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I used to live next to a man who was a member of the Devil's Brigade in WW2. He said he was sleeping one night in a farmhouse when 88s opened up; everyone dove for cover into the basement- except him. In the morning he was congratulated for his bravery under fire, but he said he wasn't brave- he just couldn't get out of the sleeping bag.

It had to be the worst panic attack waking up to the sound of gunfire and being rendered an armoured caterpillar because you can’t get out of your shitty sleeping bag

That last thing about troops not getting gear because the support troops would take it before it made it to the combat troops is a real sore spot and I'm sure continues to this day. I was in Desert Storm and they came out with many things adapted for the desert during the early part of Desert Shield. The thing we wanted the most was the New Desert Boots. We either had the regular issue leather boots or even jump boots and they were very hot and made your feet wet with perspiration. We also had our Jungle boots which were lighter and more breathable but the built in drains allowed sand to get in and that would quickly rub you raw. We begged for the new desert boots, and a couple of times some showed up but they were only weird sizes like size 6 or size 14. I never knew anyone who got a pair during the war. When we got back to Saudi Arabia all the REMFs were wearing them, all the Airforce personnel were wearing them at the nearby airbase, it just made me sick. Yes it still pisses me off after 33 years.

Rear area commando are nothing new, and still around. In VN we were issued WW2 boots while the Supply people had the new Jungle boots and nylon gear. Our sergeant went into the supply depot and at gun point got us Jungle boots. He was charged and when he appeared before the CO he showed the CO his leather issue was rotten and the XO was standing there with new kit. Our CO transferred the XO and dismissed the Sergeants charges. Then we all go new issue and the CO made sure the rear area commando had the old WW2 issue. There are a few good senior officers, and a lot of useless juniors that just do nothing for their men.

The P-38 can opener was the greatest piece of WWII kit. I still have one.

My great grandmother’s brother served in WWi and WW2, my grandmother’s brothers who served in WW2 said he was downright fanatical about carrying his gas mask at all times. He would always write in every letter to his nephews to never go anywhere without their helmets rifles or especially their masks. My uncle Bob told me he never had the heart to tell old Uncle Willie that he chucked his mask.

Chafing gets raw, raw gets dirty, dirty gets infected. Soldier's have been dealing with that forever (just look at the Legions), and today with body armour we still do.

The "Blue Star Commando" effect still takes place. We saw the folks at the ports and airfields, where obviously supplies come into, showing off their new DCUs and boots, while frontline units rolled into Iraq wearing BDUs. The DCUs didn't make it to us, until we were going home, and had to wear them in a parade. Supply syphoning is something that will probably never go away.

My dad, a Mustang pilot with the 8th AF, used a panel of a parachute as a scarf during operational flights. The parachute panel was from a pilot who crashed on takeoff and was killed. He then had a local seamstress sew it into a scarf. Like the ground pounders he wore it to avoid getting his neck chaffed. When you are flying combat you have your head continually on a swivel. As my dad described it, constantly doing figure eights. Look right up/down, look center at instruments, look left up/down, all the time. Doing this for hours, say on a 5 1/2 hour mission to Berlin will wear the skin off your neck sans scarf. Great video, thanks for making it.

I can commiserate. I was in Vietnam in a LRRP unit. Everything we carried was considered field expedient. To get a good rucksack for instance we took the Aluminum frame from one with another pack that had greater volume. Our web belts (from Korea and WWII) were altered and stripped and we used canteen covers for grenades, M-16 mags and canteens. Slings for the M-16 were discarded as too noisy and new ones made from GI handkerchiefs and electrical tape (no duct tape back then). We weren’t allowed to use our rain poncho (it was noisy and shiny) and only carried a jungle blanket and jungle sweater and extra socks. MRE’s were introduced at the end of our tour as we had been carrying C-Rations and our water as fresh water was hard to come by. But the MRE’s used up precious drinking water so they were a mixed blessing. Line units I’m sure were more conventionally equipped but they stayed out longer and were supplied by helicopter and noise discipline was less of a concern. Thanks for the video and listening to me geeze:)

Comfort is extremely important in combat. It's already miserable and anything that eases the misery means less to distract you from the mission.

A criticism that would emerge from Korea about the M43 boots is that ironically, the buckles would get caught on underbrush as well.

One Honorable mention should go to the Browning Automatic Rifle's Bipod. It was flimsy and added extra weight to an already heavy weapon. It was not uncommon for soldiers (especially US marines) to take them off and throw away and just use the BAR as an automatic rifle. That's what it was to begin with not a light machine gun. It was forced into the LMG role when the US entered WW2.

An older guy I use to fish with had served in Africa, Italy, and France always said that, the only thing the army ever gave him that worked was his M1. The food, boots, clothing were all crap. New tents leaked, new jeeps had to be fixed to run, and the only good food they got was what they could steal. Everything but the M1

As a member of the British army, I can attest that packing your doss bag away after getting stood to is a pain in the ass, takes up alot of space aswell, would prefer a decent blanket, on the other hand being in your dossbag is a fucking decent slice of moral on a winter exercise

Bill Mauldin (of Willie and Joe fame) talked about the rear echelon troops scamming gear in his book Up the Front. He said that, at the start of the war, when all the Hollywood movies were about fighter pilots all of the garitroopers (as he called them, short for garrison troops) scammed to get their hands on aviator glasses and tried to dress like pilots but, as the war dragged on and Hollywood movies started being more about the infantry, they'd scam to get field kit and would skip shaving so they looked like "real" soldiers. The problem was that, they'd see mountains of gear in the supply depots and not think they were doing any harm taking just one jacket or other piece of gear. But there were a lot of rear echelon troops and those mountains of gear dissolved pretty fast on the was to the front line troops.

