Class A's are really a PIA

[cs]

For one, if you only wear them once every 5 years or so you have problems with getting all your ribbons current and updating patches and service stripes, shining the brass and getting them dry cleaned. And lets not forget that every 5 years the gremlins sneak in and take about an inch of fabric out of the middle. Breathing is overrated anyway.

Chad

[Phillip Allen]

when I was in... dress blues were wool

[BrianW]

I've heard those "gremlins" are called "calorites". They remove portions of the fabric in all the wrong places.

You'll look great. It's an honorable thing you're doing, but I wouldn't want to trade jobs with you right now.

[cs]

I hate that it took something like this for me to get my Class A's ready.

The fit alright I guess, the jacket is just a bit tight across the chest. I have been trying to hold out so that I can get a set of the new Army Service Uniforms (ASU) which replace the Class A greens. The wear out date on the Greens is 2014 and a new set of ASU's can set you back about $300-$400.

I figure while I'm doing this I will go ahead and update my DA Photo, which is required to be updated every 5 years and it is required for promotion. I spend a lot of time double checking my records to make sure that all of my ribbons were correct. It can get kind of confusing just figuring out how many times you have some awards and then working out what type and how many devices go on the ribbon. I put the ribbons in rack builder.com online to make sure the order of ribbons was right and if I had bought the rack from them it would have been $81. As it was I spent close to $30 just updating ribbons.

Chad

[bobbys]

For one, if you only wear them once every 5 years or so you have problems with getting all your ribbons current and updating patches and service stripes, shining the brass and getting them dry cleaned. And lets not forget that every 5 years the gremlins sneak in and take about an inch of fabric out of the middle. Breathing is overrated anyway.

Chad

.

Would like to see a pic. My Neighbor who was as Family was at Pearl Harbor but later was in the Guard.

At Inspections the Generals always stopped and gazed at his Ribbons, They never saw some of them.

He was in All of WW2 and had a ribbon for Pearl harbor, Not sure it may have been a Battle star in a ribbon.

He was the most decorated man in the county.. When My boys were small he bought them uniforms from the PX and pinned his medals on them.

[Captain Intrepid]

What I don't get, is how they expect you to haul your Number Ones all over the country and for them to stay completely pristine and wrinkle free.

[cs]

I'll try and take a picture, but I will be the first to admit that some of the awards on my bar are BS. But these are actually what I have been awarded and thus I put them on my uniform for my DA Photo because that is what they require, accurate ribbons and proper uniform.

Not saying all the ribbons are BS but some are just silly. Like do I really need a ribbon that says I graduated basic training? But there it is so on it goes.

Chad

[cs]

What I don't get, is how they expect you to haul your Number Ones all over the country and for them to stay completely pristine and wrinkle free.

Garment bags and dry cleaners.

But I don't have to drag mine across country, just drag it out of the back of the closet.

Chad

[Captain Intrepid]

Garment bags and dry cleaners.

But I don't have to drag mine across country, just drag it out of the back of the closet.

Chad

Garment bags help, dry cleaners are nice if you have access and the money. I find running them in the drier for a few minutes helps get the wrinkles out.

[purri]

Lucky I don't have any metal... ('cept in my skull)

[Bob Smalser]

Army Blues. Used to be a good-looking uniform with sword belt, visor cap and cape, although most couldn't afford the expensive accessories and went without. Leave it to this generation to screw it up with bloused boots, pocket patches, black raincoats and berets.

[Donn]

@Smalser...good to see you're still above the dirt. Hope all went well.

[Paul Girouard]

What I don't get, is how they expect you to haul your Number Ones all over the country and for them to stay completely pristine and wrinkle free.

Try it with Dress blue's, AKA Crackerjack's, on a ship, add the world to the area of operations. Although it was much harder to store and maintain the old dress blue's double breasted jacket and a combination cap that Admiral Zumwalt put into service in the late 70's .

I know of at least one other poster here , a bubble head , who like Zummie's rule about beards , and wonder what his thoughts are on the Dress Blue's Zummie instituted.

