M-65 Field Jacket

[CatsCan]

I'm not too familiar with So Sew Styles, but now I must google!

M65s made by So Sew are considered to have belonged to the best M65s back then along with some others like Golden Manufacturing, Alpha (the old Alpha, not today's).

I happen to own a rarer one with a Talon main Zip (aluminum). It has the gusseted sleeve cuffs seen on the older ones. This one has no maker's name printed on the label but the manufacturer can be traced just by the contract number alone. Mine was made by Ralph Edwards Inc. in 1967. The label on mine was about to come loose so I took it off and put it in one of the breast pockets before I washed and ironed the jacket.

I wonder what my M65 has seen in it's day.

Cats

 

[Preppy Climber]

M65s made by So Sew are considered to have belonged to the best M65s back then along with some others like Golden Manufacturing, Alpha (the old Alpha, not today's).

I happen to own a rarer one with a Talon main Zip (aluminum). It has the gusseted sleeve cuffs seen on the older ones. This one has no maker's name printed on the label but the manufacturer can be traced just by the contract number alone. Mine was made by Ralph Edwards Inc. in 1967. The label on mine was about to come loose so I took it off and put it in one of the breast pockets before I washed and ironed the jacket.

View attachment 627709 View attachment 627710

View attachment 627715

I wonder what my M65 has seen in it's day.

View attachment 627713


Cats

You have a very nice M-65 field jacket! And good to know that I purchased a jacket from one of the better manufacturers.

I would love to own a '65 with an aluminum zipper. In addition to the brass zipper, I have a jacket (woodland camo) with the plastic green zipper--my least favorite.

I, too, wonder what my '65s and M-1943 have seen. I feel honored and proud to wear these articles of clothing. Same with my American railroad pocket watches.

 

[vintagewool]

Update: I decided to move forward on purchasing, so you can disregard my post or chime in if you'd like.

I think I will be pulling the trigger on this vintage M-65 field jacket, extra small/extra short. That size is hard to come by in olive green. However, there is no manufacturer listed on the tag. Does that matter? All other M-65 field jackets I've come across, as well as own, have a manufacturer listed. Should there always be one listed?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/315561529708?_trkparms=amclksrc=ITM&aid=777008&algo=PERSONAL.TOPIC&ao=1&asc=20240131095853&meid=fb6cf4c9b2664263963df9f6259a331e&pid=101949&rk=1&rkt=1&itm=315561529708&pmt=1&noa=1&pg=4375194&algv=RecentlyViewedItemsV2&brand=Army&_trksid=p4375194.c101949.m162918&_trkparms=parentrq:c2052d271900ab72ad5bd2ddffff8156|pageci:fdc1ae64-446c-11ef-9bcd-da6f59f8a5cc|iid:1|vlpname:vlp_homepage

Thanks!

Your concerns about purchasing and contractor are resolved but I have some information about sizes.

The difference between a 1991 X-Short and Short is 1.5in but with a margin of error of + or - 1in in each coat, so an actual X-Short might be longer than an actual Short directly out of the factory. This is one reason why it helps to get actual measurements of the current item to estimate actual fit.

Mil-Spec:
3.8 Finished Measurements (combining data from 2 documents):
WIDTH     LENGTH
          XXS   XS    S
1991
 XS         N    Y    Y
  S         N    Y    Y
  M         N    Y    Y
  L         N    N    Y
 XL         N    N    Y
XXL         N    N    N [NONE IN ANY LENGTH]
2007
 XS         N    Y    Y
  S         Y    Y    Y
  M         Y    Y    Y
  L         N    N    Y 
 XL         N    N    Y
XXL         N    N    N [IN X-LONG ONLY]

https://quicksearch.dla.mil/qsDocDetails.aspx?ident_number=23626

The 2007 XX-Short in M and S but not XS is curious. Perhaps the change adressed shorter men rather than women, although I saw no specific mention of the reason.

2007 was about the time of recruiting problems because of disillusionment with the Iraq War and lowering of recruiting standards.

