Best Looking Safari Shirt?

Fascinating! I went to see TAG at their SCI booth two weeks ago and told them essentially: "love your clothes, have several sets of shorts, shirts and pants, great fit, great cotton, etc. Would be perfect if all the seams and buttons were not constantly falling apart and my wife did not have to re-sew each garment one at a time. Not asking for anything, just sharing the feedback with you." Sadly, they were a bit defensive: never happened, never heard a customer ever complain about this, etc. etc. Glad to see WAB, that I am not the only one...

I have shifted to wearing 511 pants and shirts. They have a line called TacLite that offers great fit and extremely abrasion resistant yet very light 65% polyester / 35% cotton ripstop fabric in 5 different shades of brown and green that are perfect for hunting. Their Fast-Tac Urban Pants are also the most comfortable and durable yet elegant-casual pants I have owned in decades. I have been wearing nothing but them for the last 2 years or so, which is what decided me to look at them for hunting clothes.
Second this 511 pants and local Johnson shirts. I have tried Carthart, cabelas, Columbia- all good but really surprised with the Johnson. So on your next African a safari stop of at one of their stores.
 

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I like the 5.11 pants linked below. They are 100% cotton/canvas so hot irons won't damage them. Not to mention at $50 a pair it won't break your pocketbook. They recently had a 20% off sale with free shipping, so I bought 2 more. I have 3 of these now, and that is enough for a Safari with daily laundry.

https://www.511tactical.com/511-tactical-pants-mens-cotton.html
I have yet to throw out a pair- still have my first pair of tac lite bought 10 years ago...current fav is the Stryker short with long seam.
 
My $0.02 . . . I will never wear anything 5.11 on safari. Not that it is not quality equipment (though I strongly dislike "tacti-cool") it is for the same reason that I would not wear briar-proof jeans to hunt driven pheasant v. wellies and breeks. There is romance and a certain pomp and circumstance to hunting that I just love and I feel that deserves to be upheld. I see it as part of the fun.
 
For daily use (when I don't need a suit) I love the Stryke pants. I have several pairs. For shorts I prefer their 11.5" Taclite Pro, I wear them for USPSA competitions.
 
My $0.02 . . . I will never wear anything 5.11 on safari. ... There is romance and a certain pomp and circumstance to hunting that I just love and I feel that deserves to be upheld. I see it as part of the fun.

You know they don't really look much different than the so called Safari pants. And you appreciate it when you are on your knees going through the brush.

A lot of the shirts SCI used to sell with their logo on it were made by 5.11 at one time I think.
 
My $0.02 . . . I will never wear anything 5.11 on safari. Not that it is not quality equipment (though I strongly dislike "tacti-cool") it is for the same reason that I would not wear briar-proof jeans to hunt driven pheasant v. wellies and breeks. There is romance and a certain pomp and circumstance to hunting that I just love and I feel that deserves to be upheld. I see it as part of the fun.
From a practical point of view they cannot be beat. I wear them when doing really rough bush work . It also gives me street cred when i deal with my military clients. When I do classic hunts with my Holland and Holland over my shoulder I wear my 1930’s era Safari suit tailor made for me in Mumbai India.
 
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AES I am right on your page. It is a personal thing I know, but tradition plays a big part in the overall enjoyment for me. It is like the seasoning on food, we are not just after sustenance but the taste too. I also find it disrespectful when people pitch up on a hunt sloppily presented, T shirt and tackies just don't cut it, let alone caps backwards!
 
I love the Rigby one at the beginning but at $183 US just too expensive. If anyone’s know how to get one at lower price please let me know...I need a 46 given my shoulders...damn that college football. Lol
 
I guess there is nothing wrong with having nice clothes. We look to buy nice rifles and have a nice experience in camp. Nothing wrong with being comfortable in what you wear and wearing what you like.
 
I think there is a balance to be struck.

On the one hand, Hunting is a traditional sport and that come with expectations in how to dress and how to act. In the UK this is most apparent for driven game shooting, but all forms of hunting have their own little foibles. In fact, on many shoots, showing up in denim, trainers, a parka or with a semi-auto is grounds to send you home. Baseball caps are another massive faux pas.

I believe that these affectations improve the experience of the overall hunt and should be respected. For instance to shoot pheasant I'd use a side by side and I'd wear tweed, a flat cap, brogues and a tie. For deer hunting, I'd also wear tweed and a tie and use a classic walnut and blue sporting rifle.

I like these things, they respect those traditions and become part of the overall ritual of a hunting day. In a world where I can wear a t-shirt and jeans to the office, they make these moments meaningful, special in some way.

However, this should not be at the cost of comfort or performance. Yes, I'll wear a tweed jacket and breeks, but I promise you, it's still got a goretex lining and I've got a technical wicking baselayer underneath. Those boots might be traditional in appearance, but they're still waterproof, well insulated and provide good ankle support. The tie looks the part, but if the stalker says we've got to gain height quickly to make a shot, then off it comes.

All these things are there to enhance your enjoyment. The second they're a hindrance or a chore is the second they must be discarded. Certainly the idea of being cold and wet on the hill or prickled by thorns and rocks on safari just out of some sense of 'this is how its always been done' doesn't cut it with me.

