I buy surplus Gen III ECWCS level 7 jackets all the time because they are cheap and warm. I didn’t serve, but the last jacket I bought served somewhere because it came with a stripper clip of live M855 rounds in the pocket…
Sounds like a win!
I haven’t worn the uniform since I retired in December 1999…at least in public. Some years back the wife and I were in our bedroom and I decided to put on my Dress Mess uniform to see how I still fit in the thing, reminiscing on some of the formal functions we attended with Pentagon staff, and some others. My youngest daughter came in and exclaimed that I looked like at Matador. That was the last time.
Speaking of stolen valor, my 19 year old who is a Sophomore at West Point did something in High School which got him in trouble. His Senior year he was the Battalion Commander of his JROTC unit and they wore ACU’s every Thursday. He also had an ACU pattern backpack for his books. He located in a drawer here at home one of my old fatigue embroidered name tapes from the late 70’s, put velcro on the back and stuck it on his backpack. He also placed an ACU US Army tape and the American Flag. While at lunch in the cafeteria, some teacher told him he was not authorized to have US Army on his backpack and told him to take it off. He was a little perturbed, but he was in the final interview process for his appointment to the USMA and he didn’t want to screw anything up. Little did that teacher know but within 7 months that young man would be doing Summer Training as a new Plebe at that historic Army university.
Off topic- For all young veterans.
Is it normal to have a picture copy of your DD214 on your phone. I had a younger vet ask me to show him my DD214 on my phone to prove my MOS. I told him I did not have a pic of it as it is locked up in my safe. He said to me “I need proof”. I just said I was a 19Kilo in the 80’s. I asked him what MOS he was and said he was Air Force SP.
I think he was full of shit but what do I know. He actually sucked at shooting.
Shit happens.
When I was in Ranger Bn we wore jungle fatigues. By the time I finally had foreign jump wings, you could not wear them except on the dress uniform. When I had finally done JOTC you could not wear the patch if you had gone as a unit, only old school on orders as an individual.
Jungles were phased out for BDUs. They were no longer a uniform. I ETS ‘d. I was in college as a taller, ruggeder version of Tom Cruise and loving life. I would occasionally wear my old jungle fatigue top with scroll, tab, wings, infantry badge, etc. and said F it and had the foreign jump wings and jungle expert patch sewn on like they used to be authorized. This was not a current uniform, everything on it was legit attended/earned, and I was like a dumbass 22 year old. I thought my gargoyle glasses and IROC in my tight fitting extra medium OP shirt and white parachute paints were cool as F too. This was a world of acid washed jeans, with mix tap cassettes blaring a combination of new wave, classic rock, angry white man music, brand new grunge before it was grunge and alternative was still alternative instead of top 40 and whatever at the same time from your T tops. Big haired chicks with long nails, serious smoking habits, a birth control prescription, a fake ID, some wine coolers, and hot clothes could be banged at random with no fear of AIDs or pissed fathers. If a kid riding a bike was wearing a helmet you assumed it was because he was a retard. You could bust on your non white friends with racist jokes while they responded with ripostes about you being some gay Vanilla Ice pedophile that was probably a Jewish and polish half breed cretin with a small dick followed up with asking about their basketball skills making up for their lack of swimming skills while they remarked on your shitty dance skills and love for mayonnaise and nobody cared.
I was literally in the phase of my life where I had gone from looking like a Greek pretty boy statue to Greek god statue was maxed out. I was fairly charismatic as well. I was at a gun show flirting with some young ladies, drooling over 800$ SPAS 12s, UZIs, HKs, Dragunovs, AUGs, etc. I could not possibly afford, any single one being the total equivalent of a couple months rent to me. When everybody didn’t have a credit card. They were stuck there with their dads, older brothers, etc. and I was a young dude without obesity, diabetes, body odor, or the look of a unibomber, dungeons and dragons player about to write a manifesto.
I was sporting my fatigue top with the sleeves rolled up to sport some veiny guns, a tan, a Seiko diver, KIA bracelet, and a leg tat (when everyone did not have ten) visible under my white, tight ass, onion skin thin pants. For some reason there was a VN vet table there. With old as F out of shape dudes that must have been pushing 40 and in my opinion like nursing home age. Like they must have been ready to do the Fred Sanford looking types from my perspective. Chain smoking indoors which was totally normal then, while drinking beer from the vendor which was normal as well. I had met one at a gun store once, told him he was a freakin stud for going to Nam instead of dodgin the draft and becoming a politician or a yuppie. (This was an era when nobody did that- in the pre Internet, pre cell phone, pre computer in every home era). He was like watery eyed when I said his era when I joined the army were our heroes at the same time as our harsh bane of our existence taskmasters.
Anyways, despite the otherwise no holds barred DGAF general attitude of the era, the other dozen or so guys we’re going ape shit about me wearing that top. One was the dad of some chick I had just set up a date with. I mean red faced ape shit over that top. And the one guy saying chill out I was cool was drowned out. They were going to call the police. They were going to manhandle me out of the show. This was a gun show in a high school gym on the weekend era. This was rural no town cops, one McDonalds in the state capitol, state troopers fear leaving the insterstate, game wardens AVOID poachers, law enforcement SGT Klink most anything that was not a deplorable, moral irreproachable insult era and location.
