Camo Dipping vs Camo Wraps

[flageye]

I am looking at camo'ing up a few rifles and a pistol. I have found 2 options...

1. Vinyl camo gun skins - http://www.camo4u.com/cgi-bin/edit/camo4u/camo4u/dbdata/qs_camo4u?UserList=listings&UserKeys=shotgun+kit+&M=10

or

2. DIY Camo Dipping - www.camodipkit.com

Do any of you have experience with either? Is one better than the other?

 

[toysoldier]

I am looking at camo'ing up a few rifles and a pistol.

Why---do you want to lose them? I hand-painted a treebark camo pattern on my SKS, left it standing muzzle-down on the bayonet while I crossed a ravine to check targets. When I got back to the edge of the woods where I was standing, I just about couldn't find my rifle. :shock:

 

[coach]

I inherited a shotgun that had some kind of applied plasticy camo on it. It was starting to peal, so I took it all off. I found a lot of rust under the plastic. The shotgun wasn't very well taken care of anyway.

 

[flageye]

we went with the Camo4u camo wraps. I liked the idea of being able to take it back off down the road...

 

[mohavesam]

I tried a DIY kit and it didn't result in a good way. Most of the patterns blob out at any distance anyway.

I do buy hunting shotguns with the dip factory-applied, but for most equipment it looks kinda pimpy to my eyes. I mean camo on pocketknives and coffee pots and ATVs looks like a redneck got loose at Wal-Mart to me.
Value-wise, I'd opine that a DIY'd camo dip on a gun would more-than-not make me pass - y'never know what lurks beneath!

Good 'ol cloth camo tape (removeable) works for me and especially on a gun, protects from scratches and rubs very well in normal field use. Dips don't do nearly as well in that concern.

 

[Pal Val]

I frankly don't see the need for camo for a rifle. Of the four stealth disciplines: Sound discipline, movement discipline, odor discipline and visual camouflage, the least necessary one is visual camouflage. The only animals who rely on their eyesight are predators, and we seldom hunt predators.

 

[GunnyGene]

Most "camo" on civilian guns is pointless. If the objective is to truly camouflage it needs to match the terrain at that place and time. Otherwise it's just decoration.

 

[toysoldier]

Most of the patterns blob out at any distance anyway.

...but for most equipment it looks kinda pimpy to my eyes. I mean camo on pocketknives and coffee pots and ATVs looks like a redneck got loose at Wal-Mart to me. Good 'ol cloth camo tape (removeable) works for me and especially on a gun, protects from scratches and rubs very well in normal field use. Dips don't do nearly as well in that concern.

Camo was taken up by retailers and pushed as a fashion fad, with camo bedsheets, lingere, wedding dresses, and more. I thought camo children's clothing was the ultimate in stupid stylishness overcoming common sense. It's hard enough to find a kid lost in the woods, even when he's wearing blue jeans and a red T-shirt. Same for a knife or binoculars. The seemingly endless variations of camo clothing are designed to appeal to hunters, not necessarily provide effective camoflage. You will note that no military camo (where effectiveness can mean the difference between life and death) resembles Realtree.

If you want to cover your shiny blued steel/varnished walnut rifle without gumming it up with camo tape, get the camo Coban wrap that only sticks to itself.

 

[Rick Courtright]

You will note that no military camo (where effectiveness can mean the difference between life and death) resembles Realtree.

Hi,

Interesting sideline on military camo: a documentary I saw years ago claimed the British "Redcoat" was the first "camo" used in relatively modern military history. Apparently its purpose was to confuse enemy spies as they tried to count the Brits' troop strength from across potential battlefields. When used on lots of individuals sorta "packed in" together, red makes it very hard for the human eye to pick out those individuals from the big "glob" of color to get a good count. In their form of warfare at the time, I guess it worked!

Rick C

 

[flageye]

funny pic...

 

[wolfsong]

You will note that no military camo (where effectiveness can mean the difference between life and death) resembles Realtree.

Hi,

Interesting sideline on military camo: a documentary I saw years ago claimed the British "Redcoat" was the first "camo" used in relatively modern military history. Apparently its purpose was to confuse enemy spies as they tried to count the Brits' troop strength from across potential battlefields. When used on lots of individuals sorta "packed in" together, red makes it very hard for the human eye to pick out those individuals from the big "glob" of color to get a good count. In their form of warfare at the time, I guess it worked!

