TREX TALK: Grey Man Theory 

I've got a dad bod, wear jogging pants everywhere because normal pants "don't fit me right", I cut my own hair at home, my shirts are from walmart. I thought I was just cheap, lazy and out of shape...turns out IM A GREY MAN TO THE MAX!

Was at my local gun shop discussing camo types with a couple guys. This old dude in a "Bernie 2020" tshirt comes up and goes "Wanna know the best camo ever? THIS tshirt". We're all confused till he lifts his shirt to show us hes running a Glock 17 and a spare. Dude is brilliant!

“Alright honey I’ll be back later I’m headed to the range” *steps out in mariachi clothes and guitar case*

Grey Man theory is one of those bell curve of effectiveness things, there is a sweet spot where you blend and on either side you stand out

In college I would carry my guns in and out of the dorm in a tennis racquet bag. A couple of my friends who shot with me knew and we'd joke about. "What kinda tennis you playing today?" "The soviet kind" (bc I had a wasr)

Fellas, if you put a rifle in your bag, IT IS YOUR BABY. Never set it down, leave it alone or trust anyone around you. Doesn't matter if its a "tactical" bag or not, people steal bags because its easy and almost always has something good in it

In college I rocked a neon pink "Hello Kitty" backpack. The outer pocket even was Hello Kitty's face and had soft fur like fabric on it. It grew on everybody around campus and any time people saw me without it they would ask "Where is the backpack??" For me... A) It was a joke, and an easy conversation starter. B) Cost me $5 and C) fit all of my books and laptop in it, while remaining unimportant should I ever have to set it down. College campuses have "Guests" all the time. Many people see college bags as easy ways to steal laptops, tablets, phones, earbuds etc. Whereas mine somebody thinks "Hey, somebody brought their little sister to campus today"

Man, never really thought about the gray man approach until now. I'm one of those dudes that are just so pissed with everyone here in California for infringing on our 2A rights that I go around as loudly pro-2A as I can... but this makes perfect sense. Opened my eyes, Lucas - thanks for the ultra-packed info vid, brother!

1:00:25 - "You don't see a lot of guys who really living a grey-man life" -- Yes, I believe that is the point.

Don't worry, my pelican case is covered in anime stickers so they will never guess.

In covert surveillance a phrase I’ve heard is called “the unofficial uniform” which describes the phenomenon of when newbies attending a course in an effort to not stick out all ending up looking the same and to put it shortly they all look like Lucas.

At 6’7” 265# not drawing attention to myself is nearly impossible. Therefore, my “Gray Man” approach has been to control the impression of the attention I naturally draw. I work blue collar so a hi-viz reflective works well as a cover garment to absolutely ensure I do not print when CC is not illegal, but administratively restricted. Instead of being Mr. Tactical I am Mr. Safety. Traded my rip stop tactical pants pants for brown duck relax fit painter’s pants. Traded my tactical-hiking boots for Redwings. Traded my tactical bag for a tool bag with a lock and a funny patch which says “go get your own damn tools”. Non-tactical earth tone Carrhartt shirt. Natural brown palm straw sun hat instead of a boonie hat. Just look like a worker, but if the $h!+ ever hit the fan, I can just shed my reflective vest to go low-viz for hiding in the bushes.

12:31, Lucas - "I generally try to stay away from molly" me too Lucas. Don't do drugs kids

Guys with beards, arm tats and sunglasses be like: "I'm blending in, nothing to see here"

The biggest issue I run into using bags from Target or most other consumer level stores, is that the bags have crappy zippers and the straps will not hold a heavy load. Usually the fabric is paper thin too. The challenge is finding a random non descript bag that is designed to take abuse and a heavy load and is built as such, heavy yyk zippers, beefy doubled stitched, padded straps ect

Lucas is the epitome of The Grey Man. He looks like an average high school baseball player.

Just realized my dad has been a “grey man” my whole life. He has always carried a pistol on his person and wears dad clothes, nothing tactical. He doesn’t even talk guns or anything with acquaintances or coworkers.

It's amazing what you can conceal in a Tuxedo, Half-cape, and Top-Hat... More so if you're pushing a Baby Stroller.

I feel like driving an 88 bronco gives me away automatically.

The definition of “grey” is very contextual. If I’m at a hippie music festival, I’m in tie die and doc martin’s with a canvas “sling bag” over my shoulder. If I’m at a business convention, it’s “business casual” with a laptop bag. My age, ethnicity and gender are a little harder to “blend” if those are the features that will make me stand out.

It’s not just the clothing and bags that screams “I’m packing a gun” 🔫 It’s also all those dumb gun, optics, and even military service stickers all over people’s vehicles. Perfect for getting broken into or even be targeted

Tactical Jesus here lol. I wear metal shirts, black slim jeans and black Adidas shoes. You may scoff at skinny jeans but they're actually very stretchy and have a wide range of movement. When I travel, I bring my AR15s in a softshell guitar case/gig bag. I do play guitar and look the part so I'm very low profile. As a fellow Volunteer, I just want to say thanks if you guys helped Constitutional Carry pass here. We needed it desperately. I live a bit north of Knoxville.

Would've been hilarious when he was talking about bags: "So when companies like Vertx or 5.11 get really big, you kinda out yourself and are no longer low-vis.....which is why I personally use a Dora the Explorer backpack..."

"Gun bro" starter pack -Soloman shoes -Trucker hat -Oakley shades (preferably with a colored lens to show how much you don't care.... even though you do) - Some type of synthetic pants - Graphic T and/or flannel button up *bonus points for tattoos and Glocks that are anything but stock

Real tree camouflage is grey man where I come from lol

If you have a “This truck is protected by glock” sticker, YOU’RE OPEN CARRYING

I've been preaching this for years. Thanks for talking about it!

I got called out in London walking downtown as an American right away. A guy yelled "what state you from?" We started talking and he said he could tell I was an American cause of my baseball cap and the way I was surveying everything and everyone around me as me and my family walked. Ever since then I try to be much more discreet.

Wait, so you’re saying I shouldn’t wear a multicam hat with a patch, Black Rifle Coffee t-shirt, combat boots, and carry a backpack covered in patches and molle?

Diaper bag, repleat with baby bottle, diapers, binky, teddy, AR pistol, mags, medical, armor.

Lucas: "Gun community, Christians, I'm a Christian" Me: "👊 My Man!" Love your channel, from New Zealand.

Pro tip for when using a guitar case if someone wants to see your guitar tell them it’s a friends and you’ve been told not to take it out of the case.

How to be low vis: have a clipboard and ask people to sign your petition or take some literature.

I love the fact that the “ USEC” patch on the plate carrier knows which side Lucas is on of EFT.

I’ll tell you the number one thing that stands out to me, watches. What type of watch you have on can be a dead giveaway no matter how your dressed.

I went grey 3 years back and never know this was a thing 😂 Just made sense

Once I was in California and I had someone ask if I was military because they noticed my pocketknife (a Kershaw Leek of all things) clipped in my pocket. I thought it was normal, but just goes to show you never know what may tip people off.

I feel like Lucas has overestimated the intelligence and attention span of the average American.

As a paramedic, a hole is a hole. I've pronounced more dead from GSWs from 38sp than any other caliber. As a former Marine, 556 62 punched the card of many third world nationals. Not to disparage 300BO, but I think you're understating the lethality of some commonly carried calibers. A tool is a tool, just be competent with it.

Haha, I've been wearing Dickies and flannel shirts for the last few years until I realized that since I live in Louisiana it makes me stand out! If you want to blend in down here, a T-shirt with some university or crop-dusting company on it, a long sleeve shirt (untucked or unbuttoned) if you are carrying, and jeans or long pants. The best bags for the south here are just normal backpacks, ideally Realtree camo in this area :)

I literally make a game out of pointing out the “tactical guys” whenever I’m in the mall or Walmart. If I see you wearing Altama boots or 5.11 pants, I already know what’s up 😂.

Homeless is the ultimate grey look in many places

10:43 BUY NORMAL STUFF Gun community: I haven’t heard that name in years Tactical Timmys: whimpering silently in a corner

This is why Lucas is my favorite RU-vid Larper. He’s explains so many details from his studies and training in his backyard. Love this guy.

Hey Lucas and Trex team. I just wanted to reach out and say how appreciative I am about my most recent order from your online store. Ordered a Ragnarok as well as a QLS fork for it. You mounted the hardware for me so I didn’t have to. Seems like a little thing to you guys, but that attention to detail, mindfulness and customer service sets you guys apart. Thank you so much. Plus your lead times are exceedingly reasonable in these times. I will keep coming back for more.

