# Confused recruit



## johnny_boy (14 Sep 2004)

Alright, I have some questions here after just getting my kit (did a search and couldn't get any definite answers)

Ok, so #1) What the heck to I shine my combat boots with? I have seen some posts mentioning Kiwi polish? Is that right? Where do I get this stuff. I have seen posts about how to polish, I just don't know what with, brushes and the polish its self.

#2) How do I wear the beret? I had a beret in Scouts, but that was a long time about and I dont think I was wearing it correctly anyways  :-\
And the guy giving kit wasn't really any help. So any tips would be good. 


Thanks


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## George Wallace (14 Sep 2004)

Are you serious?  You have never polished a pair of shoes or boots before in all of your 22 years?  You have never seen Kiwi polish in the Drug Store when you went shopping for toothpaste, or shaving cream, or some other toilettries?

I am sure that you will have no problems.  They will show you how to wear your uniform and how to march and salute.  Wait For It.

GW


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## RatCatcher (14 Sep 2004)

I concur with the previos post... they will show you everything you need to know...wait on that, everything the books tell them you need to know.  The instructors are there to help you and will give you hints and tricks.


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## NavyGrunt (14 Sep 2004)

All those new berets and all that "first day drill", its gonna be the stuff of memories! ;D

God I hope I can instruct someday.


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## Jarnhamar (14 Sep 2004)

To answer your #1 question







from top to bottom.

Go to walmart. Get some polish. Kiwi, tana etc..
use the first smaller brush to rub the boot polish (in circles like waxing a car) on to your boots. 

Once thats done use the larger brush to rub off the polish (rub right to left like your erasing a black board. Are we still allowed to say black boards? chalk board then)

once all the polish is brushed off use the sponge (Magic polish or whatever their called, its a sponge) and rub down your boots. it will leave a very light coat of oil (i think?) on your boots and make them that much nicer.

Now and then make sure to take out your bootlaces and polish the insides of your boots, like on the tongue.   Also don't forget to blacken the space between the leather and the soles of the boots and the bottoms.
Questions?

As for your beret,   I'll let someone else handle it. just remember since you in an INT coy you gotta cut out the inner lining and replace it with tinfoil


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## NavyGrunt (14 Sep 2004)

Ghost778 said:
			
		

> Now and then make sure to take out your bootlaces and polish the insides of your boots, like on the tongue.   Also don't forget to blacken the space between the leather and the soles of the boots and the bottoms.
> Questions?



Id add a toothbrush to that list. Thats the best(IMO) for getting to those little spaces that need polish.


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## Michael OLeary (14 Sep 2004)

Beret help! --   http://army.ca/forums/threads/17061.0.html

Suggestions on Forming a Beret. --   http://army.ca/forums/threads/16397.0.html


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## hiv (15 Sep 2004)

How do you have a hook if you don't know how to polish boots or form a beret?


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## humint (15 Sep 2004)

Don't worry, if you want some practice, I've got a couple of pairs of boots you can work on. And, I'm not even that picky. I'm pretty much satisfied if I can see my shaved head in the shine. Seen?


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## Michael OLeary (15 Sep 2004)

Tribal Jedi said:
			
		

> How do you have a hook if you don't know how to polish boots or form a beret?



Probably because no-one stops a new member, who is just joining the CF and looking for appropriate emblems to use here, and explians that the Private's chevron isn't actually earned until they are a trained Private. If it bothers you, please send the member a polite private PM explaining their faux pas. If they select it because they don't know, they probably will not understand your point if you ask outright why they selected it.


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## aboutface123 (27 Nov 2006)

I go to a military academy and i just use the basic Kiwi and old shirt around my finger. As for the beret, i would wait until after basic, your sergeant will probably be pissed off that you're wearing it.


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## George Wallace (27 Nov 2006)

I am sure that after a little over two years, he'll have it down pat now.


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## steve29 (27 Nov 2006)

George Wallace said:
			
		

> Are you serious?  You have never polished a pair of shoes or boots before in all of your 22 years?  You have never seen Kiwi polish in the Drug Store when you went shopping for toothpaste, or shaving cream, or some other toilettries?
> 
> I am sure that you will have no problems.  They will show you how to wear your uniform and how to march and salute.  Wait For It.
> 
> GW




hahaha are you serious. When I got in the army at 21, I had never seen shoe polish before. My nike sneakers never needed them. And a beret a remember when they gave me that thing I was like, I'm not wearing that lol, oh so long ago.


