# Russian Miltary Dress/Eqpt Changes (merged)



## The Bread Guy (15 Jan 2013)

The heads of Sergeants Major across Russia are exploding....


> Russia's new defense minister has ordered the army to do away with footwraps, still widely used by Russian servicemen as a substitute for socks.
> 
> Sergei Shoigu on January 14 instructed top army and Defense Ministry officials to phase out the accessory, also known as a foot cloth, from the armed forces.
> 
> ...


Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 14 Jan 13


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## Journeyman (15 Jan 2013)

Makes our rank inflation seem pretty tame, if they've got a LCol overseeing that.   ;D


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## Kat Stevens (15 Jan 2013)

wouldn't you love to do your 2 x 16 in those?  Holy burger meat for feet, Batman.


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## The Bread Guy (15 Jan 2013)

Kat Stevens said:
			
		

> wouldn't you love to do your 2 x 16 in those?  Holy burger meat for feet, Batman.


I was sorta wondering about how cushiony (not) they might be, too.


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## Blackadder1916 (15 Jan 2013)

Back a couple of decades (or more) while on a course, I recall this item (and a demonstration of correct wear) being prominently featured in a training film (pretty sure it was a Soviet training film, sub-titled for our use), the intent of which was to familiarize us with our enemy of the day and instill a sense of their toughness.  If they could march across the frozen steppes with only dish towels wrapped around their feet, then we must be more determined and better prepare ourselves to halt them when they attempt to cross the inner German border.  As often happens when the occasional odd-sort in uniform is exposed to the unusual, one of the other junior officers on course thought he would toughen himself and be better prepared to face the Red hordes if he also forsook socks and started wearing "portyanki".  For a while (a short while) he was a fan and proclaimed their superiority over socks, however the novelty wore off and he was soon back in "socks, wool, grey".



			
				Journeyman said:
			
		

> Makes our rank inflation seem pretty tame, if they've got a LCol overseeing that.   ;D



Only a LCol?  I thought in the CF that one had to be at least a general officer before pouncing from behind potted shrubbery to check the correctness of undergarments.


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## Journeyman (15 Jan 2013)

Blackadder1916 said:
			
		

> Only a LCol?  I thought in the CF that one had to be at least a general officer before pouncing from behind potted shrubbery to check the correctness of undergarments.


To be fair, I believe he was only a Col when the grey sock thread-colour scandal broke.


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## dapaterson (15 Jan 2013)

Journeyman said:
			
		

> To be fair, I believe he was only a Col when the grey sock thread-colour scandal broke.



And that experience served him well as a BGen when he would lurk behind potted plants to ensure the zippers on CANEX windbreakers were at the proper height.


In today's CF, though, we're joint, and using the same people to acquire such radically different items as air force toques and army toques.

I haven't heard about a PMO socks, but if we stand one up (under clothe the soldier, perhaps?) I'm sure we'll find it full of EME officers.


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## jollyjacktar (16 Jan 2013)

Journeyman said:
			
		

> To be fair, I believe he was only a Col when the grey sock thread-colour scandal broke.


He was the Brigade Commander in Calgary when we were all checking our socks and other things.  I didn't know he had a previous pattern of sock madness.  His head exploded when he discovered some of the PPCLI with modified shirts on parade.  Jimmy was special...   :


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## OldSolduer (16 Jan 2013)

We have issues with new kit here, can you imagine what the Russians go through?


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## secondchance (16 Jan 2013)

My father was in USSR Army. He told me it was good for marching but not for everyday life.


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## The Bread Guy (21 Jan 2013)

A more visible icon apparently on its way out, too....


> The Russian Army will drop its traditional fur hat with ear flaps - known as the “ushanka” - in favor of a modern winter headgear, as part of a new military uniform, a senior official at a Russian design company said on Friday.
> 
> The Russian Army plans to gradually introduce a new uniform by 2014. The new kit is being designed by St. Petersburg’s BTK Group, which presented the new patterns in December 2012.
> 
> ...


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## ModlrMike (21 Jan 2013)

Ironic... didn't we just introduce a similar piece of gear?


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## Journeyman (21 Jan 2013)

For wear with DEU -- helmets and comms headsets aren't an issue.


