My buddies at LA Police Gear have seen a lot of pants and hear a lot of user comments so I was excited to get a hold of this latest tactical pant design. For starters they are made of a lightweight 6 oz 60 % poly / 40% cotton rip-stop material making them great for hot weather environments. They don't have any cool Teflon coatings or anything, however the fabric is treated with color-fast to resist fading.
For my preview pair I got a hold of a 32" x 32" which was the closest to what I usually wear, 30" x 30". Although baggy, the waist adjustment system made these fit just fine. Using a velcro connection and a simple plastic loop the waist system holds well while not being a pressure point like on classic BDU pants. The frontal belt loops are thicker than normal to hold up to tactical needs better and 2 frontal plastic D-rings are included that are positioned well to have a set of keys connected to one of the rings and stored in a front thigh pocket. The fly area uses a zipper with classic button resulting in easy access for bathroom breaks. The button isn't as fast as a snap, but is reliable and easy to fix if it were to ever fail. Buttons are also used on the back pockets in which most people will keep one button closed for a good balance of quick use vs. security. In the frontal thigh area are some handy pockets with velcro seals great for EDC gear. Cell phones, pistol mags, ands many flashlights will fit. I like these not so common pockets a lot to help with EDC organization and items inside do not bother me while running. Unlike some pant designs, this one is symmetrical so you get one on each thigh instead of just one total. The main side hand pockets are nice and deep and there appears to be extra fabric on the exterior to increase durability when knives and similar gear are clipped on.
The cargo pockets have a lot of features starting off with a good amount of expansion. The seal uses a common 2 pieces of velcro which is a good compromise of ease of use versus security. Inside are 3 divider slots and even 2 bonus D-rings. Personally I would have rather seen the divider be 2 slots since with 3, the widest item you can fit inside is a folder knife. I'm also not sure how useful 2 D-rings are going to be inside there, but hey they don't hurt. In the center exterior is a slot opening to allow mounting of quick access EDC gear with clips. When putting gear in this slot sometimes it can require some fudging since the central divider may get in the way.
The knee area has double fabric for reinforcement and even has a pocket for knee pad inserts. This pocket is actually a manufacture fluke since knee pad pockets are not on the feature list so sadly when I use my 5.11 inserts they never stay centered and always shift to a side. I think this is a flaw of the side opening design and the bottom opening designs seem to stay centered much better. Anyway, just consider the pocket an accidental freebie rather than a bad feature and will be well. For a little extra something there are side calf pockets with velcro seals. One doesn't want to put heavy items in here, but they make a great place for bandages, gloves, or chemlights. The bottom of the pant legs use simple light webbing for blousing strings.
Despite being the wrong size the fit has generally been comfy so far. If I need to do some Jackie Chan type shit I do feel the crotch is a dash low so I hike the pants up on my waist to improve range of motion. That said, it is likely less of a problem when I wear a pair in 30" long and even as is, there are no problems until I'm doing some extreme stuff. Word is the waists are "true to size" so if you like things a little loose, get the next waist size up. An example would be if you measure your waist and it is 30" exact, you should get the 32" waist pants. For those looking for a lightweight pant, these are an awesome bang for the buck due to including as many features as higher priced brands. Although manufactured well, the light fabric will likely only last about 1 year of heavy use. Fortunately the price is low enough to just buy multiple pants. As an additional perk, since the zipper slider is the only metal on the pants, they are quite airport friendly. Many popular colors are currently available including Khaki, OD Green, and Black.
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