The Propper Fit

In a new attempt to create my third Ghostbusters 2 flight suit, I bought a large Propper brand dark navy CWU-27P-style flight suit made of a cotton/poly mix. My goal is to strip it of some color and dye it to that famous "charcoal gray" of the "We're Back" suits mostly seen during the Ghostbusters 2 montage.

When I received that new suit, I was shocked to find how loose it fit compared to my Khaki Tru-Spec. So I did the sensible thing and ordered a size down instead, assuming I was mis-remembering the size of my old Tru-Spec that is now missing its tag. That size down arrived and, instead, was VERY tight. That got me curious: if the two suits I had in front of me were indeed the same size, what were the differences? Well, I grabbed a garment tape measure and here are the results. This is not exhaustive; I am not a seamstress or a tailor, but it should help anyone considering buying one of these suits pick the one they might like best. 

First let's talk about the suit.

Have to get it out of the way: for the price of $75, you aren't doing better than this. Tru-Spec used to be the king here, but Tru-Spec was $50 and is now $90-100 all day. But aside from that, Propper does a few things that no other off-the-rack suit does, which I think make it a strong contender as a top option before you go custom. 

Unlike other Poly/Cotton suits (Rothco or Tru-Spec), the material texture and feel here feel way more premium. The Propper suit is not flat and smooth, plastic-like; it has a texture and is soft to the touch. It's certainly not rip-stop, but it's a nice improvement. I have a feeling it will breathe better and drape better. 

Unlike Tru-Spec and Rothco, there is more weight and height to seams and pockets. This gives it more dimension, and it looks more premium because of it. While it does not mean they are more accurate or will last longer, there is something about the heft I appreciate.

The zippers, while black, are metal and possibly brass underneath the coating. Both my Tru-Spec and Rothco use plastic zippers. This is great simply because you can then lightly sand all the zippers to remove that coating and instantly have a more accurate, better-looking suit for minimal effort and cost. They should also technically last a bit longer if you wear it more than a couple times a year. It also has a "storm flap" which is missing from that front interior zipper on the other suits. It isn't a screen-accurate one, but it's nice that it exists. 

The pockets and other touches are a mixed bag of accuracy. The chest pockets, which look nice at first glance, are clearly way too low once you slap your name tape on there. The shoulder patches are wider and more accurate to the original suits, but the left arm pencil pocket has a giant flap on it. You get the extra leg pocket, but no side zippers. 

Despite what I said about the weight of the suit, it really is still about as thin as the others–you can see plenty of light through it. It's not as bad as a Rothco, but again it is still clearly not a Ripstop/Nomex suit. Better for the summer, though!

So, that loose fit problem.

The suit from Propper fit my shoulders, chest, and waist well, so it had to be the right size for me–as right as any off-the-rack piece can be. But there were some spots I was confused by, which made this seem almost a size larger than advertised. 

The crotch is super long. I was convinced this was the wrong size or they sent me a long rather than a regular. But I checked the inseam against the size chart and against my old Tru-Spec, and it was correct; it even matched the Tru-Spec. The problem is from how long the zipper is and where the crotch seam actually starts. On my Tru-Spec, the zipper is only 24" from the neck to the bottom; the Propper is 29". That pushes the crotch down to 31" compared to the Tru-Spec at 28". Both still only have a 29" from crotch to leg. 

Propper notes that the crotch starts lower to accommodate wearing other clothes under the flight suit. While that is understandable, and these are supposed to be baggy, this is too much extra space. What you're left with is a lot of extra fabric hanging between your legs and extra-baggy legs. 

Speaking of baggy legs, the legs on the Propper are 12" wide and don't seem to taper, which kind of makes the zippers at the bottom pretty pointless. Compare this to the leg on the Tru-Spec, which does have some taper and, at the widest, is 10" seam to seam. 

Arm length on the Propper is longer too, by another couple inches. Interestingly enough, the Propper suit has the waistband higher by almost 2 inches compared to the Tru-Spec, even though Propper's chest length is longer thanks to the low crotch and long zipper. Chest width was about the same, around 23". But the suit from Propper has a big taper and a very stretchy band; the torso comes down to 20" where Tru-Spec is just over 22". 

The Verdict.

Honestly, if I were to do this again, I would probably buy a Tru-Spec. I do think the Propper is a nice suit, and I do like some of the touches over Tru-Spec–but this fit misses a few marks for me personally. If you have a longer chest or you're just a little taller (I'm about 5' 10"), then you might want to pick up the Propper suit. The Medium actually fit me way better in the chest length, crotch placement, and leg length, even though it is supposed to have the same inseam. But sadly, the chest width, shoulder width, and especially the waist were tight. I've always sat between a medium and large during different parts of my life–medium shirt with a large coat so I’m not surprised by this, and you do need extra room in these suits for clothing and movement. But the suit from Propper might be a smidge too roomy. 

But again for the price, it's a top pick no matter what, you just may need to hoist things up with your belt and tuck your legs into your jump boots even if you usually don't.

Next it's time to strip and dye.

Stay tuned for my journey trying to remove and shred of color from this navy suit so I can make it Charcoal. I'm working on that as I write this!