Thoughts on Predator Camo
General Topic
Back in the day, Predator was an outstanding option for camo. How is the current product line? How many still prefer this pattern? Thanks,
I have been using it since it was introduced. I have always been impressed with how whitetails just don’t seem to see it. Old school fall brown seems to work best for me although it was hard to find for a long time. I believe Grey Wolf Woolens offers it again. I don’t think you can go wrong with them. I’ve had some of their stuff for 20 years and it still is fine. I’ve also had a lot of the stuff from Predator, it is OK, but not near the quality of Grey Wolf.
I honestly dread the day when predators pattern goes away. I’ve been using it as well since the day it was introduced. Bought my first jacket who knows when. Everyone I knew talked about the white colors in it being to light. I have honestly went to the brown deception pattern now days. I’ll post a picture of my son in my old Fall Grey hand me downs of grey wolf woolens. You be he judge of the effectiveness of the pattern how broke up it is. He’s in the center of the picture about 30 from me.
Shane
Great pattern but I don’t think it really matters.
Great pattern, but never great fabric options IMO direct from Predator.
I agree 100% with spike and ky. I have some pred camo. Nice patterns in some back grounds, as are other non predator patterns, and the fabric sucks.
I used it for years. Never had another pattern that deer just seemed to “ look thru” like fall grey. I never minded the fabric although it doesn’t compare to the newer high tech fabrics in upper end clothing. I did order another new set of insulated bibs & a jacket several years ago. Many of these companies now have the newer athletic cut that does not fit well on an older heavier man. Sleeve length was like it was for an orangutan.
It's the best IMO. However I dislike that Predator dropped their regular cotton fabric pants from their lineup. I haven't bought anything yet from GWW, but will have to eventually.
If only Sitka, or Firstlite or Kuiu utilized those patterns they would be fantastic.
One of the all time best IMO
Been using it since 1996. Have used other patterns like ASAT, Realtree and Mossy Oak and get stared at more with those than Predator. Day One had some great stuff in Predator, as well as Gray Wolf.
Still have a tote of it, haven’t worn it since I was in high school but still love the pattern.
Probably my favorite pattern out, but I wish some of the gear was a little higher quality. Wore a ton of it years ago, and still wear it plenty for early season whitetails. The Sitka Fanatic has taken over once the temps start to fall though.
I have some of their stuff - pants,shirts, jacket. I’ll sell it if anyone is interested. I dislike the fit of almost everything they produced. Just doesn’t fit me well. And their fabric isn’t the best, but the patterns are pretty awesome.
I love it. I use the green every year still during early deer season. Until 22 I used the heavy fleece they sell. I still have it, and would use it in some situations, or will have my kids use it.
Ultimately I'm a gear junkie, and from other outdoor activities I've used some really good stuff, so I've moved to use another brands stuff from once things brown up/cool off on.
Frankly, the predator stuff is still very good. It's not like it became "bad". I was just willing to shell out $$ for newer gear. I think the heavy fleece served me through like 15-20 seasons and is still fine - it didnt wear out or anything.
Ill say this though, the pattern is still awesome. My only complaint (I think a lot of predator camo nerds would agree) is that the Fall Brown original pattern was my favorite of theirs. I still have some, and at this point I use it cautiously. It's my "warm late season" camo for those weird days that are just hot that we sometimes have.
I've used ASAT but I've been thinking about trying Predator. I have a pull over ASAT fleece shirt that I wear over wherever I'm wearing but I've never been confident about the ASAT pattern in the southeast where a lot of the vegetation stays during the winter. I know it's more about movement but just something I've wondered about.
As good as anything.. better than most
I like it a lot, my favorite along with ASAT.
Have used it for years, the predator brand fleece is incredibly warm and amazing for wind proof but also clammy. It’s not the best out there but it is a great value for the price.
As a pattern the original fall brown has done well but lots of white and it has caused me problems in low light. The brown deception is a little better.
Might be one of the best options for snow cover also.
