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Bcs379
01-04-12, 00:53
Review of the SOU Shirt

http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/SOUShirt.jpg


Background on the reviewer:
I purchased this SOU shirt as a civilian. I am not a part of the military/law enforcement and nor will I claim to be. In the review, I will list the features of the product with photographs to show detail of the product. I will also state that I am in no way affiliated with the company and I purchased the product on my own. Please bear with me as well as this is my first review I have ever done.

My intended uses:
I intend to use the SOU shirt while shooting at a local drills night. I also intend to use it as a cover garment competitions that may require one. I will not be kind to the product, but I do not see myself putting the product through the paces that soldiers may put it through. Take the following review as a list of the features with photographs and my opinion as a civilian.

Materials Used:
The material used in the SOU shirt is 50/50 NYCO. I purchased mine in Multicam in which genuine Multicam was used. The SOU shirt also comes in the following colors:
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/graph.jpg

I will also note that the SOU shirt is proudly made in the United States. YKK zippers are also used on the jacket.

Unique Features:
One of the main reasons why I purchased the SOU shirt were the numerous improvements it had over the ACU-cut design. These are the following improvements from the ACU styled uniform:

-Outward slanted chest pockets to allow access while wearing plate carriers
-Hidden YKK zipper for shoulder pocket access
-Dual pocket on left forearm for pens or chemlights
-MOLLE webbing on right forearm
-Button cuffs
-Four-way Stretchable/Breathable Gussetted Armpits

http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/SlantedChestPockets.jpg
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/Shoulderpocket.jpg
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/YKKzippers.jpg
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/Penpocket.jpg
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/MOLLEwebbing.jpg
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/buttonwrist-1.jpg
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp209/bcs379/GussettedArmpits.jpg


Fit:
The SOU Shirt fits well on me, though I will state that it is a slightly tighter than a Tru-spec of the same size. This is from my experience though with both brands and a sample size of only one of each.

Current Run-times:
The current run-time for the SOU shirt is listed as two weeks. My personal experience was thwarted with numerous delays, but it took less than two weeks to have the replacement shirt made up and then shipped to me directly from the sew shop.
I recommend contacting Kyle if you have any questions about lead-times and expected finish date. I believe that he is caught up now and maintains his current lead time of two weeks, but make sure if you need it by a certain date.

Customer Service:
The customer service from Kyle is top-notch. He would reply to my email with an hour of having received it. When I had a problem with a mixed up order, he promptly had the sew shop make me a new jacket and had it directly shipped to me from the sew shop.


Overall impression:
I purchased the shirt primarily due to the improvements upon the existing ACU-cut design. I also wanted to have a custom jacket since it would have been the same price for Tru-spec's Extreme (tru-specs 50/50 NYCO ACU-cut equivalent). I am really happy with the purchase and intend to purchase another one at a later point in time. Until then, I will recommend www.specopshop.com for individuals seeking products similar to the SOU shirt.

Improvements:
From my understanding, a few improvements have been incorporated into the SOU shirt design since mine was manufactured. These improvements include replacing the MOLLE with a pocket just like the pen pocket on the left arm but without the center seam, removing the elbow pad pocket, and extending the length of the shirt in the front and back in order to allow it to remain tucked in during various activities.

NoSweat88
04-03-13, 19:35
I just found this post and I know it's old however....

at least you got your product. I ordered a pair of SOU pants from them SIX MONTHS ago and have yet to see them.

More to follow...

NS88

NoSweat88
05-06-13, 13:59
sooo...3 days after I posted that I hadn't gotten the pants, I got an email stating that they were in, however, the belt loops were incorrect. They were sent back to the factory. Now today marks another month since they were sent back to the factory and I still don't have them.

Shoulda taken them as is and modded the belt loops myself.

NS88

Benito
05-09-13, 00:01
Nice looking short, no doubt.
I've read good things about SpecOpShop and Kyle.
I ordered an SOU shirt back at the end of October. Haven't received it yet. I've been in contact with him (he does reply to emails obviously) but not much follow through. I do understand that sourcing material and teething pains as a small business can be a significant obstacle, so I am not too peeved.
Your pics are pretty nice. Makes me want it that much more.

NoSweat88
05-09-13, 08:24
Kyle has been returning my emails recently,but for about 3 months, I got NOTHING from either him or staff. I'd email...they'd say "we'll check into it and get back to you tomorrow" and then nothing.

Kyle started responding about a month ago and, to his credit, has been pretty good recently. He has a couple of new products about to be introduced that I am very interested in, but there's no way I'm gonna invest more money when I don't have product that I ordered 7 months ago.

I really didn't start asking about my stuff until 16 weeks post-order. He had to special order material and stuff and I understood that. The only thing I asked for was just to let me know what's going on.

I have heard good things about his product and I really hope the pants are as good as I think they will be. Their customer service really leaves a lot to be desired. They can't be that busy that they can't keep folks informed.

NS88

Benito
06-23-13, 18:18
I'm glad you got your product.
I have been waiting since the end of October.
I've been patient, and was in touch with Kyle for the first few months, but he became more and more elusive, and for several months has been completely unresponsive to my emails. At this point, I just want my money back. I'm sure his shirt is great and all that, but that doesn't do me much good if I never get it, now does it?
Barring some really unexpected emergency/event beyond his control, I am not pleased at this scenario. At least if there was some communication, I would be able to understand. Backlogs, supply chain issues and whatnot happen, but an update isn't too much to ask for.

Rotor Talker
06-23-13, 19:16
About the contact issues, I'd like to have one of those, great job on the review.

NoSweat88
06-25-13, 17:21
I finally got my SOU pants about a month ago. I was going to do a review when I got pics, but I saw this and thought I should put in my .02 worth.

As I stated before, it took about 7 months to get the pants. For the longest time no one from the company would return my calls or emails. Eventually, Kyle started returning my emails. When the pants came in (coincidentally 1 day after one of my emails) the pants had the wrong belt loops on them. Kyle sent them back to the factory and it took another MONTH to get the belt loops changed. The pants aren't perfect (more on that in a minute) but at least I have them.

To Kyle's credit, his company is growing pretty fast. He recently got a North America contract for the LandCamo line and I think he is putting a lot into that. I think he may be growing TOO fast. As I understand it, he is in Texas and his factory is in Wisconsin or someplace up there. I know from doing some of my "I'm pissed off and I want to find out about this company" research that he had been trying to get 'tactical" seamstress' to Texas, but I don't think he had much luck. At any rate, it's hard to handle issues with production when there's a whole country separating you from the production line. But in all fairness, he really needs to put a lot more effort into customer service issues.

When I ordered my pants, I paid extra for zippers to be installed on the legs. After I placed the order, SpecOpShop dropped the options in order to speed up production. When my pants arrived, they had no zippers in the legs, but I still paid extra. Also, I had offered to pay extra for a couple of extra yards of material so I could have some more work done when I got the pants. Kyle said he would throw some in for free to help cover the delays, but I have yet to see the material.

I do love the pants. The quality of work is outstanding. I want to buy more from him (he's supposedly got some more items coming out that I am really interested in) but I don't want to pay top $$$ for an item and not get it for 7 months again. I will definitely buy from SpecOpShop after they get their issues ironed out.

NS88