BDU Shorts
Camo Patterns • Solid Combat Colors • Long Length • Tru-Spec & Rothco
BDU shorts are the summer / hot-weather variant of the Battle Dress Uniform pant — same six-pocket cargo cut, same NyCo cotton-poly ripstop or 100% cotton construction, same camo patterns and solid colors, but cut at or above the knee for tropical climates and summer field use. Keep Shooting carries the broadest BDU shorts catalog on the web: the original 6-color desert “Chocolate Chip” pattern, woodland M81, the Cold-War-era tri-color desert (DCU), tiger stripe in original Vietnam-era and desert variants, ACU digital, Rothco's solid-color BDU Combat Shorts line (black, OD, khaki, coyote, midnight navy), and Tru-Spec NyCo ripstop premium tier — 30 SKUs across patterns, lengths, and manufacturers.
BDU Shorts at Keep Shooting
The Battle Dress Uniform was the US military's standard combat fatigue from 1981 through 2004 (Army; phased out longer in other branches), and the BDU pattern catalog — the iconic woodland M81, the 6-color desert “Chocolate Chip” from Desert Storm, the 3-color desert Cold-War-era DCU, ACU digital, plus the never-officially-adopted Vietnam tiger stripe — remains one of the most recognizable military-uniform color systems in history. BDU shorts are the summer / hot-weather variant of the canonical BDU pant: same six-pocket cargo cut, same NyCo cotton-polyester ripstop construction, same patterns and solids, but cut above (or at) the knee for tropical climates, summer training, range work, yard work, and the broader civilian and re-enactor use cases. Keep Shooting's catalog spans 30 SKUs across the major pattern families and the two largest manufacturers (Rothco and Tru-Spec), plus a handful of manufacturer-unspecified pieces in the rarer patterns.
Camo Pattern Catalog
The major BDU pattern families we stock:
- Woodland M81 — the canonical 1981–2004 US-issue BDU pattern, four-color brown/green/black/khaki organic blob design. Available in standard length (Woodland Camo BDU Shorts), extended length (Long Length Woodland), digital variant (Woodland Digital Camo), digital long-length (Woodland Digital Long Length), and the Tru-Spec premium tier (Tru-Spec Woodland Camo).
- 6-Color Desert “Chocolate Chip” — the Desert Storm-era US Army desert pattern (1985–1990), tan / beige / brown with the distinctive black and white “rock” speckling. Replaced by the simpler 3-color desert in 1990. The 6 Color Desert Camo Shorts are the canonical pattern.
- Tri-Color Desert (DCU) — the 1990–2008 simplification of the desert pattern, three earth tones in a more abstract scheme. The Tri-Color Desert Camo BDU Shorts cover this period.
- Desert Digital (DCU pixel) — the digital-pixel desert variant. Standard length (Desert Digital BDU Shorts) and Rothco long-length (Rothco Desert Digital Long Length).
- ACU Digital (UCP) — the 2004–2014 US Army Universal Camouflage Pattern, the controversial gray-green pixel design that was eventually replaced by OCP (Multicam) due to poor field performance. The ACU Digital Camo BDU Shorts cover the pattern for re-enactor and collector use.
- Tiger Stripe — the iconic ARVN / MACV-SOG / Special Forces Vietnam pattern, never officially adopted by the regular US military but widely worn by SF units in-country. We stock the Original Vietnam Tiger Stripe (the period-correct pattern), the Original Desert Tiger Stripe, the standard Rothco Tiger Stripe Camo BDU Shorts, and the long-length Long Length Tiger Stripe.
- City Camo / City Digital — Rothco's urban / law-enforcement patterns, blue-gray-black designed for metropolitan environments rather than military-issue spec. City Camo BDU Shorts, City Digital, and the long-length City Long Length.
- Specialty Patterns — Black Camo, Midnight Digital, Sky Blue Digital, Subdued Urban Digital, White Camo, Red Camo, and the French Camo F2 (the canonical 1991–2010 French military woodland pattern, distinct from the US M81 woodland design).
