# Should the old battledress  uniform be brought back?



## Veteran`s son (30 Dec 2003)

Hello everyone:

Happy holidays!
Does anyone think that the old battledress  uniform should be brought back in the CF?

It would be cool to have the same type uniform as was worn up till 1968(I believe)!

Given the choice, would anyone choose the old style battledress instead of the current uniforms?

As always, your opinions, comments and feedback are appreciated!


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## Ex-Dragoon (30 Dec 2003)

Personally no...I prefer the standard battle dress and the new Can Pats in service now. I wore the old battle dress for a parade one time and I found it to be too uncomfortable.


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## Meridian (30 Dec 2003)

any photos of this old stuff?


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## Gryphon (30 Dec 2003)

yeah, what is the old battle dress?/?


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## pvandoremalen (30 Dec 2003)

I like the old battle dress but I‘m sticking with Cadpat its a awesome uniform that was designed and made in Canada, hua. Good thought though.


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## Meridian (30 Dec 2003)

hua?


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## Michael Dorosh (30 Dec 2003)

I‘ve worn BD for re-enactment displays.  It sucks.  It looks ok but it sucks.  Combats/CADPAT are comfortable and practical, hands down the winner.  

BD - wool no less - stinks when wet, shrinks, takes forever to dry, and loses its thermal properties.

We have space age materials now, why take a step - or in this case, ten steps - back?

I do think the CF uniform would be better if it was khaki in colour, but CF Green (rifle green) has been "in" for 30 years now, so it is our new tradition, and frankly, we could have done worse.  It still looks military, when worn properly.  The only thing we really need is to change the cut of the jacket to incorporate a waistbelt, either cloth, or leather for parades.  Maybe bring the Sam Browne back.  But of course, that costs $$$ and I‘d rather have my CADPAT, new rucksack, etc., than a new dress uniform.


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## Art Johnson (30 Dec 2003)

Sam Browne for ORs? Not bloody likely besides who needs more stuff to clean and polish.


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## Art Johnson (30 Dec 2003)

Wartime Battledress;

 http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-1/70409/XZIZTHKHLJTTWDTZOBCX-grandpaPandafriend.jpg


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## chrisf (30 Dec 2003)

Is he talking about the Dominion tweed? If so, why in god‘s name would we want it back???


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## mattoigta (31 Dec 2003)

one question: why?


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## ArmyAl (31 Dec 2003)

Heard
Understood
Acknowledged

Pronounced who-ah

HUA!


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## Veteran`s son (31 Dec 2003)

Thank you for the replies!

I asked if the battledress uniform should be brought back because that was the uniform worn in WW2 and Korea, right? 

Michael Dorosh:
Thank you for the details about the battledress as I do not know much about it. I did know that they were made of wool, though.

I do think that the khaki uniform looks nice but I have never worn a military uniform myself.


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## Michael Dorosh (31 Dec 2003)

Now, now, Art, I am not advocating the Sam Browne for ORs (NCM‘s) like myself.  Since I wouldn‘t have to wear one, I wouldn‘t give a fig what the officers have to do to keep them clean!


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## caine737 (31 Dec 2003)

Just one thing to say :
Do you remeber how we used to hate the Tan DEU and the Garrison Dress?

Those are Artefact and should stay as so.
We have enough artefact still in use.


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## combat_medic (31 Dec 2003)

I defy anyone to wear a uniform made entirely of wool around for any length of time and then say that it‘s a good idea to bring it back. Having worn even PART of a wool uniform for a short length of time I can say that I would not want to be wearing it in the field for all the tea in China!


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## Thompson_JM (31 Dec 2003)

even the wool beret can be rather warm sometimes... and though i do like it. I wish we still had the peak caps for the DEU‘s but thats just me. and my dream to look like a cross between an air canada pilot and a bus driver!


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## Michael Dorosh (31 Dec 2003)

> Originally posted by Cpl Elric Frenchie:
> [qb] Just one thing to say :
> Do you remeber how we used to hate the Tan DEU and the Garrison Dress?
> 
> ...


"We"?

Do you have worms or something?   

As dumb as the Garrison Dress jacket and boots were, the tan shirts were very nice - looked great with a kilt in shirt sleeve order, and didn‘t look bad with the work dress pants and sweater, either.  The tan DEU jackets were also a nice throwback to the old tropical worsted/T-dubs but in a better material.


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## Gunnar (31 Dec 2003)

> BD - wool no less - stinks when wet, shrinks, takes forever to dry, and loses its thermal properties.


I can‘t speak for the BD‘s in particular, but wool shouldn‘t lose its thermal properties when wet....that‘s why it is used in the first place.

"For centuries, wool has been considered the best "warm when wet" insulating material around.  While wool‘s thermal properties make it an excellent choice in a variety of conditions including excessively wet environments, it has a tendency to absorb in inordinate amount of water, making it a very heavy fabric to wear when wet.  As well, when wet, wool clothing has a tendency to "itch" and can cause rashes on some people.  Wool also has a tendency to absorb body odours more readily than some of the other artificial fabrics making it less popular in situations where constant use is expected.  In spite of its shortcomings, wool is still tops with many outdoor enthusiasts and has the following advantages:

Warm when wet 
Great insulating properties 
Grandma uses it 
Relatively affordable..."