A neat note about the gas masks. In the Aleutian islands after they landed they ditched their gas masks and they can still be seen laying around in the landing zones to this day.

For those of you who used to watch the TV show "Combat!", did you wonder how many things Sgt Saunders had in his M41 jacket. He used to pull out binoculars and a seemingly endless supply of hand grenades by just reaching inside his jacket?

15:50 Things never change. Every time I get a chance to go to the rear, the POGs are wearing all the high-speed gear and sleeping in Light Fighter Tents. Trust me, I don't want to carry a damn tent but the point still stands - little supply gremlins snag all the nice stuff on it's way to the Infantryman. We give them hell about it.

My Dad was an a MP in WW2. I went to 12-15 of his army reunions. Heard 100’s of war stories and general BS sessions. Two things stood out that they used back then. The Coleman personal field stove was not issued to common soldiers. But when they found one or won it in a card game this was a valuable commodity. Most people that had them were soldiers that were attached to a vehicle. Tankers, truck drivers and MP with jeeps. Dad was given a stove by a tanker who was wounded he picked up and carried to an aid station. Dad said that using the stove for a hot meal was the ONLY thing that reminded him of home. Now the bad. Powdered eggs were not great but the worst thing ever devised for a food item was the green syrup the field kitchens used for breakfast. They would have pancakes and who doesn’t like syrup? You after they dumped a cold green watery sweet nastiness on your pancakes. I’ve heard the horror story of the green watery menace many times.

The fact that you put cigarettes into the list of "stuff you'd definitely need to keep you alive" is authentic as it gets :D

A good tip for anyone in the Army, or joining up, is always make friends with the Supply Sgts and clerks. Buy them a beer, bring them lunch. It will pay off when it matters. They can hook you up.

During an Oklahoma Winter exercise in 1983, I was using one of those mummy style WW2 sleeping bags and was asleep at 2am in a 20-man canvas tent. It was single-digit temperature outside, but the M1941 tent stove made it somewhat tolerable, as long as you were within a few feet of it. Because some of my tentmates were some of the noisiest MFers, I was sleeping with earplugs in, (against the rules) and our stove caught the tent on fire at about 2am. Well, all I could make out was vague yellling, so I popped out an earplug only to hear '"Fire! Fire! FIRE!" I started excitedly fumbling with the zipper and it just jammed. By that time, all I could see outside my bag was a bright red and orange glow as the tent went up in flames all around me. So, I rolled off the cot (still sealed in the sleeping bag), and fell to the muddy ground. I kept my face buried in the dirt until the yelling gradually gave way to the sound of a half-dozen fire extinguishers. I was finally able to extricate myself from the sleeping bag, only to find myself looking up at stars - with only the huge wooden tentpoles somehow left standing. I was also surrounded by a couple of dozen Soldiers laughing at me. I came out of it totally unscathed, but I got an LOR (letter of reprimand) for the earplugs. So yeah, those sleeping bags kind of sucked. But it did keep me safe during the fire. 😊

I was an active duty soldier during the 1970s, and we went through a number of uniform and equipment changes. We had to carry gas masks, but the cases for them were not very useful for carrying anything else. At first, we were issued inflatable mattresses to keep us from losing heat to the ground when sleeping, and they were great when they worked. But they developed leaks easily making them almost useless and they were rather bulky and heavy. While I was in the service, they were replaced by blue foam sleeping pads that were lighter, but they didn't blend in to the terrain at all and couldn't be folded. The rolls were even more bulky than the air mattresses, which could be folded. My generation was the last to wear the old cotton fatigue uniform with a button fly on the trousers, which had to be starched until they were very stiff. Then we were changed to lighter "permanent press" fatigues with zipper flies, and those were a lot easier to wear although the "permanent press" wasn't really and they still needed to be ironed although the heavy starching was over with. Toward the end of my time in service, the army switched to the first generation Battledress Uniform, which was better than any version of fatigues. We liked them better because they weren't required to be ironed. The one constant during my service career was that we had the old black leather combat boots that had to be kept highly shined. We would have loved the new suede boots that don't require shoeshine, just brushing, but they were not introduced until after my time. I also started out eating C-rations, although the first generation of MREs were introduced when I was off active duty and in the Army National Guard. I preferred the C-rats, since I could eat most of them with no dietary issues and I could heat up the entree by letting the can it was in ride atop the engine exhaust manifold of my jeep. The can would stay there securely with the hood lowered and fastened down.

I was at first surprised the paratrooper leg bags weren't mentioned, but in retrospect, that was a fairly niche piece of gear that relatively few soldiers were issued.

Couple of points to think about. I heard that the Truck Drivers liked the Sleeping Bag as Leg Warmers. They would cut off the bottom so their boots would go through it and not get tangled up. But they usually had two drivers who would shift off. So the off Duty driver would try to get some sleep sitting in the passenger seat using the sleeping bag. Also, the M-41 “Parsons” jacket was made more for Cool Weather in the Spring and the Fall. The GI was supposed to get the old Army Great Coat, the “Horse Blanket” for Deep Winter. And if you could get one a little bigger, then you could wear the M-41 as an extra layer underneath.

