WW2 US Army impression

[Peter Graham]

I've been collecting WW2 US Army equipment for many years now, just little by little when I can afford it. I eventually decided that I wanted a set of equipment and uniform as used by an infantry officer in Normandy. Everything I've sourced is pre 1944 and with the arrival of a big box of goodies from the watchman this week including a complete 1937 wool uniform, leggings, tie, belts, cartridge belt and M-1928 pack I was able to complete my officer impression plus start on my next project, an infantryman of the same period. Here's the officer kit. Everything here is pre 1944 bar the repro roughouts and the postwar helmet. A WW2 fixed bale M-1 is on my list. The 1937 wool uniform that Jim sent me is in beautiful condition and fits perfectly. The side slung bag is designed for Thompson mags and is a difficult item to come by. There's a few other bits that would be nice to have, like a compass and a map case but they will come. Ideally, these photos should have been taken outside in daylight but there's not enough daylight around these days.

This is the beginning of my next project. A combat infantryman in Normandy. I'm only partly there. Among other things, I need a T handle shovel, an M-1 Garand Bayonet and a Garand itself plus bandoleers, granades etc. The side slung bag here is an M-1 general purpose ammunition bag used for carrying grenades, ammo, explosives etc. I love this bag. I use it to carry all my roadie gear when I'm working with the band.

I'm not sure where I'm going with all this as I don't do re-enactment and I don't really have anywhere to display it. I just love having this stuff around. Sorry if I've bored you flight gear guys but I find combat gear fascinating.

 

[watchmanjimg]

Looks fantastic, Peter! It was my pleasure to help out.

 

[ausreenactor]

I'm not sure where I'm going with all this as I don't do re-enactment and I don't really have anywhere to display it. I just love having this stuff around. Sorry if I've bored you flight gear guys but I find combat gear fascinating.

I love it!! Welcome to the 'leg' world. You really need to wash those trousers as you look like a 'God damned replacement!'

Awesome kit. Need to get outside and get some more 'action' pics!!

Couchy

 

[Andrew]

Looks great Pete, excellent dedication to completing a collection. I wish I was brave enough to do dress ups. One question, did Officers wear a tie in combat?

I really like that side bag as well, since I went to Bali in August i've been using a WWII US gas mask bag as an everyday satchel. Really practical, easy to access, indestructable. I love it.

 

[a2jacketpatches]

Is that magazine bag the same as this one I have listed? It's marked 45 CAL Sub, I found an example online calling it for the M3 Grease gun, but I suppose they are both 45's
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... RK:MESE:IT

 

[unclegrumpy]

Is that magazine bag the same as this one I have listed? It's marked 45 CAL Sub, I found an example online calling it for the M3 Grease gun, but I suppose they are both 45's

Thompson clips fit perfectly in the bag in the first picture, though I don't think it was exclusively used for them. These are often dated 1942 or 1943. I am not sure if M3 clips would fit too....they might be a bit taller.

Your bag looks very late WWII or possibly....actually more likely Korean War. I don't remember ever having this second bag before, but it is very similar to several Korean War dated carbine ammo pouches I have had. They had stenciled markings much like this bag and the same reinforcement & drain grommet, though I think the bags were smaller....hard to tell without getting them next to each other.

 

[dujardin]

excellent Peter, excellent

soooo, you're now on the other side .....


if you need space to display, just send it to me :lol:

just a manniquin in the corner of the living room, just ask to your lady; she will be more than happy to please you

 

[a2jacketpatches]

Is that magazine bag the same as this one I have listed? It's marked 45 CAL Sub, I found an example online calling it for the M3 Grease gun, but I suppose they are both 45's

Thompson clips fit perfectly in the bag in the first picture, though I don't think it was exclusively used for them. These are often dated 1942 or 1943. I am not sure if M3 clips would fit too....they might be a bit taller.

Your bag looks very late WWII or possibly....actually more likely Korean War. I don't remember ever having this second bag before, but it is very similar to several Korean War dated carbine ammo pouches I have had. They had stenciled markings much like this bag and the same reinforcement & drain grommet, though I think the bags were smaller....hard to tell without getting them next to each other.

I've got two others, I think they're called general purpose bags that are a little longer than these. They have that KW look as well but are dated 44 or 45 and I've had the same exact type in two tone, light OD with a darker piping on the seams. I'll get some pics up tomorrow when I get to my shop with measurements.

 

[unclegrumpy]

I've got two others, I think they're called general purpose bags that are a little longer than these. They have that KW look as well but are dated 44 or 45 and I've had the same exact type in two tone, light OD with a darker piping on the seams. I'll get some pics up tomorrow when I get to my shop with measurements.

I bet those bags are like the bigger ammo bag in the second picture, which are much more commonly found in the later war green rather than the earlier lighter khaki shade like Peter's. The darker color is not Korean War per say, but rather what they transitioned to in the latter part of the middle of WWII.

 

[dujardin]

a little bit of ..... officer and gentleman with the necktie :lol:

 

[sealbeachbum]

Wow! Good stuff Peter!

Now you just need one of these!

 

[Peter Graham]

Wow! Good stuff Peter!

Now you just need one of these!

Can't see the pic Bill. What is it, a Jeep, a BAR, a hooker !
Andrew, regarding the question of officers wearing ties in combat. I'd say probably. It was likely down to the commanding officer of a particular unit as to how neat he wanted his junior officers to dress.
As for the ammo bags. The M-3 Grease gun mags are indeed longer than the Thompson mags and would be too long for my bag. Mine is designed to carry six 30 round Thompson mags. I'd say that the one you have on the bay is likely postwar. They were used a lot in Vietnam. I had to search hard to find an early general purpose bag as they are mostly 45 to postwar dated.

 

[Chandler]

That's not a Ka-bar, is it?

 

[Peter Graham]

That's not a Ka-bar, is it?

No way. Ka -Bar's are Marine stuff. It's a Cattaraugus 225Q quartermasters knife, carried throughout WW2 by all branches of the services. A really heavy duty hunting style knife and fairly easy to come by at a good price.

 

[Chandler]

No way. Ka -Bar's are Marine stuff.

That's why I asked. Guess I've never seen one of those -- got my eyes open now!

 

[watchmanjimg]

Commercial models like the Cattaraugus 225Q and PAL RH36 were the only fighting knives readily available to Army troops prior to the standardization of the M3 in 1943, and were carried throughout the war.

 

[Peter Graham]

You can see the knife better in this photo.

 

[dujardin]

love your knife, your light and also the 1911

 

[Peter Graham]

love your knife, your light and also the 1911

Ah ha. Now I see it Bill. One will arrive at some stage. Fear not, although maybe not a real one . Marcel, there's an interesting story behind that light. It's a TL122-A, the first model of TL light used by the US Army in WW2 and the only one made of brass. The later ones were plastic. About 30 years ago while digging in the garden of our old house in Belfast my dad unearthed that torch plus a number of ww2 dated .30 calibre rounds. They had obviously been buried for decades. I'll never know how they came to be there but it's always fascinated me.

 

[Clyde from Carolina]

Love the story of the light. Very cool, and looks good to have been buried in the garden so long! We actually found a rust-encrusted revolver (serious hundred year-old buried relic condition) in the garden at our old house many years ago when I was a boy. Well, our garden was an old agricultural field actually. I always wonderd if it had been dropped during the Civil War, or by a farmer, or a criminal or what. It still had loaded chambers and talk about a "wish it could have talked" kind of moment when we found it.

Don't know what happened to it now that I think of it, and can't remember what exactly it looked like except possibly like an old Smith & Wesson Model 1. :?: