Camo or No?

[WeatherbyUK]

We’ve seen a move towards disruptive patterned guns by tikka, Blaser, ourselves (Weatherby) etc… but what are everyone’s thoughts? Is this just an American/European fad or do subtle disruption patterns have a place?

Drab colours generally seem to work as well as camo, many would argue that movement is the main giveaway, but some have speculated that some deer species may see colour… we’re really interested to know what the U.K. market wants in terms of colour schemes on rifles?

 

[Drum123]

It's just marketing surely? I think a polished stainless barrel dosnt take any harm in being subdued a little but all over camo?

 

[VSS]

Just a fad.
Looks awful, and probably makes no difference.

 

[Will the chippy]

If camo makes so much difference then how do the Americans and some European countries wear bright orange without issue.
No need other than fashion.

 

[Ruby Tuesday 2]

If we really wanted our rifles to blend in . We could try making the stocks out of wood.

 

[Will the chippy]

If we really wanted our rifles to blend in . We could try making the stocks out of wood.

That's an absurd idea, it'll never catch on.

 

[HonestJohn]

Far more important than finish, is how well bedded and strong they are. If an end user is going to desire an ‘upgrade’, you might as well sell the rifle bare. Remington realised this and went bidirectional - junk stocks that get replaced anyway and lower prices of rifles - and those coming with Bell and Carlson stocks. They didn’t execute the concept correctly, but were on the right track.

If you have an stunning quality stock - you could paint pigs with strap on’s and people would buy them all day long.

As for colours - plain olive and dark grey with a few textured dabbling / sponge effects would cover as much as anyone could wish for. All the ‘spider web effect’ and some in bizzare colours is really just a waste of time to promote by some stock makers. Make it good quality, simple, and something the end user will not wish to upgrade.

 

[Emmett&Stone]

We weren’t sure if the tikka or weatherby camo options would sell when they first arrived - but they’ve done well… having said that the majority sold are black or black/stainless

 

[Tim.243]

We’ve seen a move towards disruptive patterned guns by tikka, Blaser, ourselves (Weatherby) etc… but what are everyone’s thoughts? Is this just an American/European fad or do subtle disruption patterns have a place?

Drab colours generally seem to work as well as camo, many would argue that movement is the main giveaway, but some have speculated that some deer species may see colour… we’re really interested to know what the U.K. market wants in terms of colour schemes on rifles?

View attachment 363369

The key factors are movement wind direction, I have watched pigeon shooters top to toe in camo in a hide, they get up too early the pigeon sees the movement and turns off.
Watch a SA PH and he will be in shorts a blue top and the US guests couple will be in matching one piece digital camo, the PH is working the wind.
Foxes were seeing my face when I first got the thermal as the screen lit my face up so I put a shuttered eye piece
works a treat.

 

[WeatherbyUK]

It's just marketing surely? I think a polished stainless barrel dosnt take any harm in being subdued a little but all over camo?

Marketing is absolutely part of it - like fishing lures or cars, colour’s definitely sell… perhaps we all just like the way things look and if it does no harm then why not but do you like the way the newer colour schemes look or would you prefer a solid colour?

 

[The Singing Stalker]

It is a fashion thing. I’m not against it per se.
The old farts on here will bitch and moan if it isn’t made of wood that has been hand polished by 100 virgins. Please note, I never mentioned the sex of said virgins as we want to be all inclusive these days.

Personally, if I think it looks nice, and different, then yes, I would be interested, I wouldn’t be expecting to magically disappear in the forest though.
I prefer thumbhole stocks, cos that’s me, others don’t. I like tactitool, but wouldn’t buy one cos they are too heavy. Loads of people on here hate them. I’m not helping am I. So, yes, I like it.

I think younger people would be drawn to them, as would I. Especially if it was in say, 223 calibre with a left hand bolt, adjustable butt with a max lop of 16 and 1/4 inches.

I may be on my own here, but, off the shelf rifle stocks do not fit me, so I would have to take the lovely fancy stock, throw it away and replace it with a custom that fits me. That is my biggest issue.

 

[Rory]

Absolutely worthwhile to camo the entire rifle. Breaking up the outline, blending with the environment is all worth it to avoid detection. But I think one issue limiting the popularity of camo rifles (if not camo in general in the UK) is the difficulty with buying and selling rifles quickly in the UK market.

