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Desert Shield/Storm Impression


Corpl. Cleaver
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Corpl. Cleaver

Okay guys,

 

Here is my first attempt at a Desert Shield/Storm impression. I would like some input from the guys who were there and see what they think.

 

At the time this is just a generic impression. When I have time I will finish it off as a Pvt. from the 1st Infantry Division.

 

Uniform:

6 color Shirt

6 color Trousers

Black web trouser belt

Jungle Boots

K-Pot with 6 color Cover and SDW goggles

6 color Boonie Cap (on pack)

 

Gear:

PASGT vest with 6 color cover

Pistol belt

Y suspenders

M-1961 buttpack

2 M-16 ammo pouches

2 1qt. Canteens in cases

2qt. canteen in case

Jungle 1st Aid Kit in case (on pack)

M-16 bayonet

1st aid pouch (on suspenders)

Leather pocket knife case (on suspenders)

Gasmask and bag (tied to pistol belt)

Flashlight (on pack)

Paracord (on pack)

Rain Poncho (on pack)

 

All of the above items are dated pre 1989 except for the 2qt canteen which is 1993 (my bro has my 1987 one)

 

Note: at this time the uniform is not for reenacting, it is only for display.

goodeo11.jpg

goodon11.jpg

 

By the end of the summer I hope to have all the stuff for my ALICE ruck, I still need the shovle with case, 6 color cover for the ruck, sleeping bag and pup tent.

 

BIG thanks to 1stDivVet, the long talks with him imspired me to start putting this set-up together.

Fins, thanks for all the help, tips, stories and pics.

 

Comments? Questions? Input?

 

Thanks,

Tyler Cleaver

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Corpl. Cleaver

Thanks Leigh,

 

I have one but forget to put it on. It was part of a grouping so it stays with the rest of the stuff.

 

Tyler

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Corpl. Cleaver

No, I don't have the parka... yet.

 

The only problem is age. ;)

 

nope.... I turned 18 two weeks ago.

Delayed Entry Program ;)

They just got me there REALY fast...

 

 

Owen, thanks!

 

Tyler

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Tyler,

 

Looks real sharp. I was in 2-3 ADA (Vulcan/Stinger), 1st Inf Div Mech (Hvy) from 1988-1994.

 

Here are some notes from my foxhole (2-3 ADA specific so do not generalize amongst the entire division population):

1. Although issued frag vest covers, we never actually wore them.

2. Items like the butt pack were not standard issue but were used by the odd individual (like myself). Mine was nylon.

3. Leather boots were just as common as jungles. In fact most guys I knew brought only the leather ones since they brought the boots they thought least personally valuable. (jungles had to purchased at MCSS).

4. The large first aid kit was not issued. I had one but I remember that I was the only one to have it (private purchase).

5. Boonie hats were disallowed for wear until the return of the Division to Saudi for return preparations.

6. While the pistol belt worn was issued in the majority quantity, I remember mine was the metal std and bar style.

7. A mixture of desert nametags/rank/speacialty insignias was hugely common. A "squared away" guy might sew all green backed items on but the majority of Joes had desert name tapes with green backed sew on rank.

 

Keep up the great job!

 

PM me and I will mail you out some Iraqi insignia (have tons of it) for your collection.

 

Dave

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Me at SOCCENT, King Fahd Afld, Oct 1990.

 

post-1107-1277164373.jpg

 

Calling for air, 2nd day of the ground war.

 

post-1107-1277164515.jpg

 

Just inside Kuwait, first day of the ground war before the Marine Col ordered me to get my protective gear back on. You can see the desert camo American flag on my right shoulder (yes; it's backward with the field to the back). that's a "Free Kuwait" button on my pocket flap. It was given me by the Kuwaitis at the start of the ground war.

 

post-1107-1277164553.jpg

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Me on the first day after putting my protecttive gear back on.