Enlisted in the Coast Guard in 1976. The USCG at that time had recently undergone a major uniform change. No longer using Navy Uniforms with just the CG shield to distinguish them, the CG switched to a single-breasted, brass buttoned, royal blue dress blue uniform. Undress "blues" resembled the Air Force working uniform but with collar devices instead of sleeve stripes. Our working blues, or utility uniforms were still the same ones the Navy issued... and they were really good, hard wearing uniforms. The worst part was their doing away with the extremely WARM Pea Coat and Bridge Coats. A flimsy, lined raincoat replaced it and... London Fog missed out on the contract by $1.00 per item. What we got were not really rain proof and the colors ranged from electric blue to navy blue... as did our working trousers. In boot camp, our racks (bunk beds) were supposed to be maintained inspection tight even as we headed out on morning "grinder" at 0530. I conditioned myself to sleep under just the scratchy wool blanket rather than mess up the sheets. The barracks temperature dipped into the 50's but I persevered as we had not been issued any long johns but slept in t-shirts and boxers. Relief came about 0500 when the watch would roust us out to dress early so we would always be the first in formation for grinder. After all, we were Oscar Company, the ceremonial company made up of recruits from ALL of the other companies and we had to set the standard. I should mention that it helped to report for recruit training with your own sneakers. I had an almost new pair of Adidas but the other fellows had to endure the issued CRAP sneakers... no arch support and literally fell apart before training ended.... Lowest Bidder obviously.

This is why I love KZfaq and don't watch cable TV ❤ this video is less than 20 minutes long but still informative and enjoyable.. thank you for quality content!

The M1928 haversack and the canvas gaters are probably the worst. The bag is a mess of straps and flaps and the gaters look nice, but are a mess to put on.

Fascinating video! My late uncle was a Ranger who was among the first ashore at Omaha Beach. The soldiers carried so much gear that some drowned because they were dropped off too far from the beach in water that was over their heads, requiring them to swim. Also, in Band of Brothers, one of the paratroopers complained about all the gear they had to carry, including the infamous leg bag.

Since my Dad died, I've been reading a lot about his unit, the 10th Mountain Division. They spent years perfecting their equipment -- this was the first specialized Alpine unit the US ever raised, so a lot of trial & error was involved -- only to find when they were finally deployed early in January 1945, all of that specialized equipment got no further to Europe than a warehouse in Boston. So to do patrols on skis (my Dad did one of those) they had to borrow them from local Italian sports clubs. Instead of sleeping bags warm enough to get them thru a winter in the Rockies, they made due with four army blankets. Probably most importantly, they lacked their mountaineering equipment, & their first battle required one regiment to scale a ridge during the night & surprise the Germans. Of course, they made do.

Love to hear about our ancestors also complaining about things too 😂

In the Canadian Army, they had these itchy sweaters that although they were warm, they guys hated the way they chafed their necks as well. My Dad worked with a guy who was a WW2 vet and said that many guys got their wives/girlfriends or mothers who could knit to make dickies. It was a thing that went over the neck like a turtleneck and had a small bib that looked like you were wearing another sweater under the itchy one. The wool that the dickeys were made from were either cotton or a cotton blend which were much more comfortable. In addition, rather than wearing leggings like the US troops, the Canadians (like other Commonwealth troops) wore WW1 style puttees around their ankles. Although they were good at keeping mud out of your boots, they were disliked by the Canadians who would have much preferred a high ankle workbook style footwear with trousers tucked into the tops of the boots.

My wife's uncle was a paratrooper. He told me on several occasions that the first thing he would do in combat was ditch the folding stock rifle he was issued for a standard infantry rifle from the first casualty he came across. He hated those folding rifles.

I've actually read an account In the book the GI journal of sergeant Giles. Where they had a gas scare, Because some troops saw some of the graves registration guys with their gas mask on while picking up some of the dead bodies and Somebody sounded the gas attack alarm and it caused a panic

guessing the old schoolyard taunt ('60s era), "your mother wears combat boots!" is referring to the doublebuckled ones.

If you want to read about soldiers having problems getting out of sleeping bags in combat, read about the 1st Cavalry in combat in the Korean war. A side note, after their experience in Korea the U.S. Army modified the bags allowing for a quick escape feature. All you had to do was pull the zipper all the way to the top and that would allow for the zipper to pop open with little to no effort...

Jean Shephard goes into exquisite detail about his time in WW2 in his radio show and have a great conversational tone. He was not a front line soldier but it's worth tracking down.

Hi there, great video! Former US army reenactor from east slavic country here :) I had some experience with all of the mentioned items, and I can confirm that soldiers are definitely right about them! But i also want to share some of my personal thoughts: We used mostly (kinda 80%) original made gear, except for boots and jackets maybe. It's surprising how gas masks were the worst part of your loadout, but at the same time, the canvas bag for this mask was easily my favorite item. It was never used for its original purpose, but it was an amazing general purpose bag, with fast and easy access to it. As you mentioned, the haversack capacity was… let's say not acceptable) Not to mention, it was a pain to reach its contents. But this little canvas bag, oh my… Rations, cigarettes, spare socks, even additional ammo - everything, and just next to your hand. As for the leggings… Well I must say that i was this one weird dude who loved them. Still do actually. Because of these things, our guys hated D-day + reenactments, and prefered the ones where you can use two buckles :) But I am convinced that leggings are just misunderstood. Eah, it's a nightmare to put on, but when you do, they give your ankle a really nice protection from stretches and other trauma. Anyway, this comment is getting too big already. Peace and love to everyone!

