I have an accumulation of old ACU / UCP gear that I can not seem to get rid of. The surplus stores don't want it, and I don't want it, but I also don't want to just give it away. So, what is a guy supposed to do?

After some research, I decided to try to dye it and see what happens.

I used Rit Dye All Purpose Dye (it's more affordable and easier to use than the "Synthetic" dye) in the "Dark Green" color.

I followed the directions on the bottle:
- 1 cup 5% household white vinegar (for nylon)
- 1 cup household table salt (for other fabrics that may be present on the gear)
- 1 teaspoon of DAWN dish soap
- 1/2 bottle of dye (approximately 110 - 120 ml)

All of that got added to approximately 3.75 gallons of HOT water which I stored in a cooler (the insulating properties meant to keep the water hotter for longer). (I had to boil my water in batches, but eventually got the right amount of water, which was about 1/4th the depth of the cooler).

I stirred the mixture and added the gear. I used a 25lb plate weight to hold the gear under water and also to displace the water around the gear. I agitated the water about every 15 minutes (in hindsight, this should have been done more often), and I allowed the gear to soak for the whole 60 minutes.

When it was done, I rinsed the gear off outside with the garden hose and threw it into the washing machine. I used warm water and generic laundry detergent for the wash.

The result of all of that is what you see in the photos, which very closely resembles CADPAT in my opinion.

This is still too green for my liking, so I will follow the same procedures as before to add "Dark Brown" dye to the fabric in the hopes of muting some of the green-blue hue present in the fabric.

I'll post an update when it's finished.

Bottom line, this is WAY easier than I thought and there's no reason to throw away, or avoid that "useless" patterned gear if you can spare a few hours to dye it. You'll end up with the same bomb-proof gear for a fraction of the price.

Rit Dye (Dark Green) ACU / UCP Gear