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My whole clothing scene has changed sooooooo much in the last couple months, I now do everything primitive. Outside I wear an old pullover hunting shirt, french fly breeches, canvas or wool leggings, and moc's. If its cold like it has been, I wear the same with a capot over the shirt, or a hunting frock, wrap the leggings with strips of wool and wear shoe pac moc's. A toque on my head keeps the heat in there.
i owuld buy any one of these if they werent so damn expensive for boots,http://www.opsgear.com/Mountaineering-Boots-s/364.htm
I agree, yard sales are a good source of gear.
bdu's are great. i use them alot whent hunting, camping, and general getting dirty work. they also last forever. i still have a couple of pares i bought in highschool and aside from being faded and bleached out they still fit and wear well.
i also love the new boy scout pants they came out with last fall. they are called the switchback.
www.scoutstuff.org
around $40.00 new and compare to $60-80 columbia's. dry super fast, and are some of the most comfortable shorts ive worn in the woods when you zip off the legs.
mil surplus italian wool pants are some of the best cold weather pants i've worn and at around $14 a pair you cant go wrong.
for a coat, i hand made a capote from wool blankets and works great out doors.
Man I have a long list of outdoor gear that I use...depends on the season. I consider all this stuff survival wear.
My basic wardrobe:
-Carhartt double knee canvas work pants
-Woolrich expedition brushed canvas shirt
-Wool socks
-Danner mtn light boots
Colder damp weather
-Patagonia capilene long underware (spendy but long lasting) I have all 3 weights
-Codet wool hunting pants
-Patagonia fleece pullover
-Filson shelter cloth packer
-Whites pack boots
_stormy Kromer style cap
-wool gloves
Snowy weather above zero
-Carhartt artic bibs
-Lobben wool boots
-Neos tracker overboots
-North Face goose down hooded jacket
-silk scarf
Below zero to -20
same as above but I substitute
-Canada Goose Expedition Parka
-Outdoor Research Randor mushing cap
-thicker wool gloves
Below -20
-substitute Carhartt Bibs for Northern Outfitters Arctic bibs
-ditch the scarf and wear a Wiggy's balaclava
-Empire Canvas musher mitts
Boots vary alot...spring time I am always wearing rubber knee high muck boots...winter it varies on how wet the snow is...sometimes I wear rubber bottom leather upper pac boots, or just wool Lobbens if its packed down snow, if it is really cold and wet I wear Neos overboots over the Lobbens.
I am trying to get away from wearing 100% cotton when it's not cold aka when it's warm to hot.
In the Winter I wear wool base layer and out. Loose and layered wool from Merino and Alpaca and.
I'm switching to polyester T-shirts because they dry quicker when wet and more water resistant to start with. I almost got hypothermia one cool Fall morning wearing cotton. If I hadn't had a dry bad in the canoe with wool longjohns and socks and nylon thinsulate snowmobile suit in it.
Here are some websites for close that are not too expensive and wear long and well.
http://www.duluthtrading.com/store/h...avlocation=top
https://secure.armysurplusforless.com/
http://www.armysurpluswarehouse.com/index.cfm?killnav=1
I also would like to have a kilt or two the ones I have found I like the best are from
http://www.utilikilts.com/
The workmans and the survival models seem the most practical to me. If I can manage to loose the gut I put on since my divorce(some guys drink to self medicate depression I eat) I'm getting at least one of each and giving up on pants for the freedom.
My winter mid-layer wool comes from Cabellas. Shirt and pants. I have no complaints with the quality or the price.
My wool socks are Smartwool Hiking Medium Crew.
Gotta go with Carhartt. I practically lived in them for years. Red Wing or Carolina boots. I have worn them for the same amount of time. No complaints about either. Those are climbing boots and with a little higher heel takes a little getting used to.
Rick i got to agree with u Cabellas has some great affordable outdoor clothing. I have had a wool hunting jacket from them for years that constantly out lasts a lot of my more expensive hiking/camp cloths.
I like the Carhartt stuff. (hard to beat Redwing, too). I worked in that as well. But it's just stiff to me and the Cabella's wool is just soft as a baby's bottom. Feels good on my sensitive skin and the shirt serves as a binky when I cuddle up at night.:p
I did'nt read all the preceeding posts, but have you looked at Wiggy's ? They use excellent materials and have good reviews. Hardcore clothing for military and cold weather. A little expensive but they work and last forever according to the reviews. Wish I had some cash on hand.
Just Google Wiggy's.
John
cabela's, sports authority, but one thing... If you live near a Dick's Sporting Good's store make sure you check the internet sites of others and their shipping rates. You may get ripped off if you dont.
Just so I understand. Is that a dig against Dick's?
Do you guys have first hand experience with military surplus-clothing? How's the wear and tear on used combat boots? Can you still get a decent milage out of them?
Never bought any used, but i've gotten pretty good mileage out of new ones.
I have bought some but just to use to mow the yard in and general work around the house. When it comes to boots, I think you get what you pay for. Just MHO.
Most of my clothes I bought over here and they are basically all counterfeit stuff. I wear mostly cargo pants in jungle, except for worn out 5.11 tactical pants from the states. My boots are Timberlands and magnum Hi-tec hiking shoes which I bought from America as it is very difficult to find shoes my size over here. However in jungle I often just wear New Balance sneakers. I wear mostly long sleeved shirts for protection from sun and bugs. For cold weather I have a U.S. Navy parka and a reversible jacket made by the Hmong. In jungle I wear a boonie hat or straw cowboy hat if it is dry season, and for cold weather my girlfriend makes wool hats.
If you are looking for civillian duds check out REI, LL Bean, Bass Pro Shop, Cheaper than dirt, and Sportsmans Guide. if you're looking for military stuff, check out Sportsmans Guide, Cheaper than dirt, Any military surplus store, and Brigade QuarterMasters.
One thing I have learned is don't be cheap on your boots, nothing is worse than treking 20 miles into the wilderness, your feet are now killing you and every step of that 20 miles back is excruceating. Don't skimp on your socks either, get synthetic or wool/synthetic blends. Cotton sucks up moisture and holds it.
I also bought a lot of equipment from Sportsmens Guide and Brigade Quartermasters when I was in US. Here I have alot of US military surplus stuff left over from Cobra Gold troops here. You will see many active Thai army as well as bandit and warlord armies on Burmese border wearing US Army camos and BDUs.
The last time I was in Bangkok, the taxi driver took myself and one of my crew to this narrow staircase that led down to this basement. In the basement (which was huge) was every kind if firearm I had ever imagined including Tommy guns, garands and carbines all in cosmoline. Oh to have been able to bring some of those back.
Winter expedition clothing: Empire Canvas Works.
www.empirecanvasworks.com
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Good source for winter boots, Canadian military extreme cold weather mukluks. Shooting mitts: US military winter gauntlets. Winter underwear: Icebreaker merino wool.