Time for new BDU's

[Shotgun]

I'm in the market for a new set of BDU's and am worried about quality issues based on what I've seen from the knock-off's being sold in my local military surplus store.

I'd appreciate it if someone could provide a breakdown on the quality of each major supplier. I've seen too many cadets who have purchased their BDU's from various sources (including the Hock Shop) only to have them look worn and faded after one or two washings.

From what I've been able to gather by trolling the various threads is that Propper seems to be the way to go. Does anyone have any thoughts on the various material combinations. BDU.com sells the summer weight ripstop bdu's in cotton, cotton/poly, cotton/nylon, and poly / cotton twill. Is there one we should avoid?

What do people think of the Tru-Spec BDU's. From what I've seen they don't seem to hold up as well. And finally, is there such a manufacturer as Mil-Spec?  (I think that is the version being sold in my local Army Surplus store and they feel/seem pretty cheap.)

I've been very happy my current set of real bdu's purchased at the clothing sales store at Fairchild AFB 20 years ago (Bought them for paintball). I'm hoping that with the experience of the everyone here that my next set will last just as long.

[MIKE]

When I purchased my EHWBDU from US Cav they were TRU-SPEC.  I did not have any issues with the quality, but these are of the nylon cotton ripstop material.
http://www.uscav.com/Productinfo.aspx?productID=5384&TabID=1&CatID=22
http://www.uscav.com/productinfo.aspx?productid=5385&TabID=1&cs=1
http://www.uscav.com/productinfo.aspx?productid=5435&TabID=1&cs=1 Cap is by Propper now it seems.  Mine was from some other contractor.

The other two sets I ordered from Ranger Joe's were some other brand I've never heard of.  They were the same material, but the quality of the sewing was not as nice... but not a bad uniform overall.  Do not appear to carry the NYCO ripstop version anymore.

IIRC BDU.com sells Propper brand stuff, but I have never owned a BDU made by them.

[JC004]

Fax/phone order from AAFES is what I do...

[davidsinn]

I wear Propper brand BBDU from BDU.com. I wore a winter weight for 16 months straight and it has hardly faded at all. I currently wear the intermediate weight ripstop because I had bad luck with wrinkles on the light weight ripstop. It has held up nicely and has nearly zero fade. Propper is the way to go. I believe Propper is a military supplier?

[MIKE]

I think the key thing is the material composition/weight more than anything. 100% cottons from different brands will vary in weight.  The stuff from The Hock is generally the thinner/cheaper stuff.

[PHall]

Fax/phone order from AAFES is what I do...

That would work if they had any.

[Eclipse]

BDU.com is the way to go.

[JC004]

Fax/phone order from AAFES is what I do...

That would work if they had any.

I thought they had them by phone.  I see them online with no notes of unavailability as I've seen before?   

[JROB]

I have ordered from the hock shop and the top was nowhere near Mil-Spec but I like the quality of Genuine Gear by Propper no issues with fading.
http://www.militaryclothing.com/IBS/SimpleCat/Browse.asp?PRODUCT_NAME=Genuine+Gear

Also if you order from Kelac Uniforms for a little bit more you can send them your patches and have them sewn on and they will also sew or velcro the pockets on the blouse if you want.http://www.kellac.com/xcart/home.php?cat=248

[PHall]

Fax/phone order from AAFES is what I do...

That would work if they had any.

I thought they had them by phone.  I see them online with no notes of unavailability as I've seen before?   

What sizes are available? Stuff like Medium-Regular and Medium-Short are long gone.

[JC004]

Fax/phone order from AAFES is what I do...

That would work if they had any.

I thought they had them by phone.  I see them online with no notes of unavailability as I've seen before?   

What sizes are available? Stuff like Medium-Regular and Medium-Short are long gone.

I didn't look.  I just remember seeing red text notices before of what was not available and I didn't see that.

Here is the page...they're all in the pull-down and no red notes...

[Shotgun]

Thanks for all the advice!

I ended up placing my order directly from AAFES through the website and am stoked at the prices . .  especially compared to the other vendor who shall not be named.

Short sleeve blue AF style dress shirt - Vanguard - $44.00   AAFES - $12.40
Civil Air Patrol Tapes - Vanguard - $1.55  AAFES - $1.00 each
Name Tapes - Vanguard - $3.55 for two    AAFES - $1.00 each
BDU Pants - Vanguard - $29.14   AAFES - $24.38
BD Blouse - Vanguard - #29.15  AAFES - $29.00 (Except I "upgraded" to Extreme Hot Weather Gear.

And Best of All . . . No Tax and No Shipping.


So here's another questions - Can any CAP member sign-up for AAFES to order uniform items?  I used my father's account (retired Air Force).  How would a member who has no relative get onto AAFES?