Love my predator and the white that is in it, especially for tree stand hunting. I have the heavier stuff, because when the leaves are gone, you have to have that white or you will look like a blob in the tree.
I've been using it for probably close to 30 years. I love the Fall gray although fall brown is good. I've got 3 pair of Wolfskin pants from Grey Wolf that I actually bought used probably 12-15 years ago and they are still as good as when I got them. I don't think you can wear them out and they are quiet!
I love it My buddy took this pic of me shortly after I shot my buck
predator and ASAT are the most effective camos on the market IMO.
Real nice tree selection ridge runner
I got lucky , we have a fabric outlet shop in the area i was told about recently. They have 3 big bins of camo pieces. Plus camo on rolls by the yard. After only a couple minutes of looking i hit thejackpot and found 2 pieces of predator fall brown. Both pieces were 6 by8 ft . The cloth in the bins were sold by the pound and only cost $ 12
SC Turk - you hit a jackpot for dang sure!!!
My #1 favourite pattern. Best there is.....with the worst clothing options available. Functionality of the clothing is more important than the pattern to me so I hardly ever use it. If it's a quite somewhat warm day close to freezing sometimes I'll hunt in my fleece for nostalgia's sake.
Just purchased my 1st set of predator camo. I got the stealth micro fleece jacket and pants for a total of under 300$ it's warm and comfortable. Pants fo run a little small but definitely like them. This picture was the last day of Wisconsin bow season.
Fall Brown 1/4 zip pullover
Fall Brown 1/4 zip pullover
Fall Gray wool parka
Fall Gray wool parka
Spring Green Wolfskin
Spring Green Wolfskin
Fall Gray can work on the ground too.
Fall Gray can work on the ground too.
I've been wearing predator camo for at least 30 years. The first set I bought was cotton fall gray and it served me well. Then I upgraded to some Hidden Wolf ( Grey Wolf's predecessor) fall brown and fall gray wool. My favorite piece when it's about 30° or warmer is my fall brown 1/4 zip pullover with kangaroo pocket. For colder temps I wear the Fall Gray parka with windstopper lining. It's incredibly warm. I also have some newer fall gray fleece pants and coat I bought off Camofire. I wear the pants frequently but don't wear the coat very often because I prefer my wool stuff.
I also have some Spring Green Wolfskin that I bought for elk and turkey hunting. It's very effective. One time while elk hunting I had a coyote look right through me from a distance of about 10 yards.
How do you guys like the newer predator patterns? I wish could get fall brown in wool!
I happen to like Predator patterns.... a lot... I own most of the current garment lineup, many old items, and many in multiples with different patterns. Hell, I even have my bows kolorfused in Predator Brown Deception!
I will say many garments leave me wishing they were made with slightly better materials. Some wind proof linings in more garments would be nice. The pants tend to run snug in my experience...from the old cotton 6 pockets to the newer soft shell styles. The quality control, or lack of, is also a bit annoying at times. Many of my tops have sleeve hems and velcro closures that have threads unraveling (but so do some of my items from First Lite that cost way more). Some wonky stitching jobs on some garments as well.
But... when you consider the cost to performance value, and the fact that they're the best patterns ever created, I can live with a few gripes.
I've also had some experiences that have sold me on effectiveness of the patterns; most notably a time I got caught crossing an opening at the top of a hill, there was a doe and fawns just breaking into view some 40 yards away. I knelt down just in time and she came stomping in to 15 yards to investigate with her fawns in tow. She would have had to walk over a big embankment behind me to get my wind and she didn't. After boring holes in me for a few minutes she eventually gave up on me, turned around, and walked away. I was clad in Brown Deception from head to toe, kneeling in snow, while completely silhouetted on a hill top.
The pattern's effectiveness was pretty undeniable in that moment.
Like others have said I love the pattern but the material options from Sitka, First Lite and the like are so much better. The functionality of the clothing outweighs the preference of the pattern to me.
