# The Military Uniforms Thread



## Dr.Watson (Sep 25, 2008)

What country has the best or worst looking military uniform. 
It can be from any historical period, and from any service. 

Post pictures if you can.


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## Chase Hamilton (Jan 15, 2007)

If you want to see some really cool uniforms, rent the film _Billy Liar_ and see the various getups Tom Courtenay sports as the leader of Ambrosia, a fictious country he dreams up.

Congratulations, Dr.Watson, on your 100th post.

--Chase

P.S. Here's a link to promo of film where you can see some of the uniforms:


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## Aaron in Allentown (Oct 26, 2007)

3rd world military dictators always have the best uniforms.


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## Earl of Ormonde (Sep 5, 2008)

Well, having worn several in the UK, I've got to say the UK.


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## Relayer (Nov 9, 2005)

When I was in basic training at Lackland AFB in '78 there were quite a few Iranian officers also training somewhere on the base. 

We always got a few laughs out of their dress uniforms, specifically the hat... big with swoops an dips all over the place. We thought they looked like Greyhound bus drivers.


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## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

Britian does have the Royal Navy,which is pretty hard to beat.


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## hockeyinsider (May 8, 2006)

The U.S. by far has the worst dress uniforms because of the patches, nametags and what not. The exception being the Marine Corp dress blues, which is the style all the other branches should wear.

I'd agree the British have the best -- at least the Household Division with its red tunics, bearskin caps, etc. 

Historically, the Prussians in the 18th Century were always the best.


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## Holdfast (Oct 30, 2005)

The Russians have some nice new uniforms (and soldiers...):


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## brokencycle (Jan 11, 2008)

Holdfast said:


> The Russians have some nice new uniforms (and soldiers...):


They payed a designer top dollar to come up with new uniforms.

Are you sure those are soldiers and not models for the designer?


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## Holdfast (Oct 30, 2005)

brokencycle said:


> Are you sure those are soldiers and not models for the designer?


Don't destroy my dreams.


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## Aaron in Allentown (Oct 26, 2007)

hockeyinsider said:


> The U.S. by far has the worst dress uniforms because of the patches, nametags and what not. The exception being the Marine Corp dress blues, which is the style all the other branches should wear.
> 
> I'd agree the British have the best -- at least the Household Division with its red tunics, bearskin caps, etc.
> 
> Historically, the Prussians in the 18th Century were always the best.


The US Navy's enlisted Service Dress Blues are a great uniform, completely unchanged for about 200 years. It's also very comfortable.


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## NoPleats (Sep 28, 2008)

I'm rather partial to USMC NCO Dress Blue Alphas myself. 

I remember liking also the old U.S. Navy officer's dress khakis as well. The old one with the jacket and shoulderboards, not the god-awful short sleeved shirt variety that makes them almost indistinguishable from CPOs. I'll see if I can find a pic of the one I mean.


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## Jim In Sunny So Calif (May 13, 2006)

The U.S. Marine Corps has always had good looking uniforms. 

Back when I was in the Army, our winter Class A uniforms had Ike Jackets which was a garment that I think looked good on few of us. The Army has probably changed uniforms at least twice since then and is now again phasing in a new uniform. 

Cheers, Jim.


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## perryw (Sep 22, 2008)

I'm an Army brat, but I've always liked the USMC Blue Dress uniform..


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## Cruiser (Jul 21, 2006)

Aaron in Allentown said:


> The US Navy's enlisted Service Dress Blues are a great uniform, completely unchanged for about 200 years. It's also very comfortable.


Not really. The Navy ditched the traditional jumper back in the mid-70's and went with a polyester coat and tie for E-6 and below enlisted men. They also dropped the traditional dixie cup hat and went with a standard military visor cap. The uniform was not only ugly but it was cheap looking. They kept this thing for at least a decade or more before letting the Sailor's voices be heard and going back to the traditional looking uniform.

As for the comfort of the traditional uniform, I don't know about the one they are wearing today, but I didn't always find the winter blue uniform to be that comfortable back in the 60's. It was a heavy 16 oz. wool that was very hot in anything but really cold weather and picked up every piece of lint in the zip code.