Military Lowers Standards To Fill Ranks

The Army Is Taking Chances On Recruits With Rap Sheets

www.cbsnews.com

It would be interesting to see the pre-1991 "mil-specs" for exactly which sizes were available when. It would be even better to see the breakdown by numbers produced and in what colors.

 

[Preppy Climber]

Your concerns about purchasing and contractor are resolved but I have some information about sizes.

The difference between a 1991 X-Short and Short is 1.5in but with a margin of error of + or - 1in, so an actual X-Short might be longer than an actual Short directly out of the factory. This is one reason why it helps to get actual measurements of the current item to estimate actual fit.

Mil-Spec:
3.8 Finished Measurements (combining data from 2 documents):
WIDTH     LENGTH
          XXS   XS    S
1991
 XS         N    Y    Y
  S         N    Y    Y
  M         N    Y    Y
  L         N    N    Y
 XL         N    N    Y
XXL         N    N    N [NONE IN ANY LENGTH]
2007
 XS         N    Y    Y
  S         Y    Y    Y
  M         Y    Y    Y
  L         N    N    Y
 XL         N    N    Y
XXL         N    N    N [IN X-LONG ONLY]

https://quicksearch.dla.mil/qsDocDetails.aspx?ident_number=23626

The 2007 XX-Short in M and S but not XS is curious. Perhaps the change adressed shorter men rather than women, although I saw no specific mention of the reason.

2007 was about the time of recruiting problems because of disillusionment with the Iraq War and lowering of recruiting standards.

Military Lowers Standards To Fill Ranks

The Army Is Taking Chances On Recruits With Rap Sheets

www.cbsnews.com

It would be interesting to see the pre-1991 "mil-specs" for exactly which sizes were available when. It would be even better to see the breakdown by numbers produced and in what colors.

As always, thank you for being helpful! I should have asked that the seller provide the total length of the jacket. Keeping my fingers crossed it checks out to my satisfaction. I'll soon find out as the jacket is on its way to me.

 

[vintagewool]

As always, thank you for being helpful! I should have asked that the seller provide the total length of the jacket. Keeping my fingers crossed it checks out to my satisfaction. I'll soon find out as the jacket is on its way to me.

Errors are usually in a "normal" ("bell curve") distribution, so most '65 length errors likely would be a small fraction of an inch, but there is always the chance for outliers that passed mil-spec inspection. That also means that there COULD be an X-Short that is nearly 1in SHORTER than the nominal X-Short length (or that has nearly 17in shoulders).

The sections 1.2, 3.3.9.1, and 3.8 size data of those PDFs are the kind of information that you might want to keep handy while shopping.

 

[pausiroy]

Hi I was wondering which one of these is the original color for the m65? One seems a bit lighter shade.

 

[barnabus]

OG107 is the official colour I think.

So, olive green.

Hard to be certain from pictures but I would say the first one is closer.

I have an old Alpha Industries M65 (no idea what the vintage is but it's deffo old and pretty knackered) and it looks more like the first one, colour-wise.

 

[pausiroy]

Thanks! hope to find a good one. It's daunting to sift through so many ebay listings.

 

[mumpy]

The original I had looked like the first one in your pic. My RMC M-65 looks like the second one.

 

[pausiroy]

Got it, I'm wondering if its just the lighting, the 2nd one is an alpha industries 1967 model.

 

[pausiroy]

Hi guys, saw another listing, everything looks good except the tags are missing. Seems like a nam issued one as the zippers are silver. Got a cigarette burn, stain and a white mark. Anyone can chime in if it looks good? the missing tags are kind of a bummer though.

 

[MrProper]

Hi guys, saw another listing, everything looks good except the tags are missing. Seems like a nam issued one as the zippers are silver. Got a cigarette burn, stain and a white mark. Anyone can chime in if it looks good? the missing tags are kind of a bummer though. View attachment 660368

Why are you considering a jacket that is damaged and the tags are missing? If it's an original, shouldn't it also be an original in good condition? ;-)
Otherwise you could go straight for a reproduction.

