Ultra voilet whites

R

River Runner

New member
You Great White Northern boys that wear white camo ever hear of that laundry soap that doesn't put ultra voilet color enhancers back in your cloths?
I had a sample from somewhere a while back and looked at it as some kind of farse.
I bought a Cabela's Snow Shadow suit a couple of weeks ago, one of the kids was taken pictures of me parading around the house in it, and that thing just seemed to literally glow in the pictures, I mean like "where's my sunglasses" glow.

Anyone ever notice that? Ever try that soap? Or should I find something more important to worry about /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
I've heard of the soap, but have never tried it.I understand what your saying about the glow. When I get geared up in my "Predator Hunting" attire, my wife always says "You look real bright!" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Seriously, I feel somewhat qualified to speak to snow camo and cold weather hunting. Today it is
-30F. There is no wind, but with any kind of breeze, the wind chill is brutal. This cold is exceptional, as we have an "Arctic Express" coming through right now. Normally temps run around +20F to +25F.

We also don't get a lot of snow, we have had maybe 2 inches on the ground since November. Since this is semi desert, without the snow, the countryside is brown grass.

My usual attire without the snow is a "Carhart" type coat and bibs, over longjohns, and jeans. The brown color disappears in the landscape, and the more they fade, the better it blends. It is a solid color, but I think the rifle {with vet wrap}and gear{binos etc.} helps to break my outline when I'm lying prone.

I always have my "Snow" camo in the truck. I use military surplus pants and "parka". I think the whole suit weighs a pound or less. It is nylon and only slightly heavier than parachute material.It is oversized and will fit comfortably over any of my gear/ clothes. It provides very little warmth, other than a windstop, but I really like it because it will not hold the snow.I've tried several other "Snow Camos" only to wind up wet with the fabric frozen stiff from going in and out of the vehicle.

This stuff is off white and doesn't seem to reflect or glow.It also is $30 Cdn for the set. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif I disappear in it in the snow. If the snow is patchy or broken, I may just wear tops or bottom and take advantage of my "Carhart" color.

I really think "Glow" or sheen from fabrics is far more important to camo than color is. Beasties don't see the range of colors we do, but they can sure tell when something doesn't "fit" in the landscape. When I'm training my Labradors to do blinds, I use flourescent orange dummies/bumpers.The dogs blow right past them without seing them. Put a white one next to it and they can spot it hundreds of yards away.

I know you asked about soap, but it's too cold to call today, so I have to find something else to do. This is it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
 
Have heard & read about that soap. But frankly I could careless. To me movement or lack there of is far more important.

Redfrog - I like the left turn that you did on the topic and your comments on what you wear or use in your part of the north. Me, I live in cold country. We are having another warm winter here as its a big -15F today. Our normal temps run in the -25 to -35 below range with about 2-3 feet of snow that doesn't go away until the end of April. Cold here is considered in the -40 & -50 ranges and a real cold spell will get below 60 for a couple of weeks) Most calling is at 0 and below. I usually call to about 30F below but will venture out at -40 if heading up into the hills where it can be warmer. -50 or colder gets a bit dangerous as the world as we know really changes. We don't get much wind except during a weather change or storm.

Anyways here is what I usually wear. My pants are fleece lined jeans. I put on long johns when temps are at -20 or colder. Those pants are warm! For uppers I wear t-shirt (cotton too!), then an over shirt, I add a white sweat shirt with hood then put on either my carhart coat or summer camo coat. If it is cold(-20 or chillier I replace the t shirt with long underwear. For snow camo I use a mil surplus snow camoed poncho. It plus my whitehooded sweat shirt works well and I can "disapear". The poncho breaks up that "human" outline when creeping into a stand or putting the sneak on caribou. Also it provides a degree of warmth and snow protection. It is usually too cold to worry much about the snow melting on ones clothes. When running my snogo if it is cold I will use carhart pants over my fleece lined and ditch the longjohns.

Yep not much info on soap! I said I'd stay in today and do must dos. LOL
 
the brightness in the clothes is caused by uv additives in the soap, it won't make taht big a difference in full daylight but at dusk or dawn or lowlight you will stand out like a sorethumb, you need to wash in uv killer soap or don't use the soap that brightens the wash,

and oh by the way wearing cotton underneath your clothes in cold temps is going to get you in trouble, cotton=cool, wear some wicking material it will keep you warmer.
 
It may just be the low light situation, but I'd still like to find some of that soap.
I mean, take a look at my socks here, they damnear blend in with the concrete /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif compared to the suit. And no they, I say no they aint in need of a washin. I only had em on for 4 days /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif

newsuit.jpg
 
howler -

I guess you have to wash in soap to get the uv additive so why use soap at all. A few cycles in plain good old well water solves that problem. Heck that's what I do.

Don't worry I'm very familiar, probably more so then most on these forums, about the danger of cotton when it gets moisture in it. Being a solo hunter/trapper in extremely harsh conditions I know that a mistake here in the winter will kill you. That is why I ID'd it! Plus it was bait knowing that someone would chrip in about it. LOL And these forums have been a little slow lately.
 
River he's right the addaitve is the soap and I think Tide is one of the big ones. I wash all my hunting gear to include my over whites in Baking Soda. It kills the odors and dulls the clothes.

