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Quoted: Ok. So you posted a thread about normal people, apparently either in the .MIL or LEO, walking around not trying to "gray out…." because I don't see anyone in those pics that's trying to be the "gray man". What are those 1st pics? 5.11 shirt advertisements? You attempt at an edgy thread is an utter failure and you should feel bad. View Quote You’re not much of a follower of tactisexual gunbro culture, are you? The pictures in the OP probably are 5.11 ads but there are a LOT of dudes walking around dressed like that who think that they are nailing that “gray man” concept. |
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Quoted: Ok. So you posted a thread about normal people, apparently either in the .MIL or LEO, walking around not trying to "gray out…." because I don't see anyone in those pics that's trying to be the "gray man". What are those 1st pics? 5.11 shirt advertisements? You attempt at an edgy thread is an utter failure and you should feel bad. View Quote My man, you aren't tracking here. There are a ton of people dressing exactly how he posted who think they are being subtle and not giving themselves away as a "Sheepdog". There are preppers who honestly believe everyone dresses this way and they wont be immediately made if something bad goes down. |
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Why can't gun owners just dress normal? I swear, they're all the archetype of the "American dad." Delusional self appointed protectors of society.
I just wear what I always wear. Blue jeans and a band T-shirt. Not 511 pants, tan ball caps with an American flag patch on it, coupled with an "operator beard." Quit watching videos on how to be "tactical dad." |
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Quoted: Ok. So you posted a thread about normal people, apparently either in the .MIL or LEO, walking around not trying to "gray out." because I don't see anyone in those pics that's trying to be the "gray man". What are those 1st pics? 5.11 shirt advertisements? You attempt at an edgy thread is an utter failure and you should feel bad. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted: Quoted: Yes, that's the point of this thread. Ok. So you posted a thread about normal people, apparently either in the .MIL or LEO, walking around not trying to "gray out." because I don't see anyone in those pics that's trying to be the "gray man". What are those 1st pics? 5.11 shirt advertisements? You attempt at an edgy thread is an utter failure and you should feel bad. |
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Quoted: I always tell my dad he dresses in the "that guy 100% has a gun" uniform. View Quote Dressing is only part of the equation. More critical, at least IMHO, is the way you carry yourself, your gait and arm swing, glances, facial composure, etc…. With most folks who haven't done this for real thier ego takes over and they naturally default some type of caricature that essentially screams "I'm a gray man but you better believe I'm a bad ass !" or something like that. The simple training point is determine some key aspects of the enviornment you want to maneuver in and then determine what the cover for status is and cover for action. That's some of the basic stuff and it goes from there…e.g. is it a tourist area that's open from 9-5 type of thing? If so dressing and acting like a tourst might work at 3pm but may not work well if you need to be there at 0200…..homeless and slightly crazy is a great cover nowadays if you're willing to piss and shit in your pants and do slightly crazy homeless shit. They're about as gray as it can get in some environments. Honestly some of the best I've worked with were UC Cops doing long term drug work. The problem of course is that when you stare into the abyss the abyss also looks long into you. |
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Quoted: It's difficult and complicated to dress and act like a normal person if you're not one. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes |
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Quoted: Ok here's something more your style. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/394169/6371CB50-7A52-4939-9EA3-C501259F33E5_jpe-2355284.JPGhttps://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/394169/E9348026-700A-4A81-839B-F41872B6FD7C_jpe-2355285.JPG View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted: Quoted: Op posts pics of 5.11 clothing line and expects anyone to believe that's "grey man"? Lols, more like FCBC https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/394169/6371CB50-7A52-4939-9EA3-C501259F33E5_jpe-2355284.JPGhttps://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/394169/E9348026-700A-4A81-839B-F41872B6FD7C_jpe-2355285.JPG Those Adidas Terrex the old guy at the bottom is wearing are comfortable ass shoes with good lugs on the bottom. That dude operates. |
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Quoted: You’re not much of a follower of tactisexual gunbro culture, are you? The pictures in the OP probably are 5.11 ads but there are a LOT of dudes walking around dressed like that who think that they are nailing that “gray man” concept. View Quote No doubt, while 5.11 attire is at home on the trail or in the backcountry it's almost never at home in suburbia. Wearing grey-man attire when everyone of your contemporaries is wearing shorts, t-shirts and canvas shoes yeah you stick out.... |
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Quoted: Fuck the whole gray man concept. It's all a fucking fallacy. You're only gray in your personal perception bubble. Fortunately most people are so fucking self-absorbed they wouldn't notice you if you were wearing pink tights with blue polka dots and your favorite furry outfit. Potential threats will mark you regardless of your looks, demeanor, or goofy-ass persona. Focus on your own situational awareness and personal preparation; wear what makes you comfortable and don't draw excessive attention to yourself. If you think you have to change your clothes, how you talk, or how you act to fit in, you're never going to fit in. Gray man is a fucking joke and fallacy. Be situationally aware of your environment, know yourself, don't be stupid = gray man. ROCK6 View Quote I don't think this is the case at all. Lets say something goes down, something big and you are just trying to get home. Roadblocks. Here I am in my dress shirt, nice shoes and my Outback vs dude in his truck covered in gun stickers and grunt style t-shirt. If you think people don't profile, as in all people, you would be wrong. Throw on some jeans, a hard hat, work boots, and a neon vest and you could basically go anywhere. In fact I would go so far to say that a neon vest might be a valued addition to a get home bag. |
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Work coveralls and a clipboard can be really effective. It sounds totally cliche, but it works.
