Military Camo v. Hunter's camo

[grogetr]

You just don't want to look like a big solid blob. Just need something to break up your out line and contrasting color. Movement and scent are what get you in trouble

 

[Sistema1927]

Grumulkin, I saw what you did in that first picture. Your bottom half is camo'ed against the grass, and your top half is camo'ed against the sky. Smart guy.

 

[Patocazador]

I hunt in woodland camo all the time. Sometimes I mix and match. If you have it, use it.

 

[desidog]

Deer vision ≠ human vision. They see in a different spectrum. What may look great to the naked human eye might stick out like a glow stick to a deer. They pick up on movement more than color. I've stalked many in jeans and a t-shirt, and if you don't move when they're looking at you with both eyes, you can get close.
Here's some reading on the subject:
http://www.outdoorhub.com/stories/2013/12/02/whitetail-vision-shedding-light-deer-eyesight/

 

[splattergun]

as far as camo is concerned, breaking up the human form is the most critical factor.
All the colors and shadows in the fancy photo-print camos today do that well for the human eye. pretty much any irregular pattern can do that for animal eyes.

 

[CapnMac]

Ok, I'm just imagining stalking through the woods in a full set of "blueberries."

 

[ZeroJunk]

I think camo can help mask your movements against a background. Obviously a deer color blind or not can pick you out moving in a white seer sucker suit easier than a broken up pattern somewhat matching the environment. If you are stationary in a stand or even on the ground you don't make much sense to a deer if he doesn't smell you or see you move.

I had a heavy body 8 point that might score 110 -120 within 25 yards of me yesterday and I was sitting on the ground against an oak tree with a pair of blue jeans, blue tee shirt , and orange vest. He looked at me and jerked his head up and down a couple of times, took a couple of bounds, looked back, and eased away. Obviously didn't smell me. Wasn't something I wanted, but fun to watch.

 

[RPRNY]

The deer don't care which camo you're wearing. Surprisingly, they seem somewhat unpatriotic in not preferring death from above from the chap in military pattern camo.

If you have military camo that meets your needs for comfort and weather protection and that can be cleaned of any residual mildew, MOPS or other residual scents, that'll do fine. And if you are just getting into bow hunting, use what you have until you decide that you need something else.

 

[X-Rap]

Some of the best camo I've used is pure white cotton worn in snow. I guess UV or any other shades don't show up because I've been close enough to pet elk before and neither deer nor predators seem to pay any mind.

 

[jmr40]

Camouflage is just one of many tools in the tool box that hunters can use. Camouflage is dressing to blend into the surroundings. If you're hunting on a farm, then dressing like a farmer is camouflage. Deer see the farmers every day and aren't alarmed by them. Most deer or other game animals that live near humans see and smell them all the time. Seeing or smelling you isn't much of a concern to those animals, at least 70% of the big game animals I've shot were looking at me when I pulled the trigger. Hunting in a wilderness area is a different thing.

Used properly camo can be helpful. As to military camo, the old green woodland works well in a few places, but stands out like a neon sign in most of the places where I hunt. It was designed for jungle warfare or mountain forests of Europe. Not most of North America. I have a couple of pairs of the new Multi-cam BDU pants that I often wear with a green or brown shirt that works and blends in very well.

Other than that I prefer to wear camo designed for hunters. A big part of it is trying to NOT look like the Rambo, redneck, militia wannabees. When I'm seen in public going to or from a hunt I try to project a positive image of hunters, I don't dress like a slob and put my best foot forward.

 

[Grumulkin]

I had a place in PA for awhile. PA requires blaze orange during gun season. My most productive technique was to sit down with my back to a tree and wait for deer to come up a hill dressed in a solid blaze orange coat. I killed 3 deer that way and I think the furthest was maybe 30 feet away.

 

[1911 guy]

Here in Ohio, the old BDU's work great in the early fall bow season. Not so much now that the leaves are changing to brown and orange and the brush is dying off.

 

[entropy]

I had a place in PA for awhile. PA requires blaze orange during gun season. My most productive technique was to sit down with my back to a tree and wait for deer to come up a hill dressed in a solid blaze orange coat. I killed 3 deer that way and I think the furthest was maybe 30 feet away.