Jacket, Field, M-1943. It was one of the best jackets the US military came up with. I have two of them. The tight weave of the cotton sateen makes them very wind resistant; the size of the pockets, and the fact that the two breast pockets are nice that they're sewn onto the outside of the garment helps.

My wife's grandfather was in the 82nd Airborne, 504th Inf , 2nd Battalion, HQ Company, Weapons Platoon. He enlisted in 1942 after graduating High School. He rose to the rank of Staff Sergeant or as many veterans called the rank by its working title "platoon sergeant". He made 6 combat jumps, all at night except Market Garden. He jumped into North Africa, Sicily, Anzio, Northern France, Holland and Germany. He was one of only 5 men in his company that wasn't killed, wounded, missing or taken as a POW. He refused treatment for frostbite until Bastogne was settled. Then he spent 3 months in the hospital with his feet hanging over the end of the bed. He told me that anything that touched his feet caused excruciating pain. He told me know doubt this is probably why he didn't become a combat casualty. After the war he was a Washington DC Metropolitan Police Officer. He told me he walked a beat for the first 10+ years on the PD. But his feet continue to bother him. He told his sergeant that his feet would start to sting and burn anytime the mercury dipped below 50 degrees and he had to come off a foot patrol. Although he loved being a beat cop. His sergeant also a WW II understood and transferred him to be a detective. He was truly one of the nicest, soft spoken guys and the world. He told me during Bastogne he wore every stitch of clothes he had, skivvies, wool long John's and 3pair of wool trousers. For Christmas dinner the mess jeep pulled up and asked him what he wanted to eat. He told the mess "guy give me something I can eat on the move". The mess soldier threw him a frozen turkey leg. He would put the turkey leg inside his inner layer trousers pocket and as some of the turkey leg would thaw out he would take bite lint, dirt, etc in his pocket and the repeat the process.

I loved my sleeping bag. When I was in, we had the down sleeping bag. They were very warm. Taking a piss was no problem either. You just kept a couple of empty C Ration cans near your bag. When you had to go, you would unzip the bag a little, unzip your pants, roll on your side, take your thing out, grab the can, take good aim and let loose. When you were finished, you’d just toss the can and zip back up. Everyone in our USAR SF unit used their sleeping bags except the former Rangers who joined our unit. You can always tell a US Army Ranger. He won’t use a sleeping bag!

I have talked to a few D Day Vets and one comment was that there were PILES of gas masks on the lanes off the beaches. Apparently the Germans did the same thing using their metal gas mask canisters for dry or crush proof storage of critical items.

In the 90's my Scoutmaster started an Explorer Post that ran the program from the 1940's Explorer Scout Manual. George was the youngest Scoutmaster in America at the time, but he was close with this Scoutmaster from Massachusetts named Harris tanner, who he said was the Dean of New England Scoutmasters. Harris had been a Scout during WWII, and earned his Eagle Scout badge, the Quartermaster Sea Scout badge, and the Ranger Explorer Scout badge. He was a Super Scout and taught George all kinds of vintage methods so he could run the Explorer Post as though we had stepped backwards through time. He was an awesome Scoutmaster, and he never used a sleeping bag. And he never used a tent. One winter he took us to Camp Sequassen in Connecticut for an Exploring event and we camped out on West Hill POnd, which was frozen over a foot deep. He made a fire right on the ice and we kept it going for over 48 hours. And he slept in a bedroll made of three wool Pendelton point blankets on a bed of pine boughs about a foot thick, right under the stars. He said he never slept better. Apparently Baden-Powell slept outdoors almost every night of his life. The guy was amazing. And later in life he becamse the Audie Murphy of Scoutmasters, the most-decorated Scout lifesaver in history. They're going to put an exhibit about him in the national museum. But he had a lot of respect for the tech that come to Scouting through the men who served in WWII and if they didn't like those sleeping bags, they had good reasons.

It's ironic how things change over time. When I was in I was a part of a unit that spent a lot of time living out in the woods with very little in the way of supplies. The best thing I was issued was my wool shirt. It's more of a jacket but it only has two chest pockets. It's thicker than a wool blanket. It kept me extremely warm and was way more durable than the synthetic jackets we were issued. I was also issued gaiters, since all of us were also issued ankle/mid height civilian hiking boots. Gaiters were awesome for going through the thick woods; they kept sticks and such out of my boots. They also kept my pants from getting soaked. The difference is, they're synthetic/goretex and have velcro closure, so they worked way better than the canvas ones that were issued back in the day.

As a teenager in the UK in the mid 1960's I wore the M41 jacket, they were readily available for a very reasonable price. Later I had the other style combat jacket.

My Uncle Everrete was with Pattons 3rd Army he was with the Iron Men of Metz . He was also a participant in the brea 3:54 breakthrough of Bastogne. He said the winter boots golashes werent worth a shit (his words) he talked of sleeping with with a rug from a church inside a church in Bastogne. He said it was cold and very very dark at night. He used to lay mines between the lines of U.S. Army forces and the German Lines. A combat engineer.