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Quoted: It's also easy enough to slap magnetic stickers to the door panels. A 24x18 w/ a logo isn't very much at all and lends some additional credibility. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Don't know why this is so hard. Just dress like the people around you. Around here that's Walmart, Tractor Supply, and Rural King. You can even wear your OD green Tactical Tailor ballcap with the velcro and subdued American flag or Don't Tread on Me patch since everyone is wearing them too. If you want to go places w/o questions put on some dirty workwear, grab a Veto Pro Pac tool bag, and have a "F this, they've got me working a Saturday" attitude. Bonus points if you embroider a telecom or HVAC Co. logo on your jacket. This! Bonus: if you don't plaster your truck with stickers and have a cone in the bed to put out behind (or in front) then you can park wherever you like. I worked for a network cabling company right out of HS, then a local nonprofit, neither of which had marked company vehicles. It's amazing how no one even looks twice if you have a cone and/or look like a contractor. It's also easy enough to slap magnetic stickers to the door panels. A 24x18 w/ a logo isn't very much at all and lends some additional credibility. A generic, white domestic work truck/van/ute with a door logo, a cone, and a magnetic orange spinner can go anywhere. I've been let into so many places that afterwords I realized they didn't even check my creds other than maybe seeing a logo on my vehicle. |
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I wear 511 pants because I really like all the pockets, and the pants are pretty durable.
I’m not trying to be all tacticool. I think my wearing socks & sandals and nerdy t-shirts with them pretty much establishes that. |
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LOL, if you are trying to look like anything gray man, hunter,biker,shooter,whatever it will be apparent to any observant person.
If you are dressing any way other than random normal, however you would on any other day of the week you will stick out like a sore dick. Silly fucking "I'm a contractor on the internet" fed-lite shit in the OP will be grossly apparent to anyone who may have even the slightest inclination to mark you. |
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I have a Grey beard and a cowboy hat while riding a bicycle in cargo shorts and crocs.
Attached File |
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Quoted: So, I hate the be the guy that has to tell you. His accent made it sound like coke, he was actually asking if you needed some cock. You were sending out some gay vibes, bruh. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted: Quoted: I was in Amsterdam wearing nothing to stand out and had a dude walk up “Hey American gangster. Need some coke?” Sometimes trying to hide is impossible. So, I hate the be the guy that has to tell you. His accent made it sound like coke, he was actually asking if you needed some cock. You were sending out some gay vibes, bruh. |
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Quoted: I wear 511 pants because I really like all the pockets, and the pants are pretty durable. I’m not trying to be all tacticool. I think my wearing socks & sandals and nerdy t-shirts with them pretty much establishes that. View Quote The 5.11 Apex pants have the pockets and don't look quite as "tactical". |
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Quoted: Done. Just took the pic for you. VP9SK for scale. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/394169/AB34D48B-90C2-4390-9B2E-0AE319E3C174_jpe-2355299.JPG View Quote Kent master race checking in! |
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Quoted: I have a Grey beard and a cowboy hat while riding a bicycle in cargo shorts and crocs. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/126641/20220416_112547_jpg-2355478.JPG View Quote |
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Boots and durable pants looks like a lot of guys I know going to work everyday. A lot wear a button up that they don't mind getting dirty.
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Quoted: Ok here's something more your style. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/394169/6371CB50-7A52-4939-9EA3-C501259F33E5_jpe-2355284.JPGhttps://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/394169/E9348026-700A-4A81-839B-F41872B6FD7C_jpe-2355285.JPG View Quote Out of uniform...neither are wearing New Balance. |
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I thought this was a Ted Lasso thread...
the best of roy kent | ted lasso s1 + s2 |
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Tip for when you wanna be grey man with all the functionality of not grey man.