If the deer were wearing blaze orange, did they taste more like pork?

 

[Grumulkin]

Yea, I should have constructed the sentence with a little more thought.

 

[tahunua001]

I have tons of different camo styles, none of it is apparently any better than the other. I have fall/spring oak, grassland, winter woodland, sagebrush, pine tree, broken snow pattern, and some of the fancy tan kryptec camo. I also have Navy woodland BDU , NWU1, Navy desert BDU, and CADPAT. I usually mix and match depending on where I am and what I'm doing. usually I use grassland pants for almost everything unless I'm after turkeys in the treeline. I tend to use Gaiters that are winter woodland. if there is over 2 inches of snow I'll go full body broken snow pattern, and the tops usually vary depending on what my terrain looks like. I've sat under many a tree and had more than a couple hunters walk right past me with no clue that they were being watched the entire time, or that they had stepped within 10 feet of another human. this year I'll be trying out a few of those face shields that you see advertized all over the interwebs. I have one in dark woodland digital, and 2 in spring woodland and 2 in white digital, so I'll be experimenting a little with those.

 

[sage5907]

There's a lot more to using camo than discussed above. I like to break up the human form by wearing more than one type of camp pattern at the same time. By having the upper body, the lower body and head with different camo patterns each part of the body appears to be separate and smaller. It's also necessary to wear a face mask and gloves to hide the shine. It's also necessary to have back cover such as standing in front of a trees or brush so that your body doesn't stand out by itself. And finally, never hide in the direct sunlight, always stand or sit in the shadows. Using camo is not just about the camo pattern, it's all about shape, shine, silouette and shadow.

 

[Varminterror]

Military camo will work fine. Flannel plaid and plain flat solid colors worked fine for generations too, plain color wool worked fine, and plain animal hides worked before that.

Play the wind, don't draw attention with movement, and nothing else matters. The only reason I spend money on new camo is the fact it's largely the only outerwear which has the features I want like waterproofing, quiet in the cold, breathable, wind proof - just happens to be camo on the outside.

 

[Sniper66]

In my state we are required to wear hunter orange. The deer in my freezer didn't seem to notice. Because I have real difficulty siting still, I use a blind for deer and turkeys. It works great because it's the movement that makes the difference. A blind covers a multitude of mistakes.

 

[Peakbagger46]

Having quiet clothes is infinitely more important than camo while bow hunting.

 

[Choctaw]

For the last hog I stalked and killed I was wearing khaki shorts and a green Carhartt tee-shirt. My place is pretty thick with brush and is cut by numerous ravines so I am able to take advantage of terrain. I've never owned a full camo outfit although it most certainly works well for others.

 

[buck460XVR]

In the long run, confidence is one of the best components for success. If a certain camo gives you the confidence to sit still longer and more often, you will have more success. If you have more confidence in your skills and ability to sit motionless regardless of camo type, then camo is a moot point. Folks use what works for them.......as they should.

 

[BigBore44]

Like many things in the hunting world, it's designed more for the hunter than it is the game. But....one thing having "the best" does is give us confidence. And that is huge. I have 3 sets of UA camo (Mossy Treestand and Max-5) two sets of Natural Gear (extreme cold and early season heat) and ACU digital Gor-Tex for early season rainy days. Have killed deer in all of it. Only the Natural Gear has ever proven itself effective against the human eye. And the only reason I have any of it is because I got FANTASTIC deals on them. You're military camo is EVERY bit as good as anything purchased at BP, Cabela's, or anywhere else. Woodland for the ground. Desert for stand hunting.

 

[Speedo66]

Deer are color blind, so orange, shade, etc. is immaterial. I've used German military surplus flec pattern camo because Sportsman's Guide was selling it for about $60 total for the jacket with a hood and pants and it's Gore-Tex. I like the rain and snow shedding ability, and deer don't seem to mind its foreign birth.

 

[1911 guy]

Post 41 hit on something. Camo isn't just a passive thing. It's a tool. You need to know some basics of using that tool. It simply helps you break up your outline. Standing on a ridgeline in bright sunlight will still give you away, no matter what camo pattern you're wearing.

 

[PowerG]

Army Woodland is as effective as any other pattern here in the SE.