Contemporary equipment has its problems too. I was a Canadian infanteer, and I hated the standard issue tactical vest. It wasn't modular, the magazine pouches were too high on the chest, and it couldn't hold enough ammo. I tried to make it work. I replaced the canteen pouch with an extra machine gun ammo box pouch, and stuck a couple of slim aftermarket pouches on there too that were good for holding maps and the like, though it still wasn't enough. I don't think anyone who designed or tested that tac vest before purchasing it for the military was in the combat arms. I also didn't like the standard issue knitted wool scarf. It was just way too bulky. I replaced it with an aftermarket shemagh, which was way more versatile in different weather conditions, and comfortable. Same with the wool toque - not that comfy. I switched it for an aftermarket fleece one. I didn't have much issue with the standard issue boots, except that they were slow to put on and take off, which could be a problem when you gotta rush out of your sleeping bag and stand to. Some troops from my unit replaced their boots with aftermarket ones that had zippers, which were much faster, but not as durable or waterproof. It was a trade-off. We got some fleece undergarments, which were pretty comfortable and warm, but man did they stink after a couple of days in the field. I dunno what it was about that fabric, but it was way worse than anything else we wore. Unless I were in cold weather, I'd usually just wear civilian underwear. Our dress uniforms are kinda fugly too. If you reach the rank of warrant officer, you can wear nice Oxford shoes, but until then, you get stuck with these clodhopper clown shoes. I don't know why they make the separation, especially since I was issued both. Also, the jacket sleeves are always tailored like an inch too long. Also, I wear eyeglasses, so I was given prescription inserts for my ballistic goggles. I only wore them once because they gave me a headache and messed up my depth perception. I kept tripping while running. After that, I just wore the goggles over my regular glasses. There mixed opinions on our rucksacks. I think I had a 1984 model, but I can't remember for sure. There was a new one that came out when I was in, but I never got it. It was bigger, bulkier, heavier - things you typically don't want as light infantry. I heard it was mandatory for paratroopers though, because it was sturdier. It was rare, but I also saw some troops with a much older model of rucksack, which was more compact and apparently more comfortable. I think it was from the 60s? I don't remember though - I might be mixing up the years - so don't quote me on that. But on a positive note, I liked the boonie hat. It was light and comfy - good for warm weather. And our sleeping bags were super warm, filled with goose down. We got issued a two-layer system, but I was able to sleep comfortably in only one the whole time I was in. And the smallpack we got wasn't too bad either. And I liked how our tunics and jackets had buttons and zippers, making them way quieter than Velcro for when you're hiding in the bush. Oh, and I just remembered one last dreaded piece of equipment: the radio. Compare it to how compact a modern cell phone is, and how good a lithium-ion battery lasts - this radio was like wearing a big metal rectangle on your back with a car battery strapped to it. It was old and it showed. And you still had to wear your other smallpack or rucksack with it. When we were getting ready to go out, the officer in charge would ask the group of us, "Who's got their radio course qualification?" Lots of guys I knew for certain who took that course would not raise their hand, 'cause nobody wanted to be stuck with that thing.

According to some sources those well equipped rear area types were sometimes called garatroopers, short for garrison troops… the best dressed and least engaged soldiers of all theaters.

I had the pleasure of serving in the U.S. Marine Corps for 22 years, even though I served from 77 to 98 we were issued some real crappy gear, for instance we went to South Korea during the winter with gear that was left over from the Korean War. I think that no matter what the armed forces come up with for gear, there will always be someone to bitch about it.

"Yank Magazine" yeah I've got a few of those hidden in my mattress

In 1973/74 I had a CWO4 as our motor officer that wore the double buckle boots. They were genuine WWll boots. He said he had two pair.

I have a P-38 on my keys , I also have one of the large can openers that was mounted in the the kitchen on the carrier Coral Sea , it was given to me back in 1994 when the ship was being scrapped in Baltimore MD , you could use the top part with the wooden crank handle in a pinch to beat a man to death if needed , I also have a cool chair made out of steel and a thin type of plywood for it's seat and back , the can opener is now bolted down to a workbench in our garage , you can open any can from 5 gallons down to a 7.5 ounce can of sardines . It was made to last a lifetime , we use it almost every day . 😊

Back in the 1980's I briefly worked for a man who every once in a while would get this far away look in his eye and would mutter," fourteen million". One day another co worker asked him what that was about. the story came out, his father owned a clothing manufacturing business and was finally getting some good years after limping through the Great Depression. He had a lot of interest in his proposed line of clothing for 1940 and then 1941, things were picking up. Then the government offered an exclusive contract for battle fatigue uniforms at a guaranteed profit of $1.00 per set for just a few tens of thousands for the first run but he had to be available for exclusive production. He decided no as his women's lines were really coming into demand. His father's company became a subsidiary contractor at piece rate to the clothing company that took the contract with the bonus of $1.00 per set, which turned out to be over 14 million uniforms under that contract. You could see him almost cry.

Our unit didn't get Camelbacks until after we returned from Iraq. We really could have used them in the desert. When we did grt them, they were DCU pattern and we are at Fort Riley. Also, our uniforms are DCU pattern, but our Interceptor vests are Woodland pattern camo.

