DCU field jacket thrift store pickup...

[Martinjmpr]

Wife likes to thrift store shop, and I don't mind going with her. Usually I spend most of my time with the books (I've gotten a lot of cool books for dirt cheap at thrift stores - used book stores usually know enough about books to mark them up in price but at thrift stores they normally have a flat price for hard backs and paperbacks.)

 

This past weekend though, we went to the DAV thrift store in Lakewood, CO. While she was shopping I came across a DCU field jacket and it was in a size that would fit me (large-regular, although Medium-long was my size when I was in the Army.) I have to admit, I've always liked the DCU field jacket and had been looking to get one for a while. When my Guard unit mobilized in 2004 for OIF and we got our DCU issue, we were given the option of getting either a DCU field jacket or a gore-tex. I chose the gore-tex, which of course I had to turn in at the end of the deployment. It wasn't until we were demobilizing that I realized that the people who were issued DCU field jackets got to keep theirs!

I've always loved the practical and good looking M-65 field jacket design (though IMO it would look better if they did away with the thin, useless hood in the collar and just went to a pointed collar like the M1951 Field jacket) and I've also always been a huge fan of the DCU camo pattern (so much so that a few years ago I spent a lot of $$ getting custom made DCU pattern seat covers for my 4runner.)

 

So, ever since I de-mobed I've been casually looking for a nice DCU field jacket. Of course, there are hundreds of them out there but they are often cheap commercial reproductions, some of them are even made with the thinner DCU/BDU material instead of the thicker field jacket material (which is almost like a cotton duck.) It was easy to find "genuine" DCU field jackets in oddball sizes like extra small -short, but there's no way I could wear something like that.

 

This one, in addition to the fact that it appeared to be a "regulation issue" jacket, was absolutely filthy, especially around the collar and the cuffs, but it was intact, with no rips or bad stains (just dirt and grime), all buttons worked as did the zipper, and the velcro seemed to be in decent condition. Price was $20 and the thrift store was actually having a half - price day, and I figured for $10 I couldn't go wrong.

 

Got it home and soaked the collar, cuffs and other stained areas with lots of SHOUT pre-cleaner, and then just to help, I got a plastic bristle brush and brushed vigorously. The stains seemed to lift off like magic! Washed and dried it and here's the result:

 

Very happy with it overall. Completely stripped but still a nice jacket.

[Martinjmpr]

Oh, there is one minor "issue." The waist drawstring is missing, but that will be easy to fix.

 

Now, as to the jacket itself: Some observations and a question or two: First of all, one of the things that always keys me that a field jacket might not be a genuine issue item is a white tag. Many of the commercial field jackets have white tags. This one is tan and appears genuine - the only thing that throws me off is that it seems to be sewn on in a sloppy manner, at an angle. Has anyone else seen this? I've seen sloppy tags on commercial repros but never seen one on a real BDU field jacket.

 

But the tag itself appears correct for this vintage. The jacket does appear to have had both a name tape and a service branch tape sewn on at one time but there is no evidence of any combat or special skill badges (army and navy), pocket badges or sleeve rank insignia (USAF.) But the fact that it had a nametape and service branch tape, along with the correct tag and heavy weight material, leads me to believe it is most likely a geunine "issue" coat.

 

To be perfectly honest, I don't really care if it is a commercial repro (though I don't think it is.) Even if it is a commercial jacket that doesn't mean it WASN'T worn "in theater" as it wasn't that unusual for soldiers to buy some of their own gear.

 

Is anyone here an expert on DCU field jackets? Most GI's (like me) chose the gore tex over the field jacket, so field jackets in the desert weren't all that common.

 

Photo: crooked tag inside collar:

 

[Martinjmpr]

Tag close up. The real deal, I think?

 

[Martinjmpr]

A little tough to see but evidence of stitching from name tape over the left pocket. There is similar evidence over the right which leads me to believe this was actually issued and worn:

 

[Ewart]

Yup, it's legit.

[mikie]

Nice jacket!