Author Topic: Shoulder titles  (Read 12727 times)

wildman

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Shoulder titles
« on: November 01, 2010, 07:38:23 PM »
Does anyone have pictures of what the cloth and brass shoulder titles should look like, and where i could buy them from.
« Last Edit: November 01, 2010, 07:56:53 PM by andyc »

Offline themonsstar

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #1 on: November 02, 2010, 06:03:08 PM »
Hi Andy
The shoulder titles for the Manchester Regt in WW2 were( Manchester white on red).

wildman

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #2 on: November 02, 2010, 07:03:53 PM »
thanks for the reply
did the manchesters not wear both cloth and brass shoulder titles as with sum regiments.
how would the arm have looked in terms of titles and insignia
andy

Offline george.theshed197

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #3 on: November 03, 2010, 06:04:27 PM »
Hi Andy,
Only cloth (embroidered) shoulder titles were worn post WWII up to the amalgamation 1958.
So starting at the shoulder/top of sleeve would be - Title, two or so inches below that would be the Divisional/Command insignia, four inches below that would be any badge of rank or in the case of Corps of Drums or Bandsmen O.R's would wear either Brass Drum or the Harp Insignia. Most of the Trade or Occupational Badges (i.e. MG, LMG, Marksman etc)  seemed to have disappeared by about 1950 or thereabouts as did the LS chevrons.
George.

PS. Forgot to add W.O's I & II, R.Q.M.S. etc. Badge of rank worn 4 inches up from the cuff.
« Last Edit: November 03, 2010, 06:14:11 PM by george.theshed197 »

wildman

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #4 on: November 03, 2010, 07:51:20 PM »
thanks for the reply george

Offline themonsstar

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #5 on: November 08, 2010, 02:20:40 PM »
Pics from a post war uniform

Offline george.theshed197

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #6 on: November 08, 2010, 06:45:21 PM »
Ta for that
George.

Offline PhilipG

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #7 on: September 23, 2013, 10:03:15 PM »
At  the end of WW2- 1945/6 with the departure back home of the Canadians, I would see soldiers on the trains with battledress uniforms of a different colour of khaki and of a higher standard of material and with flaps over the pockets.  At that stage in the war, battle dress uniform had been altered to save cloth.  I was told that in view of the departure home of the Canadian army, the uniforms were issued to the British army when any part of the issued uniform needed replacing.  As the colour was a slightly different shade of khaki  from the normal colour of British produced  battle  dress, the result could look odd if the trousers did not match the top. I have been told that Canadian army battledress was highly sort after for obvious reasons and that Coy. storemen could often be persuaded, with an exchange of coinage, to issue a Canadian garment, rather than a British  Army one.

The uniform in the photo seems to me to be of a colour very similar to Canadian army khaki. PhilipG..

Offline george.theshed197

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #8 on: September 24, 2013, 09:37:45 AM »
PhillipG,
From the very moment a very new RSM by name of Alf LOMAS  joined the 1st Bn at Wuppertal he was wearing the finest Canadian Uniform and he 'managed to maintain' the very highest  standard Canadian quality matching dress right through his service until the time we went out to Malaya as anyone who served with us at the time will remember. He never had any problems in replacements at any time. ;D ;D ;D
George.

Offline PhilipG

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #9 on: September 24, 2013, 01:46:56 PM »
Firstly, great  to hear from you.  Secondly, what you say has confirmed that my memory is still OK. I am sure you are right, too, that the Coy. storeman would in this particular instance, not wish for coinage to change hands!!  In that era, my soldier friend explained to me how , in order to remain smart, the battle dress trousers were folded over the top of the anklets in such a way, that if a suitable string of ,say, lead weights was inserted inside the trousers, the fold over the anklets would remain static and give an  appearance  of smartness that was not easy to obtain in a battledress uniform. He said, that over a period of time the string of weights tended to wear through the trouser material.

In WW2 when I was for a period an 18 yr old Naval Rating, I followed the guidance of "old sweats" with similar efforts to appear smart, but of course in the matter of gaiters,putting 36 inch bell bottom trousers within the confines of gaiters would never yield a result as attractive as I have explained above. Incidentally, the gaiters had to receive blanco - Khaki Green No. 3 (What a memory!) As always, take care. PhilipG.

Offline george.theshed197

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #10 on: September 24, 2013, 05:32:59 PM »
PhillipG.
Absolutely smack-on - First came across the wearing of 'Lead- weights about 1949 when we were in Wuppertal just prior to the Bn  moving to Berlin where we took over from the Spandau guard from the Yanks with their Chromed Helmets and Chromed Bayonets under Lt St John Sanders.  As a matter of fact - on leaving the Bn then in 1958 on being 'surplus' and discharged in 1959 - I converted my BD weights into suitable weights to use for sea-fishing many times.
We may be possibly of a similar age  ;D ;D ;D
George.

Offline PhilipG

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #11 on: September 24, 2013, 06:42:14 PM »
George

I should think we are both "getting on" as they say in Manchester. Despite my father (Lancs Fus. 1914) saying "Never volunteer", I did so in 1942 as my father had done in 1914.  My Demob Group. was 51.  As always, great to hear from you. PhilipG.

Offline PhilipG

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #12 on: September 25, 2013, 12:05:48 AM »
George.

Here again re shoulder badges.   Again drawing upon my travelling in wartime trains, I have an impression that the shoulder badge identifying the regiment was white letters stencilled on a red background for infantry.  In order to save material,the  words were  not embroidered.  Bear in mind, I am drawing on my memory of Crewe station tea bar in 1942, where the troops changed trains.  Should you not have money for a cup of tea, and many did not, access to the many milk churns on the station platform incurred use of mess tins as these men tried to get home on an unauthorised 36, and were thirsty.  For my part as a sailor, I did not have a mess tin, but including flying pay, and as a Leading Airman, I was on 9/1d per day so I could afford to buy a cuppa.   A Forces Return Fare from Portsmouth Harbour station to Manchester (London Road) was 30 shillings, about a fortnight's pay for a squaddie. Cheers, PhilipG.

Offline george.theshed197

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #13 on: September 25, 2013, 11:58:32 AM »
Hi again PhillipG,
In the earliest days I have very vague ideas of only having a inch and a half of so bright red strip on the upper shoulder
- I have even vaguer ideas of being told 'It was to confuse the b*******  if and when they attacked ( like taking down all of the Sign Posts !!! Mind you there were times when we may have not known ourselves whether or not we were Martha or Arthur as the Diggers used to say.
Hard lines - you should have gone a bit further north - Preston gave out Free Char and Wads from just after Dunkirk.  ;D ;D ;D
Cheers Old Time Matelot,
George PBI.

Offline PhilipG

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Re: Shoulder titles
« Reply #14 on: September 25, 2013, 01:32:57 PM »
You are right. Memory now in overdrive. They did have a bright red strip below the regimental title.  I was told it was to denote infantry.  We must be getting near the stage when we need guidance from the regimental museum, who must surely have some battle dressed figures in their possession?   Lastly, recently I found my battle dress  blouse which I bought in 1944 (to save my jacket from excessive wear), with a waistband of 30 inches.   It is somewhat greater than that today. Keep smiling. PhilipG.