The US Night Desert craze started seemingly out of nowhere in 2018. Growing nostalgia (for lack of a better term) and interest in Operation Desert Storm led to the re-discovery of the Desert Night Camouflage (DNC) parka and pants issued to ground troops during the conflict. The pattern was funky, short lived, and had an interesting history, so naturally it started to become popular. How did a comically oversized jacket with no liner or pockets skyrocket in price? Because the pattern is neat. Here I’ll go over my custom DNC parka and share some history on “raid mod” uniforms.

Recently, I was doing some research on the Heckler & Koch G3 rifle. From there I found the AG3 or Avtomatgevaer 3, which is Norway's designation for the G3 rifle. What really got my attention was a picture I saw that looked like it was taken some time in the early to mid Cold War, maybe late 60's. The part I found interesting was not the subject matter, but that the picture was actually from the mid 90's!

Rain coat, windbreaker, fall jacket, Bag of Holding. The British CS95 Windproof Smock is all of these things and more. Derived from a popular design from the Second World War, the windproof smock still sees military service today, and remains extremely popular in civilian circles. The smock is a product of the dismal weather of the British Isles, and is as much of a symbol of its homeland as the L85 or Aston Martin.

The Soviet Union and countries using their leftover Cold War era gear have a reputation for strangely colored furniture and magazines. Orange Bakelite magazines are relatively common and well known, but a more interesting and debated example is the mystifying purple hue of Russian Plum.

The South African Pattern 83 gear is a scalable load bearing system used by the South African Defense Force in various bush wars all around southern Africa. Made of tough water resistant cordura fabric, Pattern 83 consists of a chest rig, “battle jacket” assault vest, and the “grootsak” rucksack. This gear is versatile, adaptable, and perfect for campers, hikers, bushwackers, hunters, competitive shooters, and Bush War enthusiasts alike. 

The US Night Desert Reversible Parka is a flexible three-season garment used by US special forces in the Persian Gulf War and beyond. The main pattern is US 3 Color Desert, with US Desert Night on the “inside” shell to disrupt image intensifiers during low light use. This jacket is perfect for anyone looking for an all-weather 3 season outer shell, NAVSPECWARCOM fanboys, and anyone looking to defeat first generation Soviet night vision.