Seeing a rifle you like, getting a variation (or getting a variation then waiting ages for the right rifle to come by) all takes time and removes some of the impulse buying of shiny kit that is possible in a market like the US.
This means that if you do buy a camo rifle, you then need a buyer that wants the exact scheme and calibre if you ever want or need to sell without huge losses.
Camo patterns will also unfortunately have a fashion lifespan (though they should all be judged on effectiveness) and so will then be less desirable the older they are.

I personally would like to be able to buy a fully camouflaged rifle, but I am equally happy with getting the spray cans out and doing it myself.

 

[Tim.243]

Absolutely worthwhile to camo the entire rifle. Breaking up the outline, blending with the environment is all worth it to avoid detection. But I think one issue limiting the popularity of camo rifles (if not camo in general in the UK) is the difficulty with buying and selling rifles quickly in the UK market.

Seeing a rifle you like, getting a variation (or getting a variation then waiting ages for the right rifle to come by) all takes time and removes some of the impulse buying of shiny kit that is possible in a market like the US.
This means that if you do buy a camo rifle, you then need a buyer that wants the exact scheme and calibre if you ever want or need to sell without huge losses.
Camo patterns will also unfortunately have a fashion lifespan (though they should all be judged on effectiveness) and so will then be less desirable the older they are.

I personally would like to be able to buy a fully camouflaged rifle, but I am equally happy with getting the spray cans out and doing it myself.
View attachment 363370

You missed a bit....

 

[HonestJohn]

Marketing is absolutely part of it - like fishing lures or cars, colour’s definitely sell… perhaps we all just like the way things look and if it does no harm then why not but do you like the way the newer colour schemes look or would you prefer a solid colour?

Your offering is quite nice, but to me being in my 40’s, I’d prefer more toned down paint effects or plain black/olive. 99% of your market is the US of course, and in the US, camo sells! What do you import to the UK to boost sales is probably your real question here - yes, plain black would likely be the best bet to avoid having excess unsold goods you can’t move back to the US.

One thing - the curved ventilated recoil pads need to be gotten rid of - that is a deal breaker above any stock paint IMHO

 

[WeatherbyUK]

Your offering is quite nice, but to me being in my 40’s, I’d prefer more toned down paint effects or plain black/olive. 99% of your market is the US of course, and in the US, camo sells! What do you import to the UK to boost sales is probably your real question here - yes, plain black would likely be the best bet to avoid having excess unsold goods you can’t move back to the US.

One thing - the curved ventilated recoil pads need to be gotten rid of - that is a deal breaker above any stock paint IMHO

Thank you - it’s been really interesting getting feedback on this for us, and we heard the same in a recent trip to Germany.

The hex-pad is insanely good at reducing recoil, but this only really matters on our magnum calibers, so we’re considering switching to a standard pad to help with lead times.

We’re planning on offering this pattern as an addition to our line up, apart from the pad what are your thoughts?

 

[Rory]

Looks 'on trend' and smart. Some subtlety to it as well so I think that would be a 'gateway' camo stock and probably sell.

 

[HonestJohn]

Thank you - it’s been really interesting getting feedback on this for us, and we heard the same in a recent trip to Germany.

The hex-pad is insanely good at reducing recoil, but this only really matters on our magnum calibers, so we’re considering switching to a standard pad to help with lead times.

We’re planning on offering this pattern as an addition to our line up, apart from the pad what are your thoughts?
View attachment 363374

I like that pattern, you could have that and that only in the U.K. and it would work.

Pad aside - here’s what you are forgetting about ‘the pad’ - try replacing it with another that’s thinner or thicker to adjust LOP from say Pacmeyer? Can’t do.

Any colour as long as it’s black is a fine approach, but you can’t be forced to only drive Ford tyres

 

[Len the dog]

Maybe we should camo up the loud end of the moderator, but the rest is pointless.

 

[HonestJohn]

Also - Do something others don’t - make LOP extensions or sell them with 3 different pad depths. Supply paint ‘touch up’ sprays, etc.

 

[Rory]

Maybe we should camo up the loud end of the moderator, but the rest is pointless.

That's an interesting point, many forget that is something that definitely needs camming up if you are going to do things seriously. The same way the eye is drawn to straight lines, it is also drawn to uniformity (a concentric circle).
Here is a good example of the shooter's cam rendered pointless by having his shiny ring on display.