good coat

[havingagiraffe]

I would third it too, and Rambo wore one as did the blonde bird in Cagney and Lacey and the fat mate of Michael Ironside in 'V' so it must be good...

I think Travis Bickle wore an M65 in Taxi driver, and Neil Young had one with cut down sleeves so they wouldn't interfere with his guitar playing.

There are lots of American N3B parkas about, some of them are water repellant, some aren't. Mine isn't and soaks up water like a sponge in the rain. Good hood though....and ideal for scooterists...

The old German parka has a water repellent, but not waterproof, finish, and has a plastic liner over the shoulders which seems to keep the rain from soaking into the jacket's horizontal surfaces by diverting it to the jacket's vertical surfaces. Removeable liner, and a good hood too. :umbrella:

http://www.surplusandadventure.com/ishop/800/shopscr1063.html

 

[pierre girard]

hi
i know that it is summer not winter but i am looking for a coat for winterit will have to be under £50, be green, waterproof, keep me toasty, and have a hood does anyone know of a coat that meets all of these spesifications
thanks leon

My kids and wife bought toggle/duffle coats last year, pretty cheap. They are wool and have a hood. My daughter's is a very nice earth tone green. They are made by Gloverall and there is some site on the web where you can get them very reasonable. I don't know what the name of the site is.

 

[boots12]

just noticed have you got the parka bit big

 

[leon-b]

thanks to you lot i have decided to go for the m-65 field jacket please could you tell me a bit about it as it seems it is quite popular among you
thanks leon

 

[addyb]

Leon,

The M-65 is or was the US Army's standard heavy duty field coat. It's constructed of a thick 50 cotton/50 nylon outer in a tight twill weave that sheds water very well. (Twill weaves have a very high thread tension, and repel water to a high degree.) It's treated with Quarpel which is a factory finished water repellent that is impregnated into the fibres during construction. As long as you don't wash the jacket with bleach, the Quarpel won't wear off any time soon.

The collar has a zip on the underside which contains a very tightly woven nylon hood which velcro's shut around your neck and has draw chords to cinch it tight. It has four large pockets, two on the chest and two near the bottom, both with button closures. The waist also has a draw string which can be used to seal up your chest from cold drafts.

There's also a thinsulate button in liner which you can attach if the weather takes a turn for the worse. All in all, it's a helluva coat and I'll never stop trying to steal my buddy's.

Adam

 

[CLEM]

M65 is an excellent coat,I love mine and if its good enough for Travis Bickle its good enough for me!

 

[Spacemonkey]

Just make sure you get a genuine one then, as the cheap repros (about £40) almost certainly wont have any waterproofing qualities. Originals are about £60 I believe?

 

[leon-b]

please could somene post a link as to where i can get a genuine m65 from, i also realise that the M1951 parka fur hood is designed to fit the m65 where could i pick up one of these hoods
thanks leon

 

[leon-b]

all of the genuine m65's i have seen are £70, could i get one any cheaper if so where from, one more thing i am a fairly small 14 year old what size would fit me best, i think the sizing goes down to extra small
thanks leon

 

[morch]

Leon,

. Here's a couple links for ya:

http://www.argoss.co.uk/m65.html

http://www.surplusandadventure.com/ishop/800/shopscr1220.html

I hope this helps!

Cheers,

Adam

Check Adam's first post, second post in this thread. Can't help you with the sizes though Leon.

For warmth, i also have a Buffalo Special 6 shirt, and like Soa_UK i find it far to warm for any weather other than very cold and windy.

 

[addyb]

Leon,

I'm a small 21 year old so I know how difficult it can be to find kit that actually fits! That said, M65's are most likely done with NATO Stock Sizing as my buddy Alex's is. Here's how it works:

Four numbers on the tag, such as: 7030 which is what my fatigue trousers are. The first two numbers are for the height in inches. It's measured from the bottom inseam to the waist. And obviously, the 30 is the waist size. Jackets are done exactly the same way, the first two numbers are waist to neck with the last two being the waist.

I hope that doesn't seem too complicated, because in reality it's a very simple very effective way of sizing clothing. Too bad the civvie world can't do the same.

Cheers and good luck finding your jacket, man.

Adam

 

[Dougster]

Another alternative is to wander around the shops. You can get some decent coats in outlet villages. I got a canvas Timberland waterproof jacket in olive green for £20 last year.

 

[Spacemonkey]

please could somene post a link as to where i can get a genuine m65 from, i also realise that the M1951 parka fur hood is designed to fit the m65 where could i pick up one of these hoods
thanks leon

http://www.sofmilitary.co.uk/search_results.asp

but you're right, the genuine water repellant ones are £70, and the cheapie, non repellant ones are £40. Of course, you could buy a cheapie and treat it with Grangers or similar for under £50.

 

[leon-b]

yes as i am on a budget i think i will buy a copy and water proof it i am thinking of buying this one in olive green
leon

 

[Spacemonkey]

Yup, that'd do yer! I had a black one like that and 'proofed it and it has lasted years. It is now my winter coat for working on vehicles, 13 years later...

 

[leon-b]

it says it is already treated, will it need treating again
leon

 

[addyb]

Of course it'll need treating again, all gear does at one point! There's no such thing as gear that doesn't require maintenance. Even the best knives need to be sharpened from time to time, and even the best jackets need a wash every so often.

Buy the coat. Then buy a bottle of Grangers, or Storm, or Nikwax wash in (or spray on) waterproofing. Wear the coat. When you notice that raindrops stop beading up onto the fabric of the coat and start soaking in a lot, then follow the directions on your bottle of proofing. And that's all it takes!

Oh, and you'll definately have fun with your M-65 coat. They're tough as nails.

Adam

 

[leon-b]

thanks i will have fun, see i needed a tough coat for bushcraft and shooting and you lot have helped me find it thanks guys
leon

 

[leon-b]

im actually thinking of getting one of these, whats the difference between this and the normall m65 or should i just stick with the normall m65
thanks leon

 

[Brian]

leon-b,

You might find this a bit warm as it was part of the Extreme Cold Weather clothing system that the Americans used to use. I think the normal M65 would probably be better suited mate, just my thoughts any way.

Brian