7/25/09 - This is the CBDU (Contractor BDU) from EMDOM USA. It's a limited-run custom modified BDU shirt and pant that was originally designed as an enhanced BDU for private military contractors, or anyone else that can make use of its practical features.

This project actually started in December 2006, when Ken from EMDOM asked me if I had any ideas for modified BDUs. 'Custom/enhanced' BDUs have become more commonplace now; back then all you had were BDUs that you took to the tailor to modify. Most of the BDUs were geared towards the military; less so for the civilian or PMC. Since PMCs can't wear camouflage, and some civvies dislike wearing camo to tactical classes etc, there were some modifications that I had in mind that I thought would be practical, and that I could make use of on the range while running around. So, while these BDUs can be worn by anyone who can use its features, we always referred to them as the 'Contractor BDUs', so the name stuck. The main goal was to provide practicality, additional elbow and knee protection, comfort and load bearing capability over the standard BDU without a noticeable increase in weight.

CBDU prototype

The CBDU is built from Propper 65% poly 35% cotton Battle Rip (ripstop) BDUs. They are purchased, then sent to a tailor for modification, who has to remove stitches, modify them and add on the extra features. They're not built from scratch at a factory. As a result, they're not inexpensive.

This project took a long time, simply because other projects were always on the front burners. As more improved models of BDUs were introduced by manufacturers, I was ready to abandon this project as there were a lot of good BDUs out there with excellent features. But, we decided to continue with it because there weren't any that had the exact combination of features that we added in the CBDUs or a couple of the more unique features. The development process would be an iterative one, where Ken at EMDOM would bring the BDUs to the tailor, who would make the requested changes, return them to Ken who would send them to me for testing and evaluation, and I'd send them back to him with more changes and alterations. All the minor tweaks took a lot of time, but we eventually arrived at the final version you see here.

CBDU Shirt - The CBDU Shirt was designed primarily as a warm weather BDU top, with its unique 3/4 length sleeves, but that provided more elbow protection with 500D cordura reinforcements.

Collar up

Side

Rear (cuffs tight)

Collar rear

Cuff loose (L), cuff tight (R)

Collar down

Rear (cuffs loose)

• Letterman jacket-style collar - I wanted a collar that was more comfortable than a stand-up mandarin collar in the front and less restrictive at the front of the neck when moving the head around. Much of the time, when I'm wearing BDUs with mandarin collars, I have them folded over. I looked around at collar designs and remembered the letterman jacket knit collar, which is high in the back and tapers down at the front. The CBDU collar is 2.3" tall at the back and tapers in a curve, down to a V in the front, where the two sides overlap at the button. The rear and sides provide more protection for the neck than the standard fold-over BDU collar from slings, hot brass and sun, while the V neck in front provides more comfort than a mandarin stand-up collar. At the rear of the collar is a 4" x 1" strip of velcro for name tape, ID etc, and a small 550 cord loop for clipping or dummy cording cap to so that it doesn't blow away with a sudden gust of wind. If you're like me and don't like wearing the chin strap of a boonie hat around the bottom of your chin, but want some way of securing your boonie from blowing off, just stick the little leather piece on the boonie chin strap through the 550 cord loop and you can wear the chin strap behind your head, and you won't lose it.
  The CBDU collar can also be folded over where it'll sit neatly without any loose velcro tabs or lapels.

• 3/4-length sleeves with velcro tab cuffs - This is the probably the more unique/distinctive feature of the CBDU. After a prototype I was wearing in my CTOMS X-Belt writeup photos were posted, I received quite a few emails asking "What's that BDU shirt and where can I get it?" The reason behind the 3/4" sleeve was based on my own experience in warmer weather - I'd roll up my BDU shirt sleeves to mid-forearm length and also fold down my glove gauntlets, to get either out of the way. Why not just wear a t-shirt? Because depending on what I was doing at the range, I'd sometimes want the protection from sun and abrasion on my elbows if I went prone without elbow pads. With a 3/4 sleeve length, I don't have the added bulk of a rolled up sleeve, and if I want some forearm protection, I'll just wear longer nomex gloves that bridge the gap instead of those that end at the wrist. The other advantage over rolling up the sleeves is that I have the option of cinching up the flight-suit style cuff, or leaving it open for ventilation. Since it's 3/4 length, the opening is larger. One note of caution - at the range, before the shooting drills start, I close up the cuffs. When open, hot brass can find its way into the large opening. If you find yourself rolling up your BDU sleeves more than not, the CBDUs are the ones for you!
• Reinforced elbows/pad pockets - The elbow and bottom of the forearm is covered by a 500D cordura patch, which doubles as a pad pocket. It'll accommodate a 7.5" x 7.5" foam elbow pad (not included). It will not fit Crye elbow pads. Here, I've illustrated it with some old 5.11 elbow pads. I wanted the CBDU to provide more protection than a standard BDU against abrasion and knocks when going prone, and also give the user the option of adding his own padding. It is much more comfortable than wearing strap-on elbow pads. The CBDU comes with the coyote shade of 500D cordura because custom-matched fabric would have been prohibitively expensive in such small quantities, and wasn't available.
• Slant chest pockets - Large 7.5" tall x 6.5" wide expandable chest pockets with velcro flap closure. They're slanted towards the center for easier access by the opposite hand. Pen slot in left pocket.
• Double-layer shoulder pockets - The shoulder pocket measures about 7" x 6", and has a velcro flap closure. It's actually two pockets in one, and has outer and inner pockets. The outer one has bellows for expansion at the rear, and is accessed through the top opening which is slanted forward slightly. The pocket underneath it is accessed by the front vertical zipper, and is a flat pocket. I added the 550 cord zipper pull myself.
• Velcro on shoulder pockets - a loop velcro 4" x 4" patch is sewn to the outside of the shoulder pockets for ID, flags, etc.
• Flight-suit style cuff - the flight suit style tab is tapered an utilizes 1.5" velcro to secure it to the sleeve. The cuff can be cinched up tight around the forearm, or opened up fully for max ventilation.

