Spent some quality time in the woods this weekend wearing issue chocolate chip Desert BDUs that are 50-50 NyCo (boy, that stretched MY comfort zone LoL!). I cannot yet determine if these have durable water repellant treatment (Quarpel) or not. They seemed to work fine, but the weather is so wierd - no snow and fairly warm - that I cannot say conclusively that they are "as good as" 50-50 NyCo sateen field trousers. First time I've set out to objectively compare them to field trou. Impressions so far:<br><br>+ Marginally nicer hand (feel) against bare skin than field trousers.<br><br>+ Did not blot up moisture like cottton BDUs (made a "rapid descent" for several feet into a ravine when it turned out there was really slick wet mud under the leaves) - performed like I expect field trou to. If I'd been wearing jeans or cotton BDUs, I probably would have had "diaper rash" from a wet seat by the end of that day. (Been there, done that...)<br><br>+ It's much easier to drain the lizard with field trou (zipper with a cord on it) than BDUs (buttons) - from experience, especially if dressed for cold weather. However... The only "failure" I ever had with field trou was a zipper - to be fair, that pair had seen (and continues to) hard use for many years (replaced the zipper). I consider the buttons on the BDUs to be more reliable and they certainly can be easily replaced in the field, unlike zippers. (I keep waiting for snaps to fail on field trou, to no avail. Mil spec...)<br><br>- They attracted briars more readily than field trou - not a lot so, but enough to notice. Minor.<br><br>- Those flat ankle ties are just as worthless as always - the round cords on field trou work, and the flat nylon tapes on BDUs do not. (I USE those ties, darn it! They only get undone if I need to ventilate or if I'm stream crossing). I think I'll replace them with dacron cord of proper length.<br><br>- Do NOT like the un-flapped slash pockets (never did). Flapped ones on field trou are better idea.<br><br>- BDUs are not as loose a fit as field trou. OK for skinny legs like me (bone and gristle), NOT OK for heavily muscled legs (2/3 of my sons). Fit might be a major problem for some with long handles on, but it's gonna depend on size of thighs. This is a potential concern for extremely hot weather as well (loose is better than tight). FWIW, I prefer the looser fit of the field trou, even tho BDUs fit OK. <br><br>o Field trou have better cargo pockets: Slight larger, three snaps vs two buttons, and leg ties. However, the BDU cargo pockets are good enough and a darn sight better than most commercial pants have. Not a critical difference, I think.<br><br>o No suspender loops on BDUs - a minus for me, but otherwise just a feature.<br><br>o No provisions (buttons) for a liner - no matter to me, but perhaps a minus to some; again a feature.<br><br>If we ever get any snow, I'll follow-up. Ditto cold wind - I will be surprised if they are as wind-resistant as field trou, but am ready to be surprised...<br><br>Didn't have enough drizzle to really assess that and I did not feel like fording and drying out. My guess is that if Quarpel treated, drizzle performance will be par. I expect drying out to be be good - equal to field trou (both 50-50 NyCo), but I'll eventually check that out as well. (Drying out cotton pants starts like this: "Remove wet pants. Put on a dry pair of pants...")<br><br>Overall I am very pleased with the performance - better than I would have guessed and certainly head and shoulders above jeans and cotton military trousers.<br><br>Probably won't have another opportunity to test and report until late January.<br><br>Regards,<br><br>Tom