 

post-1107-1277164767.jpg

 

Me at SOCCENT, King Fahd Airfield with Gerald MacRainey, (Maj Dad) Oct-Nov 1990. The guy at far right is a Navy SEAL Lt. who earned a Navy comm "V" during the Panama Invasion.

 

post-1107-1277164754.jpg

 

Me at the Kuwaiti Ministery of Defense, 28 Feb 91. I do have a flashlight on my web gear. I would never have done this during actual combat but by this point, ground combat was pretty much over and I prefered to have it where I could use it hands-free if necessary in the utter darkenss of the oil smoke 100% overcast at night.

 

post-1107-1277164921.jpg

 

Hope these pix help you.

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No, I don't have the parka... yet.

nope.... I turned 18 two weeks ago.

Delayed Entry Program ;)

They just got me there REALY fast...

Owen, thanks!

 

Tyler

 

 

Tyler great set up. My brother wore black jungle boots in Somolia and I assume they were worn in Iraq as well. Are you going into the military on D.E.P.? If so thanks for the service you will give us.

Bob

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Corpl. Cleaver
Tyler,

 

Looks real sharp. I was in 2-3 ADA (Vulcan/Stinger), 1st Inf Div Mech (Hvy) from 1988-1994.

 

Here are some notes from my foxhole (2-3 ADA specific so do not generalize amongst the entire division population):

1. Although issued frag vest covers, we never actually wore them.

2. Items like the butt pack were not standard issue but were used by the odd individual (like myself). Mine was nylon.

3. Leather boots were just as common as jungles. In fact most guys I knew brought only the leather ones since they brought the boots they thought least personally valuable. (jungles had to purchased at MCSS).

4. The large first aid kit was not issued. I had one but I remember that I was the only one to have it (private purchase).

5. Boonie hats were disallowed for wear until the return of the Division to Saudi for return preparations.

6. While the pistol belt worn was issued in the majority quantity, I remember mine was the metal std and bar style.

7. A mixture of desert nametags/rank/speacialty insignias was hugely common. A "squared away" guy might sew all green backed items on but the majority of Joes had desert name tapes with green backed sew on rank.

 

Keep up the great job!

 

PM me and I will mail you out some Iraqi insignia (have tons of it) for your collection.

 

Dave

 

My buddy from the 1st carried a M-61 buttpack when he was there, also he carried a jungle aid kit.

I have a beltt like you mentioned, but it didn't ajust large enough to fit over the vest. I'll try the other one later tonight, and if it fits I'll swap them out. The plastic style is hard to close when the ammo pouches are on each side.

 

I need to get the insignia, I have a army BOS tape, but need the flag, BRO and name tape.

 

Thanks for the help and your service

and a PM is on the way.

 

 

USMCRECON

Thank you for your service

thanks for the pictures

quick question, was your name patch held on with velcro? I had two 6 color jackets with velcro over that pocket like that.

 

Tyler

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Corpl. Cleaver
Tyler great set up. My brother wore black jungle boots in Somolia and I assume they were worn in Iraq as well. Are you going into the military on D.E.P.? If so thanks for the service you will give us.

Bob

 

 

No I am not. But I have thought about the option of enlisting.

That reminds me to mail in my selective service papers.

 

Tyler

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Some more notes on my personal observations:

 

1st Inf had tan desert boots in the supply lines. But, I only remember seeing them after the cease-fire and only by the rear-echelon 701st Main Support Battalion (MSB). The jerks cleaned hose and were pimping them while they left almost zero stock to issue to anyone else.

 

I was issued a pair of desert tan boots and one US flag (reverse style) approximately 3 hours before boarding the airplane home. Before that, none in 2-3 ADA had a flag patch. with everyone's sewing kits in their baggage, no one wore the flag home.

 

We received "sundry" boxes from the cooks that were to be distributed by the 1SGs. Among the items in it were 6 pr of phony Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses. They had a matte black finish and were very cheap. I say cheap, but they were worth their weight in gold and many a sad soldier found out that they had linked up with the 1SG a few minutes too late!

 

Dave

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Corpl. Cleaver

Dave, thanks for the added info.

