I love my smock! what about yours?

[Melonfish]

Today seemed like the day to dig out my 94 pattern smock, the wind was blowing and it was spitting a little and at 6:30 in the morning all bleary eyed the last thing you want is to be cold.
the weather has already turned for most and the chill is starting to set in.

its really kept the elements off today and i'm just really appreciative of my old jacket. its not one of these rip-stop, mesh, lightweight, muslin jobbies with IRR coatings and bells. its good old thick cotton twill.
granted in a decent shower it'll turn into a sponge but then thats what my CS2005 MVP stuffed in my bag is for i suppose i could waterproof it mind.

what about you lot? you a big fan of the british army cast offs? i know its been done to death about surplus but on blustery days you can't beat em.

Mines 94 pattern, are there any other types you prefer and why?
Pete - hmmm warm.

 

[Rabbitsmacker]

hiya,
i always loved my 94 smock, but have moved onto the sas smock, have 2 original issue, 1 sass version, and 2 ww2 jobs, and a private purchase made out of para smock material, just like the layout and cut, baggier under the arms, and got the built in hood which i really like. i also have a german parka, in flecktarn which i really liked but the slant pockets did my head in and have now dropped it. also have a swedish snow smock but needs the underarms modding imho as they are restrictive.

but, i don't even consider any other smock now. just the sas variant. trousers wise, love US army trousers for toughness, both the standard and the m65 over trousers, bombproof. but for british i have some og lightweights that are perfect fit, and again, some windproofs which are excellent.

and you can't beat the older stuff for durability except the 85 patt stuff. i also have a 94 patt gortex i think it is, bivi bag material, wired hood, and button chest pockets, bit sweaty inside but still excellent quality.

cheers
Rob

 

[Retired Member southey]

I've got a Navy deck smock, It's a big warm blue thing with a thick cotton liner, ventile build and very comfy, I don't care about gortex/aquatex perttex stuff when it's cold,wet and windy, just gimmie my deck smock.

 

[sasquatch]

Nice one, I've got a 94 pattern but haven't worn it much the last year or two. I might dig it out when I get home today as they are sound...

 

[R.Lewis]

My Survival Aids SAS style supposedly Ventile smock, I say supposedly as was sold as ventile from silvermans but at only £50 and without a label saying ventile I do wonder! Very tight smooth weave though so could be. Love it, one of the few pieces of kit I won't be changing! So windproof and very water resistant but obviously it does get wet through but with right under layer its great. Massive pockets, great hood, very comfortable, tough, I could go on....

 

[UltimateSurvivor]

95 pattern artic smock.

Great jacket and it's served me well! I've not used it for a while now but i missed dig it out after reading this thread!

Regards.

 

[Shewie]

Country Innovations Kestrel smock for me when the weather is pants. Also go the Swazi Tahr but I only tend to use that for canoe trips now.

 

[Fizzy]

95 pattern artic smock.

Great jacket and it's served me well! I've not used it for a while now but i missed dig it out after reading this thread!

Regards.

Dug my pre 95 pattern one out last weekend after being stored in a mates garage. Unfortunately his garage had sprung a leak and said jacket had gone mouldy. Washed it, and it ended up full of holes. Absolutely gutted! Now trying to source a decent replacement as this was easily in Grade 1 condition. The only one I've seen is close to £60 and I only paid £15 for mine, although it was a few years back.

 

[Paul_B]

Ha! I've got my RAB Vapour Rise jacket! That does for me.

I'll get my coat! <ashamed smillie>

Just one question, what are the options out there for this kind of stuff but without the military look? I mean I am not into cammo or anything of that kind but was wondering if there are manufacturers of jackets, smocks and other types of coats that have the same constructions as what you lot have listed?

 

[Rabbitsmacker]

sass make the smocks in any material you want to provide them with, you could take down the wifes curtains and they'd make a smock out of them if you wanted i reckon!

 

[Retired Member southey]

Now that would be an idea, stuff your realtree cam, I'm in the pagonia's stalking the family bunny.

 

[Melonfish]

A m8 got a plain OD smock off'f fleabay, its a copy of the S2000 smock but in plain OD. looks alright but we haven't really put it through its paces yet.
these arctic ones aren't the Gerbadine ones are they? 80's style?

 

[Paul_B]

Aren't SASS in Lancaster area? A googling I must go.

 

[Fizzy]

these arctic ones aren't the Gerbadine ones are they? 80's style?

Yeah, that's what mine 'was'

 

[Radix lecti]

I have a black police dog handlers windproof smock which was given to me in the early summer,good bit of kit which i may also have to dig out now. Cheers.

 

[Erik1]

Rabbitsmacker - Do you know how much SASS will charge for a custom-made smock? (I am dreaming of an orange one in Ventile.)

Regards
Erik

 

[R.Lewis]

I had a gaberdine para smock that i really loved in my teens. Left it out all winter when I got to warm sawing and chopping enough logs to see us through winter. Found it when the snow melted, put it on and wore it till it fell to bits!

 

[Nonsuch]

Rabbitsmacker - Do you know how much SASS will charge for a custom-made smock? (I am dreaming of an orange one in Ventile.)

Regards
Erik

You'll have to supply the Ventile, then they will charge you about £100 to make it up, depending on how fancy it is.

NS

 

[Erik1]

Ok. Thanks for helping me on this one!

E

 

[Rabbitsmacker]

like the other guy said, you supply the material, then they charge you the fee, which i would guess at around 80-100 probs, but give them an email, they will probably get straight back to you. i had one of their ventile type smocks, that was £125, and had to get shot due to the sizing, my military size at the time was 180/104, the smocks for that chest size from sass go from 102 to 107, and mine was on the smaller size and never got on with it, now just after i bought that one, a original garbadine sass smock came up on ebay, with the fron chest zips, and the longer pockets that take an os map, and shooters pads in the backs of the arms, got that for 40 quid brand new, and same chest size, 102-107, but its bigger than the other one and i still have it and use it a lot. they are excellent, but everyone raves about the customer service, imho i just found them to be average, good on the phone and a quick turn round, but silly little things couldn't be accomodated. eg, i wanted the regular buttons put on it like the old smock, and they couldn't do it because they no longer had a button sewing machine, and i didn't want velcro down the front, i wanted buttons and they couldn't do that either cos it wasn't on the options list. basically you can pick and choose the spec, off the list, don't get creative. you can howvere always subtract standard features, as some guys on their website have done buy not having pockets put on, but anything else is not usually available.

Rabbitsmacker - Do you know how much SASS will charge for a custom-made smock? (I am dreaming of an orange one in Ventile.)

Regards
Erik