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## Recce41 (31 Dec 2003)

As for BD, I also wear it for re-enactments. Its great in the wintertime I have to agree with Gunnar on the thermal qualities. The summer time it is cooler, if it fits loose. My Grandfather wore it in WW1 and Father and Uncles in WW2. I even wore it in cadets many many yrs ago. The only big problem with it is, weight and drying. 
 I liked the tan DEUs; they fit better and looked better. In summer the lightweight was a blessing during a parade.  I would like the Regt to get a set. The Guidon party wears scarlet. Wearing a set during a combat parade, riding in the Ferrets, would look great.
  :evil:    :tank:


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## Veteran`s son (1 Jan 2004)

Speaking of uniforms, I want to ask about another CF uniform please!

During integration/unification, the Army, Navy and Airforce all wore the same green uniform.
How many years was the uniform the same for all branches of the service?

Also, is the DEU worn today by the Canadian Army the same type as was worn in 1968?
Again, thank you for your replies or comments!


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## Recce41 (1 Jan 2004)

Most wore the old GREENs from 68-90. These years were the first to the very last. The uniform of today is a heavier material. These is due we did have the summer tans. The green uniform is an all season one. Some Base clothing stores do have a light weight green one.    :evil:      :tank:


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## dbrock (2 Jan 2004)

Good day and Happy New Year to all,

Man O‘ Man do I feel aged. When I first enlisted I had to wear those old itchy sweaters and the nasty looking green shirts.  We bloused our dark green pants into our combat boots.  Then the great day of "garrison Dress" came out. We all liked the "duck hunting" jackets but the boots were terrible to polish.  We had both tan and green DEU‘s and the Americans loved to make fun of our combat uniforms as they looked like "Pyjamas". Or so the Americans thought. I still have not seen any piece of clothing that could dry as fast when laid out on a para cord cloths line though. OSONS to all that remember what that means with honor.


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## Recce41 (2 Jan 2004)

Daryl
 Yea, a few of us wish, we still had that on our arm.


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## dbrock (2 Jan 2004)

Yes, but we did wear the sword and wings with a lot of pride.  I got over teh anger quite a while ago and look upon my service with pride.  I put my shoulder patches in a shadow box and have them up in my office.   :soldier:


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## axeman (2 Jan 2004)

Jeez the old wool uniform. i remember a quote from the russians as the german infantry closed in on them and advanced throught the russian position.It went along the line like " their doing cqb/ assaulting the trenchs with their sleeves rolled up man they look hard" they {the russians} basicly they gave up. Man in no way would i want to look that hard . I like being able to walk all day in summer without the prickly heat build up from a wool uniform .
  :fifty:  
As to the tans yes they were cooler less likely to have heat build up , but I found them to be a higher maint uniform then the greens .


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## Jack Neilson (2 Jan 2004)

I wore battledress from 1956 to 1968 and though I wax nostalgic about it today‘s combats are a vast improvement.  In winter it was worn as normal working dress and walking out dress as well as battledress in the field.  It was of heavy wool and when new was very difficult to press though after a while it did hold a crease well.  It consisted of heavy ankle boots (jump boots for Airborne), trousers held up by suspenders and puttees (a long length of cloth wrapped over the top of the boots and bottom of the trousers) with the trousers bloused.  The blouse was ensured by wearing weights.  In addition to a rear and side pockets there was a an exterior pocket on the left thigh but of course you couldn‘t put anything in it without destroying the crease of the trousers.  As a dispatch rider I wore high motorcycle boots and khaki wool riding breeches instead when in the field.  We wore a khaki shirt and khaki tie with the collar points of the shirt held in place with a spiffy, a thin spring-loaded contraption to hold the points in place.  The tunic was waist length, had interior pockets and external pockets on each breast with a lanyard over the right shoulder and tucked into the pocket.  A 37 pattern web belt with brass corps buckle was worn with the tunic slightly bloused over it.  Highland units wore the tunic, belt, boots and puttees with knee socks and the kilt.  a dark blue (maroon for Airborne, black for Armour) beret was worn until 1961 when it was replaced by a forage cap.  In summer battledress was replaced by bush trousers, bush shirt and bush jacket with a stable belt replacing the web belt.  Walking out dress was a tropical worsted outfit of trousers, jacket with a brass buckle and normally oxfords instead of boots.  The TW dress wrinkled very easily and was generally detested.  All said, and considering the vast improvements of today I must admit I liked the Battledress (at least it distinguished us as soldiers when integration started to hit) but I think that‘s just nostalgia on my part.


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## Jack Neilson (2 Jan 2004)

Something I forgot in the previous post, we wore black boots or shoes while the higher paid help (officers and WO1s) wore oxblood boots or shoes and an oxblood leather Sam Browne belt


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## RCD (3 Jan 2004)

I would suggest the jump smock with combat pants. they are comfortable.an let the various branches their own color patterns.


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## Veterans son (3 Jan 2005)

Hello

Any comments/replies would be appreciated!


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## Big Foot (3 Jan 2005)

The RMC winter dress uniform is basically battle dress, and I must say I hate the thing like the plague. Honestly, the battle blouse is the most uncomfortable piece of kit I've worn ona regular basis. Its hot, uncomfortable and doesn't even look all that good. So no, I say leave the battle dress where it belongs; in a museum.


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## pbi (3 Jan 2005)

Having worn battledress for a couple of years in Army Cadets, I can safely say "good riddance". It was uncomfortable, awkward, and IMHO silly looking. Our present cbt has much more utility. Cheers.


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## Michael Dorosh (3 Jan 2005)

I wore battledress for three days during the D-Day ceremonies this year.  I say good riddance also.


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## q_1966 (7 Jan 2005)

Was the Trench Coat ever issued or used for Combat purpose after WWII

- Shawn


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## Infanteer (7 Jan 2005)

Gee, maybe we should just reintroduce the Brown Bess Musket too.... :


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