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Gear Test – Camouflage Test ASAT vs. MARPAT vs. British DPM vs. ASAT Leafy 3D Suit
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Like most hunters, I wear camouflage because it may give a slight edge under some circumstances. Yet it seems many of the hunting patterns out now are really more for attracting hunters to the clothing racks than concealing. Is it really necessary for all these new camo patterns to come out each year or is it just to sell new clothes? Do you really need camouflage underwear that matches your camouflage pattern on your jacket? Hmm…Methinks that marketers are designing this stuff and not hunters.
Observations on Camouflage
When looking at this issue in my engineering way, I noticed that bigger open patterns tended to work well at breaking up the human outline (a forest green wool plaid shirt still works for instance). On the other hand, fancy prints with lots of detail of trees, etc. and false depth of field added actually had worse performance at distance from my own observing. I’ve noticed these things a number of times at archery shoots where you get to see many people traipsing through the woods wearing all sorts of camo patterns.
In short, the patterns that looked like nothing always seemed to do the best when the randomly changing backgrounds of the woods was taken into consideration. Patterns that looked like trees and leaves sometimes worked OK if the tree you were next to matched it, but didn’t work especially well for ground blinds or if you have to move and get away from the trees. In areas with limited concealment, complex patterns tended to be too dark and in the bright sun they really stood out as the darker colors they used didn’t reflect light the way surrounding vegetation did.
Is Simple Camouflage the Best?
Simplicity usually trumps complicated. Game animals in the wild are largely just variations of tan, black and brown. Simple. Yet, they are very hard to see when in concealment or even in the open. Their fur diffuses light and the color scheme is so neutral that it tends to look dark when in shadows and lightens up when in the sun. The color works regardless of the conditions or time of the year. Most hunters will tell you that game animals are incredibly hard to see (especially when they aren’t moving). So why aren’t these animals covered in barks, twigs, acorns, and leaves like the camouflage we see in the stores?
Is There an All Season Camouflage?
No, there isn’t. Most camo will need to be designed for the expected operating environment to work best. But some designs have made a good attempt at trying to work adequately in a variety of situations. One such design came out in the 1980s as a camo pattern called ASAT. ASAT is short for All Season All Terrain. It has since developed a legendary status among people who need to get really close to game animals to get a shot off: bowhunters. It’s a tan base color and just has some brown and black in it as a breakup pattern.
The ASAT company sells generic printed garments, but also offers an overall 3D “Leafy” version of their camo that adds an effect of blowing leaves. The suit is very lightweight and pulls over your clothes and can cover up just about anything you have on. It also isn’t so bulky that it gets in the way of running your bow or other hunting gear.
Test Photos
I recently took some ASAT and put it up against a couple popular military camouflage patterns below. I have also done it against some other hunting patterns but I will have to save that for another post. I just wanted to test the different camouflage ideas that exist. The military (and ASAT) for instance tends to focus on the patterns that look like nothing in particular and works better among what is called negative space (the area between objects like trees in the woods). Many commercial hunting companies tend to focus on patterns that look like trees, bushes, etc. or what could be considered positive space.
The photos were taken on a cloudy day in some generic wooded area with pines and deciduous trees during winter. The garments were each hung on their own in the same random place with light or no concealment and I stepped back a distance and took progressively closer photos until I was within about five feet of the camouflage (except the last series where I went for a long distance so you could see how they blob up from further away). The last photo in each series will show you which garment it was and is labeled in the caption. The first photos are all the garments laid out by pattern (MARPAT, ASAT, DPM, ASAT Leafy). The series of photos is random in which garment is being tested so you won’t know until the end which it is. Check out the full-screen mode for higher resolution images.
The Most Effective Camo
Just note that no camo is really going to save you if you’re caught out in the open (save a heavy and bulky Ghillie suit). Virtually all of these patterns work best with some light concealment in front of them at a minimum. And the best camo of them all for hunting or otherwise is to NOT MOVE, don’t make any noise, and make sure your scent is not blown towards the animal (regardless of what magic hunting cologne or scent control clothes being used). Eyes are drawn to movement but if you are wearing camouflage you may get a slight edge if you are seen or heard because the animal may not be able to tell what you are. If they smell you though they’ll be out of there.