I was not some scrawny kid. A lot of times some old silver back getting thick around the middle can go crazy retard old man strength on some young single digit body fat young punk. But I was like 200 pound lean ratty ass concrete floor powerlifting gym habit young punk, with a Ranger Bn enlistment under my belt WTF is your problem MAC SOG my Ass get off my back MFer attitude. But they were outraged and incensed over that top. Like 2018 screeching, purple haired, 20 face piercings, lesbian, Hillary loving, i appropriated their culture while they were being raped by President Trump with no right to an abortion while their black male identifying pre op transsexual life partner was watching as baby seals were being clubbed to death by global warming deniers as illegal aliens being deporting were looking on outraged.
It was looking ugly but between the guy I had met, a college classmate/gym buddy ROTC guy whose dad was a VN SF vet there and finally caught on, etc. it all evened out and I promised them all a beer, while they joked if I was old enough to have one, and I joked if a beer meant they would be up all night pissing from their big prostates, etc.
So, yeah, people can get pretty hot over that stuff.
Damn, and just like that, out of the closet he comes.
Do you wear your “friend’s” SF ring on a chain around your neck to go with the letter jacket he gave you?
(This is a joke)
No, but I also haven’t had anyone check my gangster in person.
The only times I’ve ever been asked for my 214 were for employment and to receive the GI Bill. I also don’t wear and/or discuss my days of high adventure unless we’re friends or I know they’re a vet themselves.
The funny thing is I’ve busted more posers with the yellow safety lanyard on my keychain than anything else.
I still wear the field jacket from time to time, with the liner it’s pretty warm. I still wear the sweats and PT gear, the black wool watch caps, the dress shoes, I still have a few sets of woodlands and marpat hanging around, but I have one set of decked out khakis hanging in the closet.
The only time I ever got any shit was wearing a USS Eisenhower ball cap that had lieutenant bars embroidered, but that incident was squelched pretty quickly.
Yes. The ones that preceded current OCP. I think their official name was UCP.
I’m going to disagree about utility of ACU’s vs. BDU’s. I liked the heavier construction of the BDU material, but the ACU’s had the perfect amount of pockets (especially on the legs).I always kept spare packs of cigarettes in the right ankle pocket of my ACU’s. When young privates would ask why I did that I’d tell them “if you place them upside down, it will pack your cigarettes tight as you’re walking around during the day”. Was almost as fun to watch as the looks on their faces when I’d explain the difference between “winter air” and “warm weather air” on the tires on our trucks. Wouldn’t do it for spite, but someone had to try to remind them to think outside the box.
Keep in mind my fashion sense is pretty much non-existent as I prefer hip pocket cargo jeans (if they have a “tech” pocket on the left side even better as most will hold a 30rnd magazine nicely).
As far as non-mil wearing military style uniforms, I don’t mind as long as they aren’t claiming to be something they’re not. My opinion (and other’s) really shouldn’t be a factor as at least in the US you have the freedom to express yourself. Tactical LE teams wearing camo… that just makes me chuckle if they’re camo in urban areas.
I occasionally buy milsurp clothes. Don’t have any full on uniforms or anything but it’s good stuff that’s inexpensive and lasts.
Have these great set of USMC gloves. They’re wool or wool like, not thick and have these rubber spots all over the inside for better grip. They’re great for when walking my dog or anything cold weather when you’re not out in it for extended periods of time.
Have a bunch of other gloves as well. There’s a LGS that sells surplused clothes. Military boots for everyday cold weather… cheaper than new store bought.
20 years ago or so when I didn’t even know of stolen valor. My friends and I were going paintballing and I decided to wear BDU pants and a greenish grey shirt. Figured it’s appropriate for running around the forrest all day. First thing I did was stop for gas and coffee. Had a bunch of people coming up to me asking my MOS, showing me their military cards .etc… I had to keep explaining that I wasn’t in the military, just going to play paintball. No one seemed to have a problem with it, a few wished me luck.
If I was Trump…
I would reactivate and federalize the militia.
Give direct control to the NG for them.
Everyone is in it, get free training, get to shoot guns, help in community projects and volunteer for other stuff.
I tire of the VFW bs…
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Why do I feel like RA3 has a rumpus room decked out looking like a cross between a 1980s pub/dorm with a Jukebox of hits no later than 1989 and that he woukd entertain me with hours of functional VHS movies, non-homoerotic male bonding, and hard liquor?
Is that a crime?
Stuck on an island…every music made in the 80s and before would keep me busy and happy.
New stuff sucks.
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You guys are nuts.
It’s not like I have a man cave over a garage full of muscle cars with a liquor shelf and big TV playing through giant 80s record player speakers-
Or would have rearranged to add another pair of speakers and recently watched Ninja Commando in all its glory on that huge screen.
That…that’s just how I pictured it.
All that’s missing is an old NES, one of them naked girly calendars, and a Gulf Oil tin sign…
You were a Tanker? Me too.
Yes sir, first M1 with the 105mm.
Puny fobbit here…
Glorified printer repairman
25b
Last godfather e4 mafia for GRDN mosul palace 2005
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I’m a civilian but found myself watching Don Shipley videos for hours over the course of a few day. Even payed $10 to join his website for a month to see the good ones where he busts guys in person.
This guy should have his own TV show. It’s better than “to catch a predator” and he is very funny. Crazy thing was I found his videos looking for a YouTube clip of Clubber Lang saying “prediction…pain”. This is the one I first saw
[video=youtube_share;BC5cnLOhdCQ]https://youtu.be/BC5cnLOhdCQ[/video]
He talks about what thinks is and isn’t considered stolen valor many time. I guess I have always been interested in limitless variations of how f’d up people can be. The stolen valor stuff can get really nuts!