If you’re like me, you don’t like to put too much thought  into what clothes you put on in the morning. I like to open the closet, see a shirt, and put it on. Is one shirt really so different than other shirts? What would a person need with a “tactical” shirt, anyway?

Well, you can think of a tactical shirt as a shirt that’s more than just a shirt. It’s been “engineered” to be more than just a shirt. For instance, if you do work where you want a heavier gauge shirt fabric that is resistant to oil and other stains and is water repellent, you might try the TAC convertible shirt from Blackhawk. The other thing that makes shirts like this nice is that if they do get wet, they dry quickly. If you put on a typical pull over or button-up, if it gets wet, it STAYS wet.

A tactical shirt breathes. If you get sweaty, you can still feel cooler. The other cool thing is that it offers sunburn protection. Unlike some fabrics that can give your skin sun exposure through them, these shirts block the sun so you don’t have to worry about getting sun burns on your arms.

The TAC convertible shirt from Blackhawk is made of ripstop fabric, so you won’t easily tear it. The oil and water repellent feature comes from a Teflon like coating that protects the shirt from spills. So theoretically, since it won’t tear and won’t stain, you can get a lot more days of wear out of a shirt like this than from typical shirts. If this shot costs about $75 (that’s the MSRP) and other shirts you might get at Walmart costs $20, you’re gonna get a lot more life out of the $75 shirt than you will the others. Some of my shirts start seeming like the stitches come out the first time I was them, so yeah, I think I could get as much life out of a $75 shirt as I could from four $20 shirts that would cost me the same amount.

But it’s called a TACTICAL shirt because you’re supposed to be wearing it while you’re wearing a firearm. The shirt has fake buttons which hide a snap placket. So you can just rip away the shirt to get to your handgun. This way, if you’re ever in a situation where you need to get to your handgun quickly, you don’t have to worry about walking around the rest of the day with a torn shirt like Lou Ferrigno after he turns back into a normal guy. Plus, even though I’m not a shirt-tucker kind of guy, the shirt is designed to stay tucked. Until you rip it off, of course. Shirt is available in Admiral Blue, Fatigue and Slate and is available online and from major retailers like Cabelas. In sizes from small to 4 XL. Available from Blackhawk.com.

So there’s a t-shirt. It looks a lot like any other t-shirt. Well….the truth is, the shirt by itself doesn’t look like a typical t-shirt but if you wore it under other clothes no one would suspect you were wearing something unusual. What’s up with this t-shirt? It’s bulletproof.

Miguel Caballero Fashion had a booth at SHOT Show, where they were showing off their collection of bulletproof clothing. They have a undershirt option for both men and women that can be worn under jackets for discreet protection that might save your life someday. The “Armor T-shirt” is available for men and women for the low, low price of $2,163. We know that people have to pay a premium for bulletproof technology that’s available to the average person who isn’t military or police, but we wish this price was more accessible for the average person.

It’s hard to argue with the benefits this sleeveless t-shirt promises: available in white or black in a variety of different sizes from extra small up to XXXL (with a corresponding increase of about $375 dollars for the larger size) and protection levels IIA, II, IIIA, III and IV. Protection level II stops 9mm, but not 45 Magnums. Protection level IV will stop a bullet from a Kalashnikov, according to the FAQs on the site. You have to add almost $400 more for the highest level of protection for this t-shirt, making it pretty expensive. If I was going into a war zone, and I had the money, I wouldn’t even think twice, but those prices are hard for the average person. Then again, does the average person need one of these?

The company also makes jackets and vests which are even more expensive.