Pictures of the Canadian Forces Before CADPAT.

I actually was not surprised that all you could come up with were websites and no primary source documantation to support the points that you raised concerning button manufacture.

In a previous post you mentioned that billard balls were originally manufactured of milk and vinegar. Might I suggest you reinvestigate your 'sources' as originally billard balls were manufactured from bone or ivory and then from nitrocellulose. They are currently made of plastics and resins.

Just to set the record straight, early Canadian OG107 Buttons were never edible and were manufactured from phenolic.

Yes casein ‘plastic’ does use milk as a basis and was a popular form of manufacturing buttons prior to the Second World War although again these buttons were never edible. Unfortunately your hypothesis linking casein buttons to those on OG107 Combats is not correct and you have followed this through with sketchy research based only on internet sources.

The only way Buttons can be edible, I Figured made the old way by combining Milk and Vinegar.
I learnt that in 1969 in grade School, and made buttons, balls ect., in class with it.

When I joined The CF. in 4 survival courses I was informed with all others present,
the Buttons were eatable. And some asked how to eat, Remember the same reply just heat
it would become soft and you can eat.

Are you telling me my Instructors were feeding me and all others in the Courses, the wrong
Info concerning the CF. Combat OG Uniform??? Let me check something? Always willing to be properly
informed.

Yes A type-o wanted to say some of the First Billiard Balls.

Actually Billiard balls were first made out of wood and clay, in Europe Bone was popular.
High end balls were made out of Ivory until that source became scarce. Before people had
petroleum-based plastics, We made items naturally from plant materials and animals. For example,
like I stated milk mixed with a variety of ingredients was used to seal and weatherproof barns.
And, billiard balls made from the byproducts of cotton milling were commonly and widely used until their
combustibility was discovered, it was commercially branded as Celluloid.

They also used Billiard balls made out of Milk and Vinegar until the invention of Petroleum based plastic

Over time, unwary recruits were sometimes told that the plastic buttons on Canadian combat uniforms or arctic gear were edible "survival" buttons; these stories are of course nonsense.

http://www.canadiansoldiers.com/uniforms/combatuniform.htm

Guess those buttons are not Edible.

Yes, the boiling buttons story was sadly a myth that was passed on from one generation of CF instructors to the next without anyone ever checking. I have yet to find any ref to boiling buttons in any official CF Survival manual.

The challenge is there, if you can find a CF document, not some website, that recommends boiling buttons as a survival technique, then you will have proved the point.

edstorey wrote:Yes, the boiling buttons story was sadly a myth that was passed on from one generation of CF instructors to the next without anyone ever checking. I have yet to find any ref to boiling buttons in any official CF Survival manual.

LOL, that's great. Reminds me of the 'dehydrated egg' scam we would demonstrate to recruits when introducing the ration pack - involving a peppermint tic-tac, a hard boiled egg, and some sleight of hand!

To get back to the topic at hand, I recently purchased 'In Search of Pegasus: The Canadian Airborne Experience 1942-1999' - lots of great pictures of pre-Cadpat Canadian troops. Sometimes you can't rely on the 'Net for everything ...

You mean in the Instructors Manuals, since I remember never getting any Manuals unlike the US. We got Photocopies and took notes.
Not counting running around in the woods, yelling Pow Pow your dead, some kind of shortage of Blanks, ect. Lol. That`s one reason I left, not counting the CF. Bull. Can you imagine on a live fire exercise with 2nd Commando I was given one Mag of 20 rounds. What a Efen Joke. I also remember from a few incidents those OG`s were very Flammable, the Material melts to liquid, once hardened quickly sticks to your skin and burns like hell.

I even remembered last night sometimes rations ect., Ranout... we missed the rendezvous point to resupply, or The Mcpl ect got Lost or we missed the Field Canteen Oooooo the Drama. The Plugs would biatch about being hungry ect., and the MCPL or Sergeant, Officers would say if your hungry you can always eat your buttons.

No need for challenge, However do you have the old CF. Recruit Instructors Manuals for Survival courses for those times. I remember when I did my MCPL Course and we still needed to use Photocopies from the manuals when giving courses. I have the CAR Regimental Standing Orders and on section for Combat clothing no mention of Buttons being edible, However the manufacture address a tel is provided lol


I had from 80 to 2005 USMC Survival Manuals and no mention of eating Buttons, I can Assure you.
Eat Buttons out of Petroleum based plastic, I think not.


like You stated, it started like an Urbain Myth. Those CF. Pte`s or Officers. became instructors ect., and passed down the info thinking it was Fact, Myself Included.

That Site I provided with the link is pretty accurate, Like I stated Guess those buttons were Not edible and like so many others
I wasn't provided the proper information, and won`t make that mistake again.

You proved my point. Enough said, let us move on.

Spañiard wrote:If you check my threads or Posts I inserted Pics of Me in CF.OG. Mag Pockets not very comfortable if
your carrying 7.62 20 rounds Mags in them, and never used them for Mags.

OG a head of it's Time, now thats debatable. A Yes you could eat the Buttons, Lol

What I meant by CFOG being ahead of it's time I was comparing it too the British equivalent from the same period, as for edible buttons, I had absolutely no idea what you were on about...until I read the interesting rhetoric between yourself and Ed...the only edible buttons I am aware of is Cadburys Chocolate buttons, but they do tend to melt on your Jacket front!!!!!

I'm surprised no one put this one up.