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## IrishCanuck (27 Nov 2006)

steve29 said:
			
		

> hahaha are you serious. When I got in the army at 21, I had never seen shoe polish before. My nike sneakers never needed them. And a beret a remember when they gave me that thing I was like, I'm not wearing that lol, oh so long ago.



I second that, I think I've only polished shoes twice in my life so far, dress shoes and curling shoes, and I'm sure I wasn't up to military standards with either job.


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## Zell_Dietrich (30 Nov 2006)

http://www.cadetstuff.org/archives/000200.html A nice into into polishing boots.


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## Darien (7 Dec 2006)

WHOAH WHOAH WHOAH!!!

Shine combat boots?

WTF!?


you brush shine combat boots, at no point in time do you do the whole spit-polishing on combat boots, the whole point of polishing combats is so that you protect the boots leather, spit-shining makes your boots shiny, which shows you off to your enemy.  NEVER spitshine your boots (thats what requires you to use a kiwi rag and water and polish)  For combats, you just coat the boot in polish, and then use your boot-brush, and go from there.

It will make the boot look dark-black, with a little glossy look.

Now, as for polishing dress boots, thats another story all together.

I'm going to recommend that if someone tells you to burnshine, that you tell them where to go, yes, it can make your boots really shinny.
but if you do it wrong, consider your boots destroyed, it can ruin the leather, and then you need to replace the boots.

to spit-shine, take a kiwi-rag, get it alittle damp, get a slight (slight) bit of polish, and move in small circles, covering the boot, and just keep circling until the 'fog' that the polish has made, dissapears and turns into a glossy look, do this several times on your whole boot, and it will shine nicely.


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## Zell_Dietrich (8 Dec 2006)

Darien said:
			
		

> WHOAH WHOAH WHOAH!!!
> 
> Shine combat boots?
> 
> WTF!?



I'm with you on combat boots, in theory.  However in practice, inside where I'm fortunate to be able to do most of what I do, shiny boots look snappy.  I have a pair of "Yes you can call me officer shinny boots" boots and a pair that I let see outside, which are just brush-polished.  Guess which pair I keep Toe warmers (and hand warmers) in?  

Maybe my unit is different about having shinny boots,  last Monday the CO of our unit surprised a bunch of the Ptes. The CO was polishing his boots outside of his office,  the Ptes walked right by not even thinking it could be an officer. (let alone THEE officer) There are people who have their boots like mirrors, at first I thought they just wanted to be indecent with women in dresses, however it really is because it looks sharp.

...

Which reminds me,  if you wear a kilt,  do not I repeat DO NOT make your shoes so good that when I go to pick up something off the floor I get an eye full.     I mean really I think it was on purpose.


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## Shamrock (8 Dec 2006)

Spit-shone combat boots just look dopey.  Brush-shone is beautiful.  Burn shining also removes the water-repellancy of polish.

I once made the comment about water repellancy to a troop burn shining her combat boots.  She spat back, "I don't care, I'm not a _soldier_."  How stupid of me to make that mistake.


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## Zell_Dietrich (8 Dec 2006)

Shamrock said:
			
		

> Spit-shone combat boots just look dopey.  Brush-shone is beautiful.  Burn shining also removes the water-repellancy of polish.
> 
> I once made the comment about water repellancy to a troop burn shining her combats.  She spat back, "I don't care, I'm not a _soldier_."  How stupid of me to make that mistake.



I am not an advocate of taking a lighter to ones boots, (I've only seen it work once, compaired to the times I've seen it NOT work) and I like shiny. ( http://www.armynavysales.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/CF102_large.jpg ) There is a difference between what one has in the field and what one wears otherwise.  I wont let mud get on the shiny boots.  It isn't that atypical for one to remove functionality for style.  I have yet to see a single person who hasn't taken the lining out of the beret.  So much for keeping your head dry in even a light rain.

Stuff your pockets with tissue so they look nice - not usefull and in fact counter productive,  what if you need those pockets?   :warstory:


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