I am in the same boat as most. I am a huge fan of predator patterns but the fabric choices are just horrible. I still wear some old cotton fall gray clothes from them when conditions are perfect but hard to when brands like Kuiu and Sitka make the quality they do
Love the stuff have some great memories with it. But like everyone says poor quality. Wish Sitka or Kuiu would buy em out and offer it....
I've used Predator since it came out in the 80s. Fall Brown looks good to our eyes but in black and white it looks the same as Fall Gray. Here's a photo of Brown, Gray and Camo Clan camo.
Thank You for the replies. I found a cheap set of the Fleece lined pants 501's. Brown Deception. Like new. Maybe I will look at the Gray Wolf stuff.
Any of you predator wearers use the G2 Whitetail. I’m getting ready to order my second pair. I’m really satisfied with the quality and years I got out of them. It’s been from east to west and has done great from April to January.
Shane
I have tha G2 Whitetail pants. I need to get another pair. Great pants.
The light weight hiking pants are really good. A little stretch, wick, comfortable. For early season, they are awesome. Turkey season as well.
Fall grey is in my favorite camo pattern. I own their heavy fleece parka and pants, which I purchased on Camofire. Were it not for the lack of a wind barrier they would be my go-to outfit.
Rooster - check ebay for old cabelas wind shear mid layers. They were a thin fleece outer, and a wind barrier inner. If it's super windy, I still use them under stuff. They were made at some point in the mid 2000-2010 range as I recall, maybe a little longer... But I'd bet you could find em on ebay.
Worth a look due to how well they bust wind.
Another option is something like a Kuiu Peloton vest which is wind resistant and works well under a jacket like yours, or just buying a softshell wind resistant vest from a company like REI or similar. It can workout great and help increase the conditions that you can feel good wearing that coat in.
I have the original hidden wolf-woolens. It is well made and if it had windstopper it would be outstanding. Have not worn it for years simply because of our winds. But man love the predator pattern....
Keep the topic rolling! Great input!
Wish Kuiu would buy them out.
Huge fan of the pattern- particularly Fall Gray....but like everyone else has said the quality of materials is awful.
Hoping they get bought by someone that wants to make better quality clothing.
Also Phil Magistro- I just had a custom recurve built & he used that camo clan camo for the limbs-I think it looks great!
Been using it since it came out. However, I like their older stuff bs the newer Ambush style.
If anyone has any old school XXL size pants, jackets , bibs, whatever, shoot me a message . May be able to make XL or XXL work as well.
My HBS is in fall grey. Warm as toast
Which "New" items do people not like and why? Is it color, sewing, fit????? What would you avoid for Models? There are a lot of different options and some older stuff that people really liked. I love these patterns and want to create a lightweight, midweight, and heavyweight in some different patterns.
I think it’s like the best hard wood and bow hunting from a tree stand pattern on the planet. I don’t own any of the pattern. Never have. But, it’s a light back ground with dark colors over it. In crisp clear images. Often and random enough to truly break up your outline to a color blind animal.
I only have a little because finding ANYTHING in my size is a bugger.
But if anybody has some lightly-used pieces in small sizes that they can’t wear anymore, you let me know. ;)
I only have a little because finding ANYTHING in my size is a bugger.
But if anybody has some lightly-used pieces in small sizes that they can’t wear anymore, you let me know. ;)
I heard The Company may sell soon ..... I hope the New Owners keep the quality and patterns in High Regard! ..... (Best stuff WE have ever owned)! -}}}}}}}}}}}}}}-------------------------->
Herm and Judy have seen a few camo patterns in their time!
Predator winter white is about as close to being invisible as I well ever get. In snow and tree type brush it is amazing. Wish I would have taken a pic of my hide the day this pic was takin. I had 100 deer run by me at less than ten yards and none of them saw me. On the ground. It was magical. Makin memories. If Sitka made the fanatic suit in predator fall gray and winter white I'd own one of each....
Predator fall grey is my all time favorite pattern with ASAT being a close second. I’ve had so many ultra close encounters wearing that stuff.
Yes, I have that pattern in my Heater Body Suit. Wear it all the time from November on, since I ground hunt