Solid-Color Combat Shorts — Rothco BDU Cargo Line
Rothco's solid-color BDU Combat Shorts line carries the same six-pocket cargo cut as the camo BDU shorts but in plain solids for non-camouflage applications — uniform shorts for security and EMT work, summer fatigue for cadre and instructor cadres, casual wear for shooters who want the cargo functionality without the camo pattern, and general civilian use. We stock the line in five colors: Black, Olive Drab, Khaki, Coyote Brown, and Midnight Navy Blue. Olive Drab is the canonical military fatigue color; Coyote Brown is the modern post-2014 OCP-era replacement for OD; Khaki is the traditional warm-weather military color; Midnight Navy fills the LE / public safety uniform niche; Black covers private-security and tactical applications.
Original Tiger Stripe vs Reproduction Patterns
Tiger stripe is the most heavily-reproduced military camo pattern in civilian production, and the distinction between original-pattern and reproduction tiger stripe matters for re-enactors and collectors. The Original Vietnam Tiger Stripe and Original Desert Tiger Stripe SKUs use the period-correct stripe geometry and color palette as worn by ARVN (Vietnamese Army), MACV-SOG, and US Special Forces in-country. The standard Rothco Tiger Stripe Camo BDU Shorts and the long-length Long Length Tiger Stripe use a modernized adaptation of the pattern — recognizable but not strictly period-correct. For a Vietnam-impression re-enactor build, the Original SKUs are the right call; for general-purpose tiger stripe wear, the standard Rothco SKUs are equivalent in cut and construction at lower cost.
Long Length BDU Shorts
Standard BDU shorts cut at or just above the knee, matching the original military issue spec for hot-weather field use. The Long Length variant runs 3–4 inches longer (cut at or just below the knee), preferred by shooters who want the shorts profile without the above-the-knee exposure — typically for kneeling positions on the range, rough ground, or general above-the-knee modesty preferences. We stock long-length variants in four patterns: woodland, woodland digital, tiger stripe, city camo, plus the Rothco desert digital long-length.
Tru-Spec — The Premium NyCo Ripstop Tier
Tru-Spec Black BDU Shorts and Tru-Spec Woodland Camo BDU Shorts are the premium tier in the catalog — Tru-Spec is the Atlantic-based military and LE clothing manufacturer with US-government contract pedigree, and their NyCo (50/50 nylon-cotton) ripstop fabric is the same military-spec construction used in the actual issue BDU pants and shirts. The Rothco equivalents use cotton or polyester-blend fabrics that are lighter and more comfortable in hot weather but less durable under sustained field wear — a Tru-Spec BDU short will outlast a Rothco BDU short by a meaningful margin in heavy use. For casual / occasional wear the Rothco price point is hard to beat; for daily field / instructor / cadre use, Tru-Spec is the upgrade.
Pairing & Cross-References
BDU shorts pair naturally with the broader military-issue uniform catalog. For matching full-length pants in the same patterns and cuts, see our military surplus pants catalog. For matching tops, see our military surplus shirts and jackets catalogs. The military surplus clothing parent catalog covers the complete uniform kit by impression, and the hats and caps catalog rounds out the head-wear matching each pattern. For Rothco-branded gear in adjacent categories, see the Rothco brand catalog. For Vietnam-impression builds beyond the tiger stripe shorts, the military surplus parent catalog has the broader US Army Vietnam-era kit (M1 helmets, ALICE LBE, period-correct accessories).
Frequently Asked Questions — BDU Shorts
Keep Shooting carries a wide selection of BDU Shorts products from trusted brands. Browse our catalog to see the full range, and use the filters on the left to narrow by brand, price, or product type.
Yes! All orders over $49.95 qualify for free shipping, including BDU Shorts products. Orders typically ship within 1–2 business days.
Keep Shooting offers hassle-free returns on BDU Shorts products. If you're not completely satisfied, contact our customer service team for a return authorization. All products must be in original, unused condition.
If you need help choosing the right BDU Shorts product, our team is available to assist. Check individual product descriptions for detailed specifications, or contact us directly and we'll help you find the best fit for your needs.