A friend of mine recently gave me this Ike jacket. It is not military issue but appears to be private purchase. It is made of wool but almost looks like a felt type material. There are no tags and it only has a stamp which I can't read. Is it British made? Also, the 3rd Inf. insignia doesn't look WWII era to me but I'm no patch expert. Please have a look at the photos and give me your opinion. Thanks!

 

That's not an Ike...it's a late pattern Battledress blouse (from which the Ike was copied, hence the similarity) I can't make out the ink stamp. As you're in North America it might be of Canadian origin? Several other Commonwealth armies, plus nations like Greece also had their own versions of the Battledress. The answer will be in the ink stamp...can you post a close-up pic of it or just quote what it says?

Sabrejet, the stamp is pretty faded, I really can't make out what it says. It does appear to be an oval shaped stamp with writing inside of it though. So this predates the Ike jacket? Also, if it is Canadian, why does it have the 3rd Inf. insignia? Thanks for the info!

Sabrejet, the stamp is pretty faded, I really can't make out what it says. It does appear to be an oval shaped stamp with writing inside of it though. So this predates the Ike jacket? Also, if it is Canadian, why does it have the 3rd Inf. insignia? Thanks for the info!

 

 

Because someone wanted it to look like like an Ike....or genuinely thought it was! The 3rd ID patch is modern...merrowed army green border...not WW2. Some time ago a member posted an "Ike" he'd found in an antiques shop. It had WW2 patches etc., but in fact it was a post-war Australian battle-dress. Sometimes US troops wore battledress during WW2, but the example shown here is not of WW2 design.

Check out this link.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Dress

I thought the patch was post war. So let me get this straight...the jacket is post WWII and possibly Canadian? This jacket was "filler" in a museum WWII related exibit. Basically a prop but I never turn down free stuff.

I thought the patch was post war. So let me get this straight...the jacket is post WWII and possibly Canadian? This jacket was "filler" in a museum WWII related exibit. Basically a prop but I never turn down free stuff.

 

 

It's a refinement of the original Battledress design. Post-war the British version adopted a notched collar so a shirt/tie could be worn. Other nations who wore their own versions of the BD followed suit. As I said, it could be from any one of several nations who adopted the BD...including Canada. The answer lies in the ink stamp! Can you see any trace of a "broad arrow" stamp? Commonwealth countries used versions of it as a government property mark.

This looks like a 1950s Greek BD blouse to me.

This looks like a 1950s Greek BD blouse to me.

 

 

If it's Greek, some Greek characters should be recognizable in the ink-stamp, even if it's somewhat illegible.

First off, thanks to all for the info. I don't see anything that looks like a "broad arrow" in the stamp, nor anything that looks like a Greek character. The stamp looks exactly like in the photo. It is there but impossible to read. I think it will find it's way into my box of "surplus".

Do you have the means of viewing your pic of the stamp as a negative? Sometimes doing so can make it a little more legible.

If it hadn't been mentioned yet, the 3rd Inf Division patch is not WW2 vintage. It has a merrowed edge which would make it post WW2. Most likely late 50's to present day time frame.

 

Leigh

Merrowed edges came into general use in the mid- or late-1960's(?) for US SSI.

This BD Tunic is not Canadian or British. My intitial reaction was Indian or perhaps Greek although the buttons look to be of too good a quality to be Indian. In BD collecting circles, the Tunic may end up being a gem.

Thanks edstorey. I'm not a collector of BD's so I am stumped as to what to do with it. I'll entertain offers!

I think this is officially not U.S. military anymore so the thread probably has to end. If anyone cares to continue the conversation, feel free to PM me. Thanks for all of the info.