[JC004]

...
So here's another questions - Can any CAP member sign-up for AAFES to order uniform items?  I used my father's account (retired Air Force).  How would a member who has no relative get onto AAFES?

Not online.  Fax/phone only, but any CAP member can do those two.

[Slim]

Even though the OP's question has been answered, I'd like to contribute to the brain trust.

In the past, I've bought the 100% cotton ripstop BDUs (in both camo BITD and navy).  With limited wear, I'd always been able to get about a year out of one set before they got too faded and became unserviceable.  These were purchased at AAFES MCSS (for the camo), while the BBDUs were both Propper and Atlanco/Tru-Spec.  Other than rapid fading, and shrinking, I've had no problem with quality.  The biggest driving factor in my decision here was cost, 100% cotton is generally cheaper by about $10-15.

About a year ago, I ordered a set of Propper Genuine Gear BBDUs through a member in my unit who owns a police/fire/EMS uniform store.  These were a poly/cotton ripstop (65/35).  The only issues I have with them is that the measurements aren't exactly the same as mil-spec.  More a factor with the pants, where I wear regular length, but these were more of a long than regular.  They also had a zipper fly instead of buttons.  None of which is really a factor to me.  The biggest problem is that they are a darker navy blue (called LAPD blue), and the darn things haven't faded or shrunk at all.

I just purchased two sets of Propper navy blue BDUs through an on line company called The Supply Sergeant.  These are true to mil spec, the right color, right length, etc.  I also spent a little more and also bought these in 65/35 poly/cotton ripstop.

I've found the poly/cotton ripstop to be the best fabric for a few reasons.  First off, they don't fade nearly as much as 100% cotton.  They don't shrink either.  The biggest advantage is ease of maintenance.  If you get the poly/cotton blend out of the dryer right away, they can almost be wash and wear.  They'll need a touch-up from time to time, but I was spending an hour ironing my starched cotton uniforms for every single wear (other than ES or true field work, obviously).  That gets a little tedious to do every night during an encampment.  With the newer sets, I just make sure the pockets on the pants are buttoned (shirt pockets are sewn shut), run them through the laundry, and remove from the dryer and hang up right away.

Stay away from the poly/cotton twill winter weight BDUs.  Jut my personal preference, YMMV.

[a2capt]

The AAFES Prices vs. the big V prices on blues uniform items are because the V prices are for Propper, the AAFES items or DSCP. They have Propper, at a price closer to the other.

[HGjunkie]

I highly reccomend propper.


[HGjunkie]

Gonna update my post above and say you can get the BDUs in camo and BBDU from Propper.

Coats/jackets/blouse/whatever you want to call it.

Trousers.

Choose which fabric you want, and whether you want woodland or blue. It's a fair price, since Propper makes some really high quality stuff.

[vmstan]

Fax/phone order from AAFES is what I do...

I didn't think they were carrying woodland camo anymore, unless you were looking for really small or really large items in overstock.

[Major Rob]

I just received a new set of camo BDU's today from Barre Army Navy (you can google them). I got the Propper 50/50 Ripstop, 4-pocket coat (LS -- They have the short sizes!), trousers (LS), and hat (7 3/8). It's extremely high quality and very reasonably priced. I also got a Tru-Spec M65 field jacket (LR), camo, with liner, for under $50. Also very high quality.

Altogether, I got the coat, pants, hat, and jacket for about $100. (I needed the whole set, because I'll be getting a haircut in October and I'll be milspec for the first time since coming back to CAP as a senior member -- No more BBDU's for me!) They have a 15% off promotion, if you take an online survey (just click on the survey and it applies the discount; you don't actually have to take it). They shipped from Vermont to NJ in two days.

I can confidently recommend Barre Army Navy and the Propper 50/50 BDU's.

Hope it helps!

[HGjunkie]

I just received a new set of camo BDU's today from Barre Army Navy (you can google them). I got the Propper 50/50 Ripstop, 4-pocket coat (LS -- They have the short sizes!), trousers (LS), and hat (7 3/8). It's extremely high quality and very reasonably priced. I also got a Tru-Spec M65 field jacket (LR), camo, with liner, for under $50. Also very high quality.

Altogether, I got the coat, pants, hat, and jacket for about $100. (I needed the whole set, because I'll be getting a haircut in October and I'll be milspec for the first time since coming back to CAP as a senior member -- No more BBDU's for me!) They have a 15% off promotion, if you take an online survey (just click on the survey and it applies the discount; you don't actually have to take it). They shipped from Vermont to NJ in two days.

I can confidently recommend Barre Army Navy and the Propper 50/50 BDU's.

Hope it helps!

I've had very good experiences with Barre Army Navy (linky) in the past too. They have a good selection of field gear to compliment their uniform selection. Anything I buy from them is great stuff. I highly recommend them.