get a little confused.   These tactical shorts were well received because they have a 9 inch inseam.  The style 4908 which became the 44908 was a shorter 100% cotton ripstop short but does not have cargo pockets on the side.
This year we may be bringing in the Tru Spec tactical shorts because we’re seeing so much turmoil with clothing manufacturing that we have to be able to sell what our customer are demanding.   Last year we saw the demise of what was our number one selling tactical pants product line because there was so many problems making the stuff overseas that production became almost impossible.  We have also learned of new issues with making some of our favorite tactical clothing lines and we’re wondering if there will be more fallout later this year due to that.  Get your clothes why you can because the prices are going up.

 

Top

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.

Top

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.

Top

The trend is towards pocket guns and it ain’t gonna stop anytime soon

The real issue that we are seeing with guns and accessories is not everyone has been able to keep up with the guns that are being made today.  If I were a holster maker I would be cautious about making holsters for everything out there because there are some firearms that are simply not going to catch on. When it comes to carrying in the pocket, the responsible thing to do is to use a pocket holster.  I had some issues with one maker because the hammer on my 537 Smith & Wesson was getting caught and I had to cut out part of the holster to avoid snags.

On your journey towards finding the right gun and holster that works for you, take your time before you end up with a box full of holsters you didn’t really want sitting in your closet.   When  you are looking for clothing that are not like the usual tactical pants that you see marketed for concealed carry but really aren’t, take a good look at the Woolrich Elite chinos.  People always ask us if their gun is going to print if they were something like this, but the answer to that is to use a piece of cardboard to prevent printing.   There are a lot of very nice .380 pistols and I would have to say that they do seem to be easier to shoot than the 38 special snubbies, but with proper training, you can get what you want out of both and be very discreet.

Top

There is a difference between lightweight tactical pants

Not all lightweight clothing is as lightweight as you think.  When it comes to tactical clothing that we sell the most of, the Woolrich Elite 100% cotton ripstop shirts and pants are the biggest sellers to those serving in Iraq.  The need for clothing that protects you from the sun, but does breath and give you some level of comfort is important.   When you consider that needing to drink 5 or 6 gallons of water a day to keep hydrated in those climates that wearing clothing that cuts that down to 2-3 gallons just by wearing different clothing really means something for any group of soldiers.  If your unit can eliminate 1 gallon of water consumption per soldier that’s a big deal.

Many people seem to not realize that we have as many contractors over in Iraq protecting Government officials and Oil rigs ect that there has been a huge demand for things other  than BDU’s.   Lightweight tactical pants like the Woolrich Elite 44447 pants are as tactical as you can get, but 100% cotton rip stop is the lightest weight that you can have.   Some of the 65/35 polyester pants from Tru-Spec and 5.11 seem to fend off stains and water better but they do not feel as lightweight weight.   Also, the pocket designs aren’t as Carbine friendly.

Top

Lightweight tactical pants and standard weight

When we first got into this business we were mostly dealing with 5.11 tactical products.   5.11 tactical has pretty much held the market on tactical clothing, but now that they’ve grown so big it seems pretty obvious that there is a large customer base that became tired of the clothing company from 3 different countries and the fit was varying to much people started looking elsewhere.   Tru-Spec and Vertx are the two tactical clothing companies that have really grown some legs even in this bad economy.

Tru-Spec has beat out 5.11 on tactical clothing because the prices can be very close and you basically get a better quality product.   We’ve already noticed that returns and complaints on Tru-spec tactical pants was very low.  There are always preferences and things people would like to change that would suite them more but shrinkage and pricing is very important.  Vertx is on the higher end of the spectrum but according to what we are hearing from people, they want us to carrying the product line.

Top

Getting it out there !

For those of us that live in the civilian world and don’t have the dress code standards that Law Enforcement and Military men and women have, we have more leeway on what we can choose to wear.   A big thing to get in this business is Military and Law Enforcement contracts.   There are districts and Departments that have specific colors and dress code standards on uniforms and tactical clothing.  If you can get them, you may be set for a very long time.   Whenever a new line of clothing comes out it’s always a big deal to get it out on the public circle and get people to wear it.   If it is over priced or a pain in the butt to clear it stay around very long in this economy.

I’m not sure where the military contractors are going to go now that Iraq and Afghanistan seemed to have maxed out on man power and I doubt there will be another serious influx of personell there so massive expansive of the tactical pants and tactical clothing may be over.  The big thing for clothing companies to do is get to the police departments and get them something that actually functions well and can be used in the Narcotics, Homeland Security and under cover work.   Vertx seems to have done a really good job in growing some legs in that market.

Top

Tactical pants and movement

While studying up on some of the new tactical clothing coming  out in 2012 I was reading some of the reviews and comments on YouTube about them.  It’s funny how often you see people reference that everything is a rip off of 5.11 tactical pants.   I’ve only been in the tactical clothing business for about 7yrs and I have to say that, that is partially true.   It was 5.11 that really had the entire market and nobody came close.   The truth is they still have the market but there are several competitors that are pretty close.  Tru-Spec and Blackhawk probable gained the most ground but Proper is still a monster in it’s own category.

One conclusion that one must come to with tactical clothing is along with quality control, tactical pants must allow for movement.   There are plenty of styles of tactical pants that have been pushed out in the market only to die a slow death when people realized there were design flaws.   One thing that is absolutely a reality about tactical pants is that a gusseted crotch is a must.   The old standard stitching, double stitching, triple stitching isn’t going to cut it. It’s about reducing stress not fighting it.

Top
Page 1 of 1