 

2 quick question for you guys.

1. Did you wear your belt ontop of the vest, or just below it so that it didn't have to be reajusted. For me the pistol belt is HUGE on me when I take off the vest.

2. If you carried a butt pack, what did you carry in it? MOPP suit, rations, ammo, personal items etc.. ???

 

Thanks,

Tyler

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I think you are off to a good start, but there are a few things I would like to comment on.I know it has already been said regarding the helmet band.I only recall a couple of National Guard types with the old style M-7 bayonet. The guys who carried them were issued the M-9. It is an expensive change, but would be correct. The other thing I would recommend is to put the smaller thin strap from the protective mask bag around your thigh. We had to wear them fairly tight to ensure that we could get the masks out of the carrier. You also need to take some 100 mile an hour tape and tape up all of your straps- including the chinstrap on your helmet.

 

When we assaulted Kuwait and Iraq, we were all wearing woodland camouflage chemical suits complete with the black rubber chem boots. They sucked and were terribly hot. On top of that, the charcoal leeched out of the interior of the suit leaving black rings around the wrists and around the neck.

 

The uniforms issued at Ft. Riley had green US Army and name etapes sewn to the chocolate chip jackets. Many of us went to the little laundry in Ogden (right outside of the back gate at Riley) and had either brown embroidered on tan or black embroidered on tan name and US Army tapes. Most of us deployed wearing jungle boots where we had siliconed the drain holes to keep sand out of the boots. Shortly after arriving in Saudi, many of us bought tan camel skin boots. They were cheap, didn't have to be polished, and looked cool to us. Before we deployed we were admonished to only wear pin on rank insignia. After being in Saudi a short time, I went and had insignia sewn to the collars. The insignia was black on green until I found a tailor in Hafr Al-Batin who free-handed the insignia design on a Singer sewing machine!

 

The only velcro on desert camo that I ever saw over in Saudi was worn by USAF types and was the size of the USAF leather name tags.

 

There was mention earlier about the night camo parkas and trousers. We wore the parkas a lot- complete with the button in liners. January and February in the desert was COLD. The only time we wore the desert camo trousers were when we wore them as pajamas.

 

I didn't have a butt pack over there, but don't know if I would have wanted one. I carried my stuff in a small ALICE rucksack. I carried my MOPP suit inside a woodland camo ICE pack. ICE stood for Individual Chemical Equipment. The ICE pack had two eyelets on top and the standard hooks on the back so that it could be worn as a butt pack. I fitted mine with a shoulder strap and carried it over the shoulder when I had to carry it. The MOPP suits came in a sealed grey-green plastic bage. We would puncture the bags and let the air out of them and cover the hole with 100 mph tape.

 

Keep working on your impression, you're doing well so far.

 

Allan

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I’ve known a few people who have put together outfits like this, but oddly, none of them want to portray what most grunts were REALLY wearing at the time, their MOPP suit. Finding a OD green MOPP suit probably wouldn’t be too tough. You would likely wanted to strip out the thick lining for it, but get some tape to look like the chemical detector tape, but some 100-mile-an-hour tape in some spots would be good as well. Early MOPP boots might be tough to find, but many soldiers went to MOPP2, the oversuit without gloves, foot covers and mask/hood, through the actual fighting. Any vet of that campaign would appreciate your doing that look.