But having said that, I loved that thing and still have mine hanging in the closet 40 years later. :icon_smile:

https://img395.imageshack.us/my.php?image=navyud3.gifhttps://g.imageshack.us/thpix.php

Cruiser


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## NoPleats (Sep 28, 2008)

Here we go...the Commander and the Lieutenant are sporting the style Navy khaki uniforms I was talking about. It looks like the USN is considering bringing these uniforms back as "throwbacks." This works for me.


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## Cruiser (Jul 21, 2006)

NoPleats said:


> Here we go...the Commander and the Lieutenant are sporting the style Navy khaki uniforms I was talking about. It looks like the USN is considering bringing these uniforms back as "throwbacks." This works for me.


The white uniform in the middle is different also. The one I wore didn't have the button cuffs or the piping. Only the winter blues had these.

Cruiser


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## Preacher (Jul 5, 2008)

I'm a little bias to the USMC uniforms. I don't think it gets much better than the dress blues. Of course 4 1/2 years in the Corps kind of has that effect on you. I worked public relations so I literally wore this uniform 1000's of times. I had three sets in constant rotation.


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## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

Holdfast said:


> The Russians have some nice new uniforms (and soldiers...):


Hm,can we all say P-R-O-P-A-G-A-N-D-A?


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## Brosinle (Jul 19, 2005)

*P-r-o-p-a-g-a-n-d-a*

More propaganda, please!


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## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

Brosinle said:


> More propaganda, please!


Here ya' go........










Hey,you didn't specify.


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## Good Old Sledge (Jun 13, 2006)

I'm sure there are wonderful dress uniforms out there from other countries, but my dress blues from my hitch in the Marine Corps will be my favorite for all they represent to me. Every color, stripe and feature has its own story and, for any one of us who lived in mud for weeks on end, it represents a whole lot more than just a fancy get-up for Mess Night.
The Silent Drill Team's take on it, though, with the white trouers, is very cool, too.


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

^While I am prepared to acknowledge the wisdom of my friend and grudgingly admit to the sartorial supremacy of the USMC's Dress Blues, I gotta tell ya, uniforms aside, the USAF had better toys...and our Class A's were OK, too!


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## Carlton-Browne (Jun 4, 2007)

Like others here I have a bias towards the British and although there are some pretty impressive ceremonial uniforms which are worn regularly by a number of units my preference is for barrack dress. It is not uncommon to see, on a course for example, a dozen officers of various corps and regiments who will all theoretically be in the same order of dress but will all have on different headgear, different pullovers, trousers, shoes etc. It's a difficult thing to illustrate but for example here you have a picture of the Officers Mess of the 9th/12th Royal Lancers. Now these chaps are all from precisely the same regiment however there are 4 different types of pullover, 2 types of trousers and shoes of various hues. Fantastic. There is some small amount of detail contained on the Army Rumour Service website on pullovers. https://www.arrse.co.uk/wiki/Jersey_Heavy_Wool

As a young officer in a fairly large Corps the opportunities for invention were somewhat limited. I remember that my Colour Sgt at Sandhurst had an encyclopaedic knowledge of every regimental and corps order of dress and frequently caught cadets out who were either trying to be different or hadn't quite got round to laundering the correct ensemble.


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## Blueboy1938 (Aug 17, 2008)

*U. S. Marines . . .*

dress mess! I think that it rivals the best the British have to offer. I see both at my British United Services Club meetings here in L. A. ( https://buscinfo.com/ ). I wear the U. S. Army blue dress mess with Cavalry/Armor lapel facings (yellow, as in "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon"), which is pretty good, but a little gaudy. The Marine dress mess is gorgeous, with those gold-embroidered gauntlets.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:PlateV_Evening_Dress.jpg


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## Miket61 (Mar 1, 2008)

welldressedfellow said:


> Here ya' go........
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I wonder how she'd look in the new astrakhan-trimmed uniforms?


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## hockeyinsider (May 8, 2006)

Not much can beat these uniforms:

[img=https://img142.imageshack.us/img142/45wl7.jpg]

[img=https://img234.imageshack.us/img234/colgrevilletufnellgrenadl4.jpg]

[img=https://img293.imageshack.us/img293/6928/mascotnk4.jpg]


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## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

Miket61 said:


> I wonder how she'd look in the new astrakhan-trimmed uniforms?


I'm sure she would be lovely.......:icon_smile_big:


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## Vladimir Berkov (Apr 19, 2005)

Well it would hard to top the current U.S. Army offerings for the 'worst,' although I believe the WW1-era Army uniforms would rival the short list for the 'best.'



