Dress Code

[Buzzcook]

Mostly stuff from thrift stores. Three layers + the orange vest or poncho.

Boots depend on conditions. Mostly I use heavy rubber boots with different types of inserts. If it's dry and relatively warm I use hiking boots or shoes.

One time when I was a kid it started to drizzle and then rain. I found out then that the guys who said wool will keep you warm when it's wet were full of it.
Since then I've always carried an orange poncho.

[Dr. Strangelove]

I like to wear surplus BDU pants when I can find them, though apparently there aren't many short fat guys in the Army...

Boots - just an old pair of Timberland hiking boots.

Jacket - Surplus field jacket bought years ago, or a heavier more modern jacket if it's really cold.

As far as the camo goes, I go with the BDU pants because they are cheap and tough, and I don't car if they get muddy, bloody, whatever. Most guys down here in GA (that I see, anyway), do tend to wear camo, more because it's sort of the "expected" hunting uniform that some kind of SF Ninja mentality.

[Jo6pak]

Lots om mil-surplus. It's cheap and works well.

For boots, I've learned that cheap doesn't cut it. When you're hunting with snow up to your knees and temps waaay below freezing, the extra cash spent on a really good pair of boots is money well spent.

[oneounceload]

Depends on where and what - in CO, 144 sq.on. of blaze orange was mandatory, in NV not so. I have an old LL Bean canvas coat I wear, or a bird vest if hunting birds. As for boots - NOTHING will ruin a hunt worse than poor-performing boots - mine are US -made Danners - worth every penny

[grubbylabs]

Hay short wave look into Nicks boots I think most are hand made. I am not sure about their insulated boots but I know most of their leather boots are hand made. The next best IMHO are whites.

[Double Naught Spy]

I have some camo gear and a bunch that is just tan or green. The nice thing about the camo gear is that I wear it almost exclusively to hunt. It stays at the cabin. So I never drive home in muddy or nasty clothes.

With that said, I don't always wear camo to hunt.

[shortwave]

Thanks for the 'Nicks Boots' tip, grubbylabs.
Will check them and White's out.

[grubbylabs]

Hold on to your boots when you go to their web site the price will make you gasp a little, but like I said earlier I know a farmer who has had a pair for over 20years. I have literally stood in fire with the current ones I wear. I am waiting to get a little ahead so I can send in another pair that I have so I can have them re built. which can be done several times over the life of the boot.

[jmr40]

Over the years I've gradually worked my way into equipment that works. Good stuff ain't cheap. Nor is it always needed. I often backpack into remote mountain regions here in N. Georgia and am often 5-10 miles from a dirt road and another 20 miles to a paved road. Few people hunt where I do and most don't require the boots and clothes I use.

I don't skimp on boots. Bass Pro doesn't sell any boots I would use. I've had good luck with heavy hiking boots from Danner, Lowa, and Asolo. I've been lucky finding last year's model closeouts selling much cheaper than full price, but they would run around $300 if I had to pay full price. I'd consider it money well spent if I had to. While good boots aren't cheap at first, I've worn a pair of Danners for more than 10 years in the past.

In warmer weather I usually just wear military fatigues with some type of poly-pro t-shirt. I could care less if it is camo or just the OD green pants. I wear what ever I happen to pick up that day.

From late December on to the end of the season snow and cold rains are highly likely and I change over to a nylon type of pant designed for hiking. They are expensive, but don't absorb any water, are light and dry quickly as I wear them if they get wet. One heavy jacket is out of the question, so I carry several light layers of wool or polyester to put on after I sit down as well as a light goosedown jacket. A water-proof shell is always in my pack for wet or windy conditions.

Other than insisting on the best boots and socks I can find, I'm actually pretty middle of the road. I've figured out what works and can often find cheaper products at Walmart and other places that will get the job done. I've got a $200 North Face goosedown jacket that I wear into town. Last year Cabelas had some goosedown jackets for $29. Took a chance on it and while it does not look nearly as stylish, it is just as warm for hunting.

[grubbylabs]

Well jmr40 I think you are spot on. Its not how much you spend but how you spend what you have, putting money into the right stuff is very important. most of my clothing is closeout or sale items that way I can save my money on put it down on stuff that matters more. I don't go hunting for a fashion statement, I go cous I am hungry.

[jimbob86]

I spent a bundle on good raingear. I have some camo clothing- just no white t-shirts when deer hunting (safety!)..... I also have to outfit for 3 younger hunters, ages 14, 12, and 8. Layers of clothing will keep you warm, but only if you are dry.

Gore tex Rocky's are not all that spendy.

I also have to outfit for 3 younger hunters, ages 14, 12, and 8. .... and they keep growing out of the stuff I bought 'em last year. And no matter how many orange stocking caps I buy, we always seem to run short of those....

[publius]

Bowhunting I use camo. Nothing special, just camo pants, camo t-shirt, camo hat, no facemask or facepaint, usually wearing Red Wing work boots. Gun hunting I don't care that much, usually a black&red Filson coat, brown Carhartt overalls, and a brown cowboy hat.