[wardd]

pity the poor roman legionnaire

spit shining sandles is a pain

[Captain Intrepid]

Try it with Dress blue's, AKA Crackerjack's, on a ship, add the world to the area of operations.

Tis on a ship. At least in the CCG, the only ones who usually wear the Number 1s are the desk jockeys and high muckymucks. I've met many an old Chief Officer who's never worn anything more than their working blues.

[Paul Girouard]

Tis on a ship. At least in the CCG, the only ones who usually wear the Number 1s are the desk jockeys and high muckymucks. I've met many an old Chief Officer who's never worn anything more than their working blues.

You are suppose to have a complete seabag when you deploy. Some ports , very few, require full dress uni. , or functions , Change of Command comes to mind, would require full dress uni's , traveling back to CONUS on emergency leave might also require Dress blue's. The USN sort of keeps it simple , or used to , with dress blues or Dress white's , pretty much the same uniform, just add metal's to dress it up a bit over just ribbons.

But our Dress uniform is pretty simple compared to some of the variety , add on's, bells and whistle's the Army has.

[ccmanuals]

Air Force Mess Dress

[cs]

Okay I am back. They didn't need me for the flag presentation, but I was ready if needed.

For those that asked for a picture of my class A's, well here it is.



Chad

[Donn]

[bobbys]

Very nice , What sort of Sarge are you?.

How many ranks can you go up?.

[Donn]

In the Army, I think 3 up, 2 down is Sergeant First Class. In the Marines it's Gunny (Gunnery Sergeant). E7 out of a possible E9.

[McMike]

Hey, you look pretty smart there Chad!! Nice. (borrowed it from Donn . . .)

[Donn]

The insignias on the lower sleeve are Service Stripes, AKA Hash Marks or Tracks. Each one represents 3 years of service.

[Paul Girouard]

The insignias on the lower sleeve are Service Stripes, AKA Hash Marks or Tracks. Each one represents 3 years of service.

Is it three or four? Also in the USN if you string 12 years of good conduct together they , the hash marks , go from red to gold. Is it that way in other services, I'd think it would be, or some other way of showing who's been a good lil trooper , or bad trooper.

Chad's now a reservist so he's got lots of hash to sling.

Yer gonna need a bigger chest and longer arm if you stay around much longer Chad

[Donn]

It's 3 in the Army, and 4 for everybody connected to the Navy.

Chadster's got 8 of 'em, by my count, which is a whole lot of time in, either way. Much more than I could take, and I'm proud to know his skinny self...even if it's only virtually.

Thanks for your service, Chad.

[Robbie 2]

You look real good there Chad.

[bobbys]

Where is your John Wayne hat.

[cs]

The Stetson is only for wear at Calvary functions and I'm not with Calv anymore. That was only for that deployment.

FWIW I am only one year away from adding another service stripe. I am sitting at a little over 26 years service.

The bottom row on my ribbons and one on the second row are state awards, i.e. TN Individual Achievement, TN War Service and so forth. Some of the ribbons are from when I was in the Air Force, such as the Short Overseas Tour and the Good Conduct. On my right side I wear two unit awards, Air Force Outstanding Unit and the TN Distinguished Unit. I was in the units when they received the award and in the Army Unit Awards are worn on the right side.

Chad

[htom]

They may be a pain, but you look really sharp in them. Thank you for your service.

[purri]

"Good conduct"? Sirrah, if I was you I'd take that as an affront!

[Phillip Allen]

Okay I am back. They didn't need me for the flag presentation, but I was ready if needed.

For those that asked for a picture of my class A's, well here it is.



Chad

Chad, your hat needs pumping up again... (sailors are obligated to say things like that )

[Nicholas Scheuer]

Consider how difficult it must have been to fight in Class-A's, such as up to WW1, at which time they put their caps and low-quarters away and donned boots an helmets for the trenches.

Then in WW2 they had the "Eisenhower Jacket". Wonder how many rounds they could tuck in those breast pockets?