I was a trooper in the later years of the cold war. (85-94) we were the beneficiaries of a lot of innovation from WWII and Viet Nam, our ruck sacks were better thought out ( and as a front line trooper, I was issued the L.A.R.P. Large ruck, with a somewhat larger central bucket, and 3 extra small pouches on the front that could hold W/P, or smoke grenades. ) I was also the last generation to be issued O.D. Green uniforms for garrison and Camouflage for field. something that a lot of civilians to not know is, most changes and improvements to field gear are soldier ideas, passed up the chain. there is actually a very specific process to do this, and it is taken very seriously buy the R&D department for gear. even though it's look has evolved over the years, a LOT of the gear used by hikers, and campers are direct descendants of ARMY field gear. as a combat veteran, I agree that the fart sacks ( generations descendants of the wool mummy bags you talk about) STILL sucked when I was in. most of us used out poncho as an outer layer, and our woobie as the insulation. that is actually what the woobie was designed for ( again, a soldier recommendation) the water bottles, with nesting cups so many hikers love, and bushcrafters swear by is descended from the canteen and canteen cup with a nesting stove. When I was in, the "blue star commando" tag was replaced by REMF ( Rear Echelon Mother F$#&er) and the REMFs that always seemed to have the best, newest gear that we couldn't even get ahold of were assigned and even more derogatory name, the "Garret Troopers" I have been out for 30 years, and I still have things I might need stashed all over my clothing, and carry a pack on the back of my wheelchair with essential gear in case I get stuck in an unintentional camping situation. it is a mentality that is born in war, with the shortages, and lack of resupply, that never leaves you. the 10 years I served were the best, and worst of my life. sometimes on the same day.

This is the definitive WWII living history channel for reenactors! Shares real quotes and photos, demonstrates gear, and actually has a sense of humor. Not some grumpy boomer just calling you a farb because "this is how we do it". Wish there was this channel when I first got into the hobby 15 years ago! Keep up the good work, man!

With regard to leggings...while US troops may have disliked them, the Australians felt very differently. The Australian Army found that their standard British-pattern gaiters (which were rather short) did not provide adequate protection or leg support, especially in the very wet and muddy conditions the Australians encountered in the SWPA in 1942-45. When supplies of American leggings became available through Lend Lease, the Australians seized on them eagerly and found them much superior to the British pattern.

One-off the biggest failure in American soldier equipment was the boots. The boots were not waterproof, which resulted in major epidemics of trench foot. The Canadian troops had a combination boot made of rubber and leather, but they were more resistant to water and trench foot was very rare.

My father was captured in combat, defending Kommerschiedt on November 7, 1944 (the Hurtgen Forest battle for Schmidt, Germany with the 28th Division). He told me he was issued regular army low cut shoes (oxfords?), with spats. He also said he gave to his captors a grenade he had inside his "combat jacket".

My uncle, who was a Lutheran pastor for 40 years and never swore. He was a rifleman with the 5th ID 43-46. I loved asking him about equipment, weapons etc and the only time I ever heard him use bad language was in describing the M41 OD field jacket and leggings...."they were absolutely f***ing useless" is what was usually said..and this was in the 80s, 40+ years later.

There's a really brief shot in Band of Brothers where Webster cuts off a part of his parachute immediately after landing in Holland during Market Gaden. I always assumed he was taking it as a souveneir but that makes so much more sense! Awesome detail there!

6:25 No body is more jealous of nor ingenious in finding his small comforts than the poor bloody Infantry.

I enjoyed your clip immensely! My grandfather was in a tank after the landing on Normandy. He never talked about the War as it was to painful. But the pictures of him in France looked just like the photo's you have shown. Of course l didn't know what l was looking at but he was there wearing the outfits you have showcased. Brings back memories from my childhood.😊 Thank you! Youngster!😅

My dad was a WWII veteran as was four of my uncles. It’s funny because most of the men in my age bracket had grandfathers that served in World War Two and dads the are Vietnam vets. I digress, pop and the uncles that were infantry said the dumped some of their gear especially my dad that came ashore on the second landing at Omaha beach. He said some of that stuff made a lot of men drown in the first wave. So guys were dropping some of the more cumbersome equipment. Also as they moved further in it slowed them down. Another interesting fact, which probably has been covered by the owner of this channel, it’s my first time watching him, camo was never used in the European theatre like it was in the pacific. Reason being that waffen SS and Fallschirmjäger used it and GI’s could be mistaken as Germans. Anyway, most of you WWII buffs know this already. I feel blessed to have grown up around actual vets from that war. I served in the late 70’s and 80’s and I remember in boot camp using Vietnam and even some old WWII era equipment in training, mostly clothing and some basic gear. However, the WWII stuff was rare. Shoot, the barracks we were in were of WWII vintage.

Actually, during WW1 the troops started out with canvas leggings, which were replaced quickly with puttees. Puttees gave better support and warmth, and were more resistant to mud. As for the 1941 field jacket, the zippers on them were too lightly made and fragile. The "tanker jacket" (winter combat jacket) was much warmer, and had a more robust zipper and better pockets. It's also rather stylish. Andy Rooney described it as "the most coveted article of clothing of the war."

My dad got to Europe just as the action was ending, so he was part of the occupation force. He despised the wool shirt, and he took advantage of the massive surplus available in the PX. He learned to fudge his CO’s signature and though an enlisted man, he always wore an officer’s cotton shirt from then on.

Joe Mauldin did a cartoon about two GI's walking past a line of discarded gas masks. 'Looks like Company E got the new gas masks.' He also mentioned that new jackets would be in a pile in the rear. Rear echelon soldiers would think, 'Well, couldn't hurt if I take just one...' Then the pile would gradually disappear until none were left to send to the front. Occasionally, a front line soldier in a worn out jacket would confront a rear echelon type in a new jacket and 'appropriate it.'

