Cargo pants

[Phantom Warrior]

I've been a jeans and T-shirt kind of guy all my life. But being in the military and (especially) being in Iraq, where I wear ACUs most of the time, has gotten me thinking about cargo pants. Watching the (Blackwater-type) contractors walk around in cargo pants, boots and polo shirts in Kuwait really got me thinking about them as civilian clothing.

Considerations (in no particular order):

1. Color
I suppose I'll go with the basic khaki/tan. I don't really like that, but I prefer to dress low key and durable. I transitioned from black jeans to blue because blue jeans fade better and last longer.

2. Tacticality
I want something that has lots of pockets. At least six: 2 hip, 2 back, 2 cargo. However, I don't want something that screams "Look at me! I'm a mall ninja ubertactical operator."

3. Price
I'm cheap. If you start suggesting $150 tactical pants, I'm going to stick with my $15 Wranglers.

4. Carry
I need something I can carry in. That's basically something that's not ridiculously low cut or baggy. I thought about getting some kind of over garment, like a vest, but that's too much clothing. I've been carrying in jeans and a T-shirt for a couple of years now and I'd prefer to keep it simple.

5. Can be worn with tennis shoes
I considered some kind of urban boots (another influence from the contractors), but probably not. Whatever it is, I'm not going to be blousing these pants. Blousing my ACU pants anchors them a lot. Which allows me to get away with carrying lots of heavy, ridiculous stuff in my pockets fairly comfortably. I guess I need something that is loose enough to be comfortable and move in, but snug enough that it won't sag or flop around and make it awkward to carry stuff heavier than a pen in the cargo pockets.


Anyone out there who wears cargo pants everyday have a suggestion?

 

[Punkermonkey]

May I suggest Old Navy Online. They have some great sales.

 

[VWTim]

Old Navy pants sure can be cheap, but I always blow the crotch out of them prematurely. I've had good luck with Silvertab cargo's for casual wear. Also Carhartt just came out with some cargos, they should wear like iron.

 

[Punkermonkey]

" but I always blow the crotch out of them prematurely."

Uh, wow! TMI!

 

[Davo]

Check out REI.com. Ive also got some knockoffs from target and walmart that are cheap, light, sturdy, and they dry fast. These are what I wear backpacking.

 

[torpid]

Old Navy pants sure can be cheap, but I always blow the crotch out of them prematurely.

Unlike me, who patiently waits to blow the crotch out at the right moment.

 

[calzoom]

Just saw some tan and dark blue Dickee's this week at Wally W.
Cargo pockets and all for like under $20. I was tempted.

 

[LeoC]

Cabela's 7-pocket Hiker Pants, a cheap copy of the 5.11 Tactical Pants... You get what you pay for though, the quality of these isn't up to the 5.11s. Cloth feels flimsier and seams are not that well stitched.
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat21082-cat601779&id=0033405901859a&navCount=1&podId=0033405901859&parentId=cat601779&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=IH&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat601779&hasJS=true

 

[another okie]

If you have trouble with the crotch of your pants, it may be that your body is long from the waist to the bottom of the crotch. Tall sizes give you an extra inch or two there.

This is known in the clothing industry as "long rise." Tall folks find these much more comfortable, especially when sitting. Land's End often carries pants with tall sizes, and there are speciality companies as well.

Warning! Some companies use the world "long" to mean a long hem, which is no help.

 

[Rem700SD]

I wear the 5.11 pants on my job and really like them. I think they're $40 each or so for the cotton ones. I find them very comfortable. I'd get them a couple inches big in the waist for IW carry.
Dan

 

[stdlrf11]

Phantom Warrior, you sound a lot like me.... cheap.

The best deal I've found in casual cargo pants is from Austin Jeans Company from Academy Sports. You can get a pair of khaki cargo pants for $10 everyday. Mine have lasted me a year and are still going strong. They also have good carpenter pants for $15.

www.academy.com
I didn't see the cargo pants online, but they were at my local store a few weeks ago.

Hope this helps,
stdlrf11

 

[LAK]

http://sportsmansguide.com

had some nice looking cargo pants awhile back. Run;

cargo pants

bdu pants

in their search feature.