WW1 German would also be a top contender for 'best' though mainly for the officer and cavalry uniforms moreso than regular enlisted infantry.



German WW2 uniforms were generally top-notch across all branches and ranks.


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## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

Vladimir Berkov said:


> Well it would hard to top the current U.S. Army offerings for the 'worst,' although I believe the WW1-era Army uniforms would rival the short list for the 'best.'
> 
> WW1 German would also be a top contender for 'best' though mainly for the officer and cavalry uniforms moreso than regular enlisted infantry.
> 
> ...


I never thought I would see a Russian complimenting German uniforms (no offence).That having been said,the Kriegsmarine did have some very nice uniforms.The guy above is a panzer officer in the Wermacht.


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## nikwik (Oct 29, 2005)

Being very fond of the Cavalry (Now I mean real horses, not "Death from above"...) I love these uniforms...

https://www2.army.mod.uk/kingstprha/index.html


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## JibranK (May 28, 2007)

These RN frock coats:


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## gng8 (Aug 5, 2005)

I liked my Cub Scout uniform better than my Army uniform. More color. More badges and more fun.


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## Vladimir Berkov (Apr 19, 2005)

welldressedfellow said:


> I never thought I would see a Russian complimenting German uniforms (no offence).That having been said,the Kriegsmarine did have some very nice uniforms.The guy above is a panzer officer in the Wermacht.


The Russians had excellent uniforms as well, up until the late 1960s in any event.


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## pt4u67 (Apr 27, 2006)

Going back a few years but I've always liked cavalry uniforms. These are examples of French Cavalry from the Napoleonic Wars:


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## Blueboy1938 (Aug 17, 2008)

*I'm sorry . . .*



Vladimir Berkov said:


> The Russians had excellent uniforms as well, up until the late 1960s in any event.


Vladimir, but those uniforms look like sacks of potatoes. Besides, they are clearly Soviet, not Russian, uniforms; although they are based on the Russian pre-revolutionary peasant tunic.


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## Beresford (Mar 30, 2006)

Royal Hawaiian Guard (Hawaii National Guard):




Nineteenth century Guard:






Colonel C.P. Iaukea


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## Zingari (Jul 9, 2007)

Unfortunately the British Army is looking at a 'generic' unform for both officers and soldiers across all regiments. So this may mean the end of some idiosyncracies - service dress - pocket flap shape, turn ups, cuff buttons; side hats, Guernsey and Regimental coloured heavy wool sweaters etc.

And officers service dress is rumoured to be 'issued!' The uniform allowance never covered all the requirements but Savile Row may lose out on some business if this comes to fruition.


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## Vladimir Berkov (Apr 19, 2005)

Blueboy1938 said:


> Vladimir, but those uniforms look like sacks of potatoes. Besides, they are clearly Soviet, not Russian, uniforms; although they are based on the Russian pre-revolutionary peasant tunic.


They are mostly field uniforms, below is a better illustration of the m1935 styles with some dress variations. The m1935 uniforms were actually intended not to mirror the pre-revolutionary style of tunic, as seen in the use of collar-insignia on an ordinary collar rather than shoulderboards and a stand-up collar. In the middle of the war the pre-revolutionary style was brought back as the m1943 uniform, which was a tunic whose collar, shoulderboards and pocket details were similar to the pre-revolutionary Imperial Russian military version. The m43 uniform was worn long into the post-war/cold-war period.

To me the true test of a uniform is its consistency across field and dress variations. It's not difficult to create a halfway decent dress uniform, or an absurdly ornate anachronistic dress uniform (as the British are fond to do) but creating a field uniform with anything beyond practical utility is tough. In part because following WW1 a few nations (The USA) and following WW2 most nations abandoned the idea that the field and dress uniforms shared components. For instance the WW2 US Army and Marine dress uniforms looked fine, although they were clearly not intended for field use and the field uniforms looked terrible. The Russians and the Germans however managed to create uniforms that were worn in the field as well as able to be worn in 'dress' situations, especially since Germany for one discontinued new issuance of the waffenrock (a dress tunic) during the war and field uniform models became de facto dress uniforms. Thus when you compare the colorful, visually interesting (and comfortable) Soviet field uniforms to those of a US, British or Canadian soldier in the field, they stand out much more. Even more so with the German field uniforms.