Good job with sharp understanding of the soldier's plight, for someone who wasn't even born when all this was happening and lives over 75 years later.. I don't claim any great knowledge of this, but my pops was in action in the Italian campaign of WWII.

My poor old Dad was with Patton in the Rhineland Campaign and He told me he just Loved the Wool shirts that you talk of in this video. Before the end of his life He started getting cold easily... and the first thing he brought up was those WWII wool shirts and He wished he had one. He looked around and the first kind of shirt he came up with and started Buying and wearing was a Pendleton wool Shirt. He wore these the rest of his life.

When you mentioned leggings I had a flashback to my bootcamp days in the Navy. We had to wear white leggings and it was such a hassle to keep them white enough to pass inspection. We scrubbed them and the white caps so much, then used white toothpaste to cover any stains. And this was in 1970!

On one episode of 'Combat!', the Squad receives a replacement named Ollie wearing M43 buckle-boots, and everyone wanted them... He swore hem boots were G.I. issue and he was solely responsible for them - and even went back for em when left behind enemy lines.

I volunteered for Desert Storm, when I got to the Replacement Depot at Fort Benning, GA, we were issued Winter Woodland Camo BDUs. Yes, we didn't get Desert gear, until after the war. I was assigned to the 82nd 1/504th and became the RTO for my Platoon. All the guys already there had at least 2 pairs of Desert M&M BDUs. So, we found someone in our size and got their dirty pair of BDUs. Also, we had to use Desert Spray paint to paint our helmets and then drew on the M&Ms with a sharpie. The night before the big push we all got assigned our Desert Boots, which were a suede like material and were great boots as they had a thicker bottom sole for the rocks. The Desert rocks and sand chewed up boots for some reason. When we got back to Coball Towers (sp) I was finally issued all my Desert Gear, including the green grid overcoat thing. A lot of us from the repot depot were not issued Woobies (poncho liners) but most of us had brought our personal ones. If you didn't have one you were cold at night. About two weeks into Iraq we got what we called camel blankets cause they felt rough and course like camel hair, but they did keep you warm. I ended up with 2 cause one of our guys hated his and preferred his two Woobies. I did keep my sleep cap from my brand new sleeping bag that I never used as they were all packed up and sent to the rear with all of our excess gear we didn't need. Thankfully we were issued new semi-water proof butt packs, which is where we stored our Woobies, 3-5 MREs removed from packaging, no heaters btw got those after 3 weeks in Iraq. When we got back to the towers, we saw all the brand new gear all the REMFs had that we didn't, we were not allowed and were not issued the boonie caps. We got to wear our Berets for a day and a half and then had to were our K-pots. No reason other than Schawartzdick said we stood out above everyone else, mind you 18th Airborne Corps REMFs got to wear theirs, just not the Paratroopers. I could go on and on about this as we got screwed a lot, with gear. The one thing we had lots of was Ammo, AT4s, LAWs, Claymores, Mortar Shells, Symtec, Concertina Wire and telephone wire. My seat in the back of a 5 ton was 5 Claymore mines. I carried a Satcom Radio, that puts out a ton of Static Electricity, but everyone that smoked did so on our trucks. The saying was one round shot into the back of the truck and we would all be meeting Jesus or land on the Moon.

My uncle, who was 3:40 in World War II told me about the sleeping bag he cut holes for his arms and legs in case they came under attack and he had to move fast because trying to get out of the sleeping bag was very difficult in a hurry

I was reminded of a meme regarding modern military equipment. It was a bell curve with the low extreme being soldiers who had to provide their own equipment because their country was so logistically bad. The middle represented by soldiers who got decent equipment from their well organized military. And the upper extreme being soldiers who were so into firearms and outdoor activities before serving that they were upset they couldn't use their own stuff but had to use the mass issued stuff their military provided.

Even today in the Marine Corps we still hate our sleeping bags lmao, especially the winter Sleeping Systems that come with the waterproof outer liner. Its common to see guys fighting the bag in a panic because they cant find the zipper, especially since the bag goes over the entire body

In the early fifties (at least in our area) double-buckle WW2 boots in children's sizes were popular and available from Sears Roebuck & Co. I had a pair and loved their comfort!

Combat vet weighing in here - @9:28 - Your take is spot on! I'm not sure who is giving you grief on this but as far as I know, soldiers love whatever comfort (woobies) they can get, and even more so the tougher things are.

Funny thing is they carried far less gear by weight than modern infantry. Should read The Soldier’s Load And The Mobility of a Nation.

My father fought in WWII. He called sleeping bags "fart sacks".

I have several thoughts. World War I pilots learned that wearing a silk scarf while flying enabled them to keep their head on a swivel, looking for adversaries without chafing. Silk was widely available for that purpose in WWII. One of the things all new soldiers, sailors, and such learn is to keep your hands out of your pockets. I'm from the Vietnam era (1970-71). We wore jungle fatigues which were nylon and dried really fast and cotton underwear, that seemingly never dried out. Our fatigues and field jackets had plenty of pocket space, much improved from WWII. We also had rudimentary body armor. The one thing we really hated about our gear was our plastic canteens. Metal canteens can keep water cool. The plastic ones we were given didn't allow for condensation cooling.

It’s nice to see someone your age who really appreciates the history of World War II. Keep up the good work with your videos.

