Unused Nutria Brown cargo pants from the defunct South African Defence Force. SADF clothing is becoming rarer and rarer these days, and we especially don’t come across unissued garments that often. So, grab ‘em if you need a pair of sturdy retro-spirited pants.

History

Originally, the South African Defence Force (SADF) used old British khakis, but in the early 1970s, they switched to the classic Nutria Brown uniforms. The color choice may seem a bit strange, but it works reasonably well in the South African bush. Nutria Brown was used on all sorts of clothes and gear and by all kinds of troops.

These uniforms were taken out of use in 1994, pretty much at the same time as Apartheid was terminated. So, this color scheme represents the darker side of South African history. SADF was replaced by SANDF (South African National Defence Force) and the Nutria Brown color scheme was replaced by the Soldier 2000 camouflage pattern, which is still in use in South Africa.

Features

These South African field pants are also very well suited for a civilan life. The warm reddish brown color doesn’t jump in your face and scream WAR. They are the chameleon of the pant world, perfect for everything from the rugged wilderness to a hipster bar. They have a buttoned fly and very wide belt loops, fit for up to 8 cm (3.2") belts. The waist and pant cuffs also have a drawcord adjustment.

There are a perfect number of pockets on these. They have open side pockets plus a narrower extra pocket with a hook & loop closure on the right side, which will fit a compact cell phone. Furthermore, they feature cargo pockets closed by two buttons and a back pocket with a hidden button closure. They are made form cotton or a cotton blend.

Size info

The pants have the measurements in centimeters. For those who prefer the freedom units, we added them in there too. They have been rounded up/down to the nearest 0 or 5. The first figure is the waist circumference of the pants. The second one is the length of the inside leg seam. Military clothes aren’t precision engineering, so there may be slight variation in the measurements.

Condition

Unissued South African military surplus. For some reason, these pants never made it out of the warehouse. This batch contains pants from at least 1985, but there can be some older ones in the mix too. Since these have been in the warehouse for decades, ironing is at least probably a good idea. The problem with African military surplus is that even though there is technically lots of it, they are usually worn until the bitter end, or they are sold to some other army. That is why you don’t see that much of it here in the Western world. Especially these unused ones are a very rare treat, and the prices have been climbing higher and higher.