 

[Preppy Climber]

Hi I was wondering which one of these is the original color for the m65? One seems a bit lighter shade.
View attachment 660295 View attachment 660296

It's very possible both jackets are the same color as lighting can affect how colors appear in a photo.

 

[pausiroy]

Why are you considering a jacket that is damaged and the tags are missing? If it's an original, shouldn't it also be an original in good condition? ;-)
Otherwise you could go straight for a reproduction.

That makes sense, I'll go ahead and keep looking. thanks, I'll shell out some extra to find a better one.

 

[Preppy Climber]

That makes sense, I'll go ahead and keep looking. thanks, I'll shell out some extra to find a better one.

I hope you find a jacket you really like! I got hit by the M-65 field jacket earlier this year. Ended up with several. Olive green and woodland camo. The latter I have in both the brass and plastic zippers.

I also purchased, separately, jacket liners. They make a huge difference in warmth and can quickly and easily be attached or unattached to the interior of the jacket.

 

[pausiroy]

I hope you find a jacket you really like! I got hit by the M-65 field jacket earlier this year. Ended up with several. Olive green and woodland camo. The latter I have in both the brass and plastic zippers.

I also purchased, separately, jacket liners. They make a huge difference in warmth and can quickly and easily be attached or unattached to the interior of the jacket.

I hope so too. Thanks! so many listings to sift through, they go up to $100 minimum now. This is the only one with a reasonable price but sadly no tags.

 

[MrProper]

I hope so too. Thanks! so many listings to sift through, they go up to $100 minimum now. This is the only one with a reasonable price but sadly no tags.

If it doesn't necessarily have to be an original and an inexpensive repro could also be an option, then take a look at the one from Helikon Tex. It comes with a liner for less than 100 EUR and I think it is in no way inferior to the original. The fabric is also NYCO (50% nylon/50% cotton)

 

[barnabus]

If it doesn't necessarily have to be an original and an inexpensive repro could also be an option, then take a look at the one from Helikon Tex. It comes with a liner for less than 100 EUR and I think it is in no way inferior to the original. The fabric is also NYCO (50% nylon/50% cotton)
View attachment 660408

I have one of these Helikon jackets too. I completely agree with @MrProper , it's an excellent jacket.

 

[Preppy Climber]

I hope so too. Thanks! so many listings to sift through, they go up to $100 minimum now. This is the only one with a reasonable price but sadly no tags.

Yeah, that's a bummer about the jacket with no tags.

I didn't have a lot of listings to go through as there don't appear to be many extra small, extra short M-65 field jackets for sale.

 

[CatsCan]

This is the only one with a reasonable price but sadly no tags.

I would't care about the missing label. The aluminum zipper dates it pre 1970 or at least pre 1971 depending on the source. I have yet to see a 1971 one with aluminum zip, so it is certainly from the late 1960s to 1970. Most ebay listenings put the "NAM" or "Vietnam" affix into the description, but the vast majority of the 1960s and 1970s M65s have never seen service in Vietnam. It seems to be that the period alone the jacket was made in has a certain kind of "mojo" for some people.
It depends on what you want. If you want a fashionable M65, follow Mr. Propper's advice and get yourself a Helikon Tex NyCo one in OG-107. It is the closest reproduction on the market if you ask me, that doesn't rip you off like RMC (which is 6 times more) and it's quality is very high.
But if you are interested in having a historical piece you can actually wear, a 1960s M65 with aluminum zip is the way to go. Brass zips are fine, too, but less expressive for the history fan. The aluminum zips are only found on sought after originals and on high end repros like the RMC. There is nothing more authentic than an original M65 plus they are not rare enough to not wear it without caring too much about value etc.
Nothing against owning more than one M65 (authentic period and repro) except the maybe certain form of mild decadence we Loungers can hardly deny to happily agree to live by.

Cats