Desert Shield/Storm set up, Seeking input from Vets

Okay guys,

Here is my first attempt at a Desert Shield/Storm impression. I would like some input from the guys who were there and see what they think.

At the time this is just a generic impression. When I have time I will finish it off as a Pvt. from the 1st Infantry Division.

Uniform:
6 color Shirt
6 color Trousers
Black web trouser belt
Jungle Boots
K-Pot with 6 color Cover and SDW goggles
6 color Boonie Cap (on pack)

Gear:
PASGT vest with 6 color cover
Pistol belt
Y suspenders
M-1961 buttpack
2 M-16 ammo pouches
2 1qt. Canteens in cases
2qt. canteen in case
Jungle 1st Aid Kit in case (on pack)
M-16 bayonet
1st aid pouch (on suspenders)
Leather pocket knife case (on suspenders)
Gasmask and bag (tied to pistol belt)
Flashlight (on pack)
Paracord (on pack)
Rain Poncho (on pack)

All of the above items are dated pre 1989 except for the 2qt canteen which is 1993 (my bro has my 1987 one)

Note: at this time the uniform is not for reenacting, it is only for display.



By the end of the summer I hope to have all the stuff for my ALICE ruck, I still need the shovle with case, 6 color cover for the ruck, sleeping bag and pup tent.

BIG thanks to 1stDivVet, the long talks with him imspired me to start putting this set-up together.
Fins, thanks for all the help, tips, stories and pics.

Comments? Questions? Input?

Thanks,
Tyler Cleaver

Looks good but didn't they use ALICE butt packs in Desert Storm?

ALICE buttpacks were private purchas. I have talked to guys that used M-61s since they were in the supply system and/or cheaper to buy.

Tyler

What about a helmet band with cat eyes? And shouldn't there be a strap on the gas mask that goes between your legs? Looks pretty good otherwise!
Andrew

PS: I'm jealous

Andy,
I need a halmet band, I have one but it is from a grouping and has the guys name on the front.

Yes, there is a strap but I am not using it since the bag is tied to the belt.

Tyler

You could get away with having the PASGT vest as/is, I have seen many photos of servicemen in Iraq wearing them without the 6-colour cover.

You may want to double-check this, but you might be able to put the right-angle flashlight through the webbing strip and D-ring on one of the shoulder straps of the suspenders. My ROTC instructor (ex 82d airborne infantry) told us to put the lights there when they were issued to us for our night land-nav courses and we weren't using them. I don't know if this was a widespread practice or something his unit implemented, but that was how he always carried his light when wearing that style of loadbearing equipment around us.

Ben,

the use of the cover varied from unit to unit. I know 2 guys who were in the 1st Id, 1 wore a cover and the other didn't.
I'm going to keep it on for now, until I founs out which was more common.

Flashlight, yes guys would wear them on the suspenders but can get in the way while rapidly moving the rifle up to fire. They also flop around alot when you run.

To quote USMCRECON from the USMF

I do have a flashlight on my web gear.[in photo he has flashlight on suspenders] I would never have done this during actual combat but by this point, ground combat was pretty much over and I prefered to have it where I could use it hands-free if necessary in the utter darkenss of the oil smoke 100% overcast at night.

So I have chosen not to wear it on the straps.

Tyler

100 mile-an-hour tape fixes wobbly flashlights in a heartbeat.
All jokes aside, I can definitely understand the logic behind that.

It will definitely be interesting to see how your display setup will look come summer's end!

Camo_fiend wrote:100 mile-an-hour tape fixes wobbly flashlights in a heartbeat.
All jokes aside, I can definitely understand the logic behind that.

It will definitely be interesting to see how your display setup will look come summer's end!

Yeah 100 MPH tape would be good for any loose strings. Also, is your flashlight missing the front peice?
Andrew

I already have a list of stuff to change around, lol

I use friction tape on straps, it has been around since WWII and doesn't leave sticky goo behind.