Great talk. I'm the most low speed, high drag guy you'll ever meet when it comes to advanced weapons skills. That said, I spent my entire adult life doing surveillance and advance team work for some very high speed guys in non-permissive environments around the world. I see so many people online "preparing" for civil unrest by gearing up for a ground war in which, I suppose, they think they'll be elite soldiers. They are so fucked. Most of the places I operated I wasn't even able to have a firearm. I love guns, love shooting, love training - but survival in a non-permissive environment comes down to a million little things that have nothing to do with firearms. Grey man theory (as expressed here) is great in terms of not broadcasting your skill set, but it's just a start. Learning how to procure and stage a bag/backpack so that you can talk your way through a government checkpoint (or militia checkpoint) is important. Knowing how to properly conceal items on your person so that you can bypass locks quickly and efficiently is important. Having multiple backstory's (that have been backstopped) so that you can move through refugee camps without drawing attention is important. Being able to take $100 into a home depot/walmart and being able to arm yourself with easily concealable and disposable short range weapons. Knowing how to blend in with different groups, not by your dress, but by completely changing your entire personality/belief system (think method acting) so that you can actually work your way into different groups of people, is important. Shooting is great but it is a very, very small aspect of survival in an urban/occupied environment.

I carried one 'Jan Sport' backpack in particular for like 10 years as a tool bag in a heavy industrial job, loaded down with the bare minimum that I needed to do my job...like pipe wrenches, 440Channellocks, Flukes, and such. The plant was like 5 miles end to end, 100s of feet in the air, and mostly ladders. Sharp mezzanine floors that would tare up my FRs and the skin under that. That Jans Sport never shredded, never started spittin' tools from 300' in the sky...onto housecats & engineers on 1st floor, that never leave the freakin' CONcrete....ehem. It was a stupid tough bag, is all.

To everyone, grey man means *BLEND IN*. That means dress for the crowd in attire normal for the weather, and someone of your age, and build.

I’m actually looking forward to autopsy photos of the guy that robs a gas station when Lucas is pumping gas. 😂😂😂

Gotta disagree on the Fortnite bag. I think it screams video games and electronics for an easy snatch and grab. I'd rather something like a gym bag that screams dirt smelly workout clothes.

As a metalhead, it's very easy for me to go unnoticed in a loose, black band t shirt, black pants, black chucks and long hair. I usually have such a "distinct" look that people assume I'm actually anti-gun.

generally speaking people who spend money on quality bags typically use them to hold quality items. If someone's carrying a $100-$350+ bag on their shoulder they probably have something of value to carry within it. Sometimes a cheap JanSport or other common backpack is just the way to go.

Ahegao Hoodie, White shoes, black socks, Slim jeans, Rainbow Face mask , a cap with the word _"I love puppies"_ on it, and a sport backpack with anime related keychainsall over your zippers *Wear all that and everyone thinks you're not a gun owner*

I've barely been noticed my entire life so I got this grey man stuff down like a pro already.

Just subscribed. Live the Grey man life. Hanes Ts, thrift store jeans (of all brands) and dock martins... now in the winter I wear thermals and a snap-on (was actually very expensive). That eludes I'm a mechanic. In all honesty. I'm a plumber lol. I believe it's something I picked up years ago from reading "the art of war". The underlying theme is "despetion to win the battle/war". Been Grey for over a decade now. Cheers 👍👍

Just rememeber: all your gray man plans go out the window if you have neighbors who will rat you out when laws become more tyrannical, and they saw all your cool stuff back when things were calm. Don't forget to play nice with the people around you, and dont show off your toys.

Carhartt is great around here, everyone recognizes it as workman's gear plus it's tough

There's two types of people you want to trick when being the Gray Man. One is easy, one is hard. For general public in an apathetic environment, you can pretty much dress anyway you want minus the branding or over the top Threeper patches/Punisher Skulls/American flag & Camo pattern. People just don't care and don't pay attention. They won't see you print and they won't care that you're wearing Salomon's, as long as they aren't solid FDE. People are just self absorbed and unless you get between them and the screen on their cell phone they won't notice you. The second type of person is "Bluefor" or government agents in a strictly non-permissive environment. If a government agent is actively looking for people who MIGHT be trouble, they'll be clued in to everything you're wearing (including your T-Rex hat...) and will likely be able to tell you're carrying a gun just by the way you walk or sit. It can be as easy as noticing you're carrying a bag when no one else is or that you're wearing laced up shoes when everyone is in flip flops. If you want to Gray Man someone who is trained to look for Indigs trying to blend in, you better very carefully study who you're trying to blend in with and don't deviate at all, even if it means sacrificing gear.

In the wilds land fire community, we call those bags our "RED Bags" they were loaded in the trucks with everything we needed to go anywhere anytime for up to two weeks at a time.

The one piece of “normal” equipment that I think you really should wear a non traditional one of if you are carrying every day is a belt. You still want to get one that looks normal enough and doesn’t call attention to you, especially because you’d be specifically calling attention to where the gun is effectively - but if you just try to wear normal belts, you’re not always going to get the same level of practical use, concealment, and quite often the typical $40-50 leather belts will fall apart fairly quick.

