[Rb19]

Hi all,

With the KMCS out of stock everywhere due to the Ukraine/Russia situation, what would people say is currently the best out of the box ghillie or 3D leaf suit? Preferably leaf suit with good out of the box colours for UK woodland environment.

Any suggestions welcome and thank you in advance!

 

[SiliconeSword]

Is the suit made by Myata or something?

I think that you're probably gonna need to craft yourself. Personally I have zero experience with ghillie and not too much knowledge, but I'd price out building one and price out buying a pre made one. I'd also add in a bit of dyes to the pre made one as it will likely not be the shade you like, and that will contribute to price.

I'd maybe go check on Facebook groups since it's easy to get like 50 comments on a subject, but we don't have very many active users.

 

[Doctor Jest]

The KMCS is aight but seriously overpriced IMO. It's based on (read: Aside from a couple of additional pockets and ties) Russian suits and, surprise! They're also sold out, or at least difficult to source. Jack Pyke, North Mountain Gear, Arcturus, Voin (another Russian leaf suit)......I have a lot of experience with ghillie suits in the UK and it's much easier to find something suitable these days than previously so........what you need to decide is how much effort you want to exert. You could buy something like an Arktis or Webtex ghillie base and add garnish.....effective (British Army snipers tend to follow this MO) but it does demand quite the investment of time. You could buy a simple "Yowie" suit from Aliexpress or eBay - the guy who originated leaf suits in the UK swears by them and has been using them effectively for more than 20 years - experience and skill are far more important than just buying an "Invisibility suit" and assembling your own is quite the learning experience.

I never, ever wear a suit out of the box. In order to tune a suit to the British countryside I'm quite prepared to spend some hours on additional foliage, or in some cases, eschew leaf suits as a base entirely and work from scratch. If I were to wear a suit out of the box that I felt wasn't an extortionate price then........I'm genuinely not sure. Perhaps the Russian suits the KMCS is based on as they're essentially the same and a great deal cheaper.....

For late spring and summer, I have a North Mountain Gear leaf suit that I dyed to tone down the extremely vibrant colours. On top of that base, I added Haloscreen and Nanoscreen from Le Covert Sartorialist as well as a couple of pieces of ConCamo strips for contrast. Aside from foliage loops, I haven't done any extra tailoring other than to add stirrups to the trousers and a couple of fixing points for braces - I do that with all my ghillie trousers to prevent them from riding up during crawls.

Autumn/Winter, I have a suit I made myself based on an ANA sniper suit which had no foliage on initially. More Nanoscreen, some fake leaves, more ConCamo elements, and then some raffia and hessian for texture and contrast. Crawl pads in the trousers, and braces once again......works perfectly well.

Finally, in grassy terrain, I have a Viper-style hood in A-TACS FG that has a plethora of foliage loops so aside from a base of hessian and raffia, I tend to rely more heavily on natural foliage and add it on the day. FWIW I was always taught a suit should be at least 60:40, natural: artificial so that's a rule I stick by.

 

[RonSwanson]

Whilst I can't suggest a ghillie suit, I can suggest 2 things to avoid (in no particular order)

1.Kicking Mustang products, just because his become known for causing issues and trying to injury people with no regard for other players safety. (As a UK player if one YouTuber is trying to get UK Airsoft banned the most it's him, his outright stated he doesn't care if he promotes toxic player behaviour and has no care about the growth and future of UK Airsoft)

2. Anything from Russia, just on a moral ground don't, everyone should be actively avoiding using anything that will send money directly or indirectly too them as much as possible.

 

[SiliconeSword]

Ya, fair enough.

A relative recently showed me a magnifying glass in package from like 1970s Russia, weird as hell and was pretty terrible quality.

As for a suit, I'd take LOTS of inspiration from the Russia ones as they seem to have them figured out and seem to use them the most for whatever silly little purposes of theirs.

 

[Doctor Jest]

Whilst I can't suggest a ghillie suit, I can suggest 2 things to avoid (in no particular order)

1.Kicking Mustang products, just because his become known for causing issues and trying to injury people with no regard for other players safety. (As a UK player if one YouTuber is trying to get UK Airsoft banned the most it's him, his outright stated he doesn't care if he promotes toxic player behaviour and has no care about the growth and future of UK Airsoft)

2. Anything from Russia, just on a moral ground don't, everyone should be actively avoiding using anything that will send money directly or indirectly too them as much as possible.

I try to avoid actively talking about KM as I am friends with the guy from whom he "borrowed" all his ideas. Leaf suits, his M.O.......his rules (when he tried to run events)....everything. Enough said but if it needs to be said, I agree.