Andy, yes it is missing the front peice, I like it this way. this light has clay or redish dirt stuck in every groove and crack. So it has definitly been used. I have 2 others that are mint.

Tyler

I got a helmet band in the basement I'll toss in your box of goodies. I dug it out while cleaning. Was gonna chop the cat's eyes and put it on my nam reenactment helmet, better for you tho.

Ben & Andy, ya, it'd fix the wobely lite, but how would you get it off to go to the can or look thru your crap in the truck or hootch? Maybe if ya had a couple.. Or maybe one of the mini ones I saw at the px.. They were pocket size. It flops around on the suspender, but securing it isn't practicle. Mine went wherever it was out of the way at any given moment. Up to and including left in the vehicle or camp..LOL

Phillip, we had to buy our buttpacks.. They were not an issue item, but were authorized for use. I got a canvas one for 2 reasons. 1, it was cheaper, 2, canvas didn't rip at the seams like ny;on did. It was sturdier. The issue ponchos were a rubberized rip-stop material and I carried a Vietnam era one that was thicker. My issue one got a liner and became my field sleeping bag.

We did a lot of stuff as individuals. I also carried the bigger 1st aid kit to have more bandages and was the first guy in my section to get a 2 qt canteen. I had jungle boots sooner than everyone else too.. I liked them better than the speed lace leather ones. I couldn't use it, but I prefured the old M1 pot to the Kpot. I had had one issued in basic and the took them away at AIT.. I was NOT happy!! You can use the M1 for a lot of things and it's more durable.. I could care less about ballistics.. I'm in a war, safety isn't a big concern to me there..LOL In Somolia, I had a USMC KBar in a US Army embosed leather scabbard I carried. No one said anything. The odd things I carried as a CI agent are entirely different.. When it came to that, almost anything was accepted. It just depended on what you were doing. But as for general combat use, as long as we were within regs or slightly in a gray area, no one really cared. It was more a set up of what worked best for us.

Fins...

Yes,the odd things you carried... I guess I'll have to steal a guitar string from my sister...

Thanks for all the help Fins

Okay guys, I made some of the recomended changes, so here are new pics.

No flack jacket
Tinted lenses on goggles
Helmet band with cat eyes (named to a guy named EVANS)
Earplug case on suspenders
Taped straps
Gas mask worn propper way
Gear rearanged, so I can get 2 inches closer to the ground
Watter bottles in pocket (sorry, I don't have any 20yo Iraqi water bottles)

Since I rearanged my gear, I took off the bayonet, and forgot to put it back on.



Private purchas woodland small ruck. Flack jacket (no cover). 2qt canteen, sleep mat.


Early MREs(yum ), dated 3/85, my brother ate them around 2001. Sowing kit, patches, random stuff. Note sun burn spray at bottom right (use by 3/91) I burn easy, so thsi was a must.


Thanks for all the help guys,
Tyler

Looks good! Do you not have a patched 6 color to wear? What about the boonie, did it dissapear? Now all you need is an M16....
Andrew

nope, don't have a patched jacket. Thr boone is in ym left cargo pocket.

Tyler

Corpl. Cleaver wrote:Okay guys, I made some of the recomended changes, so here are new pics.

No flack jacket
Tinted lenses on goggles
Helmet band with cat eyes (named to a guy named EVANS)
Earplug case on suspenders
Taped straps
Gas mask worn propper way
Gear rearanged, so I can get 2 inches closer to the ground
Watter bottles in pocket (sorry, I don't have any 20yo Iraqi water bottles)

Since I rearanged my gear, I took off the bayonet, and forgot to put it back on.



Private purchas woodland small ruck. Flack jacket (no cover). 2qt canteen, sleep mat.


Early MREs(yum ), dated 3/85, my brother ate them around 2001. Sowing kit, patches, random stuff. Note sun burn spray at bottom right (use by 3/91) I burn easy, so thsi was a must.


Thanks for all the help guys,
Tyler

Looks like your pants are repro - it should be fairly easy to replace them and find an original pair in your size...