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As worn, your impression best resembles the uniform worn during the cease fire. My time in the KTO was spent during the Cease Fire with 1/9 Cav, 1st Cav Div and we didn't wear the chem suits that late in the game as there was a negligible CBR threat. For us, most soldiers wore their flashlight attached to the shoulder of the LC-2 Suspenders on their non firing shoudler, hooked on the strap or fitting, and the bottom secured with a blousing rubber around the padding or adjustable part of the strap, depending on where you hooked it up top. The 2 qt canteen was carried on a strap, not fastened to the belt and was usually stored near your seat in the bradley unless you were on a foot patrol when it was slung over the shoulder. Many of us were issued two 2 qt canteens, and carried them when on foot away from the bradleys. The two LC-2 ammunition pouches were usually worn far anough apart to make sure they were not under your body in the prone position (believe me, that extra two inches or so you can get lower doing it this way is preferred when in combat!) For those who had them, the large jungle style First aid kit was worn on the right side on the belt at the right hip, as the left was where you wore your bayonet (which as stated here were the Buck Phrobis III M9 bayonets)... on either hip were the two one quart canteens, again, far enough apart that if you were on your back, or sitting in a seat, they were not under or behind you. Most of our unit didnt wear butt packs... they just weren't issued. Those who did have them were privately purchased, and were usually used to carry extra ammo or food (MREs) When operating from the Bradley, the butt pack was usually not worn or empty until needed for a patrol. For me, since I was a team leader, immediately behind my M9 Bayonet was an AN/PRC-126 Squad Radio with 3 ft whip antenna and handset. On the upper right shoulder was the LC-2 First Aid pouch. The M17A1 or M25 mask was worn on the left hip strapped separately under the gear so even if you took your gear off, you always had your mask with you. As stated, the thinner strap was extended long enough to wrap once completely around the leg and adjusted for a snug fit to secure the mask. One man per Platoon carried an IM-174 Radiac meter, and most of the rest of us carried the IM-93 dosimeter pens. Remember, the Abrams and the bradleys, as well as the A-10s fired DU rounds... Depleted Uranium cored projectiles. M9 chemical detector tape, similar to paper packing tape was worn in three places on the chem suit. If you were right handed, it was left forarm, Right bicep, and left ankle, and right forearm, left bicep and right ankle if you were left handed. The reason being was that you wanted the tape on the forarm of the hand that you supported the front of your rifle with as when you brought the weapon up to fire, you could clearly see if the paper had been contaminated.

 

In answer to your question, most of us wore the belt adjusted to be worn below the bottom of the Kevlar vest, and if my memory serves, my pistol belt still had the brass fittings on it, not the plastic buckle. I personally used a Large Alice rucksack and frame, while most others at the time were issued the medium ruck with frame.

 

Hope this helps... I'm scrounging looking for pictures... if I find one, I'll post it.

 

Wayne

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Corpl. Cleaver

Okay guys, I have some stuff to change. I guess I know what I am going tomorrow morning.

 

Thanks for all of the help,

Tyler Cleaver

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Okay, I found the pic I was looking for. The placement of items on the belt and suspenders wasn't exactly as I thought...I will say that later in my career, what I posted is how I set my gear up based on experience. I hadnt seen this pic until after I'd posted, but as you can see, where the flashlight is on the suspenders. At the time this was taken, we were still in garrison, dress right dress mode... a place for everything and everything in its place. Much later, as gear changed and experience with what worked and what didn't, the whole arrangement changed. I hope this pic helps at least a little. Also, if you can get ahold of a pair, try to get your hands on the Army issue desert boots from then... they were almost identical to the jungle boots, except for being made of suede tan leather and nylon uppers and no drain holes. You should be able to pick up a pair fairly cheaply.

 

Wayne

post-3743-1277192969.jpg

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Looks good to me. And the Kpot band as mentioned is needed...but....you are fine without for awhile too. I knew many of the guys in my Troop who went months without replacements after they were lost/damaged. If I was somewhere with decent internet right now, I could upload some of my pics too.

 

I think as mentioned, the PASGT vest wasn't always used/worn. I don't recall even being issued with one back then. We made due with the smaller kevlar soft shell "spall vest" that is issued as part of the CVC ensemble.

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My buddy from the 1st carried a M-61 buttpack when he was there, also he carried a jungle aid kit.

I have a beltt like you mentioned, but it didn't ajust large enough to fit over the vest. I'll try the other one later tonight, and if it fits I'll swap them out. The plastic style is hard to close when the ammo pouches are on each side.

 

I need to get the insignia, I have a army BOS tape, but need the flag, BRO and name tape.

