HyperStealth Biotechnology Corporation has posted a series of photos taken in conjunction with a Gen III night vision device to demonstrate how various camouflage pattern perform . Sample patterns include Crye Precision’s MultiCam, Kryptek and ADS/Guy Kramer’s US4CES all of which are finalists in the US Army camouflage Improvement Effort.
Check out the entire article along with additional photos at www.hyperstealth.com/GenIII-NVG
While Hill People Gear is accepting pre-orders for the Tarahumara in Kryptek Highlander, the run is not yet guaranteed. In fact, your pre-orders will take this project over the finish line.
For those of you unfamiliar with the Tarahumara, here are a couple of factoids:
Named after the famous tribe of runners in Mexico, the Tarahumara daypack is paired with an HPG harness to “stay right on you through all kinds of activities.” Like all HPG products, it is “just complex enough to solve the problem, but no more”.
In case you took the weekend off, we published a story about US Army camo on Saturday. Go read it and catch up on what everyone is talking about.
SORD’s Field Pant is now available in Kryptek Highlander and Mandrake. Like the MultiCam and A-TACS variants, the Kryptek Field Pants are made from NyCo ripstop; the Tan model is made from 100% cotton. The Field Pant features a 10 pocket design: slanted hip pockets, deep cargo and rear pockets for magazines, a smart phone-sized accessories pocket, and calf pockets with ample space for additional storage. Included are oversized pocket buttons which are easily opened with gloves. The pant utilizes Velcro closure for a smooth comfortable wear, and 4″ belt loops provide ample space for a variety of belt options. The knees and seat of the pant are reinforced for long term durability. SORD has also replaced the original “Small-XL” generic sizing chart with actual width and inseam measurements.
www.predatorbdu.com/sord-usa-field-pant/
Recently, we surmised that the US Army was going to abandon the Camouflage Improvement Effort and adopt the current issue Operation Enduring Freedom Camouflage Pattern (OCP) known commercially as MultiCam and worn by troops serving in Afghanistan. According to the Justification and Approval (J&A) published yesterday by the Army Contracting Command on Fed Biz Opps, a contract was in fact awarded to Crye Associates on September 24th, 2013 for a license for OCP. Furthermore, according to details in the J&A, OCP will be the Army’s principle camouflage pattern for the “…” Unfortunately, the PDF left out a few key details like what OCP actually will be used for. But, based on what I am hearing, it’s for all US Army, regardless of unit of assignment or operating location. Meaning…goodbye UCP, hello OCP.
I’ll add additional credence to my assertion that this is the Army camouflage by citing paragraph 8 of the J&A.
While the J&A discloses that a license was contracted we still have no DoD contract notice to determine the exact value of the contract. However, we do know, based on the J&A that the value is somewhere between $150,000 and $650,000 which is much lower than the street value of this contract. But the exact estimated value has been redacted in the online announcement. Currently, no contracts award notices are being issued by DoD due to the shutdown so this is odd that a notice was not issued in September. I am quite interested in seeking what the Army paid for the license as they were getting three patterns (that the Army insisted in needed for readiness) for a song under the Phase IV contract. By licensing OCP, the Army (and by extension DoD) gets just one, albeit true, universal pattern.
At this point, the Army has not announced the cancellation of the Camouflage Improvement Effort but based on this information, I’d say that the fat lady is backstage warming up. They all but tell the four finalist vendors for Phase IV, that is over as they’ve chosen an alternate course of action.
So not with a roar, but a whimper, the US Army announces their new camouflage pattern. Let the run on everything MultiCam begin!
Update: A couple of points here. This COA means the Army will not be purchasing rights to a family of patterns. Although, I’ve never been a fan of the multiple pattern requirement because it’s a logistical nightmare. Additionally, the Phase IV finalists haven’t been notified one way or another. The Army had no issue with halting the Individual Carbine program so I’m not sure what the hesitation is here. All of the companies have stiff armed multiple opportunities to sell their patterns to other customers pending the Army’s decision so this is costing them money. However, do not expect to see some of these finalist patterns available commercially for a variety of reasons. There are many in industry watching what the Army is doing here and taking cues about participation in future programs.
Awhile back we showed you an atrocious Blue variant of the Australian MultiCam Pattern being trialled by the Royal Australian Air Force.
According to a story in the RAAF newspaper, this new uniform, known as the General Purpose Uniform, will begin to replace the current DPCU for RAAF personnel beginning on the Air Force birthday in March, 2014. According to Air Marshall Brown, Chief of the RAAF, this uniform is for noncombat use, “to be worn within the workplace and on non-warlike operational duties such as deployments on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.” Those deploying to operational areas will receive appropriate uniforms for the environment. This design was chosen over three other candidate patterns.
Thanks JD for the heads up!
For a limited time, Hyde Definition is offering their SnowDrift fabric at only $9.80 per yard – minimum order quantity five (5) yards. The fabric is milspec, ripstop NyCo with a durable water-resistant finish. Contact info@hydedefinition.com for further info, or to place an order.
www.hydedefinition.com/nycosd.html
Last year, WL Gore introduced their reversible technology. This type of garment is great for organizations with multiple camouflage patterns like the Marine Corps. With the release of the woodland version of the USMC Combat Jacket, WL Gore displayed a prototype that reverses to Desert MARPAT during the recent Modern Day Marine expo.
The Marines now have two separate Combat Jackets (Desert and Woodland MARPAT). The new optional wear CWJ will be available through clothing sales stores this Fall. But, if a Marine wants to deploy with both models it means additional weight and space in his sea bag, not to mention up front cost. The folks at Gore realized this and worked to adapt their reversible technology to the specialized fabrics used in this performance garment.
In addition to the Combat Desert/Woodland Jacket seen here, WL Gore has also produced versions of APECS. These types of reversible outerwear are great not just for the Marine Corps but also the Navy who uses different patterns for arid and woodland environments.