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## nicksull (Sep 1, 2005)

*Hurrah*


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## Carlton-Browne (Jun 4, 2007)

Zingari said:


> Unfortunately the British Army is looking at a 'generic' unform for both officers and soldiers across all regiments. So this may mean the end of some idiosyncracies - service dress - pocket flap shape, turn ups, cuff buttons; side hats, Guernsey and Regimental coloured heavy wool sweaters etc.
> 
> And officers service dress is rumoured to be 'issued!' The uniform allowance never covered all the requirements but Savile Row may lose out on some business if this comes to fruition.


Bloody hell! That's very very dull.


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## Blueboy1938 (Aug 17, 2008)

*Ahhh, Vladimir, I see what you mean.*

Those do look sharp, and your point about consistency across the field and dress is very interesting. Of course, with the change from formation to field array and mobile warfare, the field uniforms of the Napoleonic wars, which could double as dress uniforms, especially the cavalry, has given way to purpose designed fighting togs that bear little resemblance to the dress components.

I guess there is a tendency to regard Russia as eternal, but I reiterate that those uniforms are Soviet and not, strictly speaking, Russian. My pick from that part of the world would be the Hussars of the Napoleonic period with that swaggering shoulder pinned doublet and all that braid.

https://www.napoleonguide.com/uniforms_russ16.htm

Lest we forget, the services of most continental countries during the Napoleonic period were smashing (turn off your volume to avoid noise from an annoying ad for the following links):

https://www.napoleonguide.com/uniforms_russ20.htm

https://www.napoleonguide.com/uniforms_britinf5.htm

https://www.napoleonguide.com/uniforms_frhuss10.htm

https://www.napoleonguide.com/uniforms_fryg.htm

https://www.napoleonguide.com/uniforms_russinf3.htm

https://www.napoleonguide.com/uniforms_russinf3.htm


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## Scrumhalf (Dec 20, 2007)

For pomp and pageantry, I think the dress uniforms of the Indian Army would give any other outfit a run for its money....

Soldiers from the 54th Infantry Brigade, Indian Army



Honor Guard of the 9th Gorkha Rifles Regiment


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## thunderw21 (Sep 21, 2008)

The American Civil War had some great uniforms. I've always liked the _Zouave _look.









The Germans in WW2 also had some fine uniforms, especially panzer units with their dashing "Panzer Wrap".


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## Orsini (Apr 24, 2007)

nicksull said:


>


I saved this picture as "Nick Looking Serious"...


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## JibranK (May 28, 2007)

nicksull said:


>


I actually like that uniform a lot. The frogging makes for an interesting look.


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## Literide (Nov 11, 2004)

Now this is a dress uniform;


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## Fortune500 (Oct 15, 2008)

When I was in Afghanistan last year I remeber seeing members from France. Anyway, their uniform consisted of a short sleeve camo shirt, with really short shorts. The women looked good, but I couldn't walk past the men without laughing a little.


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## Blueboy1938 (Aug 17, 2008)

*Regulation*



Literide said:


> Now this is a dress uniform;


The Prince is wearing a regimental style of doublet, which is reproduced for civilians in the "Regulation Doublet" that I got instead of the "Prince Charlie" that most people wear with kilts formally. So you don't actually have to be a Colonel in Chief to wear something smart.


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## Sese (Oct 13, 2008)

Unfortunately I don't have pictures to share but the Italians seem to have very elegant uniforms. Especially the fabrics look top notch from a close distance.
Otherwise the Brits have true classics as well. 

Those Soviet uniforms up here are not too convincing to me. You could see them back in east germany with soviet troops and they were standard sizes and you just folded them to make'm fit slightly better. But it never looked like really nice fitting. And that with very well trained soldiers. Imagine us...

I like the french way. They have their top couturiers design uniforms from time to time. Sometimes they end up with cool stuff.

And for the top of all: The Vatican's swiss guards.


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## Zingari (Jul 9, 2007)

Granted there are those with pomp and pageantry but you can't beat the 'charisma' of the English officer:


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## Zingari (Jul 9, 2007)

And then we can all retire to the mess for afternoon tea and toast .......


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## Cruiser (Jul 21, 2006)

It amazes me as to how gaudy some of these uniforms are. I think this is one reason that the uniforms of the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy have been so well received over the years. They are models of simplicity. 