 

Thanks for the help and your service

and a PM is on the way.

USMCRECON

Thank you for your service

thanks for the pictures

quick question, was your name patch held on with velcro? I had two 6 color jackets with velcro over that pocket like that.

 

Tyler

 

Yes. Special Operations Command Central wore the aircrew style leather name tag on all their BDUs. However, I believe most regular units still wore standard name and service tapes over the upper pockets in the normal manner.

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msgt norway

nice impression :thumbsup:

 

The large first aid kit was not issued. I had one but I remember that I was the only one to have it (private purchase).

the first aid kit on the buttpack is a usmc thing.

 

 

cheers from ken

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I’ve known a few people who have put together outfits like this, but oddly, none of them want to portray what most grunts were REALLY wearing at the time, their MOPP suit. Finding a OD green MOPP suit probably wouldn’t be too tough. You would likely wanted to strip out the thick lining for it, but get some tape to look like the chemical detector tape, but some 100-mile-an-hour tape in some spots would be good as well. Early MOPP boots might be tough to find, but many soldiers went to MOPP2, the oversuit without gloves, foot covers and mask/hood, through the actual fighting. Any vet of that campaign would appreciate your doing that look.

 

 

All of the MOPP suits that I saw when we started the ground war were Woodland Camo. Maybe the tankers had the old OD MOPP suits, but everybody that I saw running around (myself included) were wearing Woodland Camo. The Saudi officers had I believe German sand camo MOPP suits, but the Saudi enlisted didn't wear any MOPP uniforms that I recall. One of the Saudis that I worked with begged me for a US Woodland Camo pattern MOPP suit. After he wore it for an hour or so, he cut the charcoal lining out of it. It was too hot and dirty for him.

 

As for the pistol belt, mine was a plastic buckle belt and we wore them below the flak vest. I was tall enough that I had to add parachute cord loops to the belt to make the LBE suspenders work for me.

 

The comments about sunglasses was spot on too. In fact, as I look at your dust goggles, I would suggest you change to the tinted lenses as we wore these when the sun got too bright and we didn't have the cheapie issue sun glasses. Personally, I spent the money and bought a pair of Gargoyles from the Cav Store catalog.

 

I kept my two quart canteen in my truck and also kept two cases of water bottles in the back storage area. To be really correct with your impression, you should have one or two bottles tucked into your cargo pockets with the tops sticking out. We sucked water constantly, and nobody pulled their canteens until all of the plastic water bottles were expended.

 

As for the US issue desert boots, I too never saw them until we were going home. As I recall, we were all issued a brand new set of DCU's and the patches were sewn on while we waited for that "freedom bird" at King Fahad Airbase.

 

Allan

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Corpl. Cleaver

okay.....

 

Allan,

I'll keep my eyes open for a M-9.

And when I look for patches I'll remember what you said.

Woodland MOPP suit, I'll look for one

And I will swap out the lenses as soon as I find the box with them in.

Don't have any water bottle handy right now. I'll remember to save 2 of them next time.

 

Thanks for the help.

 

Allan and Lee,

MOPP suits... If thats what you guys want to see, I'll try to find one when i have the money.

Thanks for the help

 

 

Ken,

about the large aid kit. I have a buddy who was there with the 1st ID and he carried one along with a M-61 buttpack. So that is why I carry those 2 items.

Also, i had no idea it is a USMC thing. Since I have a 30inch waist, I can't fit asmuch onto my belt, so that is where it ended up.

And this aid kit has been there, the bottom is filled with super fine sand, and the pouch has been repaired with dental floss and 100 mph tape.

Thanks for the help

 

All,

Thanks for all the help guys.

 

I taped afew straps last night. Ajusted the belt and suspends to hang just below the vest. Swapped out the belt for one with a metal buckle and started rearangeing my gear.

Dug around and found a plasic ear-plug case and a helmet band (forgot I had it when I took the pics)

 

I may take another pic or two by the end of the week.

 

Tyler

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