Rick C

Yep, I agree. That big red blob made for a big red target.

 

[wwb]

.......
Interesting sideline on military camo: a documentary I saw years ago claimed the British "Redcoat" was the first "camo" used in relatively modern military history. Apparently its purpose was to confuse enemy spies as they tried to count the Brits' troop strength from across potential battlefields.........

A long time ago, I heard (joke) about a captured British officer being interrogated during the Revolutionary War. As a matter of curiosity, the American asked him why they wore red, as it stood out so well. The British officer said that blood wouldn't show on a red coat, so it was less likely to demoralize the troops when they saw dead and wounded on the battlefield. After a thoughtful pause, the American said, "That would explain why the French wear brown pants."

 

[Bear Paw Jack]

I frankly don't see the need for camo for a rifle. Of the four stealth disciplines: Sound discipline, movement discipline, odor discipline and visual camouflage, the least necessary one is visual camouflage. The only animals who rely on their eyesight are predators, and we seldom hunt predators.

Agreed. Way to many things get Camo. I don't need camo for my gear, I want to be able to find it if I lay it down. My version of camo in a rifle is a Zytel stock Mark II Stainless which stands out, but has never been an issue.

 

[Jim Puke]

The only animals who rely on their eyesight are predators, and we seldom hunt predators.

Apparently, you have never hunted southern whitetails or you would know that this is a load of crap.

If they do not depend on their eyes, why do they run when they see you...with the wind in your favor?

If you don't think that they depend on their eyesight, just bring a bucket next time you go hunting and put it down out in front your stand see how many deer it spooks...because they have not SEEN it there, before.

 

[wolfsong]

Deer react to shapes and movement, not color, when utilizing their vision. Their primary sensory warning system is scent, followed by sound. Vision is last.

 

[Jim Puke]

Deer react to shapes and movement, not color, when utilizing their vision. Their primary sensory warning system is scent, followed by sound. Vision is last.

And, that does not mean that they stand there and go through the sensory list before reacting. That means that their main alert system is olfactory...but they can and most times will react to visual input JUST as quickly...if what they are seeing does not belong in their environment.Their nose and ears protect them from things they have not made visual contact with...generally speaking.

 

[Busterswoodshop]

I have hunted Coues Whitetail and elk for 45 + years.
Most of the time when they see you , they either heard you or smelled you first.
I have never worn camouflage in my life and have never seen a need for it while hunting.
How do all the hunters running around wearing blaze orange ever get an animal ?

You know the old saying " fishing lures are made to catch fishermen not fish ".
I think camouflage is made to catch gullible hunters not animals.

 

[stevemb]

I hope to soon get a 480SBh. It'll be SS.. Like MohaveSam, I like the cloth camo tape. I don't expect it to magically hide the gun, just reduce the shine and contrast as I pull it up and out. At end of hunting season, the camo taping comes off.

 

[Pal Val]

I'm too old to get into arguments about what deer see and what they don't. They certainly see movement and also react when they see unfamiliar shapes. Since camo on a rifle won't mask neither movement nor shape, it's decoration, as far as I'm concerned.

BTW, I have not hunted deer in Georgia. Does Virginia count?

 

[wolfsong]

I'm too old to get into arguments about what deer see and what they don't. They certainly see movement and also react when they see unfamiliar shapes. Since camo on a rifle won't mask neither movement nor shape, it's decoration, as far as I'm concerned.

BTW, I have not hunted deer in Georgia. Does Virginia count?

I agree with you, and, yes, Virginia counts.

 

[Pal Val]

I'm too old to get into arguments about what deer see and what they don't. They certainly see movement and also react when they see unfamiliar shapes. Since camo on a rifle won't mask neither movement nor shape, it's decoration, as far as I'm concerned.

BTW, I have not hunted deer in Georgia. Does Virginia count?

I agree with you, and, yes, Virginia counts.

I once took a buck not too far from Winchester, VA that must have fed on corn and apples all its life. The meat was delicious. Kind of redundant to hunt in Winchester carrying a Winchester rifle (.44Mag 94 trapper). Too bad I've never been back.