I know this is not scientific and is not designed to critique military camo which has different purposes than hunting camouflage. For one, the camera sees things differently than a human eye and something that appears obvious in these photos was not really that obvious when I was using the standard human-issue eyeball. Secondly, military camouflage also needs to be invisible to things like infrared and thermal imaging which is not a concern for hunting because deer do not wear night vision equipment. Lastly, the military operates in many areas that are not woodland (urban zones, desert, etc.) and these are not considered in this test.
Here are the contestants:
MARPAT - USMC Digital Woodland Pattern
MARPAT – The US Marine Corp digital woodland pattern. This pattern was released several years back and is effective in woodland environments. The pixelated edges are not just for looks. They actually work to help confuse the eye up close and at further distances and keeps the pattern from blotching up. It appears to my eye to cause the edges to go out of focus between the color transitions.
British DPM
British Disruptive Pattern Material (DPM) – This pattern has been out for decades in slight variations and is used by British forces. It’s an effective pattern because it uses larger swashes of color and tends to blotch up less than others I’ve seen. Another thing to this pattern is that it looks like brush strokes and the irregular edges this causes makes the transition regions between colors to be less defined just like MARPAT’s digital scheme.
ASAT - All Season All Terrain on Sitka Gear Jacket
ASAT – This is a Sitka Designs jacket in ASAT that I’ve owned for years. This is the standard ASAT printed on flat fabric. ASAT doesn’t offer the Sitka gear any more. That’s a huge shame. Sitka gear is awesome stuff and works in a wide range of weather conditions and is quiet in the bush.
ASAT - All Season All Terrain 3D Leafy Suit
ASAT Leafy 3D Suit - This is the ASAT leafy suit top. The package comes with the top, bottom and full head net. It packs down small and weighs about 2lbs. It can be taken on and off over most clothes (even heavy insulation or rain gear and with your boots on). You can stow it easily in your pack when hiking to your hunting location and put it on when you arrive to begin the hunt. It’s all synthetic so bad weather won’t bother it. The foundation is a netting so it’s very light and well ventilated. It’s also very quiet in the bush when I’ve tried it so you can stalk with it on and not spook game.
Conclusions
Overall, I think that ASAT flavors did well at breaking up the human silhouette at distance. Up very close in the open the ASAT was mediocre compared to the military patterns (the Leafy 3D did almost as well though). Behind some mild concealment however the ASAT performed well. The ASAT coloration of tan, brown and black is effective even in light concealment where the darker greens in the military camouflage sometimes tended to stand out as a blob. Also, the ASAT had a disrupting effect on my eyes especially when it is behind a few branches. Meaning that it made it very hard for me to discern the shape of the jacket from a distance even when I knew it was there. The British DPM was the worst performer in this regard and often was too dark in the area of operation where these particular photos were taken. MARPAT tended to fall somewhere in the middle. MARPAT and DPM both did best when out in the open up close. On the forest floor in the open, MARPAT is very effective and DPM a close second. In dense underbrush all the patterns did well. One possible improvement to ASAT would be to apply the digital texturing technique to the edges of the brown and black stripes to soften the edges and create a smoother transition between colors like MARPAT and DPM have done.
The ASAT 3D Leafy suit was very effective. It may not have come out as much in the photos, but with the naked eye it really did a good job. It impressed me with how well it worked even on a bare open pile of wood, behind some small branches or in deeper concealment. Considering it is so light, easy to pack, and relatively inexpensive compared to a full set of super deluxe camo patterns, I think it’s a great deal. It’s certainly something for a hunter to consider adding to their pack if they are expecting some close encounters with game. Wildlife photographers and others wishing to get close to wild animals may also consider adding the ASAT 3D suit to their equipment list.
What do you think? Post your comments below on what your eyes say and vote in the attached poll at the top.
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