Chest pockets

Shoulder pocket flap

Shoulder pocket zipper

Elbow pad pocket and 5.11 pad

Velcro cuff

• Waist adjustment tabs - There are two 2"-wide waist adjustment tabs on each side to adjust the snugness of the shirt around the waist. This is to control where the excess material folds for improved comfort and a better fit when wearing body armour over the CBDU.
• Shirt cut bottom hem - The bottom hem of the CBDU shirt is shortened slightly to reduce excess material when tucking it in. It's long enough to be retained securely, but doesn't go past the crotch. Instead of the straight hem, the CBDU has a rounded dress-shirt type hem, again for better tucking in and better access to pant pockets when worn outside.

CBDU Pant - The idea for the CBDU pant was to enhance a standard Propper Battle Rip BDU pant on which it is built by adding some practical features that add utility and durability to the original product. The size Medium/short CBDU pant is shown here. I'm 5' 7" with a 29" inseam (short legs).

Front

Side/Rear

Pockets

Features - Here's a list of the features on the CBDU Pants:

• Material - Built on a Khaki Propper Battle rip BDU pant in 65% poly 35% cotton ripstop fabric.
• Button fly and waist
• Front pelvis pockets - These are slanted for easy access and are roomier and more secure than a besom-style open-top welted pocket. These are a roomy 6" x 6" and have small expandable pleats. The flip side, of course, is that they're not as low profile as a besom pocket. The flap has two velcro patches to secure the opening and has angled corners to prevent snagging. They're easier to access than the side slash pockets when seated or when wearing a belt rig with subloads.
• 7 belt loops - The belt loops fit 2" belts. There are also three additional belt loops for 2.5" belts, made out of 1" webbing, located at the front/sides, and the rear center. They have D-rings sewn at the top as suspender attach points.
• Hidden pocket in waistband - at the rear of the pant is a hidden pocket inside the waist band. It's about 3" wide and 1.5" deep, and provides a hiding place for small items (coins, folded cash, a key, button compass etc) that can be then retrieved in case of emergency. It has a velcro closure.
• Side waist adjustment tabs - standard BDU style
• Side slash pockets - standard BDU style
• Knife clip reinforcement on left pocket - The left pocket has a knife clip reinforcement made out of 500D cordura to reduce wear on the pocket. In addition, the knife clip is covered, providing more security if it snags. The reason the left pocket only was done was because the tailor referred to my prototype as the model, which had it on the left (I'm a lefty). This gave us a chance to try something different for the right side pocket.
• Knife hanger inside right pocket - A small webbing loop is sewn to the inside surface of the pocket as a knife clip attach point. The knife clip faces the inside instead of to the outside. When I put a folder in my pocket, with it clipped to the outside, I can't reach it if my hand is in the pocket, only if my hand is resting over it with my thumb inside the pocket and my hand outside. Sure, I can leave my knife at the bottom of the pocket where the lint is, but it's uncomfortable and more difficult to reach. With the webbing loop to attach the knife to, it's accessed simply by putting your hand in your pocket, and it's right there. The tell-tale knife clip is hidden from view. The only caveat is that it can be harder to draw quickly from the seated position and it's not as easy to clip the knife onto the webbing as it is on the outside of the pocket. In any case, you can always clip it to the pocket the 'normal' way with the clip on the outside - this just gives you a more covert option.
• Double seat
• Rear pockets - Standard rear pockets with the buttons replaced with velcro closure.

