Chevrons on HBT

[drown1981]

I have a question about chevrons that were worn on HBT jackets by the army during WWII. Did they wear the regular wool chevrons or did they also stencil the chevrons just like they did in the USMC?

[craig_pickrall]

You see photos of chevrons painted on AAF coveralls. You don't see this to often in the ground forces though. I'm guessing you see more sewn on chevrons than painted on as far as the Army is concerned.

[Captainofthe7th]

It's uncommon but definitely done:



Rob

[Sabrejet]

Unusal HBTs you have there Rob. Cut down/ re-tailored coveralls?! :think:

[Captainofthe7th]

Unusal HBTs you have there Rob. Cut down/ re-tailored coveralls?! :think:

 

 

Cut down, tailored shirt. Nice Ike style tailoring, I'm thinking PTO as this was somewhat common there. There are traces of where the box pockets used to be.

 

Rob

[drown1981]

So I am guessing that what I can make up from you comments is that it would be more likely that Army HBTs in the PTO would have stenciled chevrons, resembling the USMC hbts than HBTs in the ETO?

[patches]

So I am guessing that what I can make up from you comments is that it would be more likely that Army HBTs in the PTO would have stenciled chevrons, resembling the USMC hbts than HBTs in the ETO?

 

Not at all, if anything at least in front line Infantry, Combat engineer units in the PTO, this would not be done, there was a real fear of being a sniper target, the Nips always looked to hit any yankee they thought was a officer or a Noncom. Some men did have ranks stenciled on there shirts in these type of units but they where seen when these units where out of the line and this would generally be towards the end of the war. In those Army units that where away from the line or in support units as well as personel of the Air Forces, here is where you would see the rank senciled shirts, bering in mind that it was not a standard practice with it not being a requirment to do so, it basically was up to the individuals inclination to do so. It is thought that the Marines did not stencel or draw ranks on their utilities till very late in the war, even then it was said be be uncommon, with the stenciling being seen as only in greater more increasing numbers in the post war Marine Corps.

 

MTO,ETO,since that in these theaters rank could be commonly found being worn, even in front line units to a degree, the Army if they had HBTs on and if they wanted their rank shown they would simply sew on or have sewn on the standard rank patches of the various types that could be found, stenciling of rank was rare on these items, same for the Air Corps, the Air Corps being a branch of the Army would have the same manner of rank wear, but it would seem the AC personel did have rank sencils on their HBTs more often, though this again being not to common of a practice.

[Captainofthe7th]

Since it's a tailored shirt I think it is for garrison wear or just after the war ended....definitely not fit for combat.

 

I also have a couple of examples of HBT shirts with chevrons sewn on. Again I do not think these are the norm for frontline use.

 

Rob

[craig_pickrall]

Here are a couple with sewn on chevrons. These are from the PTO but I'm not sure what island they were on at the time.

 

[patches]

Here's a Stenciled Rank sighting, oversized and somewhat ill proportioned Sergeant's ones, Tunisia, GI there with a British Soldier, now he, the Britisher, looks like he's wearing a captured Italian Green Wool Side Cap right..

[patches]

Here's a find, though not on HBTs, it is on the Blue denims.

 

Sometime in summer of 1942, a Technician Fifth Grade has stenciled his rank on his denim jacket, this stencil may be in Red like the item member Captainofthe7th posted above.

[doyler]

Hugh McHugh, shown with his 4×5 Speed Graphic PH-104, was killed by a sniper January 15, 1945 in Belgium.

 

 

[doyler]

20 minutes ago, doyler said:

Hugh McHugh, shown with his 4×5 Speed Graphic PH-104, was killed by a sniper January 15, 1945 in Belgium.

 

 

 

 T/5 Hugh E McHugh rests in Henri-Chapelle Cemetery and served with the 165th Signal Photographic  Company

 

https://www.abmc.gov/database-search-results?field_first_name=Hugh&field_last_name=McHugh&service_number=&field_abmc_burial_unit=&field_place_of_entry=All&field_cemetery=All&field_cemetery2=All&field_branch_of_service=All&search_api_fulltext=&field_war[64549]=64549&field_dod_day=All&field_dod_month=All&field_dod_year=&field_missing_status=All&items_per_page=10&sort_bef_combine=field_last_name_ASC

[collectsmedals]

On 6/16/2022 at 12:02 AM, patches said:

Here's a Stenciled Rank sighting, oversized and somewhat ill proportioned Sergeant's ones, Tunisia, GI there with a British Soldier, now he, the Britisher, looks like he's wearing a captured Italian Green Wool Side Cap right..

Based on the size it looks like he may have used an upside down stencil for the British chevrons.

[patches]

A Sergeant of the 84th Infantry Division somewhere in Germany, He has the Silver on Black type stripes sewn on his HBT Shirt.

[patches]

Rather than start a new topic on this, lets add him here.

 

The most unusual application of a Stenciled Rank on a M41 Field Jacket, something if seen then, done on a HBT Fatigue Shirt. Troops of an unknown unit, Full Bird there we see, in the late summer of 44 in Normandy fooling around with a captured Raketenwerfer 43 Puppchen.

 

Close up.

[patches]

A Stars and Stripes Reporter, a Tech 5, in Africa Spring of 43, Ranks Stenciled on what look like 1st Pattern HBT Overalls

[patches]

46 minutes ago, patches said:

A Stars and Stripes Reporter, a Tech 5, in Africa Spring of 43, Ranks Stenciled on what look like 1st Pattern HBT Overalls

Rank we see is in fact Tech 4, that upper shadowing is actually the top chevron.

[Wailuna]

1 hour ago, patches said:

A Stars and Stripes Reporter, a Tech 5, in Africa Spring of 43, Ranks Stenciled on what look like 1st Pattern HBT Overalls

Those stripes are for a Tech 4 (not 5).

[patches]

Remembered this often seen photo and went looking for, found it, GIs of the 5th Infantry Division in Northern Ireland on maneuvers March 1944, Sub Unit not given, we see this 1st Sergeant who has his stripes on his shirt, the 1st Pattern HBT Shirt. Name given as Christopher McGuire Allentown Penna.

[patches]

The Full Photo.

[patches]

Stripes on HBTs two Noncoms of an unidentified XX Corps Troop Unit late summer 44, maybe in September

[patches]

Stencil sighting, here a Tech 5, and haphazardly applied, somewhere in the ETO unit unknown.

[patches]

 OD on Black Stripes on the M41 OD HBTs. Trainees at the Camp Croft SC  Infantry Replacement Training Center sometime the late summer of 1942, the corporal is an Acting Corporal probably.