I like to carry my Dillon mini gun in a baby stroller, when the hot girls ask to see the ''baby'' i tell them he's sleeping and Dillon doesn't like it when i wake him up. They always follow up with, ''whats the battery underneath for?''

Grey Man Theory; Treat guns like STDs… you don’t want to advertise you have them.

Never thought about all this stuff…. Gives me sooooo many new ideas. Thanks man for the things you do for the 2A community.

My only thing I really like with open carry is to help get people normalized with it. Like you said, people staring you down when you open carry. Shouldn’t be a problem. If more people open carried, it would allow more people to be comfortable around it.

Tip: be a Grey Man to strangers but be a gun owner to your friends.

I always wondered how people could tell I was concealed carrying my .50 BMG on my back under my shirt. Now I know its because I'm wearing 5.11 boots

First time I've heard you say I'm a Christian. I will definitely try to start supporting you by purchasing from you and your website. I really admire your honesty and courage whereas nowadays it's frowned upon to be a follower of Christ.

Thank you for all your videos! They are next level content. So good that I find myself watching them a few times.

My toddler is grey man in his daycare class, sporting his new terx orms shirt hehe

Buy a rifle bag/ pelican case that matches your vehicle carpet. Black for black/ grey and tan for beige. Makes it harder to see through a tinted window

A kel-tec sub 2K is A great little 9 mm carbine and it folds nicely to fit inside a tennis racket case.

Lucas you are the epitome of the “grey man”. well, other than that hat you like to wear. The awesome bend in the bill is a dead giveaway, thanks for the great videos. Keep up the good work kid!

Listening to this while watering my lawn... Awesome

"Don't buy gun bags like 5.11 or Vertex...get normal made bags", oh wait... I gotta make money too, "Trex may start to sell gun bags too" 😆 I see what you did there

Clothing and bags are only a city camo. When you look at a person, their shape, movements, behavior, position of their feet, sometimes the facial expression and the look in their eyes, or the way they are scanning or explicitly not scanning you and the surroundings - all that gives you a rough, but pretty correct idea about the capabilities level of that person. Mostly. You can't hide it with clothing. There are exceptions, of course. If you want to be more certain, create an event and observe the reaction.

Vertx has some products that have tactical functionality but aren't ridiculously over the top that scream "hey I'm carrying". Their phantom LT 2.0 pants are a great example, 12 pockets but extremely streamlined and low vis, they actually made the legs a full inch slimmer than the regular phantom ops. But they still come with the nice articulated knees and are actually really soft. They are made of mini ripstop...but in the darker colors like smoke grey it's not easy to tell unless you're right next to me. Also vertx has a go pack that's essentially a one pocket drawstring medium size bag that looks just like any generic Nike drawstring back except the whole inside is hook and loop velcro combatable so if you wanna attach overflow pouches, mak bands etc you can...

I love how he is openly talking about all the times he was trying to be "low vis" to us totally blowing his own cover. His gray man level is over 9000!!!!

I drive a RAV4 hybrid with two “Baby on Board” stickers; one for the baby and the other for my AR15. If you came across my grey Corolla and for some reason broke into the trunk, you would find a medium sized ice chest. If you opened that, you would find a backpack 🎒 which is actually THE hospital. LOL, I speak Russian when I visit Eastern Europe. Так как многие в восточной Европе разговаривают по русский и я не хочу всем дать знать что у меня есть деньги при себе или что я американец. As far as the Fortnite bag, criminals will break into your car and steal it but not because they think it has gun in it, rather it will be because it’s high viz and easily noticed inside the car AND criminals generally are looking for anything of value including computers and cellphones. Grey man isn’t just about labels and brands, it’s also about blending in and unique bags catch attention. Jansport, Columbia, Patagonia, Levi, or REI co-op clothing/gear is generally an excellent choice but also consider the color. If you are in Disneyland, bright colors are good, otherwise stick to dull darker colors. I have a lot of grey man family history as my Christian grandparents and parents had to “hide in plain sight” in the USSR or ССР after my great grandfather was killed by a forest fire in a Gulag for his faith and my great grandmother was left to raise the kids on her own (through a famine). Overall a good video with some good insights. 👍🏻 I would also recommend people read The Art of War, which is a great book on tactics and deception.

Bro you're a walking Grey man , I'd never know from a glance you're the dude we need in a survival camp. Honestly man ty for the solid content and info never disappoints.

Thanks for the quote from I.J. and the Last Crusade. One of my favorite and funniest lines from the series.