------------------------------------

http://ussliberty.org
http://ssunitedstates.org

 

[Glockfan.45]

Old Navy pants sure can be cheap, but I always blow the crotch out of them prematurely

Quit bragging

 

[HiWayMan]

I always bought Mil-Tech BDUs for about $20 a pair. I've switched back to blue jeans though as they are much more durable. Does anyone make blue jean cargoes?

 

[SIRVEYR666]

Try these...

...they are super heavy duty. I've gat a few pairs that I've worn for nearly three years. They are a little faded, but still in great shape.

Fire Hose Pants

 

[Jenrick]

Sig Sauer makes there own line of clothing, their pants are quiet nice. They can be expensive but keep an eye on ebay and the like and they can be quiet cheap.

-Jenrick

 

[CWL]

Whatever you get, pay someone to reinforce the stitching on the bottoms of all the pockets. This will help resist excessive weight or abrasion.

I travel a lot and I like to wear cargos (any brand), the weakest part of the cargo-style pants is the pockets wearing a hole due to weight or abrasion. You do not want all of your loose ammo or magazines dropping out the bottom of your pants right when you need them most.

 

[NMshooter]

Can't believe no one has mentioned www.bdu.com .

Propper makes them for the U.S. military, and their products are affordable.

 

[hso]

Where do you intend to wear these?

I don't want something that screams "Look at me! I'm a mall ninja ubertactical operator."

Very wise of you. Clothing is camoflage. If you fit in the setting you're less likely to be noticed.

 

[buzz_knox]

These days, I'm not sure if "tactical" cargo pants are necessarily a bad thing in terms of camoflague. They are trendy (due in no small part I'm sure to media depictions of operators) and so are almost ubiquitous. It's like how fanny packs were before being associated with concealed carry.

Personally, I wear Woolrich Elite pants quite a bit and never think anything of it. Of course, I tend to have a lot of crap with me so the pockets come in handy.

 

[Caimlas]

Old Navy pants sure can be cheap, but I always blow the crotch out of them prematurely. I've had good luck with Silvertab cargo's for casual wear.

What he said.

I also had pretty good luck with Steve and Barry's. It's a national chain store, and their clothes are all obscenely inexpensive, and some of them are quite high quality. You can buy a whole wardrobe for $200 (ie 19 items - most everything is at the $10 price mark). http://www.steveandbarrys.com/website/index.html

If you're a tall, lankey guy, they're pretty good pants (though you have to look a bit). I usually have a difficult time finding pants, but almost everything I try on there (in my size) fits like it came out of my closet. They're not uber-lightweight, like business dress pants and most other clothes made these days, and they're, for the most part, pretty durable. Their products are mostly made in Africa and other 3rd world countries, not in China, which for me, is preferable in almost every sense (provided it isn't a predominantly Muslim country).

 

[VWTim]

Wow, guess I should have checked back for all the waves I made....ok OUT OF THE GUTTER. What I'm trying to say is all the Old Navy pants I've had are cheap/thin and don't last that long. And for me it's the crotch area that gets stressed in those pants for some reason.

 

[darkknight]

511 Levi tactical pants

I have these their some where around 50 and i can speak of their durability plus some nice features of them. I have to have them for work but their very comfortable. they have six pockets and have built in knee pads hich have tons of advantages. I have really but them throught their paces without tearing them up at all. but like others said u can get cargo pnts at target and walmart and they are very good for under twenty bucks and will be quite helpful.

 

[Geno]

Carhartt

Carhartt! I have about 4 pair...now too large. I wore them for 4 years, and yet they still look new! They'll look new forever now, because I lost too much weight to wear them for anything except over another pair of pants and that would just be silly. Guess my dad just got some new pants. I have blue, brown and light green. Don't forget to look into their cargo shorts too. I have several of those.

Cargo pants:

https://www.carhartt.com/webapp/wcs...51&productId=64577&langId=-1&categoryId=10935

Washed Duck Dungaree / Flannel Lined:

https://www.carhartt.com/webapp/wcs...51&productId=32065&langId=-1&categoryId=13406

Jeans & Work Pants - Shorts:

https://www.carhartt.com/webapp/wcs...51&catalogId=10101&langId=-1&categoryId=10936

Doc2005

 

[LaP]

DarkKnight Be aware that Levi's is Anti-2nd Ammendment. They have been anti-gun for years. Naturally, they're based in San Fransico.