[HotShot.444]

"" be sensible and not dress like a nijit "" Izzat a typo, or the best new word in a gunner's vocabulary so far this year?? +-ONE. O.K., men, don't go all "He's wimpy" on me here, and I think there may be more than just myself who have found this very helpful. I had a Mama-san in 'Nam who sewed special clothes for me, just because she cared. The best comfort I've ever experienced was in her hand-made silk boxers, tee-shirts, and camo. I never took the undies off, even showering or stream-bathing in them. They dried quickly, and felt great! I've found some here, and they are the first thing to go on, under whatever else I wear. I usually hunt in four or five layers, carry my mil-spec poncho, and a couple of small bivvies of whatever else I might need. Still using my zip-sided 'Nam boots too, or regenerations of them. Switch to Guide-Gear or Wolverine when the going gets cold.

[Fat White Boy]

I watch all these hunting shows and laugh. If I bought all the crap they advertise, I wouldn't have enough money left over to afford to go hunting. I do wear a camo t-shirt for dove but for all other upland game and pigs, it's jeans and an earth tone(tan, brown, green) shirt. I have a pair of 400gr insulated Danner boots for pigs and chukar. Like Lootenant Da-yun said to Forrest Gump, "Don't do anything stupid and take care of your feet!!!"

[BIG P]

Good warm waterproof boots camo coat cause thats the only coat i got
i hunt out of a blind most of the time so comfort is more important.

[camper4lyfe]

Originally Posted by Fat White Boy

I watch all these hunting shows and laugh. If I bought all the crap they advertise, I wouldn't have enough money left over to afford to go hunting. I do wear a camo t-shirt for dove but for all other upland game and pigs, it's jeans and an earth tone(tan, brown, green) shirt. I have a pair of 400gr insulated Danner boots for pigs and chukar. Like Lootenant Da-yun said to Forrest Gump, "Don't do anything stupid and take care of your feet!!!"

Generally, around here, wearing brown during deer season's a recipe for disaster.

[Daryl]

It depends on what I'm hunting.

I do a lot of critter calling, and it almost requires at least a camo jacket or shirt, and I almost always wear a camo hat, and even a face mask when calling predators.

When deer hunting, I usually wear blue jeans and a neutral or camo shirt. If I wear camo pants, it's because of the cargo pockets more than the camo affect. I only wear orange in states that require it; Arizona doesn't.

Most of my camo clothing is BDU stuff, bought from a military surplus store or some such. It lasts for decades when stored properly in the off-season. I have a field jacket that's nearly 30 years old.

The boots I wear when hunting will be one of the same three pairs I alternate between everywhere else I go, too. I do keep a pair of leather moccasins in my pack for stalking close in noisy terrain.

[johnbt]

I have fancy gear for duck hunting. I learned early on that sitting in a boat in the dark when it's raining, sleeting and snowing is cold. Your feet are awash and everything is either wet or frozen. Saltwater spray is cold.

I don't know that camo is necessary, but the good stuff seems to only come in camo, so I have lots camo, but it doesn't all match - parka, chest waders, gloves, blind bag, etc. I suppose it's more Shadowgrass than anything fwiw.

Cabela's sends me the hardback catalog every year.

The good news is, the stuff lasts 10 to 20 years for the most part and is guaranteed. Okay, the chest waders never last that long. Columbia replaced a $250 Quad parka after 3 years when a shoulder seam failed big time in a downpour on Thanksgiving day.

I started out hunting in M-65 OD field jacket my cousin Susan gave me when she was still in. I sprayed it with silicone and it sort of worked in the rain.

John

[snipecatcher]

I wear a mesh leafy suit when I'm bowhunting. It was only about $50, and I can put it on over whatever I'm wearing. I also keep my face/head covered with a couple of Buff's. They work well. When duck hunting, I wear camo, because we don't always have a blind, and many times just sit in the marsh. For any other kind of hunting, I just wear whatever. If dove swerved around everything that wasn't green/brown, they would never get where they were going.

[lefteyedom]

I mostly wear carhartts, jeans, top off with an old boonie hat and red wing boots.

Being warm and comfortable is the key to being able to be still.

Being still is only way I know to out smart game.

[markj]

how many use whatever you happen to have on hand?

Upland pants I bought end of season for 10.00 yep and in my huge size too. Tee shirt sleeveless, vest with orange and a hat same, then I go out and stalk something in hopes of killing it and eating some good meat.

Dad told me years ago, that camo is for guys to buy to keep them shows on the tv, since we didnt watch tv.......

[James H]

Man...when I was 12-15 yrs old, I drooled over all the expensive hi-tech camo clothes in the Cabelas magazines. 20 yrs later, I mostly just make sure I'm warm and dry. Carharts are great for upland birds if it's relatively dry. Work boots too. Unless i'm decoy duck or turkey hunting...that's when I'm pretty careful about being camouflaged. Blaze orange looks white to the colorblind deer (I've always assumed) and for hunting in snow, perfect. Upland birds, I try to always have a blaze hat or vest since it usually coincides with big game seasons and it helps to keep your buddies from swinging their shotguns into you. Otherwise, I always try to at least blend in to the environment...nothing shiny or colors that would get you spotted a mile away. Hot pink chaps are a no-go.

[sc928porsche]

Nothing special about my hunting garb. Just old military fatigues, Blaze orange vest and hat. I really do like my jungle boots tho. After washing, I apply scotchguard to the fatigues to make them a bit moisture resistant. A good coat of scotchguard to the boots once in a while helps keep my socks dry too.