Smoke, if you got 'em....C-Ration cigarettes

[LIFER]

(I thought this would be covered)

How many brands were in the early C-Rations during Vietnam.

[Retired Army Noncom]

Pall Mall seems to have a permanent place in Cs, even in Sundry Boxes, Pall Mall, Chesterfield, Lucky's, Philip Morris, Marlboro were of course choice finds. There were others..............one thing for sure, they all were strong like Camels because of the age. There were no fresh cigarettes in Cs or Sundry boxes.

[flyboy53]

Had Camels in my C-rations.

 

Don't smoke. I sold the three pack for a quarter. Must have been packaged in late Korea or early Vietnam. I remember the guy I sold them to, went through all three cigarettes in just minutes because they were so dry.

[Ivydiv]

I think the had Salem menthols also.

[Retired Army Noncom]

I think the had Salem menthols also.

Yip!! there was Salem's too

[Retired Army Noncom]

I was stationed in Italy during 66-67 and we all carried three cases of Cs in our rig. Those that had to use them were the rigs that were sent out to distant remote locations. There was no hot meals, Cs was it besides what we personally took with us from the commissary. We took cartons of smokes with us and traded the C smokes to kids who would visit from any nearby village. They got twn year old smokes, we got fresh panini's!!! Sometimes their older sisters would visit too!!!!!

 

Smokes sold in the commissary and PX in Italy back then were a bit different than other countries where troops were stationed. We had all the major brands but and I don't know why, the tobacco was shipped to Italy, paper was shipped to Italy but they were rolled and packed in Italy, not in the states. The word 'Montiel' was stamped on each cigarette just below the filters. Had a different taste also and......before we opened the pack, we stamped it against something else numerous times. When we opened the pack the tobacco had been better packed into the paper. So much, when the end was lit, POOF!!! went the first 3/4 inch of the smoke. At $1.10 a carton, we were getting screwed, especially since, like everyone else, we were rationed five cartons a month.

[LIFER]

It seems that there were a lot more Marlboro's put in the packs, and around longest.

[Retired Army Noncom]

It seems that there were a lot more Marlboro's put in the packs, and around longest.

I forgot about Winston. Although Marlboro had been around for years, it was marketed as a woman's cigarette and there was little interest in it as a man's smoke until the very early 60s when filters really took off and the Marlboro Man came along and that's when it took off. The Cs of the 50s that I remember using them in the 60s all had non-filtered smokes but early 60s had filtered smokes and Winston, Marlboro, Salem's were quite popular in a man's culture.

Before Marlboro took off as a man's smoke, the man's main smoke was Camels. I would say also Lucky Strikes especially during he war years.

[General Apathy]

(I thought this would be covered)

How many brands were in the early C-Rations during Vietnam.

.

Hi Lifer, wish I could help you but the carton is still wired up and I'm unable to check out what cigarettes are in there, last time I opened one of these was in the mid seventies and I used to trade out the cigarette packets to friends for the fruit salad, chicken chow mien or the pound cake which I loved.

 

Lewis.

 

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[MastersMate]

In the winning their hearts and minds department. After completing a boarding and inspection of both cargo and fishing junks. we would leave propaganda and packs of cigarettes with the crews.

 

The brand was Half & Half, like the pipe tobacco. They smelled horrible and never developed the courage to smoke them. However , did observe that the fishermen appeared very grateful for the smokes. A look back, when pulling away from the junks you could see that they were heaving the packs overboard.. They knew that those smokes were unfit for human consumption..

[son of a Jungleer]

Hope this relates to your topic: Encountered a partial case of 1962 dated B-1 rations some twenty years ago. Of those that we opened, all had Camel 3 packs in commercial style labels...

[Old Marine]

I remember seeing Newport and Kools Menthols.

[Steve B.]

There are several websites dedicated to US military combat rations that show all the brands. I can't find my links right now, but a little bit of searching should turn them up pretty easily.

 

The brands I remember are: Marlboro, Winston, Camel, Pall Mall, Old Gold, Raleigh, Salem, Kool, Chesterfield, Newport & Lucky Strike. I'm pretty sure there were others, but that's what I remember.

 

The most desirable were Marlboro, Winston, Salem & Kool. It seemed the white guys mostly smoked Marlboro & Winston and the black guys mostly smoked Kool & Salem.

 

Nobody except the real old-timers liked the non-filtered cigarettes, but we always saved them for when we ran out of the good ones.

[LIFER]

A few good stories. I will have to check out those sited. I was told that there was also B & H, along with a plain box, that seem to make it's way at the end. Maybe they did not want any more name brands.