The famous pic of two senior NCOs from 1 RCR Pioneer Platoon in early 2000 during the Mitravica riots in Kosovo.

They wear the old load bearing vests and American pattern PASGT flak jackets over top of their OD green goretex combat coats. They are also wearing American woodland camo boonie hats. These were issued to us when we went in as they are more practical than the old bush hats we used to use. I still have mine from when I served in Kosovo in 1999.

cobalt545 wrote:I'm surprised no one put this one up.



The famous pic of two senior NCOs from 1 RCR Pioneer Platoon in early 2000 during the Mitravica riots in Kosovo.

They wear the old load bearing vests and American pattern PASGT flak jackets over top of their OD green goretex combat coats. They are also wearing American woodland camo boonie hats. These were issued to us when we went in as they are more practical than the old bush hats we used to use. I still have mine from when I served in Kosovo in 1999.

Thanks mate for putting this one up- one of the more interesting photos. i first saw it in a website about IFOR/KFOR (whatever the period them blokes was in) and i first thought they were just some balkan paramilitary until i saw the cadpat cover and the knife on their vests.

Can i ask what were or are the regs of facial hair in the Canadian forces???

Easy Gee wrote:

Spañiard wrote:If you check my threads or Posts I inserted Pics of Me in CF.OG. Mag Pockets not very comfortable if
your carrying 7.62 20 rounds Mags in them, and never used them for Mags.

OG a head of it's Time, now thats debatable. A Yes you could eat the Buttons, Lol

What I meant by CFOG being ahead of it's time I was comparing it too the British equivalent from the same period, as for edible buttons, I had absolutely no idea what you were on about...until I read the interesting rhetoric between yourself and Ed...the only edible buttons I am aware of is Cadburys Chocolate buttons, but they do tend to melt on your Jacket front!!!!!

Hi The only time I heard Buttons could be eaten was in the CF. Lol. I.m no Military uniform Collector or Guru, I joined IACMC to learn and get info when needed. Are you talking about the British DPM 3 Colour Pattern. I remember in 1980 many CF. liked that pattern better then the CF.OG. Wasn't CAR J-Smocks based on the British pattern.

I heard many moons ago the British DPM can`t be detected by Radar or Star Light. That goes for CF.OG also is this fact or more Bull I was lead to belive in the CF.

Spañiard wrote:

Easy Gee wrote:

Spañiard wrote:If you check my threads or Posts I inserted Pics of Me in CF.OG. Mag Pockets not very comfortable if
your carrying 7.62 20 rounds Mags in them, and never used them for Mags.

OG a head of it's Time, now thats debatable. A Yes you could eat the Buttons, Lol

What I meant by CFOG being ahead of it's time I was comparing it too the British equivalent from the same period, as for edible buttons, I had absolutely no idea what you were on about...until I read the interesting rhetoric between yourself and Ed...the only edible buttons I am aware of is Cadburys Chocolate buttons, but they do tend to melt on your Jacket front!!!!!

Hi The only time I heard Buttons could be eaten was in the CF. Lol. I.m no Military uniform Collector or Guru, I joined IACMC to learn and get info when needed. Are you talking about the British DPM 3 Colour Pattern. I remember in 1980 many CF. liked that pattern better then the CF.OG. Wasn't CAR J-Smocks based on the British pattern.

I heard many moons ago the British DPM can`t be detected by Radar or Star Light. That goes for CF.OG also is this fact or more Bull I was lead to belive in the CF.

Yeah sorry Mate,what I meant by the CF -OG being ahead of it's time was that the British adopted the Canadian buttons for their later issued uniforms (CS95) from the OG Uniforms, as for the DPM being Radar resistant I think there was some mystique based around this with chemicals being added to reduce this aspect...but I generally think it a combination of fact,urban myth, with a pinch of BS.

Easy Gee wrote:

Spañiard wrote:

Easy Gee wrote:

Spañiard wrote:If you check my threads or Posts I inserted Pics of Me in CF.OG. Mag Pockets not very comfortable if
your carrying 7.62 20 rounds Mags in them, and never used them for Mags.

OG a head of it's Time, now thats debatable. A Yes you could eat the Buttons, Lol

What I meant by CFOG being ahead of it's time I was comparing it too the British equivalent from the same period, as for edible buttons, I had absolutely no idea what you were on about...until I read the interesting rhetoric between yourself and Ed...the only edible buttons I am aware of is Cadburys Chocolate buttons, but they do tend to melt on your Jacket front!!!!!

Hi The only time I heard Buttons could be eaten was in the CF. Lol. I.m no Military uniform Collector or Guru, I joined IACMC to learn and get info when needed. Are you talking about the British DPM 3 Colour Pattern. I remember in 1980 many CF. liked that pattern better then the CF.OG. Wasn't CAR J-Smocks based on the British pattern.

I heard many moons ago the British DPM can`t be detected by Radar or Star Light. That goes for CF.OG also is this fact or more Bull I was lead to belive in the CF.

Yeah sorry Mate,what I meant by the CF -OG being ahead of it's time was that the British adopted the Canadian buttons for their later issued uniforms (CS95) from the OG Uniforms, as for the DPM being Radar resistant I think there was some mystique based around this with chemicals being added to reduce this aspect...but I generally think it a combination of fact,urban myth, with a pinch of BS.

First No need for Sorry. I had no Clue that that the British Adopted the Canadian Buttons for their Later Issue, I did a Recce and found this picture.

Sure looks like Canadian Buttons. Thanks for the Heads-Up.