Dress like a Subaru owner that lives in Colorado. |
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Quoted: It’s amazing to see how much people can misunderstand and overcomplicate the idea of dressing and behaving like a normal person. View Quote Ed Zachary If you have to sound like a bragging brand whore/fanboi when you describe your clothing, well......... I'm always amused at a "manly" website where individuals are so intently concerned about what other men wear. It's like I'm at my sister-in-laws Thursday night "stitch and bitch" sewing club. Do any of you need another White Claw or a refill of your glass of boxed Cabinet Souvenir? You should try the tiramisu, it's faaabulous! |
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Quoted: Work coveralls and a clipboard can be really effective. It sounds totally cliche, but it works. View Quote Yep. Work pants (which for me are khaki 5.11’s), a polo, boots and this stuff: Attached File Gets me in and out of just about anywhere unimpeded. That includes buildings in DC with “security” desks. Add 2 of these: Attached File And 1 of these: Attached File And you can park pretty much wherever you want to. I don’t have any logos or magnets on my truck, either. |
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I shave my head and lift weights, I get asked if I'm a cop or in the military regularly.
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Quoted: Same thing happened to me the last time I filled out a 4473. I didn't think bald was appropriate so I had to put down grey. That kind of made me realize I'm getting old. Heck, I could almost put down white at this point. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted: Quoted: Tag On an interesting side note I had to write "grey" as a hair color on something this week. Same thing happened to me the last time I filled out a 4473. I didn't think bald was appropriate so I had to put down grey. That kind of made me realize I'm getting old. Heck, I could almost put down white at this point. I'm still in denial, it's blond for me - platinum blond sounds gay and gay rhymes with gray |
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Quoted: Why can't gun owners just dress normal? I swear, they're all the archetype of the "American dad." Delusional self appointed protectors of society. I just wear what I always wear. Blue jeans and a band T-shirt. Not 511 pants, tan ball caps with an American flag patch on it, coupled with an "operator beard." Quit watching videos on how to be "tactical dad." View Quote What is normal though? Sweat pants? Skinny jeans, Dockers? Pretty much anything you need to order online that advertises on gun sites isn’t normal though. |
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I don't dress like either of the examples in the OP. Not that I find anything wrong with it.
I wear a suit 5 days a week and carry a black Kifaru E&E from my vehicle to the office. On the weekends I dress like a guy who is working around the house or going to the gym. Because that's what I really do. I'm not out larping as a "grey man" for the apocalypse. If the SHTF I have enough gear to put up a fight until I kill or die or can unass the area. As someone stated earlier. It's more about your body language and how you carry yourself. If you act like an easy target (the second set of pictured examples) and some scumbag decides he's going to do some predatory shit. You're probably going to be directly confronted. If you look like a cop or a wannabe you might get clapped while your back is turned. |
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I don't blend in as I dress a bit up from most in my area. I don't think it really matters if you blend in perfectly as long as you don't look like a gun guy.
ETA: I also wonder about who you are being grey man from. Locally it is far to rural for me to be gray, so it doesn't matter here at home. When I am in a nearby town I doubt anyone thinks of me carrying. When I travel is when I think it matters most. Its not thugs or gangs I am worried about for me trying to get home in a massive emergency. |
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Quoted: Yep. Work pants (which for me are khaki 5.11’s), a polo, boots and this stuff: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/503720/4A52CDDD-9A5F-4E9F-8072-3647E1837CDA_jpe-2355511.JPG Gets me in and out of just about anywhere unimpeded. That includes buildings in DC with “security” desks. Add 2 of these: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/503720/E923F6E5-6B04-40A6-B319-C902AEC9F7FF_jpe-2355513.JPG And 1 of these: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/503720/5B6049AA-17E2-4E2E-83E6-484B889503D9_jpe-2355514.JPG And you can park pretty much wherever you want to. I don’t have any logos or magnets on my truck, either. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted: Quoted: Work coveralls and a clipboard can be really effective. It sounds totally cliche, but it works. Yep. Work pants (which for me are khaki 5.11’s), a polo, boots and this stuff: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/503720/4A52CDDD-9A5F-4E9F-8072-3647E1837CDA_jpe-2355511.JPG Gets me in and out of just about anywhere unimpeded. That includes buildings in DC with “security” desks. Add 2 of these: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/503720/E923F6E5-6B04-40A6-B319-C902AEC9F7FF_jpe-2355513.JPG And 1 of these: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/503720/5B6049AA-17E2-4E2E-83E6-484B889503D9_jpe-2355514.JPG And you can park pretty much wherever you want to. I don’t have any logos or magnets on my truck, either. When the AUSA (Association of the US Army) convention was in DC a few years ago, they had heavy security while everything was being set up. Tons of defense contractors showing off their latest gear, weapons, etc. There was LOTS of security, armed military guards, bomb-sniffing dogs - the whole nine yards. I got in by wearing generic coveralls and having a clipboard. I drove up to the ramp to the loading docks, waved my clipboard with some printouts of floor plans, etc. at the guy and told him I was there to set up booth number whatever. Not even driving a van with logos or anything - just my private SUV. He let me through and I just parked by the loading docks, and had full access to everything. If anyone cares, it’s this kind of thing (photos from when the expo actually opened) |
