ryan123 Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 hi i recently come across a nos ww2 windproof smock and i was just wondering if they ever made post war ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdbikemad Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 hi i recently come across a nos ww2 windproof smock and i was just wondering if they ever made post war ones. Is it the cammo version ? If so, they were made post-war in small numbers (I have seen several post-war dated examples), right up to 1963-4-ish I think.....and the last examples having the "1963 pattern" full length frontal zip and windflap fitted......but around 64-65 the olive-drab version entered production (1963 pattern) replacing the cammo variety........this lasted until 1970-71 when the DPM version (in heavy cotton-sateen) appeared........ Many wartime smocks and trousers remained on issue however, some being fitted with the full length zip...........but to my knowledge, no white or sand-coloured versions were made after WW2 due to sufficient wartime stocks remaining...... How about a photo...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryan123 Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdbikemad Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 (edited) Ryan....nice items !!!! I can now see the rationale behind your question about post-war manufacture, the trousers shown being dated "1956"............thus you are asking if similar smocks were also made post-war...? Your trousers, dated 1956, are marked "GDS"..........this is not a manufacturer.......this actually stands for "Garment Development Section", that later evolved into the Stores, Clothing, Research and Development Establishment (SCRDE) and then "Defence Clothing and Textiles Agency" (DCTA)........ From what I can see, the trousers appear standard (earlier wartime pattern) but may have been made by/for the GDS as part of an ongoing trial programme...............detailed examination may reveal subtle differences from wartime manufacture (eg - fabric composition, etc).................the GDS often made garments "in-house" for trial purposes and this may have included earlier and new designs for comparison trials when developing new patterns of clothing........ Your trousers also display a "Vocabulary" number, commonly found on and associated with Naval issue clothing........this suggests that these trousers were possibly a trial/evaluation example for Royal Navy applications, most likely for Royal Marines or Special Boat Squadron (SBS), or the Mountain and Arctic Warfare Cadre..........as mentioned, it was not unusual for earlier or existing patterns of clothing to be adopted for evaluation.....I have also seen examples of the post-war (pre-59 pattern) Denison smock bearing Naval vocabulary numbers and most likely intended and ordered under naval contracts for issue to Marines.................each service having their own unique patterns of certain items even if identical or similar to existing garments (eg - RAF wartime "Heavy Duty Dress" that was basically a RAF copy of the utility pattern army khaki serge battledress with a few subtle differences)............ Either way, the smock is standard wartime and very nice, but the trousers are a little bit more special and a rare example of post-war trials clothing.........:-D Edited July 28, 2012 by wdbikemad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryan123 Posted July 29, 2012 Author Share Posted July 29, 2012 Thanks for your reply,very interesting information regarding the trousers and their possible usage.Sorry about the quality of the pictures,must try and get a decent camera,its just that using the mobile is so handy.Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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