Just to chime in a bit of additional info on the wool sleeping bags. Wool is a great material that stays just as warm soaking wet as it does when dry. The big problem though is that it gets heavy as hell because you're lugging around the item and all the water it's holding onto. Compared to a flat blanket, those sleeping bags probably held a significant amount of water and would really weigh the soldier down. Not to mention that because of the design, they probably took forever to dry out compared to a flat blanket.

It was SOP for us not to zip up the sleeping bag in a combat situation. Unlike American soldiers, I understand German soldiers could be shot if they "lost" their gas mask. Funny story (sort of) My dad was a BAR gunner in 3rd infantry, wounded at Anzio and sent back to the states, (The BAR probably saved his life as it took at least two hits from the MP40 that caught him in the elbow) He was later discharged because of his wounds. In 1947, he decided to rejoin the army as a cook. About six months later he received a bill for the BAR he never returned when he was discharged after the war. Nice run down... My dad also talked about how the guys at the front were the last to get the proper gear.

Spending time in the US Army in Germany taught me the value of layering. After my first winter field exercise I went right to the clothing store and bought winter boots and an oversized wet weather parka. My favorite bit of kit was the wool sweater. I'd rather wear a sweater under my parka than a field jacket. The parka was both rain and wind protective. If it was really cold I might add some long john bottoms but I prefer baggy sweat pants because they retained a layer of warm air. Layering was also the most efficient way to pack clothing in a rucksack. I don't miss being cold but there is a touch of nostalgia.

When I was in the Marine Corps in the 1980's/90's, we still used the M-1956/M-1967 two-part sleeping bags. Inner was basically the M-1949 'Mountain Sleeping Bag' and a relatively thin canvas outer shell you could put it in. The WWII troops made a VERY valid point on 'rapid egress' from the bags. In Desert Storm, we would often sleep with the M-1967 bags inside the 'shell', for warmth after the sun went down (if we weren't moving and fighting, which was often the case due to daytime heat levels). Those bags, for a 'broad man', meant that if you turned over in your sleep, not only was the zipper to your back, but it could take you almost 1-minute to get out of it rapidly, if you needed to do so. A Staff Sergeant friend of mine realized this on the first night using his, and tucked his M-9 Beretta pistol into his bag so that he could 'shoot his way out of it', if he had to (the image of this is still funny to think about)...not everyone knew he did this...or to call out his name until he awoke...DON'T DARE APPROACH AND TOUCH HIM while he was sleeping! One Lance Corporal did just that, and was met in the face by his loaded and cocked M-9...he definitely learned his lesson. Mummy bags are for mountain hikes in Civilian areas...NOT COMBAT where multi-layers and zippers impede your egress!!!

I shivered thru Scout campout nights in the Bag, Sleeping, Wool. [3:03] I found it worked a lot better when encased in a poplin cover. [Which I suspect never got to troops.] I didn't find one on the surplus market until 20 years later.

My Uncle George HATED his GI canteen cup. The stupid sliding bar always collapsed and his coffee spilled. The flat bar handle SUCKED cutting into the hand When he saw butterfly handles he grinned in appreciation Problem solved

My father was a WWII vet, 30th Division, and he once bitched about the leggings, which he called gaiters. They snagged on everything and were miserable and slow to take on and off. He said they wore them in England prior to the invasion, but once they hit Normandy they just threw them away. You can actually track this in WWII photos. Pix taken in Normandy show everyone wearing them, but by summer of 44 almost nobody has them, and that is before the new boot arrived. My dad mentioned that Europe was wet and if you didn't change your socks often you got foot fungus and blisters. If you had a short break during a march the gaiters made it impossible to swap out to dry socks. Once the gaiters got tossed in a ditch you could put on dry socks, rinse out the used ones as best you could and stuff them in a pocket until you had a chance to dry them.

Served 20 years, including Desert Storm....carried the gas mask on my left hip....and I'm left handed. Could I have needed it? Definitely. Did I ever need it? Nope.

I had my grandfather's wool sleeping bag, and other items, until our home burned back in the early 80's. I used to use it to lay out in a pasture a night and watch the stars.

My Civil War era gaitors were great but took forever to put on. I think it wad ten buckles on the outter sides

The zipper on the bags created like 40 years ago was a huge improvement. I never had one get stuck on either the old big bag, or the modular that was introduced in the 2000s. Also designed to be able to be yanked open in an emergency.

In the 50's when I grew up there were war surplus stores all over the country selling army equipment. I started you young hiking, backpacking and scouting career using mostly war surplus army gear. I slept in an army pup tent using an army chicken feather sleeping bag. I suffered mightily using that shit for about 5 years. It has always my dream to make the designers of that equipment use it on a 10 day winter trip. I have tremendous respect for the American troops who survived using that ghoulishly horrible equipment.

I was surprised not to hear about the BAR at all!

The M41 field jacket was cut short to accommodate the "mechanized army" and the need to sit but also move from side to side while in a truck, halftrack, jeep, tank, etc. The British did something similar with their P-37 LCE. Before, each branch of the Army had a different set of LCE for cavalry (1903), motor transport, infantry (P-08), etc. The P-37 was designed so the same soldier could go from Bren carrier to mortarman, to infantry to transport to whatever.

I consider USGI M65 jackets the pinnacle of jacket designs.

Great content. I’m retired army and can relate to hated/loved equipment. I remember seeing several of the items mentioned in my grandad’s old foot locker from WWII. I appreciate you lending context to the items I saw.

9:30 as a sufferer of Eczema, I should know more than anyone that in the heat of battle the last thing you want on your mind is that annoying iche rash or sore...