When it comes to clothing in the Law Enforcement or Shooting community, there isn’t a lack of options to choose from these days. In fact, there is a deluge of it to try and choose from, with many items looking identical in some cases. While having options to choose from is nice, often times these clothing items have a fairly high price tag attached to them. So trying to pick out the clothing items that are worth investing you time and money into can be challenging.

VELOCITY 2.0 Tactical Pants

Over the years I have owned just about every brand and model of “cool guy” clothing, some of it issued, some of it I bought with my own money. I can say that a lot of it is on the middle to high end of the dollar scale. However, I have also come across brands that were lower in price and still quality products. This is important to those of us who live and work in these kind of clothes, as with everything, they tend to wear out and or get damaged at some point in our day to day wear and use. When that happens to a piece of “cool guy” clothing that cost you one hundred or more dollars, it makes you want to cringe. While there is no debating the merits of buying quality products, like you, I am not made of money. I also like to buy several pairs of an item, so that I can rotate them and or wear different color variations. So an item like a pair of pants that is affordably priced and a quality item has its appeals to just about everyone.

Enter First Tactical’s Velocity 2.0 Pants. As the name suggests, this is the second iteration of this pant that they offer. With it, comes some added improvements and features that make wearing the pants not only more comfortable but also functional for the types of endeavors readers will most like put them through on a daily basis.

While labeled “Tactical Pants” by First Tactical, these pants aren’t going to be confused with your typical field pants worn on the battlefield. In other words, they don’t look like uniform pants. In fact, at first glance, they look more like a pair of Dockers or similar type of casual work pant. Now don’t let that description turn you away from these pants, as they are just as functional and durable as pants you’d expect to see on the battlefield.

The Velocity 2.0 pants have a neat and professional appearance with clean lines that make them at home in an office setting or on the range. When I first pulled these pants out of the package, I initially thought I had been sent the wrong item. These pants looked and felt too nice for what their intended use is. After putting them on, I was pleasantly surprised with the fit and comfort of the pants, as the sizing was true to label and could be worn with out any tailoring.  First Tactical provides sizing in two inches increments, starting with a 28” waist and moving up to a 54” waist and a 30” inseam moving up to 36” inseam. The Velocity 2 pant comes in four color variations to choose from as well. They come in Khaki, Black, Midnight Navy and OD Green.  The Velocity 2 pants are constructed with the following specifications.

• Proprietary ARMS Fabric with two-way mechanical stretch
• 4 oz. 65% polyester/35% cotton
• Double Dyed Fabric
• Micro ripstop
• Teflon® Shield+ stain repellent finish
• YKK® zippers
• Prym® snap

It’s worth pointing out that the Teflon Shield coating stain finish of these pants saved me on more than one occasion while evaluating the Velocity 2 pants. It is one of those features that most people don’t think about until that moment when you look down and see that blob of mustard sitting on your leg and can wipe it off without it leaving a stain. This feature alone is one more thing that makes these pants stand out above the crowd of other “tactical” pants on the market today.

FEATURES

The Velocity 2 pants come with several well thought out and executed features that will appeal to many, regardless of their occupation or intended use. These pants are comfortable to wear all day long and that is due in part to the use of the ARMS fabric which has two way stretch characteristics. So when you’re sitting, squatting down, bending over or kneeling down, the material has the right amount of give to it that it doesn’t feel like it is binding or limiting your range of movement.

Likewise, the waist utilizes what First Tactical calls a comfort stretch waistband. Now this doesn’t mean the waistband looks like two pieces of elastic were sewn to each side of the waist. On the contrary, there is no indication that the waist is capable of stretching until it is required to do so. First tactical has also put some thought into the size and spacing of the belt loops. Seven belt loops are spaced around the waist so that they don’t get in the way of most items one might attach to their belts. First Tactical uses  triple needle stitching for durability on the stress points of the Velocity 2 pants. Where triple stitching is not needed, double and or single stitching is used to keep the bulk and weight of the pants down, so that they maintain a crisp and clean line when worn.

The pockets on the Velocity 2 pants are all adequately deep without being too deep. The cargo pockets are designed to hold two AR magazines with an internal pocket system and also have a “dummy cord” tie off point at the mouth of the cargo pocket.

The flaps of the cargo pocket are designed to stand on their own, so when you open it, it will stay in the up or open position. The flap can also be tucked into the cargo pocket itself, turning it into a dump pocket and or to allow for easy access to the AR magazines held in the interior pocket. While they are called cargo pockets, they will not hold the kitchen sink or expand a whole lot. They are designed to hold the two AR magazines or similar items while maintaining a clean and slim line without bulging outward.

Another handy feature First Tactical has incorporated into the cargo pocket is what they call the knife clip garage. On the leading edge of the cargo pocket flap, a small opening has been built in that will allow the pocket clip from a knife or even an ink pen stored in one of the upper thigh pockets to be covered up so that it cannot snag on anything. The two upper thigh pockets will look familiar as they can be found on other tactical pants on the market. And like those, these pockets provide access to smaller items like a pistol magazine or a pocket knife while seated.

Working in conjunction with the ARMS fabric, the use of a full gusset crotch in the Velocity pants allows wearers full range of movement without fear of blowing the crotch out when squatting down or straddling an obstacle. If you’ve ever blown out the crotch on a pair of pants while out in the field, you will appreciate this feature.

The Velocity 2 pants also have the capability to have proprietary knee pads inserted into the interior of the pants. This surprised me initially, as the pants are not bulky in this area as are most pants that utilize an interior placed kneepad system. I was not able to test the First Tactical kneepads out during my evaluation but given that the pants don’t bunch or tighten up around the knee when kneeling without the kneepads, I am confident that had they been inserted that they would have covered my entire knee without feeling bulky.

Finally, getting down to the bottom of the pant leg itself, there are two slits for a blousing cord to be inserted, if for some reason the wearer wanted to be able to blouse or cinch down the bottom of the pant leg around the ankle. While no cord is present, the ability to add one exists.

Final Thoughts and Rating

I was more than a little skeptical that these would be “office tactical” pants and not stand up to the rigors and stress that are placed on pants when worn on the range and or in the field on a day to day basis. However, having worn them for well over a month now and taken them from the office to rolling around in the dirt and climbing over fences and walls, they have held up while still looking good. While not the lowest priced pair of “Tactical” pants out there that I own, I can say that the First Tactical Velocity 2 pants are appropriately priced at $49.99, given their durability and all of the features I mentioned above. This is driven home even more since they don’t make you look like Tommy Tactical when worn in the office, around town or on the range. Given this range of environments that they can be worn in, I think they would be a good addition to anyone’s wardrobe and a worthwhile purchase. 

Many Sizes Available

Cost: 4
Comfort: 5
Durability: 4
Functionality: 4
Weight: 5
Overall Rating: 4.4/5

The scale is defined as:

(1): Poor/unacceptable. Worse than expected, or desirable; of a low or inferior standard or quality.

(2): Fair. In conformity with reasonable expectations, but in comparison to competitors is may be deficient

(3): Average. Common item; item neither lacks from or is superior than a competitors item.

(4): Good. The item is desirable and has qualities that excel in comparison to a competitors item

(5): Excellent. Outstanding, possesses superior quality; remarkably good

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Material Disclosure

I received this product as a courtesy from the manufacturer via Spotter Up so I could test it and give my honest feedback. I am not bound by any written, verbal, or implied contract to give this product a good review. All opinions are my own and are based off my personal experience with the product.

*The views and opinions expressed on this website are solely those of the original authors and contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Spotter Up Magazine, the administrative staff, and/or any/all contributors to this site.

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