Thank you for what you all do. God bless

For anyone interested in grey man medic packs, I highly recommend professional camera bags from cannon, especially with the modular compartments.

I’ve watched a ton of your videos and this by far was the one I needed to watch most. This video is in December of 2023 going into 2024 which is possibly going to be the biggest election year the United States has ever seen. Our community needs to be ready.

I am the Gray man. Never worn jewelry of any kind, no watch, no tat's, no tac gear, dress like Jay Leno. You can't look at me or my cars and know anything about me. Been that way all my life. Often the most dangerous person in the room or on the field is the one you didn't notice.

I peep that USEC trooper armor in the back lmao But little did they know.... there was indeed good loot in the Fortnite bag. 15:20

someone breaking into your car will take every single bag you leave in it. guns always go missing if left in a vehicle.

Agreed. Think old and worn. There was tons of vietnam green and 80's woodland going through the swap meets in AZ 1978 -1995. Any 20 yo old looking faded camo is hardly noticed. I dump my EDC in one pants pouch and a mag in the other and button up the posterior button. Throw in my tape measure and a roll of electrical tape and no printing.... and the pocket hangs there normal. No one ever guesses in Walmart or HD. Also... no holster needed. I'm older now, in AZ I blend like another old fart worker with a stained t-shirt and old red bandana.

Just now watching this.. great points. Ive always suggested just wearing "generic" looking clothing and packs, no tactical labels, patches, et. Also.. i steer away from anything in "camo colors".. such as olive green, browns, and camo patterns, Nobody pops a second glance at blue, red, gray and simple looking black things.

Instead of making a bag, make an insert to an existing bag, find a bag that has large stock from a retailer like North Face. Make an insert you either slide in or have to cut the internals of the bag up a bit for.

I visited Tennessee for the first time in my life a this past March. Went to Gatlinburg and the Great Smoky Mountain National Park and all I have to say is long live Tennessee.

I love using Oakley bags. They offer a lot of utility and even tactical benefits while still looking like a plain bag that might be used by a hiker, athlete or tech support guy. Always suited me well for being a low key bag with lots of capability

The Best EDC bag to use is a diaper bag, has a ton of pockets, built well and blends in with all the soccer mom's

How to be grey man: guitar case with mariachi hat and outfit

People who break in to cars don't give a shit what they're stealing. If they break in, they take every bag.

My car has no bumper sticker, nor will it ever. Nothing I wear has a logo, brand, or "cutesy" message on it. But damn it, I love my tactical pants! It has pockets for everything. lol Unfortunately in a world dominated by jeans, that does make me stick out. Thanks for pointing that out.

Diaper bags may be the unsung hero here. You can fit so much crap in them (sometimes literally) and I cant think of something less tactical looking than I diaper bag. Even leave the baby wipes in the exposed baby wipe dispenser on the side. Those are always useful...

I use a northface bag. Good quality. Blends in

I’m Russian and I lmfao when you said they comment. People are miserable in Russia lol, they all talk shit about how Americans are fat but ALL want to be here and live the life.

when ppl talk about this I always remember Fringe (tv show) and the in-universe ZFT and their approach to what you describe as Grey Man Theory. I have basic hair cut for being an office worker, don't have ANY tats cuz that'd be 'identifying markings', I drive the most common model vehicles with super common colors. No stickers on my car, I just dress like an office worker that may also work on a farm (basically eddie bauer chiche'). My laptop /carry bag is a dell bag like everybody else. I can eat almost anything aside from pineapple. I'm religious but well versed on ALL religions and many philosophies and regional histories. I have medical, agricultural, IT, business ops, and various other professional skill sets. All useful to have a conversation about various topics from gardening to TV to food to video games etc. I'm in the midwest and my accent is said to be the 'no accent' of US accents. The biggest thing that sticks out about me is being a bit husky (which outside of US sticks out), and tending to use a lot of deadpan sarcasm in casual conversations. Outside of that I blend pretty well. This isn't all 'I practice GMT' but more just who I am: well versed in various topics, but also want to be able to blend into a crowd if the rare situation required it.

Some of the things you put out in this video have merit. I spent 16 years as a counterintelligence agent in the Army and have been tasked to 3 other Agencies doing this very thing. Baseball hats are dead give away, so are printed t-shirts. When working in a foreign area I was taught to go slick in country and either have the embassy detail shop for. You or buy on the economy. You can take throw away clothes to get through customs but you need to stash those bags when you get in country. Foreign customs can place rfid or small trackers in you bags and going without luggage will get you flagged.rings and jewelry are another thing, Americans don't wear jewelry as much, most Europeans do, especially Eastern Europeans.