Favorite Solid Color for Hunting

jlw0142

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I love Olive Drab. My First Lite jacket is Olive and I hunted in it this past weekend with no issues from the deer. With that being said, I'm from the South where its always green.
 
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Windrunner17

Windrunner17

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I love Olive Drab. My First Lite jacket is Olive and I hunted in it this past weekend with no issues from the deer. With that being said, I'm from the South where its always green.
Honestly, I think OD works fine late season up north as well. Blends fine with mossy tree trunks, evergreens, and downed logs and its brown/grey enough it doesn't stand out. I think coyote is better, but not by much.
 

Redwing

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I have read that certain shades of grey deer see as bright blue. For that reason, I steer clear of grey and wear greens and browns.
I've read the same. I steer clear of camo with a lot of gray, and my solids are always tan, brown or green.

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Windrunner17

Windrunner17

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Where did you guys read that? I've read some mixed information on the subject.
 

Redwing

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Where did you guys read that? I've read some mixed information on the subject.
I'll try to find the article... I'm not sure if it's true! It's something that I read and has stuck in my mind.

There's not much gray in dirt or plant matter, and i don't often hunt above treeline or amongst gray rock, so I figured it's safer to stick with colors that match my environment. I may just be another guy spouting half-truths on the internet!

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Windrunner17

Windrunner17

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I'll try to find the article... I'm not sure if it's true! It's something that I read and has stuck in my mind.

There's not much gray in dirt or plant matter, and i don't often hunt above treeline or amongst gray rock, so I figured it's safer to stick with colors that match my environment. I may just be another guy spouting half-truths on the internet!

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Not saying you're wrong, just trying to learn all I can.

From what I've read all greys have green, blue, or violet undertones so it can depend on the grey, but its probably safer to just avoid grey altogether or at least go for clearly green-greys. I think those greens and Browns that look grayish are the absolute best.
 
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Windrunner17

Windrunner17

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Anyone ever just wear red solids hunting ungulates because you know they won't see it?
 
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Windrunner17

Windrunner17

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Here is a simulation of what it is likely a deer would see with you wearing a red shirt given what we know about their eye structure. Pretty effective.

red_green.JPG



Also why tigers are so effective at hiding from most mammals in green jungle environments.

tiger.JPG
 
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jtivat

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I really think people are over thinking this. My father told me as a young hunter some good advice and I have tested this many times and it always works. You can move all you want just do it very slow. I like to test this with doe and small bucks. Many times, I have lifted my rifle "wearing lots of non camo orange" to full draw on a deer that is looking right at me. I have then flicked my finger and they bolt.
 
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Windrunner17

Windrunner17

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I really think people are over thinking this. My father told me as a young hunter some good advice and I have tested this many times and it always works. You can move all you want just do it very slow. I like to test this with doe and small bucks. Many times, I have lifted my rifle "wearing lots of non camo orange" to full draw on a deer that is looking right at me. I have then flicked my finger and they bolt.
But overthinking is fun ;)

I agree with you though being serious for a moment.
 

dneaster3

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Mar 6, 2014
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Memphis, TN
First a caveat that I don’t think color or camo pattern matters much at all. The art of being still, stalking, not skylining, and not making eye contact has a lot more to do with success than trademarked due patterns :)

That said, I like browns and grays, but not too light.
My kuiu attack pants are in Major Brown and that seems to work well just about everywhere.

I also have an LL Bean lambs wool sweater in a ver similar brown. The soft fibers and heavy weave seem to just eat light… no reflection at all. Looks like a tree trunk.

Also my 12+ year old Sitka Traverse Open Country seems to be very good as well. I think the decade of use and washes has knocked the color and sheen back so that it’s not as bright as the new stuff.

Old army/navy milsurp wool is similar.

The common thread (haha) here is broken in or natural fibers and low reflectivity. Take your new stuff and toss it down a hill in a 5 gallon bucket of dirt and gravel…. Kinda kidding, but kinda not.

And of course, learn to sit still when the animals are watching
 
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Windrunner17

Windrunner17

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First a caveat that I don’t think color or camo pattern matters much at all. The art of being still, stalking, not skylining, and not making eye contact has a lot more to do with success than trademarked due patterns :)

That said, I like browns and grays, but not too light.
My kuiu attack pants are in Major Brown and that seems to work well just about everywhere.

I also have an LL Bean lambs wool sweater in a ver similar brown. The soft fibers and heavy weave seem to just eat light… no reflection at all. Looks like a tree trunk.

Also my 12+ year old Sitka Traverse Open Country seems to be very good as well. I think the decade of use and washes has knocked the color and sheen back so that it’s not as bright as the new stuff.

Old army/navy milsurp wool is similar.

The common thread (haha) here is broken in or natural fibers and low reflectivity. Take your new stuff and toss it down a hill in a 5 gallon bucket of dirt and gravel…. Kinda kidding, but kinda not.

And of course, learn to sit still when the animals are watching
I like to wear wool and I feel the same, its quiet on the ears and the eyes, just seems to meld with natural surroundings if you're wearing an earth tone.
 

JCOREGON

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Nov 5, 2021
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29
Very simple topic, but I thought it would be fun. For those of you like me who hunt often in solid colors do you have a favorite solid color you think works better than others? What are your favorite solid colors you gravitate to for hunting? What is your reasoning? Is it the terrain where you hunt, what looks good to your eye, what you think your prey will be least likely to see, etc?

For me:

#1. Coyote Tan/Brown. It works great in so many different environments from deserts to fields to forests and mountains and looks bad ass.
coyote_tan-3.gif

#2. A medium grey / slate grey. Blends in well in a lot of environments, especially ones with rocks or trees. Not too light not too dark. Makes me feel like a ghost.
SG.tif.rendition.SG_1248.jpg


#3. Olive Drab. Depending on who you ask there's a lot of different shades of what people consider Olive Drab. I included images to illustrate what I'm talking about .Mostly I just like the look of it, but honestly I think it blends in really well with any green environments, especially evergreen thickets. Neutral enough that I don't really think you'd get a second look from a deer even if there isn't a lot of green in the terrain.
US_Army_Olive_Drab_MMP-026_grande.jpg


Honestly, between these 3 colors it’s hard to go wrong.
OD. Don’t like to dress in the colors of big game animas.
 
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Windrunner17

Windrunner17

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Kuhl dark moss is very close maybe a hair darker
I like Kuhl, have a few pair of pants from them. I feel they're a bit noisy but otherwise love them. The one pair is in the kovert color and its excellent. The other ones are storm khaki which are absolutely great IMO for rocky arid areas.

OD. Don’t like to dress in the colors of big game animas.
That's why red is so great, safety + deer see it the same as green.
 
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