New jacket en route!

[Tim Little]

I've been inspired by Riverkilt and others here who espouse the combination of the Eisenhower or battledress jacket and kilt.

Well, after much searching, I finally took the plunge and ordered this vintage USMC battledress jacket from Taylors Army Surplus down in Texas:



Not a bad casual jacket for $20 (plus shipping), even if it shows a little sign of wear and tear here and there, and I think it should go nicely with my Mackenzie modern kilt (and perhaps even better with that SWK Weathered Mackenzie, when I finally get around to it).

Taylors has quite the selection, though the sizes seem to be mostly in the 36-38 range.

Will post pix, of course, when it finally arrives.

[Riverkilt]

Must be authentic in those sizes. Fat as I am I need the reproductions. Thanks for the link though, hadn't heard of these folks.

Ron

[Tim Little]

Well, the jacket arrived yesterday!

It's decidedly greener than suggested by the picture (in which the color appears somewhat desaturated), but is very handsome and coordinates well with the Mackenzie modern tartan. I think it will look very nice indeed with the weathered version of the tartan. (I used a necktie in Lochcarron wool for comparison of the latter, until I get around to actually ordering that SWK standard. )

Per the description, there are a couple of very small moth holes -- one on the left breast pocket, the other I forget where -- but nothing very noticeable, nor beyond the pale for casual wear.

The sizing is... interesting.

I'm very glad I did not order a smaller jacket. I have plenty of room across the chest. It may actually be a little big in the shoulders and baggy in the sleeves (which are a good length). It is a little puffy in back when worn with pants, but looks much better and is a perfect length when worn with a kilt.

However, the waist is a very tight squeeze -- and I'm best described as "slim" with a 30-31" waist. (Whomever this was originally tailored for must have had a decidedly trapezoidal figure!) I first tried the jacket on over my Carhartts and belt, I could barely button the bottom two buttons -- and eventually managed to pop the bottom button, even with the side straps at their maximum girth.

Now the good news is that it seemed to fit much better when worn with my kilt -- with the caveat that I don't think I'd be able to wear it buttoned over a kilt belt for the reasons cited above. I could wear it open -- Prince Charlie/Argyll style -- but then I'd probably want to layer it with a sweater....

It's clearly not a perfect fit, but doesn't look too far off, IMHO, and will be a fine casual spring/fall jacket... especially for $20!

I'll try to get some pix posted over the weekend.

[The Barry]

Sweet, congrats! Now go and post those pics!

[Derek Conley]

Curious to see pics myself. I'm on the website now and all the "USMC battledress" jackets I see state "close to a size medium", whatever that means.

When they state something like "armpit to armpit measures 19 inches across", can I assume that translates to a 38? I normally wear between a 38 - 40 short, which is a strange size, but there's an USMC Ike jacket on there measured to the mentioned 19 inches across...

[Tim Little]

Hi all.... Sorry for the delay in pix; didn't get a chance to take any this past weekend, but hopefully this will be rectified relatively soon (this coming weekend at the earliest).

Curious to see pics myself. I'm on the website now and all the "USMC battledress" jackets I see state "close to a size medium", whatever that means.

When they state something like "armpit to armpit measures 19 inches across", can I assume that translates to a 38? I normally wear between a 38 - 40 short, which is a strange size, but there's an USMC Ike jacket on there measured to the mentioned 19 inches across...

The sizing is definitely vague. I ran into similar issues on another site, Vintage Trends, that also carries suplus Ike/battle dress jackets. On the whole, VT seems to have larger sizes than Taylor. (VT is also a bit more expensive....)

Anyhow, I'm somewhere between a 36 and 38, and decided to err on the larger side when ordering my jacket, going with one that measures 19" armpit-to-armpit. This was definitely the right call, seemingly closer to a size 38. It allows me plenty of room to move and does not look "bulky" in the slightest.

Derek -- If you're between a 38 and 40, I think you'd probably be okay with one measuring 19" across the chest. However, as I note above, you may find the waist to be a bit snug.

I do wish to amend slightly my initial reaction posted above. I wore the jacket out for a good part of the weekend -- it was quite comfortable at temps of ~25-30F -- and it seems to fit/look much better than I thought at first. It's definitely a trim fit, but I guess that was the style at the time.

I also think that the kilt belt will not be an issue as the belt would be worn higher on my midsection where the jacket is roomier. (I ran into issues where the narrow waist of the jacket overlapped exactly with waistband/belt of my Carhartts.)

I've also decided that it's not worth re-sewing the button that popped off -- the jacket works/looks just fine without, and the second button would only make the waist that much more of a tight fit.

I did discover a few more moth holes, but they are relatively inconspicuous.

So, pictures are forthcoming... really.

[thescot]

. . .The sizing is... interesting.

. . .the waist is a very tight squeeze -- and I'm best described as "slim" with a 30-31" waist. .. .

Yeah, that's what Riverkilt meant about the replicas. If you look at the WPG replica jackets, you'll note that they are cut much larger in the middle relative to the chest than are the originals.

All I have to do is take a look at one of my old uniform jackets or shirts to realize that young, hard-bodied military fellows have quite a difference between chest and waist while I, on the other hand, no onger enjoy that vast differential!

[Tim Little]

Finally got a chance to get out -- on a day that feels more like mid-March than early February -- to get these shots:

[The Barry]

Looking pretty smart!

[puffer]

Finally got a chance to get out -- on a day that feels more like mid-March than early February -- to get these shots:

GREAT !!!!!! Of course I am "BIASED"

OH, BTW, the belt, In the pics I showed, I was wearing a Brit, Officer's belt under the Jacket. Works great doesn't it ?? now to kilt up in my "SEAFORTH" Regimental, so we match

Puffer