OG-107

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OG-107 Utilities were the basic work uniform of the American Military. They were referred to by the US Army's color code Olive Green 107, which was a grey green. The uniform was the standard for both stateside use and overseas deployment since the beginning of the Vietnam War. As the Tropical Combat Uniform (jungle fatigues) became more plentiful in Vietnam, they began to replace the OG-107 Uniform in combat units. A rough timeline is that line infantry units from "standard" divisions (non airborne and SF) began receiving jungles in the Spring of 1966 and the OG-107 was slowly relegated to use in rear areas. In the United States and foreign postings (outside of SE Asia), the OG-107's remained the standard uniform throughout the 1960's and 70's. This is one of the longest issued uniforms by the US Military seeing use from 1952 until the adoption of the Woodland Pattern BDU in 1982. They were completely discontinued in 1989 and were used by all branches of service.

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Basic Design

All of the OG-107 Uniforms (herein known as OG-107's) shared several basic design features. They were made out of an 8.5 ounce cotton sateen. The shirt was meant to be worn tucked in and consisted of a button front and two simple patch pockets on the upper chest that closed by means of a buttoned flap. The pants were a straight leg pant with two simple patch pockets in the front with slash openings and two simple patch pockets on the back with a button flap. The cotton versions tended to fade quickly to greenish grey while the pol-cooton variant stayed darker much longer.

There are three basic types or "patterns" for the OG-107 Cotton Sateen Utility Uniform.

[edit] 1st Model

First Model "Type I" were introduced in 1952 and remained virtually unchanged through their 10 year production run. The shirt featured a sleeve with no true cuff or buttons; it was simply a straight sleeve with a simple hem at the cuff. The shirt's two chest pockets and the pants rear two pockets had a rectangular pocket flap that buttoned. The buttons were the old "dished" style and most of the 50's production are a dark brown color while the majority of 60's production are dark green. The pants also have a simple adjustment tab on the waist that can be buttoned. The shirt and pants were also sized in groups such as Small, Medium, Large, etc. The First Model OG-107 was replaced in April of 1963 when specs came out for the second model.

[edit] 2nd Model

Second Model "Type II" were specified for production in April of 1963 and had several slight variations from the First Model. The only change of any real significance is the alteration of the pocket flaps on the coat. The corners of the pocket flaps were "clipped" so that they no longer appeared rectangular. As with the First Model, the shirt and pants were also sized in groups such as Small, Medium, Large, etc. Due to the limited production time before the Third Model was specified, these are not seen nearly as often as the First Model or Third Model.

[edit] 3rd Model

Third Model "Type III" is the version that most people are familiar with and can be split into two categories based on time of manufacture and material.

  • Cotton - This model was specified at the very end of 1964 and was still the standard 8.5 ounce cotton sateen. However, due to the changes and production / distribution time, they are not really seen until 1966. The Third Model maintained all of the key distinctive style features such as the pockets, etc., but they have some key differences. The two shirt chest pockets received a pointed pocket flap. The shirt also received a button cuff at the wrist. The buttons were changed to the "standard" dull plastic button as used on jungle fatigues (and later BDU's). Another change to the pant was the removal of the waist adjustment tab. Both the shirt and pant also adopted the "true measurement" sizing style. For example, pants were marked in waist and inseam length (32" x 34" would show a pant with a 32" waist and 34" inseam) and the shirts were marked in neck size and sleeve length (16.5" x 34" would show a shirt with a 16.5" neck and a 34" sleeve length).
  • Poly Cotton blend - The second category of this model as mentioned above came in to use in the mid-1970's and was in production until being replaced by Woodland BDU's . This second category was created when the material was switched from 100% cotton to a 50/50 blend of Poly / Cotton. These mixed OG-107's are often referred to as "Dura-Press" or "Permanent Press" due to the fact that they do not require extensive starching and they can often be quickly identified by a yellow tag in the garment. The 2nd type was featured in the movie 1981 Stripes

[edit] Variants

Variants of the OG-107s consisted of two main groups:

  • 1. locally produced versions which may have small differences in pocket, shoulder straps and colours.
  • 2. Privately purchased tailored versions with additional pockets, hip cargo and/or sleeve pen and pencil, or other colors such as sand, khaki, and various camouflage patterns.

[edit] Users

[edit] References

  • Shelby Stanton, U.S. Army Uniforms of the Vietnam War,
  • Paul Miraldi's
    • Uniforms and Equipment of U.S. Military Advisors in Vietnam 1957-1972 and
    • Uniforms and Equipment of U.S. Army Infantry, LRRPS, and Rangers in Vietnam 1965-1971.
  • Kevin Lyles
    • Vietnam: US Uniforms in Colour Photographs and
    • U.S. Airborne Vietnam.
  • Osprey Men at War , Armies of the VietNam War

[edit] See also

[edit] Weblinks