WTB surplus submariners pullover

[D-503]

Hi, all.

I've given some thought to this - I've really wanted a submariners pullover for a while now, but I've been reluctant to bite the bullet and shell out $70-$90 and buy a WPG or ELC repro. I'm based out of Ireland for a few months, and so I've been writing to surplus shops in Ireland and the UK if they have any of the surplus models from the 80s in stock, but no luck so far.

So I'm posting here - are there any members in the UK who have a surplus pullover they want to part with? I'm looking for a fairly large size - I'm around 6' 1"/2" and have a 40" chest, so maybe size 3?

Cheers
David

 

[PADDY]

...

Try Silvermans on Mile End Road, London (they have a website).

 

[D-503]

Hi, Paddy.

I'm going to London in about a month, and so if I don't get any nibbles here I'll probably just plunk down the £50 to buy from Silvermans - Kevin Endicott referred me to them, too. I believe, though, they're newly made, not surplus, and therefore more expensive. I'm hoping against hope to pick up one of those mythical £10-£20 surplus ones. Thanks for the tip, though.

Cheers,
David

 

[BellyTank]

...I'm hoping against hope to pick up one of those mythical £10-£20 surplus ones. Thanks for the tip, though.

Cheers,
David

Not mythical.
Just not in London and probably not on the internet.
You'll need to go deep in-country to find the Govt' Surplus Bargains.

I have 2 of those sweaters and I think they cost less than £10-
that was 10 years ago but it was in London.
Both would be too small for you.

The thing about finding things in Surplus, is that you need to have a circuit
and always be looking.


Good luck.

 

[Edward]

Certainly I'd be looking outside London, at least outside the central area. The only remaining surplus place I've found recently, aside from a couple of small stalls on Portobello Road, is Silvermans. I think a lot of the business has gone online. Used to be a great one near Euston - closed a couple of years ago. And two or three places I bought from in Camden - all gone now, under the jackboot of "modernisation" of Camden, turning it from a place where once you could buy cool surplus, second hand and often vintage clothing, into a place where tourists buy aromatherapy candles and point and stare at the goths. These last few years, it's nothing more than a mini-me Covent Garnden for the tourists - damn you Camden Council, and the short-term gain pound signs in your eyes.... in another five years time when even the tourists cotton on that Camden Market exists now in little more than name alone, even they will desert. Just like Carnaby Street, but without the advantage of location to help shift the bland goods from the chain stores that dominate.

The most apt comment on the whole thing, a T Shirt I saw for sale on one of the fancy new stalls:

"Somebody went to Camden and all I got was this lousy T shirt.... not the low grade narcotics, shoddy Ramones merchandise and rude tourists I specifically requested."

lol

 

[BellyTank]

Edward, a surplus shop you may not know of-
Squadron HQ, 122 Kentish Town Rd., which is pretty much Camden.
Run by ex-staff of the famous Laurence Corner, which was at the top end of TCR
for many years but closed down a while back.

http://www.squadronhq.com/

Also Euro Army Navy, at Kilburn High Rd. and Cricklewood Bdway.,while you're up that way.
Not so much of the old stuff.

Dallas Wear, Vallance Rd., local to you, I believe but I don't think they have much of interest.

There's a store at Chapel Market, Islington and also, on Saturday mornings,
the Military Collector Market, Camden Passage, near Angel tube. Worth a look if you're nearby.

Walworth Surplus Stores, a couple of doors down from Baldwins, on Walworth Rd., Elephant and Castle.
Be warned, he's a miserable old sod and will grill you about what you want- "We'll have no browsing here...".

Mad Mikes, at Lee Green was excellent but he died...

Going even further south... Brighton has a couple, including one you won't find unless you know-
Paul Bruton Surplus but he has odd hours/days.

Then, I think, Portsmouth.

But you really need to get to t'Midlands and t'North.

My information may be out of date, haven't been back for a while.

And to the northeast, here in Sweden, there's a good one.

Many years ago, I used to have a Saturday morning(well, all day) surplus and vintage route,
starting at Camden Passage, Angel and ending up at Camden Stables markets.
Camden was excellent 15 years ago. I used to often have Mondays off and sometimes went to Brighton,
or Oxford, there was a brilliant one in Oxford, very big.


B
T

 

[Speedster]

Going even further south... Brighton has a couple, including one you won't find unless you know-
Paul Bruton Surplus but he has odd hours/days.

Colonel Mikes in Brighton closed his shop and went on retirement. Was there a couple of weeks ago and couldn't find the shop, so asked around and was informed accordingly. Didn't have the time to go and have a look / test the odd hours/days at Paul Bruton Surplus.

 

[Creeping Past]

Yes, Col. Mike left his former undertakers' premises a couple of months ago. Paul Bruton occasionally gets some good bits in. No ecru sweaters last time I looked, though.

Trouble with the Midlands is that you're on H Johnson's patch, and I doubt much gets past him.

 

[BellyTank]

Ssshhh... he'll be back from patrolling and in for his tea.

B
T

 

[Subvet642]

Is this what you're looking for?

http://www.galaxyarmynavy.com/item-6368od.asp#

 

[Carlisle Blues]

I think this is the ticket!!!

 

[BellyTank]

Is this what you're looking for?

No- that's a modern version of the US(Army) 5x button sweater.


B
T

 

[BellyTank]

I think this is the ticket!!!

Nope.
We know what it looks like- he's just trying to find one.


B
T

 

[Carlisle Blues]

^
^

ok

 

[BellyTank]

Sorry-


B
T

 

[Subvet642]

No- that's a modern version of the US(Army) 5x button sweater.


B
T

When I was in during the 80's (U.S.S. Kamehameha SSBN 642), what we wore was what the Army called, I think, gunnery sweaters. We called them "Boomer Sweaters" or FBM sweaters, but they were Army items, not Navy; we had access to some items from other branches, like this and arctic jackets. As I recall, the sweaters had only 4 buttons, but otherwise they were just like this.

 

[BellyTank]

Royal Navy is what he's after.

B
T

 

[Subvet642]

Oops!

Royal Navy is what he's after.

B
T

AH HA! I used to have one from HMS Spartan; I traded a jumper top (liberty cuffs and all) for that and some other things when we were both (the Kam and the Spartan) in PCAN. Well to be precise, the one I had was purple with the ships crest embroidered on it. Oh well. [huh]