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## Edward Campbell (21 Jan 2013)

Journeyman said:
			
		

> For wear with DEU -- helmets and comms headsets aren't an issue.




That's the spirit ... bring back garrison dress!  :nod:


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## dapaterson (21 Jan 2013)

E.R. Campbell said:
			
		

> That's the spirit ... bring back garrison dress!  :nod:



I think the "Report to Mod" function is for posts like yours...

 :'(


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## daftandbarmy (18 Nov 2013)

Finally revealed... the real reason behind the Soviet policy of 'Glasnost' and building better links with the West. Nice to see a former super power having similar struggles to a 'middle power' like us:

Infantry: Another Uncomfortable Tradition Dies In Russia

November 15, 2013: This is the first Winter in which Russian soldiers have not worn Valenki. These are boots made from felt. In the West just about the only things you can still get made from felt are hats, but in Russia felt footwear has been popular for centuries. Felt is processed wool. Felt is relatively stiff and, like all wool products, is a good insulator and water resistant (not waterproof). Until the 20 th  century, during the heart of the cold weather season, felt boots were the only way for Russians to go outside and not get frostbitten feet. While felt has been around for over 1,500 years, felt boots did not appear until the 1700s and only became cheap enough for widespread use in the 19th century, when their manufacture could be automated. Before that felt boots were very much a luxury item. By the late 19th century they were a mass market product and the Russian Army was a major customer. 

But felt boots are not as study as leather ones and are useless in periods when there is a lot of slush or any rain at all. In times like that you need to wear the felt boots inside some rubberized footwear to keep them dry. While very useful during World War II, when even the German soldiers would steal felt boots from dead Russians and use them, the felt boots usually did not last more than one season, especially if you were in combat or worked outside regularly.  

So now the Russian military is switching over to Western style cold weather footwear. This means Russia is also replacing the traditional rugged (and crudely made) slip on boots and foot wrappings as well. Western style combat boots that use laces, come in many different sizes, and are meant to be used with socks are much more popular (and familiar) to most Russians. Felt boots have been out of fashion for urban Russians for decades. Most Russians are also unfamiliar with the foot wrappings (“portyanki”) that soldiers were still taught to use. For portyanki to work the user has to wrap their feet just so before slipping the foot into the “tarpaulin” boots. If you did not do the wrapping correctly some of your flesh would be exposed to the rough inside surface of these canvas boots. This usually leads to debilitating blisters. The old-fashioned boots were widely disliked by most of the troops forced to use them. The number of older officers who still favored this 19th century footwear are also fading away. So the portyanki and valenki are officially gone this year, along with the old canvas boots that only came in two sizes. 

What the Russians are using instead is what the United States has learned from twelve years of combat operations in Afghanistan. That forced the United States to develop several generations of combat boots for troops fighting in the rocky hills, freezing cold, and scorching heat found there. Every two or three years a new boot design was created and issued. Each generation of boot had fewer problems and the latest iteration (the HWMCB, for Hot Weather Mountain Combat Boot) has generated the fewest complaints. The HWMCB has a lot of little tweaks to the previous design with the biggest difference being that the new boot is 200 gr (7 ounces) lighter than the last one. Russians on the Internet were more interested in American cold weather boots, which were easier to develop than hot weather models. 

http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htinf/articles/20131115.aspx


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## a_majoor (18 Nov 2013)

Look at the time lines and you realize there is only one real comment to be made:

Hire _those_ guys



> The Russian Army will drop its traditional fur hat with ear flaps - known as the “ushanka” - in favor of a modern winter headgear, as part of a new military uniform, a senior official at a Russian design company said on Friday.
> 
> *The Russian Army plans to gradually introduce a new uniform by 2014. The new kit is being designed by St. Petersburg’s BTK Group, which presented the new patterns in December 2012*.
> 
> ...



After seeing 12 years frittered away for a rucksack and still waiting for combat boots after how many years, I would also suggest sentencing the people in charge of clothing and equipment procurment to stripped of all their field kit (to be reissued to soldiers in field units) and given portyanki to wear. Maybe they might see the need for a bit of urgency in their job at that point....


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## OldSolduer (18 Nov 2013)

In Russia boots wear you.

You no wear boots.


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