French lizard camo uniforms

ripcord wrote:Hello Gilles,

Thanks for your comments,

The reason I was uncertain about the TAP 53 is because of the absence of  snaps on the rear of the smock.

Would be impossible to modify the smock from having snaps to not having snaps without  evidence of some sort of modification...

Still a very nice example, but a bit of a strange variation...

The only reason I can see for no evidence of snaps is if the tailoring removed the cloth that originally had the snaps. Which is what appears to be the case with yours. The 47/53 has no seam down the center of the back, yours does. It also looks like your collar was split and resewn. The distance between the snaps is 5". Which means they could have removed 4 inches of material and used a 5th inch for the new seam.

Steve

Hello Steve,

At first I rejected what you posted, but upon further reflection, I now feel your view has merit.

It would take quite a bit of tailoring skills to do all the work required ,and make it look good.


Have seen more than one 47/53 with a center seam, but the split collar does suggest what you say is certainly possible. Good thinking... Further investigation is required.

Yeah, split collar is a dead giveaway.  Of the hundreds of pieces I've seen, from around the world, I'm sure there is some item that is factory made with a collar that is split half way around.  But I for one can't think of any

Looking at your pictures again, the side panels were altered as well. They should be about 4+ inches wide as measured from the bottom. Yours are about... none Which tells me that the size difference between who wore this and who it was made for is pretty big. You might find other areas, like shoulders, lower hem, cuffs, etc. that show signs of tailoring as well.

Remember that Vietnamese tailors put most other tailors around the world to shame.  Their work is absolutely top notch, or at least can be.  And with the favorable exchange rate back then, soldiers throughout the conflict there were able to get some very interesting work done for a price they could afford.  I shudder to think what a US tailor would charge for such an alteration!

Steve

Well, Steve, certainly looks like you hit it on the head.

Good analogy ( anal-ogy, ha, ha, funny that ).  Certainly looks like the center stitching differs from  the side stitching . Looking at photo # 1, and photo #3, it is certainly obvious that
the thread is different.  The last photo shows the hem ; where the tail, or cod piece should be attached to the smock.  Photo #2 shows a flaw in the seam.

So, thanks for your correct deduction. Whom ever altered the smock, did a competent, and pretty extensive  job of tailoring it.  The side panels were indeed taken in to zilch...

Guess I  should eventually  try to find a unaltered TAP 47/53.

Glad I could help! As Gilles said, alterations are quite common for these items. I guess it's the French desire to be fashionable even on the battlefield

Steve

Seems like a lot of work to a barely used smock...Thanks again...

Happens. Soldier gets 2 issued and has both fitted at the same time. Winds up rotating out before he uses the second one. Or he got wounded or left it in a motorpool truck or... well, given enough military activity there's pretty much nothing that doesn't happen at least twice

It's also possible that the guy had it modified out of theater. I've seen pictures of French veterans at awards/memorial services in full uniform decades after their service.

Steve

Here's my TAP 47/53 smock with 1REP insignia.







Anyone know what type of lizard camo pattern it is?

Rhodesian Camo wrote:Here's my TAP 47/53 smock with 1REP insignia.  







Anyone know what type of lizard camo pattern it is?  

F1 pattern

Gilles

Unissued TAP47/56






                                                                                                                 

                                                                                                                 






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Wow that's a very crisp and neat set! Congrats on that. I'm still without any french lizard stuff...

Thanks Alex..

You need one ; they do show up on occasion...


                                                                     








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