Anorak : Like Pitt wears in "TIBET"

[Dudleydoright]

Thanks for the confirmation of my post above Mr J. Your authority is greater than mine !! But my photo of ther green one does prove it for that particular model. I should post photos of my '63 patt DPM one too if I can find it in my attic !

Dave

 

[gfirob]

Who are the lumpy people on the left

in the photo in the hut, Dave? Are they Americans wearing NSF Canada Goose parkas? Or just lumpy British people?
What were you doing in Antarctica, if I may ask?
Thanks
Rob

 

[Dudleydoright]

Hi Rob,
I think that they are all Brits in the tent. I'm not 100% sure but I also think that the Snow Goose Mantra might be an issue garment. The USAP issues the 'Expedition' model. Of course they might all be a bit 'lumpy' too LOL

As I mentioned in an earlier post Rob, I have never been to the Antarctic (would love to though). I did a couple of winters in the Canadian Northern Territories doing oil and gas exploration as a seismic surveyor.

I have 2 of the Snow Goose Expedition down jackets. One very old and faded that I bought second-hand and which has the old USARP badge on it and which came from someone who had been 'Down South' and a more recent one with the USAP badge on it and in a heavier material. They are a great jacket but don't normally get worn too much in England as it's not cold enough.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[H.Johnson]

Antarctic gear

I've never been to Antarctica but I have a lifetime fascination and study of Antarctic clothing and equipment - mostly in the early 20thC, but I'm not adverse to learning about more modern gear.

Suppose we go with the suggestion of a separate Antarctic gear thread?

 

[Dudleydoright]

Works for me 'H'.

I'll get busy with my camera.

Do you have any interesting photos yourself ?

Dave

 

[pipvh]

Silvermans '1940 SAS Smock'

Anyone seen these in the flesh?

http://www.silvermans.co.uk/ProductDetails/tabid/89/Department/Military/Category/JACKETS+++SMOCKS/Description/COPY+SAS+1940+SMOCK/ItemId/12592/Default.aspx

They look the part, but the 'heavy cotton drill' they mention wouldn't be much good in the wet. As they say, The original was a cotton gaberdene, which, if made today, would make this jacket over £200! Might actually have been worth it...

 

[Creeping Past]

I should think you get what you pay for there. Neither useful nor authentic.

 

[Fiver64]

source

Maybe someone mentioned this already, but try:
www.sportsmansguide.com
They had 2 variations in the last catalog for less than $30. Or, for a more seasoned look.....check around on some of the WW2 reenactor sites for a good used anorak. Pre-beaten for your convenience!

 

[H.Johnson]

Apart from the colour, the material and the construction of the arms there are only two things that lack authenticity - the 1940 date and the 'SAS' attribution...

I should think you get what you pay for there. Neither useful nor authentic.

 

[pipvh]

No, no - they designed something called an SAS Smock in 1940, then realized they needed a unit to go with it...

In terms of 'looking the part' I was thinking more in terms of a dead simple cotton 'mountain' smock. Obviously the thing itself is about as authentic as - well, as a 1940 SAS smock. Though Silvermans do apparently have deadstock smocks (tonguetwister? don't mock: they stock a deadstock smock) from 1942 for £199.

 

[bburtner@moran]

Pitts Anorak

There are some very nice anoraks out there,I don`t understand why the Brad Pitt type?Does anyone really care about what he wears,is he setting some fashion trend,I dont think so.Because he carries a Leica M6 does it require people to run out and spend big money on a Leica when a Canon P is just as good.I just don`t get the mentality.Movie stars or whatever they are called are followers also.Set the trend yourself!!

 

[pipvh]

I agree. I feel the same way about Indiana Jones.

But isn't it more that the image of the pre-1960s explorer (if you take, as I think I do, Hillary and Tenzing as the last great explorers) is a sort of archetype? There's something real there - it isn't tawdry or commercialized. Or maybe it's even simpler. For me, those clothes are what people were wearing in the books I read as a kid. Like 'Tintin in Tibet,' which I mentioned on another thread. Pure nostalgia.

Besides, it would take a lot more than a canvas anorak to make me look like Brad Pitt, so why bother?

 

[H.Johnson]

Everest anorak

By a coincidence I once had the privilege of inspecting at first hand one of the anoraks (windproof smocks?) as issued to the 1953 Everest expedition and as worn by Sir Edmund and Tenzing Norkay at the summit.

Contrary to what you may read, they were a very simple design as worn by hill-walkers everywhere in the 1950s and were in poly-cotton.

Rather like this:

 

[pipvh]

I saw that one too. Rather nice. Incredibly expensive.

 

[H.Johnson]

Unbelievably expensive, isn't it? Its basically the same design as a Belstaff Dalesman or the Gemtek equivalent - the most common design of British anorak in the 1950s. A classic. The Everest anoraks had an unusual windflap over the zip.

I chose it as an example because, like the 1953 Everest anoraks, it is blue. A blue 1970s Belstaff Chris Bonnington anorak was on the same auction site for 120 GBP. I may have worked on that one myself!

The nearest thing to it nowadays that I have been able to find today (but in a finer weave and unlined) is the Smocks, Windproof, Cadets to which I refer in the thread above. They are often found unissued - you should get one for less than 10 GBP.

 

[nobodyspecial]

The seller of the blue anorak is a friend of mine. I suspect the original owner of the anorak bought it from REI or some such store in the 1960's/1970's. Tonalite has an amazing ability to ferret out some excellent vintage gear and clothing.

Note the second photo on this page of 1977 REI catalog scans. The orange anorak looks exactly like the blue one on ebay.
http://homepage.mac.com/inov8/Compass/reiimages.html

The big reason ventile wasn't as popular in the US is it cost more than fabrics such as 60/40 or 65/35 fabric which was much more readily used in garments. Note on the REI scans the ventile garments are noticeably more expensive than the others.

 

[pipvh]

If only I'd been old enough to realize which way the wind was going to blow, I'd have toddled into the Plymouth Milletts in 1970, bought out their stock of anoraks, sealed them up, buried them in the back garden...

Wind-proof? Recession-proof!

 

[nobodyspecial]

The ventile is nothing. The item have purchased and sealed was the original Chouinard pile/fleece jackets with the large Patagonia tags. Actually, nearly anything Chouinard from the 1970's. Absolute gold.

 

[Costin Moga]

ventile / SAS

Hi,

I have a '1940 SAS smock' - nice, but far from beeing waterproof (very far indeed).
Bought it to use as pattern model and build my own one out of Ventile. Not an easy job. Contacted a professional company, drawn the design sketches myself and they made the tailoring patterns. After not less than 3 attempts (yes, I wanna make things perfect...) the final design fulfilled my wishes.

Features:
- L24 ventile cotton outer shell, 100% wool lining
- 3 breast pockets similar to the 1940 german gebirgsjager anorak
- 2 large back pockets
- german army repro buttons

 

[Dudleydoright]

Nothing like a few good photos ............

Dave