World War II Field Uniform


This is my WWII field uniform and is as accurate as I could get. The only items worn that are not authentic are the boots which are reproductions.
The helmet worn is the M1 helmet which replaced the M1917A1 in 1939. It is made of two seperate pieces: an inner lining made out of a stiff nylon material and an outer steel shell. Both pieces had a chin strap. The inner liner had a thin, leather strap which was placed over the visor of the shell when the two were worn together. The shell had a thicker, canvas chin strap which secured between the chin and neck, although most soldiers wore it either lose or secured behind the helmet. Airborne helmets had a leather chin cuff in the strap.
The jacket seen here is the M1941 Field Jacket, which replaced the pre-WWII Makinaw Jacket. It's a very poorly made article of clothing and only lasted 2 years before being replaced by a newly designed M1943 Field Jacket. Because the M1941 was so poorly made there are very few still in existence. I had to send all the way to California to get this one and it's very worn out, but I was glad to get it.
In this picture the M1938 Dismount Leggings are worn over brown, reproduction, low quarter boots.
On the front right of the M1923 Dismounted Cartridge Belt (10 pocket), under the grenade, is the M1942 Field Dressing Carrier. On the left are the wire cutters in their carrying pouch.
Over the cartridge belt is the US Navy floation belt. It was issued to infantry men for the Normandy invasion, but it was not enough to keep fully loaded soldiers afloat. The only real use I've ever seen for one was in a picture at Normandy of a wounded soldier using it as a pillow.
The main item that I'm missing here is the black rubber gas mask carrier. I've never even seen one because, as most of you saw in "Saving Private Ryan" they were all thrown away.
Here you can see the M1928 Haversack which is almost identical to the M1910 Haversack used in WWI. On the back flap of the haversack is the meat can pouch which was normally used to carry the mess kit. Between the meat can pouch and the flap is the M1910 E-Tool (T-handle).
Hanging from the left shoulder of the haversack is the M1 Bayonet for the M1 Garand. Originally these were made by cutting down the old M1905 bayonets for the Springfield M1903.
On the back of the ammo belt are two M1910 Canteen Carriers. One holds the old style metal cap canteen, while the other holds the black rubber cap canteen, which came out in 1943.
The previous owner of this M1 Helmet has drawn a guardian angel on the back of it.
The patches seen here are the Big Red One (1st. Inf. Div.) and the Technical Corporeal Stripes(grade 5).
The patch on this shoulder is the Tank Destroyer patch. It can be found in two variations: one with 4 wheels and one with 8 wheels. The 8 wheel patches are the older ones which makes them rarer and more expensive.