Camo -

[RicInOR]

How many billions is this one gonna cost ( These are yUK - ours will cost more, of course)

These Afghan army uniforms cost American taxpayers $28 million 'in the name of fashion'

Army Balks at Camouflage Price Tag | Military.com

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[Andy54Hawken]

OD Green
khaki
Grey
"Sage" green
All work pretty good almost anywhere in the world.... And probably a lot cheaper than the uniforms that were issued... Just not as"sexy" or tactical sounding of color.
Andy

 

[Joe13]

Should have just outfitted them in realtree from a Walmart sale in January.

 

[Dungannon]

Ground-pounding combat experience should be a first requirement for anyone providing input on military camo requirements. Too many fashionista's making these decisions. Worst was that blue camo for the Navy: like, they actually want people to be invisible that go overboard?

 

[CamoDeafie]

In 2007, the Afghan Defense Ministry embarked on a quest to design new uniforms to counter efforts by the Taliban and militants battling government forces to "counterfeit" the clothing.

Whats the bet that as soon as the new uniforms are in place, the exact same thing is going to happen again????
I mean... for the woodland camo uniforms.. just order them wholesale off ebay or amazon or something like that and then bam ya just need to have the near-slave mills in China or Pakistan making copies of the commando patches for a "friendly fire" or massacre to destabilize the region again.
Afghanistan has been in a state of war since 1978. Its not gonna end anytime soon.

Edit; Eagle Industries "Khaki" looks to be a great overall color.. like this. Far right is Eagles Khaki. Depending on the lighting, it has a green tint to it but blends decently woth desert patterns or multicam or woodland.. although the MOLLE webbing is a Tan 499 or Desert tan coloring... using coyote brown webbing or foliage green webbing could make it even better for woods and deserts . I have the Rhodesian Recon vest chest rig in khaki and it is more green than the desert tan Diamondback Tactical plate carrier.

 

[jsparks747]

Just give me a bunch of cans of matte tan spray paint and they will blend in better than with that bubblegum.

 

[Stomper]

The M81 Woodland camo pattern (and "ERDL" from which it evolved from) worked very well for decades, and the SEALs still use it today.... multi-cam and flecktarn are also VERY awesome.


From day one I thought that washed out ACU pattern was rediculous.

 

[CamoDeafie]

From day one I thought that washed out ACU pattern was rediculous.

The biggest problem with woodland was the huge swaths of black. Well. Mainly with the vehicle 3 color NATO paint scheme compared to the 4 color scheme of the mid 70s to 80s as seen on the M151s and deuces throughout that period.
If they had done it more similar to the WW2 German ambush scheme with the same 3 colors, it probably would have worked far better on the vehicles. Maybe black only as spots or base overlaid with brown and green spots.

As to the ACUs.. well.. what happened was that NATICK tested all the schemes they could use and then ACU performed the least worst in all enviroments. Unlike Multicam which while it performed better in most, didnt perform as good in the gravel pits ACU could be decent for gravel pits and bare mountainous deserts but not in any sort of vegetation though. There was a photo of NAVY SEALS with digital overwhite gear and I made the comparison with bleached out ACUs lol

 

[CoastRange57]

My boys called them a bunch of "filthy Ghans" who could not keep their fingers off the triggers and whom probably would turn on them in a heart beat.

No need to camo them up.

 

[American123]

My boys called them a bunch of "filthy Ghans" who could not keep their fingers off the triggers and whom probably would turn on them in a heart beat.

No need to camo them up.

At least if they are wearing a different uniform than US troops it's easy to identify them and shoot them in case they turncoat.

 

[CamoDeafie]

At least if they are wearing a different uniform than US troops it's easy to identify them and shoot them in case they turncoat.

The problem is we have USMC MARSOC advisors with them. First pic, USMC MARSOC (Marine Raiders), second pic, ANA Special Commando with MARSOC advisor behind him.
At the very least though we know what our boys are equipped with so as to ID them apart from the Afghans.

And lately we have USMC helping out in Africa.. somewhere?
I like the combination of USMC digital woodland and M81 woodland shown here.

 

[RicInOR]

Afghanistan has been in a state of war since 1978. Its not gonna end anytime soon.

If you have a Way-Back Machine, go and ask some Roman General about Afghanistan. Bet they knew.
The English were there for about 100 years - got out about end of WW1 - and they were in no way the first.

It is a land-locked country without natural resources anyone wants.
But it won't be out of armed conflict any time soon.

 

[RicInOR]

More than I wanted to know - this is one of about half a dozen pages.
Lot o pics.

Phase IV C3: Camouflage, Color and Cost

 

[CamoDeafie]

It is a land-locked country without natural resources anyone wants.
But it won't be out of armed conflict any time soon.

While it may be landlocked and seemingly bereft of natural resources.. it does have a large amount of fertile soil thats ideal for poppy growth (opium...) and that is a particular reason many empires fell there... because of opium trade, and because its also relatively minerals rich.
From wikipedia;

Afghanistan has over 1400 mineral fields,[1][2][3] containing barite, chromite, coal, copper, gold, iron ore, lead, natural gas, petroleum, precious and semi-precious stones, salt, sulfur, talc, zincamong many other minerals.[1][4] Gemstonesinclude high-quality emerald, lapis lazuli, red garnet and ruby. According to a joint study by The Pentagon and the United States Geological Survey, Afghanistan has an estimated 1 trillion USD[5] of untapped minerals, although other sources estimate it at 3 trillion USD.[6][7]

That much mineral wealth potential is potentially a reason for outside interests to stay there.

They did have a period of relative stability from the 1930s til the 1970s.

 

[Flymph]

If you have a Way-Back Machine, go and ask some Roman General about Afghanistan. Bet they knew.
The English were there for about 100 years - got out about end of WW1 - and they were in no way the first.

It is a land-locked country without natural resources anyone wants.
But it won't be out of armed conflict any time soon.

There are some rare earth elements...
$1 Trillion Trove of Rare Minerals Revealed Under Afghanistan

You're right tho, it's a violent region with a long history of instability... probably has something to do with why those deposits are still there.

Almost forgot, I will second the grey and khaki. If you need to blend more, natural substrate always makes the best cover (aka roll around in the dirt if you want to match it).

PS: just noticed CamoDeafie pretty much said the same thing... lol
Gotta have those pain killers!

 

[CoastRange57]

And lately we have USMC helping out in Africa.. somewhere?

Lately ??? One of my boys was there in 2010 - Djhoubuti (sp??) and Yemen. But the US government says no, and there never was any contact either.

 

[CamoDeafie]

Yemen is not Africa its a Persian Gulf state bordering Saudi Arabia I believe. As for Africa... President Obama Sends 100 US Special Forces advisors to assist African countries in actions against the Lord's Resistance Army - United to End Genocide This was 2011.. still more recent than the first go around in Afghanistan (2001) and Iraq (2004ish?2005?).. and Syria (supposedly but denied by USGOV)

And we are in Africa as of now; Redirect Notice

 

[Stomper]

But the US government says no, and there never was any contact either.

Got the T-shirt.... If you only knew how far back that policy goes.