I remember when I was in school in San Diego training to be a Medical Corpsman in the Navy. Nearly every morning when my buddies and I would go to Balboa Naval Hospital for breakfast we would pass a South Vietnamese Naval "officer" standing outside the entrance. He had gold braid everywhere along with gold shoulder boards. We thought he was young to be an admiral, but good grief he had on a lot of gold. 

Every morning he would smartly return our salutes and hearty "Good morning Sir" with a cheery "Good morning" in return. After a few weeks of this we learned that he was an enlisted man, the equivalent of a 2nd Class Petty Officer (E-5). A couple of my friends thought a good butt whipping was in order, but the rest of us talked them out of it. 

Cruiser


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## Carlton-Browne (Jun 4, 2007)

Zingari said:


> And then we can all retire to the mess for afternoon tea and toast .......


Is that Bagshot Park? I think we should be told.


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## Zingari (Jul 9, 2007)

Carlton-Browne said:


> Is that Bagshot Park? I think we should be told.


It is Minley Manor, Blackwater, Surrey. Also known as the Drones Club from the series Jeeves and Wooster. The 'club' excerpts were filmed in the ante room to the bar. The church in the grounds was used in the Exorcist film.

The mess is rumoured to be for sale 2010 onwards as the MOD sell off more of its real estate! Sadly in the UK everything now has a price.


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## Carlton-Browne (Jun 4, 2007)

Zingari said:


> It is Minley Manor, Blackwater, Surrey. Also known as the Drones Club from the series Jeeves and Wooster. The 'club' excerpts were filmed in the ante room to the bar. The church in the grounds was used in the Exorcist film.
> 
> The mess is rumoured to be for sale 2010 onwards as the MOD sell off more of its real estate! Sadly in the UK everything now has a price.


Errr, that's embarrassing. I'm an ex-Sapper.


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## hockeyinsider (May 8, 2006)

Zingari said:


> Granted there are those with pomp and pageantry but you can't beat the 'charisma' of the English officer:


I wish soldiers would still dress like that in combat.


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## nicksull (Sep 1, 2005)

*CASUAL FRIDAY ANYONE?*

Well it might surprise the enemy somewhat...


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## philip in china (Aug 4, 2011)

I really fancy the British uniform as worn by colonial administrators. See "Sanders of the River" for the idea. Those huge shorts that look as if they would stand up on their own. The long socks and, of course, black leather ammunition bots or brown Lotus "Shoes, Veldt".


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## MikeDT (Aug 22, 2009)

Aaron in Allentown said:


> 3rd world military dictators always have the best uniforms.


Yes.


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

^^
LOL. Looking at the second pictorial example, offered by MikeDT, I am inclined to conclude those third world dictators must also be the approval authorities for their own nominations for military awards and decorations!  :crazy:


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## MikeDT (Aug 22, 2009)

eagle2250 said:


> ^^
> LOL. Looking at the second pictorial example, offered by MikeDT, I am inclined to conclude those third world dictators must also be the approval authorities for their own nominations for military awards and decorations!  :crazy:


That's what I'm thinking as well...









Muammar Gaddafi









Robert Mugabe.









Prince Charles.


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## philip in china (Aug 4, 2011)

Re. Prince Chuck it is interesting. He has never been near a war or even a single battle yet he is bespattered with medals. What are they all??


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## Apatheticviews (Mar 21, 2010)

I always preferred a subdued look. Less is more. You don't need a lot of flair to make a military uniform look good. Sooner or later it just starts to look silly, and becomes a pain to maintain, and actually look good in.


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## Apatheticviews (Mar 21, 2010)

philip in china said:


> Re. Prince Chuck it is interesting. He has never been near a war or even a single battle yet he is bespattered with medals. What are they all??


Here's the list.

https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6147544.stm

Battles aren't the only way to earn medals, though they are commonly thought of that way. In reality, "Campaign" awards, and Service awards are probably far more common. Thinking back to my own collection, very few are tied to a specific "battle" or even "event" but more often a period of service.


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

Apatheticviews said:


> I always preferred a subdued look. Less is more. You don't need a lot of flair to make a military uniform look good. Sooner or later it just starts to look silly, and becomes a pain to maintain, and actually look good in.


+1. Given the rising costs of simply having the requisite ribbon set made up for wear on one's Class A uniforms, I'm not sure how today's blokes manage it, financially:crazy:. With the passing of time, the situation can tend to spin a bit out of control. As I look back on my retirement from military service (back in 1999), I like to think it was because the "powers that be" discovered I had accumulated over 30 years of commissioned service and tossed me simply because I was getting "too old to cut the mustard any more!" LOL. The more likely truth is, when it comes to spending money, (and has been claimed on more than one occasion) I actually may be tighter than two coats of paint and just did not want to spend all that money maintaining uniforms any longer!


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## txelen (Sep 4, 2010)

I'm partial to the US Marine Corps service uniforms myself. The Marine Corps had done a great job of keeping its uniforms standard and professional looking over time. Of course, as a Marine, I may be biased.


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## Bruce Wayne (Mar 10, 2008)

MikeDT said:


> Yes.


Well, if those count...



https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/269/twokuniforms2.jpg/


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## DcJeff (May 23, 2011)

I was in the Navy from 77-87. I loved the service I was in but the Marine uniforms, both Officer and Enlisted, kicked ass. Just an opinion.


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## Apatheticviews (Mar 21, 2010)

eagle2250 said:


> +1. Given the rising costs of simply having the requisite ribbon set made up for wear on one's Class A uniforms, I'm not sure how today's blokes manage it, financially:crazy:. With the passing of time, the situation can tend to spin a bit out of control. As I look back on my retirement from military service (back in 1999), I like to think it was because the "powers that be" discovered I had accumulated over 30 years of commissioned service and tossed me simply because I was getting "too old to cut the mustard any more!" LOL. The more likely truth is, when it comes to spending money, (and has been claimed on more than one occasion) I actually may be tighter than two coats of paint and just did not want to spend all that money maintaining uniforms any longer!


Marine Enlisted aren't actually issued a "full" set of Dress Uniforms.We have to buy the jacket ourselves. When you add in the anodized buttons, and various accessories for it, it comes up to a nice chunk of change. Of course we don't wear it all that often, which is the main reason it's not issued.


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## MikeDT (Aug 22, 2009)

Bruce Wayne said:


> Well, if those count...
> 
> 
> 
> https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/269/twokuniforms2.jpg/










Of course Starfleet counts.


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## Hanzo (Sep 9, 2009)

Apatheticviews said:


> Marine Enlisted aren't actually issued a "full" set of Dress Uniforms.We have to buy the jacket ourselves. When you add in the anodized buttons, and various accessories for it, it comes up to a nice chunk of change. Of course we don't wear it all that often, which is the main reason it's not issued.


I heard recently that they've started issuing the blouse again. It seems like every decade or so they go back and forth. I'm not sure if it's still the case, but I know a few years ago they were issuing them. I'm not sure about the waistbelt/buckle though. And I agree, by the time you bought all of the annodized, it got pricey.


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## 127.72 MHz (Feb 16, 2007)

la legion etrangere. Not a bad looking uniform.


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## Benjamin E. (Mar 2, 2007)

*But srsly...*

This is probably my favorite military uniform to look at:










Something to note is the cut of the trousers. They are unbelievably baggy, a stark contrast to the tight trousers on just about every other uniform of the era. This must have been very comfortable to wear while still remaining very elegant.


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## TheBarbaron (Oct 8, 2010)

At the risk of insulting the highly-professional soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines of my native land, Kurt Vonnegut said it best:

"Every other army in history, prosperous or not, has attempted to clothe even its lowliest soldiers so as to make them impressive to themselves and others as stylish experts in drinking and copulation and looting and sudden death. The American Army, however, sends its enlisted men out to fight and die in a modified business suit quite evidently made for another man, a sterilized but unpressed gift from a nose-holding charity which passes out clothing to drunks in the slums." 
 -  Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse Five


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## jkeagans (Feb 19, 2011)

Shocked that the former US Navy Aviation Working Green uniform hasn't made it on the list yet.


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## Titus_A (Jun 23, 2010)

jkeagans said:


> Shocked that the former US Navy Aviation Working Green uniform hasn't made it on the list yet.


That's an attractive, simple one.


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## IlliniFlyer (Sep 20, 2009)

Titus_A said:


> That's an attractive, simple one.


Yes, and sadly, it was replaced with this...
_








_


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## Apatheticviews (Mar 21, 2010)

IlliniFlyer said:


> Yes, and sadly, it was replaced with this...
> _
> 
> 
> ...


Actually, the Dungarees were "replaced" (augmented really) by those. Ignoring the Dungarees comfort factor, the new USN Combat Utility is a hell of an improvement. Excluding color and club patch, they are essentially the same as the USMC Combat Uniform, which actually creates more uniformity among the Uniformed Services.

The old Greens & Tans (Service Uniforms) had their day, but honestly, how many different uniforms does a person need? Between Whites, Blues, Khakis, Greens, & Utilities, there really was no uniform.


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## Jovan (Mar 7, 2006)

For those interested in where the Star Trek uniform discussion went, I moved it here so it didn't distract too much from the original purpose of this thread: https://askandyaboutclothes.com/com...movies-and-television-(discussion-moved-here)


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## MikeDT (Aug 22, 2009)

The People's Armed Police always look very smart IMO.


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## IlliniFlyer (Sep 20, 2009)

ApatheticViews, I will respectfully disagree with you on a few points. First, the NWU replaced several working uniforms, to include the Aviation Working Greens (and Utilities, which I assume you're referring to since that's the modern version of dungarees). As for uniformity among the services, I think a side-by-side comparison shows that the Navy is not at all uniform. The Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force have similar shades of colors for the working/field uniform. The Navy: not so much. Now, if every Sailor wore the Type II or III then I'd agree with you.

What I absolutely agree with you is on the number of uniforms. Despite my dislike of the "peanut butters" (black pants, khaki shirt) for E1-E6, it at least makes sense to have a single year-round service uniform. For E-7 and above, does it make sense to have:
1. Service Khakis and Summer Whites
2. Service Dress Blues and Service Dress Whites
3. Dinner Jacket Blue (O-4 and above) and Dinner Jacket White?

For aviators, that means owning, at a minimum, 3 different colored shoes, belts, and trousers. Surely we could come up with a solution where the same shoes and trousers could be worn for different occasions. After all, for the majority of folks, the likelihood of wearing a dress or dinner dress uniform is not more than once per year. That's pretty expensive per wearing.


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## Apatheticviews (Mar 21, 2010)

IlliniFlyer said:


> ApatheticViews, I will respectfully disagree with you on a few points. First, the NWU replaced several working uniforms, to include the Aviation Working Greens (and Utilities, which I assume you're referring to since that's the modern version of dungarees). As for uniformity among the services, I think a side-by-side comparison shows that the Navy is not at all uniform. The Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force have similar shades of colors for the working/field uniform. The Navy: not so much. Now, if every Sailor wore the Type II or III then I'd agree with you.
> 
> What I absolutely agree with you is on the number of uniforms. Despite my dislike of the "peanut butters" (black pants, khaki shirt) for E1-E6, it at least makes sense to have a single year-round service uniform. For E-7 and above, does it make sense to have:
> 1. Service Khakis and Summer Whites
> ...


I stand corrected. I had never seen the AVG's worn when I was stationed on ship (but I was stationed on Amphibs). The Khaki's were the preferred uniform by the USN O's & CPO's, but our our Navy Aviation compliment (and were probably in flight suits) was non-existent compared to our Marine Aviators. In Navy District Washington, the Uniform of the day is the Service Uniform, unless attached to a combat unit, and then you wear what they wear (normally their utilities). It gets really confusing seeing a USN Commander wearing ARPAT one day and then NWU the next.

Personally, I think they should have just got rid of the the E1-E6 vs E7+ thing with the Khaki uniform (leaving the Dress Uniform alone). When on shore, everyone has the same service uniform. When on ship, E7+ wears service uniform, E6 & below wears utilities. The peanut butter thing looks silly.

To highlight your point, Marines can get by with 3 jackets, 3 pants, 3 shirts, 2 belts, and 1 pair of shoes, plus accessories. That's including a full set of Mess Dress. Compared to the Navy, we're toting a backpack compared to a steamer trunk.


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## PTB in San Diego (Jan 2, 2010)

Nothing to prove:


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## Saltydog (Nov 3, 2007)

I'm sure most of you have seen the uniform hat of Kaddafi's the rebel soldier scored from his compound on TV. Wonder if it will show up on E-bay? Then here?


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

^^
Should the hat in question make an appearance on ebay, hopefully we will all follow the sage advice of former First Lady Nancy Regan, LOL, "Just say no to Thugs!"


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