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Thread: aging a sack coat

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Posts
    13

    aging a sack coat

    hello everyone i just purchased a brand new daley fatigue blouse and i was wondering is there anyway to age the coat so when I hit the event it wont look like im a new recruit

    Brandon Sedlmyer

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Tidewater
    Posts
    653

    Re: aging a sack coat

    That's a qualitity coat made to last. Only thing you can do is get it dirty. Of course you could go out this Sat and play football in the mud. That outa do it.

    All kidding aside, Every soldier had a new coat at one time or another. Just wear it and let it age naturally.
    Jim Mayo
    Portsmouth Rifles, Company G, 9th Va. Inf.

    CW Show and Tell Site
    http://www.angelfire.com/ma4/j_mayo/index.html

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Fort Wayne, Indiana
    Posts
    3,670

    Re: aging a sack coat

    Jim Mayo has exactly stated my opinion on the matter... there's only one way to age a reproduction item and thats to wear it.
    Paul Calloway
    Proudest Member of the Tar Water Mess
    Proud Member of the GHTI
    Member, Civil War Preservation Trust
    Wayne #25, F&AM

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Lafayette IN
    Posts
    1,281

    Re: aging a sack coat

    Hi,

    I would agree with the previous post. Just let your coat "age and mellow" on its own. Some other things to consider are:

    1. If you do enough reading, you'll quickly note that most troops were inspected on a regular basis (e.g., every Sunday morning) whenever possible. Smart commanders were known to offer incentives to those displaying the best appearance (e.g., passes to town or at least relief from drill or picket duty).

    2. Men with any lick of sense kept their uniforms in good repair. This was due to the fact they were given the money from the unused portions of their annual clothing allowances upon mustering out. This could be a relatively hefty sum--often the equivalent of several months' pay.

    Regards,

    Mark Jaeger

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Vancouver, Washington
    Posts
    973

    Re: aging a sack coat

    Remember it is one of the only pieces of clothing you own, you have to wear it 24 hrs a day 7 days a week, and it has to look good on Sundays. Just wear to several LHs and It will be broken in before you know it. If you do this then you will not need to replace it for some time. Im on my 3rd (two lined one unlined) in 15 years.
    Robert Johnson

    "Them fellers out thar you ar goin up against, ain't none of the blue-bellied, white-livered Yanks and sassidge-eatin'forrin' hirelin's you have in Virginny that run atthe snap of a cap - they're Western fellers, an' they'll mighty quick give you a bellyful o' fightin."



    In memory of: William Garry Co.H 5th USCC KIA 10/2/64 Saltville VA.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Tompkins Market Armory, Manhattan
    Posts
    403

    Re: aging a sack coat

    "looking like a recruit" - is a mindset you should try to break. Men were
    issued clothing, etc. in the field depending on need, annual issuance, etc.

    And like others have said, you were inspected regularly so you don't want to stand out like a sore thumb with big splotches of mud down your front just to "look cool". Natural wear and tear is one thing, fabricated aging/patina is another (bad)....

    So just wear the sack and you'll be fine.
    R.B.Weddle

    7th New York State Militia on Facebook

    "Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes" - Henry David Thoreau

    "The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional as to how they perceive the Veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their country."
    – George Washington , 1789


  7. #7
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Centreville, VA
    Posts
    563

    Re: aging a sack coat

    I agree with all the others who have posted here. Artificially aged anything looks like just that, artificial.
    John Stillwagon

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Kentucky
    Posts
    88

    Re: aging a sack coat

    Pard:
    they6've pretty much nailed the hammer on the head!I did see our battery cook let his sit out in the sun a little while , to darken the fibers is what he said. I don't know if it works.

    Rob
    Rob Young
    33rd OVI Company F

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    State of Mind
    Posts
    4,365

    Re: aging a sack coat

    Hallo Kamerad!

    Darken the fibers?

    The effect of exposure to UV light is the opposite, it "bleaches" or "fades" dyestuffs by breaking it down, even modern aniline dyes.

    ;-)

    Curt-Heinrich Schmidt
    In gleichem Schritt und Tritt, Curt Schmidt

    -Hard and sharp as flint...secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster.
    -Lunkerhead

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Orange County, NY
    Posts
    149

    Re: aging a sack coat

    I agree with everyone here...Time is the only thing that will age your coat. Remember...soldiers didn't want to be dirty, they were just victims of circumstance. I'm sure that if these boys would grap at a new uniform in a minute or wash up at their will. Your pards may josh you around, but new clothing is just as authentic as older( as long as it's a good make- of course). Just my humble opinion...


    Respectfully,
    Ryan McIntyre
    124th New York State Volunteers
    & The Squatting Bullfrog Mess

    "the Doctor says that I have got the Knapsack complaint that is I cant carry a knapsack that is a disease of my own getting up for I can lift as much as eney[sic] of the boys"
    Joseph H. Johnston
    March 16th 1863
    Camp Convalescent

    "It takes twelve men and a corporal up there [brigade headquarters] to take care of a few trees and salute the officers as they pass these are all the orders we have, but it is military I suppose..."
    Henry M Howell
    March 8 1863
    In camp Near Falmouth

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