GORUCK Tough Tee Review

The GORUCK Tough Tee was released by GORUCK back in early 2016 with the goal to both look good and to excel at GORUCK events. We bought one right away and have been using it at all our events since to see if it can truly handle the abuse that occurs there.

GORUCK Tough Tee Review

It should be noted that GORUCK has slightly modified their shirts since we purchased ours back in March of 2016. That’s right… we have been reviewing this shirt for a year and GORUCK went and decided to add a chest pocket to it.

We went out and bought one of these new Tough Tees with pockets to give a quick comparison to see if anything had changed. As you can see the sizing is nearly identical… the difference is probably due to numerous washes for the original tee.

There is no longer a silver(ish) logo printed in the corner of the shirt…

…instead there is an embroidered spearhead logo on the chest pocket.

Here’s a more detailed view of the stitching on the embroidered spearhead.

When it comes to gear and apparel GORUCK is known for quality above all else. This shirt is no exception and further cements in the idea that GORUCK cares about quality.

In the past year this shirt has been through numerous GORUCK Tough and GORUCK Light events and still looks incredible.

Not sure what the deal is but it’s almost impossible to make this shirt look used or worn. After a nice wash and hang dry you barely tell the difference between a used and new one.

No rips, no tears, no loose threads, no nonsense. When it comes to quality this shirt cannot be beat. Six events later and this thing could still pass as new. The only visible use on the entire shirt is a tiny amount of pilling on the shoulders from carrying logs for hours.

All of the non-event pictures of this shirt were taken over one year after purchase. We don’t have any pictures of it new but as we mentioned before that doesn’t really matter… since you can hardly tell it’s used.

Design

The GORUCK Tough Tee fits like a typical athletic-style shirt. If you had any (RIP) American Apparel Tri-Blend shirts then you know what we’re talking about.

The fit is great in the arms and the chest if you’re an athletic individual. If you carry on the heavier side then you will want to pay closer attention to the sizing guide and maybe size up.

Our version of the shirt doesn’t include the pocket that the newer version has. The pocket definitely looks nice but the original version is still solid.

It doesn’t appear that you can purchase the pocket-less shirt anymore but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Overall the design is great and doesn’t leave anything to be desired.

Usability

Usability… it’s a shirt that covers your torso. GORUCK doesn’t provide the length of the shirt but it’s pretty standard. If you have a long torso you might want to be careful as it appears that one reviewer on the product page had to return due to long torso/short shirt issue.

When it comes to shirts the only criteria we have is that it cannot chafe or get in the way. Even after running this shirt through back-to-back GORUCK Tough events (with no washing in between) there was no chaffing or other issues.

The material is stretchy which allows it to twist and turn with you while keeping its shape. It’s also very breathable and dries quickly so you won’t have to worry about being wet for hours when getting in and out of the water.

It’s nice to be able to put on a shirt for an event and know that you won’t have any issues with it. This shirt provides that comfort that we were lacking in our previous event apparel.

Value

At $35 the GORUCK Tough Tee is surprisingly affordable considering it is made in the USA. Comparable Nike and Under Armour shirts run $30 – $50 and are not providing jobs to fellow Americans.

While $35 is a bit for a standard tee this definitely is not your standard tee. The fabric used is all performance material and when you hold it you know it’s quality.

Even better GORUCK routinely has sales on their apparel so if you check the site there’s a good chance you can find some sort of discount. At the time this was posted there was a 10% off discount for joining their email list.

Conclusion

Overall this is an awesome shirt that is both affordable and made in the USA. It retails for $35 and currently comes in Brown, Light Green, and Dark Green. The shirt has performed beyond expectation at events and is a staple in our GORUCK Light and GORUCK Tough packing lists. Give this shirt a shot… you probably won’t regret it!

Check out our GORUCK Gear Reviews for more detailed reviews of GORUCK products.