Opinions on a military jacket

[manfrozeninaglacier]

I am new to kilt wearing and got this modified Army dress jacket to wear with my kilts. I like the fit and was looking for opinions. I don't know if I should get it modified to open up directly beneath the front buttons more like a PC. I was going to insert an image, but I don't know what I am doing. I also am not sure how to post a photo, so if this doesn't work, let me know.

[Steve Ashton]

For directions on how to put a photo in a post please follow this link to our FAQ's

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...s_faq_pictures

[Zardoz]

First,

As far as an opinion on the jacket, it's looking good, but I think I would go with an "Ike Jacket" look.

http://www.marlowwhite.com/dress-uni...ke-jacket.html

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Actually, as conversions go, this is a very good one. There are, however, one or two further modifications that you need to carry out to end up with a really first class job.

1) you need to cut away the front of the jacket, starting below the bottom button. This cut away should be a curved line, not a straight line. If you go to the "TUNES OF GLORY" thread and scan through the pictures, you will come to one of John Mills in a British military jacket similar to what you are making. You want the front of your jacket to match his as near as you can possibly make it.

2) as with all "modified" jackets the pockets are waaaay to low. The easiest way to remedy the situation is to acquire another Class A blouse in AG44 and remove the two breast pockets and stitch them in place over the existing pockets. This may seem a bit fiddly, but the end result is well worth it as the jacket won't have the tell-tale home made look of something cut down to wear with the kilt.

Good luck with your project!

[manfrozeninaglacier]

Thanks for the advice, I happen to have 3 un-modified jackets downstairs that I can use. I also am working on modifying the dress blue jacket in the same manner. I was trying to go for the style mentioned in the "So you're going to wear the kilt" appendix where he describes how to modify the jacket. I looked online to see any pictures of people that had done the modification, but could only find the Ike style jacket as a guide. Do you think the front pockets would look better curved like in the tunes of glory photo?

[BobsYourUncle]

Actually, as conversions go, this is a very good one. There are, however, one or two further modifications that you need to carry out to end up with a really first class job.

1) you need to cut away the front of the jacket, starting below the bottom button. This cut away should be a curved line, not a straight line. If you go to the "TUNES OF GLORY" thread and scan through the pictures, you will come to one of John Mills in a British military jacket similar to what you are making. You want the front of your jacket to match his as near as you can possibly make it.

2) as with all "modified" jackets the pockets are waaaay to low. The easiest way to remedy the situation is to acquire another Class A blouse in AG44 and remove the two breast pockets and stitch them in place over the existing pockets. This may seem a bit fiddly, but the end result is well worth it as the jacket won't have the tell-tale home made look of something cut down to wear with the kilt.

Good luck with your project!

I agree with Scott and OC Richard. You have a great start, the jacket already looks great, following their suggestions will improve your results. Thompson's "So your going to wear the kilt" is a great resource. Gud on ya.

[MacLowlife]

welcome friend,

Many people decide, after wearing the kilt for a while, that they prefer to wear hose of another color other than white. If you don't want to go to the trouble of putting a whole set of lower pockets on, you can put on flaps. Just install them higher than they would go otherwise to give the impression that the pockets are higher. You wear it well- may you wear it long, too.

Thanks for joining us.

[Heming]

I find the jacket perfectly OK as it is, but am also liking MacMillan's pocket idea. But as opposed to same, I find no need for a cut-away on this jacket.

In my opinion, as long as the jacket is short enough not to interfere with the sporran, the curved cut-away front is unnecessary, and as I like to stand out in a crowd (hence the kilt wearing!), I prefer my jackets to be a bit different from everyone else's. Keep in mind that the kilt is not a uniform for most of us, so there's no need for everyone to look the same!

[Lyle1]

Something bothers me about the coat as pictured; it looks a bit awkward to me. I think MOR's suggestion about using extra patch pockets over the inset pockets would give give the jacket a more balanced and proportioned look, creating a less "cut down for the kilt" look. Try pinning on the extra pockets and evaluating that look before you worry about cutting a curve or leaving the front straight. Then, if you're still not sure, fold the front flaps under and pin them in place; you won't get a perfect curve, but you should be able to judge how it would look cut away. In the end, Heming's advice about not needing to look the same as everybody else is also good, so figure out what you like and go for it.

[OC Richard]

It might be interesting to take a look at what various militaries have done with this style of jacket (the old US Army "dress greens" or "Class A's")
to adapt it for wear with the kilt.

The Canadian Army wears a similar jacket and has a large number of kilted battalions. Here's what the Canadian version looks like:



Note also the Lovat Green hose and ordinary shoes, exactly what the Scottish regiments in Scotland wear in No2 Dress. Ghillies are not worn in the Army. (The exception is that some Scottish regimental pipe bands have a civilian-style uniform that they wear when competing at civilian pipe band competitions, which includes several civilian items like ghillies, bobble top hose, civilian sporrans, shirts, vests, and jackets. They wear their normal military Glengarries, kilts, and flashes, and the regimental necktie.)

Here's the Real Thing, the Scottish military No2 Dress, as currently worn by the Royal Regiment of Scotland:




Here's the New Zealand Army's version of their own jacket:



Here's a US military version of a jacket similar to the US Army's, worn by the US Coast Guard Pipe Band:



Notice in all cases the bottom of the jacket has been cut away for the sporran but otherwise the jacket has been left as is (no Scottish style cuffs etc).

Note that the Canadian and New Zealand jackets have been left at their full length, which to me never looks quite right with the kilt. The Scottish No2 Dress jacket is shorter, like a civilian kilt jacket, as you can see.