The megatrends of IWA 2014

1,343 exhibitors and over 39,000 trade visitors from all over the world. Endless stands and nine halls where you can successfully get lost. We from SPARTANAT were there at the Enforce Tac & IWA 2014, and saw a lot of equipment from all areas and talked to many manufacturers. But from this mass of information: what conclusions can we draw? Here are our megatrends of IWA 2014:When we walk through the world of camouflage patterns and orient ourselves to the trends of the companies, we come to the conclusion: ATACS is dead. And those who have it in stock find it difficult to sell. The new stars in the camouflage sky are Kryptek (re.: Gear in Highlander) and PenCott: Kryptek is a fashionable-functional camouflage pattern that also brings a hefty dose of lifestyle. It camouflages well, but can also be worn in everyday life because it looks exotic enough. Those who really want to remain hidden will choose PenCott. The patterns of this camouflage family are highly efficient. GreenZone, even more than BadLands, is increasingly accepted and implemented as gear.

No worries, Multicam remains the number 1 in gear practice. We were able to see Multicam Black and Multicam Tropic for the first time at the IWA. The former was worn in the disco in the 1980s (the guy at the Tru Spec booth even laughed at that), the latter is reminiscent of ERDL from the days of Vietnam. Both will still sell. Because, hey, it's from Crye Precision.

For those who find all of this too colorful, they can be happy that black is no longer in fashion. Gray is the new black. This was clearly evident at the 5.11 Tactical booth, where Gray as "Storm" - see cover image ... was introduced. We also encountered gray in other places, even in the new rig from Mayflower, which we have already presented to you.

When it comes to gear, we see the trend of MOLLE disappearing. At least externally. Laser cutting allows for systems that do without sewn-on loops - in the image: the MOLLE on a bag from Direct Action. The advantage is obvious: the cutting is done by the machine and at the same time, the gear is lighter. Overall, a general trend can be observed that gear is becoming lighter. Weight is a significant differentiating factor for clothing. Those who have to wear it will be pleased. Tactical pants these days mostly have integrated knee protection and emulate Crye, but there are alternatives to the "Crye System," although it is still difficult to say if they are better. Changes are also happening with weapons: Rails on different weapons are becoming more modular. Picatinny rails everywhere are no longer fashionable and are not really needed. No wonder: above the BUIS and the AN/PEQ laser box, for example, the EOTech, on the side the light, and at the bottom the vertical grip. For the latter three, less rail is used. Instead of Picatinny everywhere, the Keymod system is actually appearing very prominently. At Enforce Tac, you could even see it on the new G36 (even if H&K insists that this is not Keymod in the image here). Also, a general trend that is increasing: weapons in Tan or similar colors are stylish. And in the civilian weapons accessories, non-AR systems also seem to be catching up: there are more and more modular systems available for Heckler & Koch and AK systems, allowing for customization and attachment.