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Quoted: I dress like a slob. I’m practically invisible. View Quote This i wear a hoodie and sweat pants at work as a PI I work in philly, camden, newark etc i am never had any real issues ( hispanic decent and all helps). I usually have my G17 in a shoulder holster or in my man bag ( my daughter calls my single sling bag a man bag) |
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Quoted: Why can't gun owners just dress normal? I swear, they're all the archetype of the "American dad." Delusional self appointed protectors of society. I just wear what I always wear. Blue jeans and a band T-shirt. Not 511 pants, tan ball caps with an American flag patch on it, coupled with an "operator beard." Quit watching videos on how to be "tactical dad." View Quote Blue running shoes, grey shorts with 5" inseam, yellow shirt, red hat. That's me. Look like a dad. |
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Quoted: I get no end of shit from my “grunt style” friends about what I wear. Normal day is pastel t-shirt, slim fit jeans from Target, and sandals. In cold weather I just throw on a bright colored Arcteryx jacket and press. Backpack and laptop bags are all civilian branded gear. I refer to my wardrobe as “liberal-flage”. So far I don’t think I have been identified once. Medium sized town in TX, most of the country boys just ignore me while passing judgement on what they assume is lack of any useful life skills. The professionals could give a damn either way, best part is that when hanging out with the other parents from school, I am consistently approached by the more liberal ones, and the have no idea that I am covertly Making America Great Again. View Quote I own a Volkswagen camper van. Throw on my tie-dyed tshirt from MacWorld Expo and I have about the best liberal leftist camouflage in existence. I will not, however, lower myself to the level of Birkenstock sandals. I do have SOME pride. Some years ago, I was checking into a hotel in Kentucky with a suitcase, a briefcase and a soft rectangular gun case, sized for a collapsed AR. The guy behind me in line, said “what kind of AR ya got?” So much for Blackhawk’s “discreet” case… I went to a music store and bought a Fender patch, and sewed it to the gun case in the appropriate spot for a Fender guitar case. Now I’m either ignored, or occasionally asked about my guitar. Bonus points if I leave the end of a guitar cable hanging out of the pocket. I no longer have any morale patches on my backpacks. |
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Quoted: When I retired I found the high and tight didn't quite fit in. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/20856/79D762BF-7873-4693-9C38-9884B316B29D-2291344.png Got a bit more conservative later https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/20856/535C38A8-A5C6-4152-B2B8-3954CE164DE0-2289243.jpg FEMA just sends me my missions via my microchip, the contacts irritate my eyes anyway. View Quote Wow. You're the ARF version of Sir Richard Branson |
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Quoted: When the AUSA (Association of the US Army) convention was in DC a few years ago, they had heavy security while everything was being set up. Tons of defense contractors showing off their latest gear, weapons, etc. There was LOTS of security, armed military guards, bomb-sniffing dogs - the whole nine yards. I got in by wearing generic coveralls and having a clipboard. I drove up to the ramp to the loading docks, waved my clipboard with some printouts of floor plans, etc. at the guy and told him I was there to set up booth number whatever. Not even driving a van with logos or anything - just my private SUV. He let me through and I just parked by the loading docks, and had full access to everything. View Quote The down side of that methodology is when you go someplace that actually has security, and they discover you aren’t a contractor and now you get to wait in line with everybody else, but you also get your own personal case agent at the local fusion center. |
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Quoted: I don't think this is the case at all. Lets say something goes down, something big and you are just trying to get home. Roadblocks. Here I am in my dress shirt, nice shoes and my Outback vs dude in his truck covered in gun stickers and grunt style t-shirt. If you think people don't profile, as in all people, you would be wrong. Throw on some jeans, a hard hat, work boots, and a neon vest and you could basically go anywhere. In fact I would go so far to say that a neon vest might be a valued addition to a get home bag. View Quote Worked for Steve Wallis |
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I gave up on trying to "blend" most of the time no matter what I'm wearing. My non-work outfit is usually nice denim jeans, a polo or button up with rolled sleeves, and either cowboy or hiking boots. Doesn't matter if I'm wearing gym shorts and a t-shirt though, I still get associated with my work (LEO.) I'm generally picked as LEO or military no matter where I'm at. I'm big/tall and I stand with great posture due to my mom fussing at me my entire life to stand up straight. So instead of trying to blend, I just try to give off an air of don't mess with me.
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Quoted: Say what you will about the tenets of Crossfit dude, it has normalized wearing a plate carrier in public. Anybody gets suspicious? Drop and do a burpee. View Quote Lady on the school bus called the Sherriff as I waved to the passing school bus. Luckily one of the teachers is my neighbor and told her to not call again. Deputy Sherrif neighbor knew it was me and told them to relax. Fuck burpees that kills my back, I will walk and wave. |
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