British Boonie Type Hat-Which is the correct type???

Not sure if I have asked this before but does anybody know please which is the correct type of hat used during the conflict as I have different styles-different vents,labels etc or were different types used.

Also,were the 91 ones different to the later types?

Thanks.

Gulf91 wrote:Not sure if I have asked this before but does anybody know please which is the correct type of hat used during the conflict as I have different styles-different vents,labels etc or were different types used.

Also,were the 91 ones different to the later types?

Thanks.

Large American mesh covered air vents are early as used on jungle boonies, new boonies have shoelace air vents.

bravo_2_zero wrote:

Gulf91 wrote:Not sure if I have asked this before but does anybody know please which is the correct type of hat used during the conflict as I have different styles-different vents,labels etc or were different types used.

Also,were the 91 ones different to the later types?

Thanks.

Large American mesh covered air vents are early as used on jungle boonies, new boonies have shoelace air vents.

Thats what I always thought until the other day whilst browsing through period pics saw a guy wearing one with the small vents

Gulf91 wrote:

bravo_2_zero wrote:

Gulf91 wrote:Not sure if I have asked this before but does anybody know please which is the correct type of hat used during the conflict as I have different styles-different vents,labels etc or were different types used.

Also,were the 91 ones different to the later types?

Thanks.

Large American mesh covered air vents are early as used on jungle boonies, new boonies have shoelace air vents.

Thats what I always thought until the other day whilst browsing through period pics saw a guy wearing one with the small vents

Could have painted them out , I have one where the big eyelets have been painted over with sandy pink paint ?

How about the vents were removed for whatever reason and what you are seeing is the round holes cut into the cloth ?

Could even be 3rd party as I saw some copy desert kit around 91/92 very early one. I'm not talking full uniforms but deffo baseball caps , hunting vests and things like that. They were sold at the RAF Hemswell marketon Sunday at only one surplus stall, there was about 6 on that market. Where I bought a full set of sparse deserts for £3 in 46" chest and 36" waist.

The pic isnt very clear on the screen but in the book its clear that the vents are present.

Theory

I work with eyelets and even buy ex MOD stock used for ponchos. The place we buy them from makes the ones found in boonies as we find the odd one from time to time mixed in.

Now I know when we run low or even out of stock of of these it can take upto 2 weeks before a new batch can be made ready and shipped.

Now , this could be a case of new army issue desert kit was like rushed into service and a full outfit was required. So Compton & webb had just enough eyelets in to take care of the odd order of jungle green boonies but not a mass panic manufacturing run of urgent desert kit.

The boonie here could well have been made with shoelace eyelets as they had ran out of the air vent mess type due to massive demand and that's all they had in stock , the vents from berets , boots and such like ?