Army surplus grading question

[Chainsaw]

Hi All,

Quick question on army surplus grades. I know there will be variations within a grade but generally;

new/unissued - still in the original bag or if not, spanking new.
grade 1 - issued but perfect nick other than maybe some slight wear and fading
grade 2 - issued and some wear and fading but fully functional and no repairs or missing bits
grade 3 - well used, maybe some missing bits and some repairs.

Does this sound about right? I had a look and either shops don't detail it or it maybe varies slightly between shops....

Cheers,

Alan

 

[Nat]

As a standard rule of thumb, you assertations are correct, although grade 1 can sometimes be classed new aswell.

 

[Hammock_man]

I have brought some grade one stuff from SurplusAndOutdoors and it was like new.

Brought some off Ebay and 3 of the 5 pouches where useless. Had to quote DSR regs to get them to replace them

In short its really down to the company, worth looking to see if they describe their grades on their own web site

 

[Melonfish]

actually i'd say the following.

Unnissued - self explanitory
Supergrade - issued, stuffed in a locker and returned or perhaps worn once.
Grade 1 - used a handfull of times and returned. usualy in almost perfect nick
grade 2 - seen use and may have fading or perhaps the odd repaired tear
grade 3 - broken zips and missing buckles and rips but servicable, most likely heavily faded if an outdoor item. usually repaired to a standard that will last a while still.

thats my take on it. and i've shopped at a fair few surplus stores.

 

[VirusKiller]

I've mainly bought Grade 1 and I think that certain suppliers take liberties with this description. A couple of items I've bought (from different suppliers) were advertised as Grade 1, but were definitely Grade 2. If you're not happy, send the item back. I did.

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

In my experience grade 2 onwards It's best to see the items in person (if possible) or cross your fingers.
I never new there was a grade 3! that must be really sh1te!

grade 3 I'd assume:
DPM camo will be faded and practically useless(usually a sandy colour) . (not IRR anymore)
Webbing pouches/rucksack will be in poor repair. (or painted on or perhaps oil)
Clothing will need sewing before use. (I've seen alot of DPM windproof "SAS" smocks with huge rips, missing buttons, andworn tread bare areas with previous repairs i would class as grade 3.

to be honest for grade 3 "bargains", you need to have a working knowledge of sewing, and how to save the best bits and what to not try.


when i was in the TA we were issued some gear that would be classed Grade 2, and it served us well.

in fact all the issued gear I saw at my local was pretty well used .

That was the age of 58" webbing, still being issued, when pretty much everyone bought their own gear anyway to improve the kit they had.

no 2 sets of webbing were the same

 

[Matt.S]

Endicott's will grade down to 4 on occasion... but I think that says more about their honesty and attention to detail than their products. It's all relative and should probably be seen in person to understand what a particular retailer considers to be this grade or that. Some places sell 'grade 2' kit so cheap it's probably worth a gamble buying it sight unseen. I've had Grade 2 from various suppliers and it's usually serviceable (I'm not fussy, and if the DPM's faded so much the better IMO).

 

[Chainsaw]

Thanks all for the input, pretty much in line with what I thought the gradings were, although I appreciate there is some 'supplier licence' in what's in a grade. The reason I asked is that I got an allegedly grade 1 item with evidence of some ripped off bits but otherwise is completely serviceable, definitely not grade 1 but a good grade 2. Am I going to send it back, nah, can't be a:tapedshutd, postage cost will be about 25% of what I paid for it and it's still perfectly usable

Cheers for the input,

Alan

 

[VirusKiller]

My postage was refunded and I got sent a proper grade 1 article (a '58 down bag as it happen).