Question on camouflage clothes?
Okay this might be a strange question but I am unfamiliar with camouflage. I have haunted Deer with a rifle and Boar with a bow and never had any Camo and no one in my family has.
I am going out with the bow exclusively and I want to know what the big items to consider are. I know it needs to be quite and the pattern should be good but I am shocked at the wide range of prices from 20-30 to 500+
I imagine some of you pay close attention what are the differences in the cheap versus expensive brands?
Some guys will tell you that you need the latest and greatest camouflage, carbon lined to eliminate scent, with highly detailed patterns.
Really, all you need is something to break up your outline. The old-school tree-bark camo probably works just as good as complex patterns, or better. Heck, some guys hunt with just plaid and do fine!
Bottom line for me: make sure it's quiet, comfortable, durable, and warm. As long as the pattern isn't completely out to lunch (i.e. snow camo in autumn) I think you'll be fine.
If you have had success hunting Deer and Boar in the past without camo, there is no reason you can't do it with a bow. I have had great success without the camo gear, I used to have a RED chamoise shirt that I wore with just jeans or wool pants and I have killed many many Elk with that setup.Regardless what people tell you movement is what catches an animals attention long before the pattern on your clothes.One more thing play the wind in your favor when at all possible!!!
I like the silent hide camo....the redhead brand. In realtree ap. Not all that expensive and very quiet.
As Jake mentioned, you are just looking for something to break up your outline. Just make sure the camo isn't too dark for your surroundings or you will stick out. I like to use Nat Gear camo here in Kansas. More expensive clothing doens't guarantee success and some of it is a gimick in my opinion.
My personnal choice is asat and predator fall gray. Work any where any season
You can get leafy wear top and bottom for 60 bucks on sale When I where it most oh the time I wear plaid and brown are green pants It works for me
I usually hunt with no camo or just brown duck cloth and have had great results. I do like wood-n-trail camo though. Its high contrast, cheap, and effective.
A mix of camo, plaids, and dull earth tones.... I have more and better outdoorsman clothes than I do good clothes, yet I mismatch so much (on purpose), that I must look like a vagabond to some people. LOL
I still remember a "modern" hunter looking at a picture his relative had of me with a moose and exclaiming (seriously) "YOUR PANTS DON'T MATCH YOUR TOP!"... LOL I guess that he thought it was quite a mistake on my part.
My personal favorite is Toad-A-Flage. Made in Tennessee and works great.
I like predator best. The deer and hogs on the other hand don't seem to care what I wear. :D
I have had deer 10 feet away from me while I was sitting on a stump while wearing full blaze orange. To a color-blind deer it's just a neutral gray. Movement will "bust" you whether wearing camo or no. The deer in my avatar was a ground kill from 15 yards while wearing a sage green polarfleece jacket and drab green pants (and a camo-mesh face cover). Just dull, neutral colors.
But I also like camos and plaids. You want to blend in where you're hunting. I find lighter colors work better in the fall when the leaves are on trees and if I am going to sit under a hemlock on an overcast day something darker suits me. Not that plaid has light and dark and is a good all-around choice that breaks up your outline.
I wear a leafy suit over whatever the season calls for. Just make sure its a quiet one and get it plenty big. I cut the leaves off the inside bow arm. If I had bought one years ago I could have saved a bunch on camo. The suit I have is a realtree pro series.
If you are on a limited budget, military surplus is a cheap way to go. A few woodland camo and desert camo pieces will cover most conditions and you can often find at thrift stores. They are cotton, but for snow or wet weather, wear a wicking baselayer and you will be comfortable.
X 2 on what Rob W. said, just the 3-D leafy mesh. I wear it over whatever clothes fit the weather. I have green leafy and I have ASAT, while wearing the latter, I had a yot so close I could have mugged him with the bow, really !
I've gotten a lot of my camo from thrift stores.Its all mismatched.
If it's always warm where you hunt,cotton is usually all you'll need material-wise,like was already mentioned,just match your surroundings halfway decent and you're good to go.Sometimes I wear camo and sometimes I just old-school it and wear plaid wool or cotton and I've killed deer wearing both...
More than a specific pattern I look for a material that makes as little noise as possible than a reasonable outline break up
And match to temperature
Ghille suit, ASAT and Predator Fall and Grey are my favorites
QuoteOriginally posted by bowslinger:
If you are on a limited budget, military surplus is a cheap way to go. A few woodland camo and desert camo pieces will cover most conditions and you can often find at thrift stores. They are cotton, but for snow or wet weather, wear a wicking baselayer and you will be comfortable.
x2 military surplus works good.
25 years ago, me and my dad would go out hunting in blue jeans, thick shirts, and some sort of jacket or vest. don't remember any of our family friends using camo, either. personally i think being quiet, making slow movements, and being downwind is just about all that's needed.
QuoteOriginally posted by Jake Diebolt:
Bottom line for me: make sure it's quiet, comfortable, durable, and warm.
This is the best advice here! dont pay too much attention to advertising.
The best camo is the one most still;
I use nothing but the ghillie suits and can wear anything you want underneath; from blue jeans to sweat pants makes no difference; good luck.
:campfire: