THE WW2 PEACOAT

Sailors on the Alameda naval base in 1945......
The rare Brooklyn depot tag ,is the only way to tell the size on a WW2 peacoat.It was sewn on the rayon lining underneath the "hang loop".Unfortunately they are ,most of the time ,missing due to their "cheese cloth" like material......

The one and only preWW2 and WW2 NAVAL CLOTHING FACTORY tag .An easy detail to look for while hunting for one true gem ....
The 10 "fouled anchor" buttons are factory hand sewn [never go through] and always in a z pattern .Showing here,different shades of kersey wool.A dead stock example and above it, one that has been there......
Another revealing detail: the 2 rows of stitching on the sleeves roughly 3" apart ......

The purpose of this post won't be about schooling you into becoming the ultimate "peacoat expert" on the planet, but more about giving you pointers on how to be sure you have the real deal:the WW2 USN peacoat.....

The pea coat is a true American classic,a garment that seems to transcend many different styles, tastes and genders as working for almost everyone .Perhaps because it is a great example of how function always rules over frivolity in the style stakes.It has been copied so many times over the last decades that i've lost track .Legions of modern manufacturers will come up with a nice story, telling you they were "the one".For me the WW2 US NAVAL CLOTHING FACTORY standard issue is only one.

The pea coat is actually a British or Dutch invention dating back to the 18th Century.It gets its name from the Dutch word: 'pij' used for this kind of coat or jacket,hence 'P-Cloth', 'P-Coat' etc. The fabric is a heavy, coarse, usually 32 ounce, twilled dark blue kersey wool.

The 10 buttons are the easiest way to tell a WW2 era coat from afar{ after WW2 they started making them with 8 buttons}. The reason for this is it extended the lapel so with it un-buttoned at the top it could be worn like a double breasted suit with the lapel lying flat against the front of the coat. This is one of the great things about the pea coat, it can be worn different ways and still look good.Small buttons under the collars, and an attached throat latch allowed the coat to be tightly buttoned at the throat. There was one row of stitching approximately 3" above the cuff, which also had a single row of stitching just above the cuff. The hand warmer pockets were lined with tan or light brown corduroy.The coats were lined with a rayon like fabric,baring the “Manufactured By NAVAL CLOTHING FACTORY” tag on the right inside breast pocket (on the outside of the pocket) with a line for the name and a line for the rate. There was an anchor in the upper right hand corner and the upper left hand corner of the tag.

Now armed with this humble knowledge you should be able to get your hands on a true American classic: the ww2 USN peacoat .........good hunting

AROUND MY FINGER ....about ww2 military rings

This is a rare WW2 RAF ring. Over the years i've probably seen a handful of British rings .this example was made out of a RAF brass button .The base is silver......
Nice combo of WW2 theater made DI and 1944 dated silver CBI ring .
Close up showing the glass on silver inclusion ......
WW2 north African campaign theater made silver ring ........
An early example of 20/ 30's air corps silver locket ring .......
A beautiful WW2 AAF flight engineer gold ring .Above it a 1950's air force sterling silver band...

Such rings have been around as long as there has been a military.

In ancient time,conquering soldiers would wear the jewelry of those they conquered as their badge of honor.

Even the most battle tested soldier wants to take something away to remember his time in service. A military ring is something that many military personnel had made or bought for such a purpose. Some decorated their rings with the battles they have fought and the events they feel have shaped their time in the military.Those that served,have their jewelry passed on to the next generation and those that have lost their lives are usually remembered for the rings they wore. Military jewelry can be a very emotional items.

The Air Force,Army,Navy, Marines and most military divisions have/had their own logos and designs showcased on rings made and worn by the soldiers that have served. You can always tell what branch of service someone was in,by the ring that they wore to commemorate their service.

THE FIRST A-2....

The 313th fighter 9th AAF sq. patch and an original star and wings felt shoulder patch to complete the look...
The artwork was inspired by an original 9th AF P-47 thunderbolt "nose art"....
A close up of 'Panchito" from Disney's 1944 animated feature :"the 3 caballeros"....

Back in the early 90's as i didn't want to ruin a perfectly good original A-2, i decided to get a copy just for every day use .It seemed quit impossible at the time, to find a repro to satisfy my discriminating taste ..there was always something wrong back then,with the handful of brands catering to such a market.Neither Sefton,Nor the now world famous Eastman[whose catalog was at the time heavily inspired by Mc coy's to say the least] were good enough.So while working as a designer for a famous French clothing company ,i decided to take advantage of my easy access to their factory and talked the owner into letting me do a prototype on my own "dineros" for the up coming season .The result can be seen above......Well !! 20 years after i still think it's not so bad for a first try.

OUT OF THE BOX...

Wrist watches were produced in large numbers during World War II for all the services. They had mechanical movements with a winding stem and typically had the hack feature, meaning that the second hand jumps from one second mark to the next, rather than move smoothly. This makes it more accurate to synchronize watches with others. Both black and white dial models were made, typically with a dull stainless steel or parkerized case.Here a nice example from Bulova displayed on a rare p40 british battledress that belonged to a 9TH AAF captain.

A common watch with Army personnel was the "ORD DEPT" ordnance watch series, produced by most of the watch manufacturers during the war. There was a system of part number prefixes such as OC, OD, OF that indicated the type of movement....

A privately purchased alligator band,makes this beautiful deadstock A-11 ,a little more stylish .......
The Type A-11 was produced in large numbers from 1940 to 1945 by Bulova, Elgin and Waltham for the Army Air Force and for the British RAF. Typical case marking for an A-11:
AN {army/navy} stamp on the seal....

The box as found...empty

Today's post,the first of the new decade,will feature a very rare item...No it's not a piece of closing for once,but rather fits in the men's furnishing/accessories category.I'm talking about the very desirable ww2 A-11 pilot's and ordnance watches .Official wristwatches were produced for the U.S. Army and other services during WW II. At that time, a watch was only considered necessary for ground and naval officers, aviators, and others with command or technical responsibilities. While official service watches were available, many enlisted men, and particularly officers, obtained their own stylish wristwatch or added a distinctive band to their military watch.Actually the original box in wich the actual watch was issued is a rare piece by itself,as they were most naturally disposed of.The above example was found while digging in a vet's trunk .Nothing unusual there ,just your average eaten by moth shirts and pants ,but as i was about to leave ,at the very bottom , i found a little cigar box .inside the box were 2 pocket bibles,a dead stock bunch of 5 leather name tags [as issued]another rare find and the watch's box ......