YIKES!

My brother, I stopped after two “gigs” on this LBE, but you are 100% correct.  The ammo pouches are a soup-sandwich.     I was one of a few in my company that had both a pistol and a rifle weapons card.  I never carried both at once.  And if I did, I surely wouldn’t trade rifle ammo for pistol ammo - ever.  When I would carry a sidearm it was in a tanker holster, so that part isn’t odd to me.  The rest is though.  

OMG

It would say it’s a made up set for cosplay.  As Blacksmith pointed out the loose straps are a big aNO-GO in any formation and something you learned in BCT.  Pistol ammo pouch and m16 magazine pouch, 2 first aid pouches and no room for the pistol?  Neither canteen has the NBC cap….so I know we trained in MOPP gear and you had to hydrate…no way without the NBC caps. neat set but my $ is on post service put together.

Here's a couple my dad had. Too bad the blue faded over the years. The painting on silk is a pillow cover he had done while overseas. It looks like it would have been folded into a triangle but was never done. So I had it framed. Sorry for the glare. That's my mom by the way. Otherwise it would not have survived. :)

Well, all of the units I was ever assigned to did issue two, 1-qt canteens.  However, I agree with Blacksmith that this just has a "never left garrison" vibe.  Entirely too clean and pristine - doesn't even have a single scratch on the buckle - no dust or dirt anywhere.  The only time any of that stuff is ever that clean is the day you get it from OCIE / CIF or the day you return it to clear your hand receipt (and even then, you run the chance of some CIF clerk refusing to take back some item that he / she says is not clean enough). Another "oddity" to my eye are the first aid / compass pouches on BOTH shoulder straps.  MAYBE ONE on ONE shoulder strap (that being the shooter's offside shoulder.  This is because anything on the shooting shoulder strap gets in the way of a good stock weld, and just about anyone who has ever carried and lived out of an ALICE pack wouldn't have anything on either shoulder strap.  An overloaded ALICE (and that's the only way they come) is bad enough to carry without anything getting up under its own shoulder straps).  Only some staff-weenie would configure his LBE like that...  (And yea, if your unit SOP called for that setup, remember that some staff-weenie who didn't have to live with it wrote that SOP.) All of the pieces and parts look about right for the time period, though (the cammo "brick" pouch would be for the later end of the period).  The mitten liners - I assume they're "trigger finger" mitten liners, don't fit in the black, finger glove shells.  They have their own shells, but for just general wear, they're quite comfortable (but subject to getting soaking wet and worn out / torn, and don't wear them in garrison).  When I was in, you could usually buy new the trigger finger mitten liners and all of the LBE components in the installation Clothing Sales (back in the early days at government cost, but later at AAFES prices).  If you didn't mind used, there was almost always a "surplus store" just off post.  Almost anyone who made a career of it had a set of LBE that they had put together from private purchase / found items so that the CIF / OCIE issued stuff could just sit in a duffle bag until the next time you PCS'ed when you could take it back just like they issued it to you.  This was also good practice for the occasional layout inspection or other Mickey Mouse "show and tells."  

The small ones were supposed to be for the service coat and the big ones for the overcoat, but apparently flight schools were kind of laws unto themselves about cadet chevrons.   https://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/192866-help-identifying-these-air-cadet-chevrons/

The Military Collectibles Shop will be holding its first workshop tonight on "How to sporterize your Military Rifle" - using the proven Williams method (books and rifles not provided). We will show you how to: 1) Remove those pesky bayonet lugs once and for all. 2) Shave down that stock - who needs all that wood? 3) Drill baby drill- multiple holes for different scopes! 4) Grind that barrel down to barely legal status to impress the deer. 5) Bondo over any inspector marks and arsenal stamps - make it your own! This works well with all WWI & WWII rifles, but we can even chop down and checker up a Civil War Spencer carbine! What's old will be new again! Next week we will go over other topics like "Sniper scope removal" and "chrome is king!" -See you tonight 6pm! April 1st...

With great speed

Great collection, doughboy! Thanks for posting it. If you get a chance please post a larger photo of the Honor Guard (HG) armband (on the lower right in the photo). Thanks!