I love the concept of a load bearing vest with MOLLE pouches all over so I can customize a solution that maximizes mobility and suits my exact needs. Unfortunately one of the things I need is for my gear to be compatible with my volunteer work with a local SAR group. I'm lucky that most of my hiking gear fits the bill. Unfortunately anything tactical either comes in camo or desert, or black...police blue if you're lucky.

I recently learned about the RACK vest from Specialty Defense Systems. It would be perfect as it would allow me to wear a proper backpack at the same time as a customized yellow vest.

Does anybody know where you can buy MOLLE compatible gear which is made in 'safe' colors like orange, red, or (preferably) yellow? The only option I can think of is to go to Drop Zone Tactical as they make their gear right here in Edmonton...unfortunately that kind of quality is out of my price range...especially for a custom order.

As an update I phoned Drop Zone and they don't make their load bearing gear in 'non tactical' colours...they do make their pouches in various colours however. They suggested I just cover a black vest in yellow pouches. At $25-$50 a pouch I'd say it's a tad out of my price range.

Can't you just sew on some reflective/fluorescent patches on you're vest?

I do know there are special vests for ambulance-crews that have bright colours..

Wildland fire fighters gear...

Like http://www.nationalfirefighter.com/index.php?cPath=152_15_172

This link was picked at random from a yahoo search.

Or Chief's Supply too: http://www.chiefsupply.com/Fire,Rescue/Wildland/Packs,Harnesses

Following JIM's idea, a lot/most of the military style gear has Velcro loop fabric on the face of it to allow for unit/other patches to be attached. So you could probably go with affordable MOLLE compatible gear if you can find reflective/fluorescent patches with a Velcro hook backing.

Take a look at the 'Work and Rescue' series from Petzl. They have harnesses, climbing gear and headlamps (LED, natch) in yellow and black.

http://en.petzl.com/petzl/ProAccueil#

Click on 'Products' top left.

HTH,

A

I'm not a fan of solid-front harnesses. Get a cheap one and try the basic configuration, you'll see why I like a split front. But you are right, the use of a chest rig with a few big pouches is great with a pack- and you'll find the pack probably feels a little more natural with the stuff hanging out in front, but if you aren't careful you'll turn into the Stay Puffed Marshmellow Man. *grins*

As for color... There are custom makers out there. I've spoken with the gentleman who runs Black Ops Tactical Nylon about a custom pack I was thinking about, his rates are reasonable, but I'm not sure if he does bright colors normally. (I found a really good deal on the production pack I was also looking at, and had the pouches on hand to rig it how I wanted, so you might not want to mention my name *blush*.) When Doug designed his aviator's kits, he went with an outfit called Semper Paratus Tactical for the pack, they should be able to do it. It will take some looking, but it shouldn't be too hard.

However, custom gear is often expensive gear. MOLLE gear, by definition, is covered with lots of webbing points. Getting someone to make you up high-visibility panels that you can attach is easy, it is just a little webbing, some bright cordura, some snaps or velcro, and thread. Anyone who can sew can make them.

If you want to see what the rig I use looks like, click . Retrofiting signal panels to the front of the main pockets would be easy enough, as you can see.

John Willis runs Original SOE Gear and will make anything you want out of any color Cordura you want, even pink. He got his start long ago making custom web gear for SEALs in California. All report are that his nylon gear is the toughest out there. But, 1) wait times for his gear are very long and 2) you will pay for his quality work.

Another possible option for you is the fact that a lot of today's tactical nylon is available in various shades of khaki or coyote brown, which isn't quite as militaristic as camo or black.

I've recently become interested in making my own tactical gear for similar reasons.

I might be willing to take a stab at something simple like a split-front MAV in yellow (might have to be yellow w/ black webbing) eventually - on strictly an amateur basis.

I wonder if there is a huge un-met demand out there for high-vis tactical gear. It seems that if someone tested the market and there turned out to be serious demand, the big names could jump right in simply by adding some other colors to their fabric inventory.

Ok here's a question that might have some bearing on this topic.

Can lets say OD green ammo pouch be bleached and then dyed the chosen color?