Front pockets

Rear

Knife clip reinforcement

Knife clip hanger

Knife clipped to hanger

Rear hidden pocket

• Side cargo pockets - The standard pleated side pockets retain the button closure, but with the addition of a velcro closure in the middle. That way, the buttons can be left undone for quicker access and closure of the flap. I also wanted to be able to organize a couple of items in the cargo pocket instead of having everything end up at the bottom rattling around. We added two sturdy 2" elastic loops sized to fit M4 magazines. Sometimes at the range, if I'm not wearing a rig and want to carry a couple of extra 30 round mags, the elastic keeps them oriented vertically in the cargo pocket for easy retrieval, especially with magpuls or ranger plates on the bottom. It also prevents them from clanging together around in the pocket when moving. The cargo pocket will still sway with the weight of full mags, but it's a lot more 'controlled' than without the loops. It's also a lot more discrete - people will hardly notice that you're carrying 30-round mags in your cargo pockets as they don't print as much when vertical and held against the leg instead of expanding the pocket. The elastic loops will also organize sunglass cases, rolls of dressing or bandages etc.
  Note that the pants shown is my prototype pair, which is medium-short. The front corner of the pocket had to overlap the knee pad pocket due to the shorter length and was modified. In the production version as seen on the EMDOM website, the knee pad reinforcement overlaps less, and didn't require modification of the corner - it's just sewn over it.
• Knee pad pockets/reinforcements - The knees are covered in 500D cordura which greatly increases abrasion resistance and also provide pockets for knee pads (not included). The pocket will accomodate knee pads up to 9" tall x 8" wide which are inserted through a velcro-secured opening at the top of the pocket. Shown below is the Skydex knee pad insert. The 500D reinforcement is more durable than same-fabric patches and provides better protection for the knee, even without a knee pad. Using knee pad inserts is lighter and more comfortable than wearing external knee pads.
• External knee pad loop provisions - On each side of the knee reinforcement/pocket is a small 'tunnel' through which a 550 cord loop can be tied. This provides a loop for external knee pad straps to pass through, so they won't slip downwards. Using the loops allows the external knee pad straps to be left a bit looser and more comfortable.
• Elastic shock cord leg cuff closure - elastic shock cord with a cord lock.

Side cargo pocket

M4 mags in side cargo pocket

Side cargo pocket elastic loops

Knee pad pocket/reinforcement

Notes - The Contractor BDUs were intended for warm weather use, when just a t-shirt doesn't provide enough protection. Wearing the CBDU shirt is obviously hotter than just a t-shirt, but the added protection and load bearing capability are features that the user must weigh. By featuring 500D cordura elbow and knee patches, abrasion resistance and protection against minor scrapes has been added without a noticeable increase in weight. By making them double as pad pockets, additional foam pads can be added without the inconvenience and discomfort of straps.

Overall quality of the Propper Battlerip BDUs is very good, as far as BDUs go, and the tailor has done a decent job on the modifications. With my prototype, there was only one issue with attention to detail that I was dissatisfied about - the ends of the webbing for the additional belt loops were not heat cut or sealed, and started to unravel when I pulled a belt through. I brought this up to Ken and he had the tailor make sure that he sewed an additional line across near the end and also stitch the cut end down to prevent this from happening on the production versions.

I've been wearing the prototype CBDU pants for at least a year, and the production version for a few months, for every day wear. I wear the top at the range when I can. Out at the range, the 500D cordura on the knees and elbows do provide some relief from stones and brass cases when shooting from prone, and adding pads inside the pockets makes them all the more comfortable. The pads inside the pockets don't shift around or slip, and are lighter and more comfortable than external/separate knee and elbow pads. Other BDUs also have pad pockets, but unless they're made of a tougher fabric like nylon, instead of the same fabric as the BDU, they can be subject to quite a lot of wear and tear and start wearing thin and rip if you take a knee often, and especially if you have knee pads inside.

For small items, I use the front pelvis pockets most frequently, just like the front besom pockets on other brands of pants. I'm so used to having them I miss them if they're not present. The elastic loops inside the side cargo pockets really work well, in my opinion. If there's an item that will fit, like an M4 mag; it's held against the leg and is much easier to retrieve than if it were horizontal at the bottom of the pocket. Using the elastic loops for heavier items keeps them close to the leg for less swaying. If you put two full mags in each pocket, they WILL sway around when you run. There's no stopping that. It's not the most comfortable, but it's a lot better than loose mags inside the pockets. Also note that I've run around with four mags (two in each pocket), and a good belt is essential as the substantial weight will try to pull your pants down. If you're planning on carrying four mags as a habit, simple suspenders might be a good idea. Anyway, the elastic is there if you need it.

In summary, the EMDOM/MM CBDU is a set of khaki BDUs that offer more elbow and knee protection than a regular set, with some different features than what's currently offered on other BDUs.

