Tactical Pants: Not all they are cracked up to be

Several months back I was listening to an episode of Gunfighter Cast when Daniel Shaw began talking about this great new 3 Day Backpack he purchased. The pack was branded as LA Police Gear and came in at a whopping $30.00. With as much as praise as Daniel was giving this pack, I thought I’d order one the next time $30 was burning a hole in my pocket.

I forgot about that pack until recently, when I was lugging around my bloated Midway USA Range Bag. I made a point to order the pack the next time I was infront of a computer. Before checking out, I stumbled onto LA Police Gear brand Tactical Pants. Now, I’m not a tactical apparel kind of guy but for $20 per pair, I thought it was worth giving them a try.

When they arrived, I was a bit surprised at the way they felt. The material felt fairly heavy and had an overly starched texture about it. A wash cycle loosened them up slightly but the high polyester content left them feeling sort of like plastic. This wasn’t a major issue but they were a bit noisy while walking.

I fell in love with the pockets immediately. They are everywhere! Since I pocket carry more often than not these days, I typically lose one pocket in any pair of pants that I wear (My Smith & Wesson Bodyguard rides in a pocket all to itself). Having extra real estate to stow misc items was a nice perk.

The first time I wore them I was very happy. They were a little noisy but comfort and more cargo space than I knew what to do with won me over. The second time I wore them though, I was not at all pleased. You see, this second time around I ditched the pocket pistol and went with a Glock 19 in an IWB Black Mamba Holster by Concealment Solutions. I’ve been using this setup off and on over the past couple of weeks and it is normally very comfortable.

My issue revolved around the added belt loops along my waistline. They seemed like a great idea the first time I put on my belt but caused loads of discomfort when I strapped on my holster. Due to the way the holster clips over the belt, it either rode too far forward or too far back (One belt loop was exactly where I normally have a holster clip). It may not seem like a big deal having the holster shifted slightly but when you find that sweet spot on your waist then suddenly have to change it, it isn’t pleasant.

Since I just so happened to be going into a remote location to scout out a hunting spot, I pulled off my Black Mamba holster and slipped on my USPSA OWB holster. The extra belt loop got in the way there too and I wound up pulling that holster back off as well. Since I didn’t want to pocket carry in the woods, I slipped the Black Mamba back on and just dealt with the discomfort for the few hours I planned on being out.

The moral of the story is that my inexpensive Tactical Pants are great for pocket carry but not so tactical when carrying a gun on my waist.