Likewise, if your tradition and memories of hunting revolve around 'tactical pants' and camo and that's what makes you most happy, then you know what? Crack on. It's a personal choice and varies wildly by geography anyway, so do as you see fit (just don't try it on a traditional game shoot)!

Al.
 
All good choices but for this COB, I went to Walmart after last hunting season. I got a good deal on camo pants in my size, five bucks a pair. Picked up six pair.:D Will be wearing them this deer season and when they open, RSA for plains game cull hunt. (y) My Cabela's that cost many times more are just about worn out. IIRC, they lasted about eight years. :rolleyes:
 
I think there is a balance to be struck.

On the one hand, Hunting is a traditional sport and that come with expectations in how to dress and how to act. In the UK this is most apparent for driven game shooting, but all forms of hunting have their own little foibles. In fact, on many shoots, showing up in denim, trainers, a parka or with a semi-auto is grounds to send you home. Baseball caps are another massive faux pas.

I believe that these affectations improve the experience of the overall hunt and should be respected. For instance to shoot pheasant I'd use a side by side and I'd wear tweed, a flat cap, brogues and a tie. For deer hunting, I'd also wear tweed and a tie and use a classic walnut and blue sporting rifle.

I like these things, they respect those traditions and become part of the overall ritual of a hunting day. In a world where I can wear a t-shirt and jeans to the office, they make these moments meaningful, special in some way.

However, this should not be at the cost of comfort or performance. Yes, I'll wear a tweed jacket and breeks, but I promise you, it's still got a goretex lining and I've got a technical wicking baselayer underneath. Those boots might be traditional in appearance, but they're still waterproof, well insulated and provide good ankle support. The tie looks the part, but if the stalker says we've got to gain height quickly to make a shot, then off it comes.

All these things are there to enhance your enjoyment. The second they're a hindrance or a chore is the second they must be discarded. Certainly the idea of being cold and wet on the hill or prickled by thorns and rocks on safari just out of some sense of 'this is how its always been done' doesn't cut it with me.

Likewise, if your tradition and memories of hunting revolve around 'tactical pants' and camo and that's what makes you most happy, then you know what? Crack on. It's a personal choice and varies wildly by geography anyway, so do as you see fit (just don't try it on a traditional game shoot)!

Al.
:) We do a clays charity shoot every year where we must use small bore SxS's and dress in British or Teutonic drag. I confess that I always go German. Leather boot pants, leather knee boots, sweater, loden coat or jacket, and Austrian hat. Just can't manage the tie, breeks, and brogues - though should I ever attend a driven grouse shoot, I probably could dig up the proper uniform from the back of the closet (Don't tell any of my fellow Texans, but I even have a flat hat or two).

But, to be fair, we do much the same on traditional bird hunts in the South. Show up at a quail hunt with a semi-auto or pump and any bore larger than 20, and you would politely be asked to not participate. There wouldn't be a second invitation.

I am not into camo. First, I don't think it does much good with respect to game, and secondly, I probably wore it to work far too long.

In Africa, I am all about shorts, cotton and microfleece. Most of my hunting has been north of South Africa's latitudes, but even in central Namibia in late July, shorts and a microfleece sweater were fine until things warmed up. The only exception has been hunting the actual swamps in the Zambezi Delta where the saber grass will razor cut unprotected legs.

Below is after a day chasing buffalo in the saber grass.
full
 
...

But, to be fair, we do much the same on traditional bird hunts in the South. Show up at a quail hunt with... any bore larger than 20, and you would politely be asked to not participate. There wouldn't be a second invitation.

Obviously I am not a traditional bird hunter not even having a shotgun until very recently, so not quite up on etiquette. What is the reason for having a bore larger than a 20 bore making a person non grata?
 
Obviously I am not a traditional bird hunter not even having a shotgun until very recently, so not quite up on etiquette. What is the reason for having a bore larger than a 20 bore making a person non grata?

Southern quail hunts are steeped in tradition. Your target is small, fast and typically in 8 to 12 bird coveys. A 28 ga. SxS is likely the most favored gun. It has the right combination of quickness and effective shot charge. A 28 ga. O/U would be second. Break action guns add an element of safety over semi autos and pumps. I typically shoot a 28 ga O/U but I will say that I have been welcome with my Model 42 skeet gun (pump action .410) but perhaps because it is a classic in its own right.
 
Obviously I am not a traditional bird hunter not even having a shotgun until very recently, so not quite up on etiquette. What is the reason for having a bore larger than a 20 bore making a person non grata?
12 bore frowned upon for 3 primary reasons:
(1) very easy to spaghetti a bird if they flush close
(2) smaller bores reduce the likelihood of unintentionally striking multiple birds with a single trigger pull
(3) It is simply an unnecessarily large shell for the task at hand
 
Obviously I am not a traditional bird hunter not even having a shotgun until very recently, so not quite up on etiquette. What is the reason for having a bore larger than a 20 bore making a person non grata?
The classic "burd gun" in the South - including Texas - is a 28 bore SxS or, more recently, (like the last fifty years or so) an OU. No one will run you off the plantation if you use a twenty (in fact most people do). But the 28 sort of announces that one is a member of the Consigliere. It is all a little silly since one can shoot 1 ounce loads from a 12 bore - but tradition is a very real thing in a sport where even the dogs are trained to honor a point.
 

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