2/7/09 - The Tru-Spec Combat Shirt available from USCAV is Tru Spec's 'Combat Shirt' -style garment which was pioneered by Crye Precision's Combat Shirt. This style of garment, with its BDU-fabric sleeves combined with a lighter-weight moisture wicking torso sans pockets, is a logical design for use under gear or body armour, and emerged in the Army's new Combat Shirt made by Massif and the USMC's FROG2 Combat Shirt (produced by Crye).

The Combat Shirt concept addresses the main issues that personnel encounter when integrating body armour with their uniforms. First, the uniform chest and lower pockets cannot be reached when body armour is worn, rendering them practically useless. Not only is the weight unnecessary if they cannot be used, but they also add folds and bulk under the armour. Pockets are located on the sleeves/shoulders instead, where they can be readily accessed. The second issue is comfort. In hot weather, a standard BDU top under armour is hot and uncomfortable, as it's usually worn over an additional base layer, and doesn't breathe well. By having a torso made of a lightweight wicking, breathable baselayer fabric without any pockets, the Combat Shirt eliminates excess material and bulk under gear while increasing comfort when worn under body armour or gear.

Materials - The TRU Combat Shirt is made up of two main fabrics - the shoulders/sleeves are either 50/50 NYCO rip-stop (UCP and Crye MultiCam) or 65/35 poly/cotton (black, khaki and OD), and the torso baselayer is 60/40 cotton nylon no melt, no drip Cordura® Baselayer fabric.

Cordura® Baselayer - Baselayer is Invista/Cordura's new next-to-skin fabric that claims exceptional moisture management, comfort and durability while offering no melt/no drip thermal properties. It's not advertised as fire-resistant nor retardant, but just that it will not melt or drip onto the skin like polyester when exposed to high temperatures. It will act like most other natural fibers like cotton or wool and provide limited insulation against flame/flash fires.

From the Baselayer press release:

Pocket closeups

Here are the main features of the TRU Combat Shirt (MultiCam, Medium shown):

7/2/09 - Tru-Spec has released the second generation of their Combat Shirt, which I featured in the above writeup, and to my pleasant surprise, has greatly improved upon their first version.

Concept and materials are the same, so please read the original writeup above for details. Here, I'll focus on the differences between the original release (I'll call that Gen 1) and the new one (Gen 2). The shirt shown here is a size Medium, in Khaki ripstop (65/35 poly/cotton blend).

1. Shoulder pockets - The Gen 1 shoulder pockets were hard to access, due to the top-opening zipper. With bulky armour on, it was practically impossible. The Gen 2 shoulder pockets is the same size as the Gen 1, but has relocated the zipper ot the front of the pocket; flight-suit style. It is now easily accessed. They've also added an elastic shock-cord pull to the small metal zipper pull, which makes it a lot easier to grab.
2. Elbow pads - The Gen 1 elbow pads weren't positioned effectively on the elbow, and were a bit too small. The Gen 2 elbow pads are larger (8" x 10" vs 6" x 8") and are postioned much more effecitvely on the elbow. They've been rotated to provide better coverage for the inside of the elbow. In all positions now, the elbow is well protected.
3. Wrist adjustment tabs - The wrist adjustment tabs on the Gen 1 were too long and narrow, and wouldn't allow the cuff to be cinched down tight (on my wrist). The extra length also allowed it to slip off the cuff at times. On the Gen 2, the adjustment tab has been shortened (like a flight suit tab), and the velcro is now 1.5" wide instead of 1". Now, it's very secure, and allows a wide range of adjustment, plus it can be cinched down properly.
4. Longer sleeves - I have short arms, so the Gen 1 sleeves fit me fine, but they were a bit shorter than normal. The sleeves on the Gen 2 are 2" longer than the Gen 1, and should fit people a lot better now. Long lengths are also now available.
5. Overall quality/workmanship - I saw none of the workmanship issue that I observed on the Gen 1. No bunched seams and the shoulder IR tab has the velcro where it should be and functions as intended.

4/29/04 - Shown here are articles of South African Police (SAP) camouflage uniform (many thanks to Steve B. in SA for his generosity). As I understand it, the SAP Service Durban Reaction Unit uses this camo pattern, sometimes referred to as 'cactus' pattern. The shades of khaki, green and brown are quite similar to those of Rhodesian camo.
Trousers - These are made of a medium-weight cotton material, with two thigh pockets, two slash front pockets and two rear pockets. A small front hip pocket is located on the right front. The cuffs have drawstrings. The fly is button-up, and the front flap closure has two extra buttons for extra security.
Short-sleeved shirt and long-sleeved shirt - Made of light weight, tight-weave material (similar to a Hawaiian shirt), with epaulets and two front flap pockets.
Field jacket with liner - This field jacket is made of the same medium weight material as the pants. There are two large lower flap pockets and two chest pockets. The collar has a tab that comes across the neck to secure it shut. A green polyester fleece vest liner buttons into the jacket.