Jacques
Entraînement
"Paruru te fenua" - Devise de la Regiment d'infanterie de marine du Pacifique (RIMAP)
Posts: 44
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Post by Jacques on Feb 12, 2022 16:29:34 GMT -5
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Post by earlymb on Feb 12, 2022 16:41:33 GMT -5
It has brown buttons and natural brass press buttons, so it's an earlier one. I think it stands a good chance.
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Post by can on Feb 13, 2022 4:30:38 GMT -5
They look real to me. I am not aware if anyone ever reproduced the 56's. I have a complete set of 47/56's from a Legionnaire and although they are far more worn I think those are real. That was a decent selling price. I've been offered far more for mine as a complete set and they are no where near in that nice condition
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Post by craigtx on Feb 13, 2022 8:43:47 GMT -5
Doursoux was preproducing a quasi-47/56 a few years ago. And I have a repro set that was made in China a number of years ago. So repros are out there, they're just not common as the originals are still out there. Not as plentiful as they used to be, or as cheap (as with most Indo/Algerie kit).
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Post by earlymb on Feb 14, 2022 5:46:18 GMT -5
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Jacques
Entraînement
"Paruru te fenua" - Devise de la Regiment d'infanterie de marine du Pacifique (RIMAP)
Posts: 44
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Post by Jacques on Feb 16, 2022 21:08:15 GMT -5
Yes I ended up winning the bid!
They just came in today and they are truly beautiful, no rips or holes and color is vibrant
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Post by earlymb on Feb 17, 2022 6:30:11 GMT -5
Congratz! I have a mint pair too, in my size even and a few smaller pairs with beautiful fading
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Post by can on Feb 17, 2022 7:30:44 GMT -5
Yes fading. My set is worn. Patches and ID are there but the trousers are faded far more then the jacket. I just assumed it was not a matched set. A fellow I know, a former Legionnaire and an avid collector, said that is very common on the sets that were theater used. Algeria was hot and whenever they were not on active ops the jacket was not worn.
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Post by craigtx on Feb 17, 2022 10:34:58 GMT -5
Congrats! I've a coupla pairs of originals. In fact, I will occasionally wear them when I'm out and about.
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Post by can on Feb 17, 2022 10:45:04 GMT -5
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Post by craigtx on Feb 18, 2022 7:10:33 GMT -5
The size label is definitely wrong. I'd have to look at the waist tabs on my originals to be sure. These could possibly be a pair of the Doursoux trousers.
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Jacques
Entraînement
"Paruru te fenua" - Devise de la Regiment d'infanterie de marine du Pacifique (RIMAP)
Posts: 44
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Post by Jacques on Feb 18, 2022 18:29:41 GMT -5
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Post by Kenneth on Feb 22, 2022 8:39:54 GMT -5
On those pants linked in the 2/17 post, the material isn't correct, either, for original French pants. It looks like rip-stop fabric. However, they could possibly be originals of something else, given that other countries used similar or exact copies. That doesn't make it desirable if original French pants are what you want. I have two original pairs myself, both size 33. Those pants also lack suspender buttons, the snap fasteners are wrong and the tightening tab buckles on the side are wrong. However, the seller made no claims that they were "original" French issue, even though he used the original designation. Recreating something exactly that has been out of production for 40 years is quite difficult, although in this case, the pattern is pretty much correct. There might be differences in fit, too, but that's impossible to check.
Even if just about everything about them is wrong, I'll bet the snap fasteners work better than the ones on originals.
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Post by lew on Feb 28, 2022 10:27:40 GMT -5
I had a pair of Sturm Mil-Tec Ripstop 47/56 fatigues. Quality was excellent, and I got 'em cheap, but I got a good offer on them and made a healthy profit.
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Post by Kenneth on Feb 28, 2022 16:06:58 GMT -5
Ironically, sometimes reproductions are more expensive than originals. That doesn't mean that originals are necessarily common or cheap. Sometimes workmanship is better than the originals but generally speaking, quality can be all over the place, although one doesn't always have a chance to actually compare something to an original, at least not in unissued condition. However, soldiers are not always issued new uniforms or equipment, or items of the latest patterns. Sometimes, two different patterns (usually the "old" and the "new") might be issued at the same time. Soldiers usually prefer to have the latest stuff but they never worry about it being 'correct'.