Todd
 
I'll giver er a shoot through the Maytag in plain water, but I still got my eyes open for some of that UV killer. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
the UV killer is known thru-out the bowhunting world. and yiou can buy special uv killer to get rid of the stuff, BUT you can also buy soap at the grocery store that dosn't contain the uv brightner I can't remember what it is called right now but will find out and post it later. it is about 1/3 the cost, /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
John/alaska I have washed my camo many times just using baking soda as a scent killer and no soap but sometimes you have to use soap to get things clean, and I thought you would know how to keep warm glad to hear you were just making some conversation /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
Original quote from http://www.atsko.com/uvkiller.html:
[qb]U-V-Killer blocks ultraviolet reflection and luminescence. For all fabric, camouflage, and blaze orange. One bottle will treat two sets of hunting clothes.

The original U-V-Killer and Sport-Wash Combo Pack has changed how hunters think about camouflage. It has been proven that animals and birds have sensitivity to ultraviolet light and the 438nm short-blue wavelengths that humans are blind to. U-V-Killer absorbs U-V wavelengths and thereby eliminates the blue glow caused by fabric dyes and detergents that contain U-V brighteners.

U-V Killer and Sport-Wash are two revolutionary products which eliminate the brighteners from your camouflage. They make your camouflage almost invisible to the keen eyes of deer and other game.

First wash new or soiled garments in Sport-Wash. Then spray on U-V-Killer. U-V-Killer absorbs the ultraviolet light and literally kills the blue-white glow which animals and brids so easily see on untreated garments.

For a better chance at all wild game, treat your camouflage and blaze orange with U-V-Killer.

It should be noted that a single washing in commercial detergents or fabric softeners will (while not removing the treatment) render the U-V-Killer useless by depositing new brightener dyes. Always wash treated clothes in Sport-Wash.

[/qb]
Click to expand...
Well....must be a helluva sales pitch cause I'm sold /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

oh, hey thanks for name on the stuff Greenside.
 
One time, about 10 miles west of Waycross, Georgia back in 1974, I thought I'd met some Ultra Violent Whites. My Fiat blew a fuel pump fuse. We were dead in the swamp at about 10 pm. These two troopers picked me up and took me back to Waycross at about 90 miles an hour. I was quite glad I'd decided to get a hair cut before I took that trip...

Rain water and sunshine will work very well on de-glowing your whites. Also, while not natural to us, maybe the animals won't mind so much. Have you noticed how some times a dall sheep will just glow in the right light? Even with it's hair sort of yellow stained by minerals in the soil, in the right light, they will often glow. Goats and winter ptarmigan can look the same way. Often driving along or glassing for ptarmigan, I am looking for the whitest puffy dots I can find. Usually, they are ptarmigan.

Up in ANWR, Kaktovik, I've seen Polar Bears that positively glowed even in the murky dusk of a winters noon.

Snow-blowed-clean arctic foxes that aren't draggin' around dump stains or snow boogers, can also look whiter than any other part of an otherwise, stark white,landscape. They can be very bright at times.

Snow buntings, a gyrfalcon, or a snow owl sans the blood on his breast, can look very white.

The shadow - gray on that pattern looks good too. Nice pattern!

Personally I use painters coveralls made out of Tyvek like stuff. They are miserable because they don't breath, but make very lite whites. The surplus camo white pancho is good too for me, as it too is cheap.

I'd like to try a polar fleece Capot only not so long as a capot, for snowshoeing.. A pull over hooded light fleece anorak I think would be about perfect in size way-too-large. And some large pull on pants with pocket slits so I could get into the real pockets of my wool malones would be good too.

Take care back there in the old country.. I grew up around Sheboygan... Glen
Whats interesting on this thread is all the different kinds of things you can buy now to wash your clothes.
 
Glen, I know what your saying as far as the whites that are out there, unnatural to us but not the critters.
As wrong as it may be, I still have to think I'd stick out since there are no Artic Fox, Polar Bears, or Ptarmigan running around up here. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

By the way...what was you doing in the Southern swamps of Georgia at 10pm? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

You grew up in Sheboygan you say? I spent a lot of time in Sheboygan when I was younger. Dated a girl at U.W.M.
 
OK guys here is the straight scoop, the stuff in the soap that makes it glow is phosphates and to avoid that you need to use Allergen Free soap. the one I know is made by All and it is called All free and clear, no scent and no phosphate. this stuff is sold in super markets and is 1/2 or 1/3 the price of the stuff sold in sporting goods stores. try it you like it.
 
Hi River Runner:

I was leaving Georgia for Florida, and happened to burn that fuse. Got a tow and met a nice person in Waycross where we stayed the night. It was alot of fun.. The people in Georgia (and the great big cops who drove fast) were very nice. Next day we were on the road zooming off to the Keys...

Many of my best memories are of Sheboygan, Wisconsin, where my I grew up until 13 years old. My Dad was a Forester there for many years with the State of Wisconsin and a part time Game Warden. My brother and I had all kinds of cool pets growing up. Coon, fox, crows, owls. I loved it back there... I went back once to check it out many years later. It is still very nice, and I liked it, but also much too many people for me any more. I could live much further north near Eagle River etc. or the UP of Michigan.

Any more Alaska suits me to a Tee.

Sounds like Howler's got a resonable recipe for your whites... nice talking to you folks!

Glen /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Sportswash will kill the UV and they sell it in Walmart usually for around 7dollars. How do you like those new coveralls. I was going to buy a pair but would like to know what you think of them first.

Greg
 
River Runner, I like that camo pattern too.. Whered you find that? Gloves that match? I'll be dipped! If you don't mind my asking, How much does it cost? AW
 
He's wearing Cabela's snow shadow coveralls. 99.95-134.99 a pice (depending on size). The gloves are $20 I think. Website is www.cabelas.com search snow camo you should find the gloves and suit both on the first page that comes up. Thinkin of getting a pair myself actually.
 
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