Regarding Russia - there are of course millions of Russians who don't agree with the War but that's neither here nor there as we don't know who objects, and who doesn't. In principle, I agree.

There are loads of leaf-suits available from cheaper sources and you simply don't need to spend much money in order to secure one. If anything, I recommend starting with a blank canvas (my first ghillie was a British DPM tanker overall, and it was amazingly easy to convert) and adding foliage to that - the learning process is a step that, all too often, is overlooked. Add some crawl-pads, perhaps some ties or stirrups to prevent the trousers from riding up over your ankles, maybe add a belt or braces, add pockets, or elbow pads........personalising a ghillie is a simple procedure that can make a significant impact on your comfort and playstyle.

 

[Rb19]

Thanks for the input all.

Which suits would you say have the best base colours for UK woodland? And of the suits you have suggested, which have a substantial base material for crafting (for example, I notice some almost look like a breathable thin mesh which are meant as an over suit). Thanks!

 

[Doctor Jest]

I don't want to sound evasive but I genuinely don't think that there is a "best" because it's such an arbitrary, inaccurate metric. By the same token, if you ask in most tech groups what the best hop chamber is, I'll bet 90% of the answers will be MAXX......but that doesn't address all the nuances of tolerances or experiences of techs. Anyway! I've seen old-fashioned British DPM work perfectly (it was designed for the environment) along with Flecktarn, Multicam, and Realtree....and whatever pattern I use is almost always going to end up tinted with acrylic spray paints to suit the locale I play in.

My only advice is to take a good look at the areas you're going to be playing in and proceed accordingly. The thin mesh over suits are cheap for a reason, but they work and are replaceable........how much you make of one is entirely down to your patience and ingenuity......or you could buy a more substantial leaf suit......or whatever you fancy.

The easiest route is probably a leaf suit with Nanoscreen and Haloscreen added. It's not the cheapest.

 

[Doctor Jest]

While I remember, Sprinter Custom Ghillie. Not cheap but very good and off the shelves 😁

Longbow has some in stock.

 

[RonSwanson]

Dpm is a great camo for most woodland UK fields.

Even if you can't get a dpm base use the colours as a starting point for a ghillie.

 

[Rb19]

I’m happy to craft with materials etc but won’t be able to spray as don’t have any where suitable to do it.

Could anyone put a summary of the above suits by their base layer thickness (eg will they hold a cable tie etc)? The NMG one looks quite tempting, although looks like it might need warming up a little in colour for UK?

 

[Doctor Jest]

I don’t have that information. It’s not a factor I consider tbh, cable ties are usually forgiving enough to use, and if not I sew or glue.

More than one route to any given goal.

 

[RonSwanson]

I’m happy to craft with materials etc but won’t be able to spray as don’t have any where suitable to do it.

Could anyone put a summary of the above suits by their base layer thickness (eg will they hold a cable tie etc)? The NMG one looks quite tempting, although looks like it might need warming up a little in colour for UK?

You don't need to spray paint (it's just the easiest way)

You can dye stuff or even paint it with a brush.

Also is your local field actually suitable for a ghillie? Seen too many people laying next to a tree on the barren dirt in a ghillie thinking they have the invisibility cloak from Harry potter when it's achieved the opposite.

 

[Doctor Jest]

You don't need to spray paint (it's just the easiest way)

You can dye stuff or even paint it with a brush.

Also is your local field actually suitable for a ghillie? Seen too many people laying next to a tree on the barren dirt in a ghillie thinking they have the invisibility cloak from Harry potter when it's achieved the opposite.

True!

 

[Doctor Jest]

Actually, as an aside I use low-pressure spray and you don't require a dedicated booth in order to apply it in the slightest.

 

[Rb19]

Thanks! Do you guys have any experience with the DeerHunter leaf or ghillie suits? If so, thoughts?

 

[Doctor Jest]

10:1 it's a rebrand from China...

This?

DH2065 Sneaky 3D Pull-over Set w. Jacket - 40 Innovation Camouflage

DH2065 Sneaky 3D Pull-over Set w. Jacket - 40 Innovation Camouflage

www.deerhunterclothing.co.uk

 

[Rb19]

This one: DH2021 Sneaky Ghillie Pull-over Set w. Gloves

 

[Doctor Jest]

I would say that the applications in the UK, especially in those colours and textures, would be somewhat limited. Very situational.

 

[Rb19]

Please could you elaborate? Sorry, new to the ghillie crafting world, so would be good to know why. Thanks!

p.s any pics of your suits would be amazing!