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Post by can on Mar 10, 2022 11:12:21 GMT -5
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Post by Kenneth on Mar 10, 2022 17:50:32 GMT -5
The second link to the Wikipedia page is exceptionally detailed and very interesting. It mentions locally produced camouflage uniforms. I once examined a presumably locally produced lizard camo jacket from Vietnam. This was probably 20 years ago. It was a very small size, so I assumed it had been manufactured for South Vietnamese soldiers. The same dealer had a plain green jump jacket, too, although way out of my price range. And typical for all such uniforms I've ever examined (French parachutist's jacket), they all seemed to be extra-large short. But to be fair about it, my issued fatigues in the army was on the short side, too. I've always been tall but now I'm also a large!
The first link, by the way, illustrates a sometime problem with eBay listings, that of the color. Not so much the color itself but the way it looks different in different photos. But if you know what you're looking at, you can usually make a reasonably safe assumption about the color.
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Post by can on May 18, 2022 7:32:48 GMT -5
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Post by craigtx on May 19, 2022 8:50:22 GMT -5
Yes, yes they do.
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Post by Kenneth on May 20, 2022 16:11:18 GMT -5
Somewhere I read that the Legion had a thing about starting the day in freshly washed fatigues, in this case referring to the camo uniforms. This meant that the uniforms went through the wash a lot and presumably showed it, mainly in fading. That would have been for their everyday uniforms. It's possible they saved a set for appropriate use such as inspections and parades. During the period that camouflage uniforms were on issue, they seem to have been popular for parades, especially for airborne units. I notice that in many videos of military parades, different units often parade in different kinds of uniforms, from dress uniforms to combat uniforms, the combat uniforms invariably being camouflage uniforms. Sometimes the camo uniforms in parades are 'dressed up' with dress uniform accessories, which was certainly done in French service.
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Post by craigtx on May 21, 2022 8:31:54 GMT -5
I would say it's possible. I've no objective evidence to back it up though. Soldiers, bein' soldiers, if there was the possibility of a parade/inspection with camo uniform they'd want to keep a minty set for that occasion.
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Post by can on May 22, 2022 4:10:34 GMT -5
Interesting point Kenneth. My 49/56 are pretty worn and the trousers are faded more than the jacket. My first impression was it was not a matched set. Another collector a former Legionnaire said that was common and he said it was because Algeria was hot and most would wear just the trousers and not the jacket when not on operations. Either explanation seems plausible. As far as wearing then in dress situations in the Osprey Elite series " French Foreign Legion Paratroopers" Plate E shows a Lt. in obviously dress mode. The text states that he actually went to the opening of the Paris Opera like that and many would do the same in parade situations
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Post by can on May 22, 2022 4:14:00 GMT -5
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Post by Kenneth on May 22, 2022 15:34:33 GMT -5
Not to get off the subject too far, but parade uniforms can be just about anything and in any combination. And bands and drum and bugle corps take that a run. The oddest parade uniform I've ever heard of was during that relatively brief time that the US Army issued khaki drill shorts, which I think was in the 1960s. They were still in use in very hot places when I was in, such as in Oklahoma, but they were no longer issued. One man said they wore shorts and combat boots once for some formation. That wouldn't be so unusual in French service, of course.
The British actually still issue shorts for certain areas, in camouflage, no less.
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Post by can on Sept 18, 2022 8:39:00 GMT -5
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Post by lew on Sept 20, 2022 10:38:21 GMT -5
At first glance, I thought "man, those are damned bright, and there's a lot of red/brown." Then, I looked at my 1961-dated set and that one's even more red/brown-dominant. Would it have killed WPG to make a TAP Mle. 47-54 set?   Seriously, though: I need a 47-54 set for a good Suez impression. 47-52 is acceptable, but 47-54 would be even better for 11e Choc.  |
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Post by earlymb on Sept 21, 2022 6:38:24 GMT -5
Well, at least it's an early 47/56 type with the 2 back pockets  |
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Post by lew on Sept 22, 2022 11:46:19 GMT -5
Well, at least it's an early 47/56 type with the 2 back pockets Very true. I'm a huge fan of the 47-56 ensemble. Very practical and comfortable. |
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Post by can on Mar 3, 2023 14:22:46 GMT -5
Just ordered a pair of WPG 47/56 trousers. I'll do a side by side with my originals and report.
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Post by can on Mar 10, 2023 9:02:44 GMT -5
Got the 56's. They are very well done. Side by side with my originals the only difference I see is the waist take up pulls, and they are heaver fabric just like their 47/52's. My originals don't have the pulls. Everything else is spot on. The color and size of the snaps are perfect. My original are very faded but I think the color would be very close. The amount of brown/green seems to be very close if not exact. I think WPG did a good job on these.
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