Ok guys here is some stop gap info and pics on the south staffs.
The 2nd Battalion South Staffords were originally a line infantry battalion but were chosen to train for glider operation and nearly all its soldiers volunteered for this duty.
As they became part of the airborne division they gained the trademark kit of the airborne soldier, the red (maroon) beret, the denison smock and the parachute helmet. They retained their normal structure and cap badges though.
The battalion were among the first soldiers to set foot in occupied Europe when they took part in the landing in sicily in 1943 and later dropped into Arnhem in 1944.
Here's how to look like them.
Headgear:
Cheapest option is a maroon beret, you want a big baggy war pattern one where the overhang of the crown comes just over the left ear. You dont need to shape this but a little bit of shaping will stop it looking silly. Cap badge is a 'south staffords' badge with a kings (imperial) crown.
They should look like this:
The correct steel helmet is a 2nd or 3rd pattern airborne helmet, however a real one costs over £300! A good copy from pegasus miltaria is £100.
For our purposes a wartime or post war royal armoured corp helmet is fine, only the chinstrap looks different if you camouflage the helmet (helmet nets cost about £4 and you can cut up a sandbag to make the 'scrim' camouflage).
Battledress: The most important thing for this impression is the trousers, the battledress blouse wil rarely be worn as the smock on top makes it too hot for most games. 37, 40 or 49 patter trousers are all fine (as are denims if necessary although wool is prefered), if you are using 49 pattern we can hlep you make them look more liek 1940 pattern by supplying you with a small pocket of fabric to make the missing first field dressing pocket and if you can you can remove the leg pocket and restitch it on the front rathe rthan the side.
Smock: The denison smock is the trademark item and this is where we are quite lucky... Until recently it was difficult to get a good reasonably priced denison for less than a couple of hundred pounds. Now there are new suppliers on ebay doing them for around £60, simialry 'replicators' will make you one to measure for around £60.
Here is a picture of a rifleman of glider unit wearing battledress and denison smock.
The following additional kit can be seen on this rifleman.
He has a green and brown camouflaged scrim scarf, these cost about a fiver and we'd prefer you to use a two colour one than a modern plain green one if you can.
The scrim scarf was sometimes used as either headwrap or to camouflage the distinctive red beret .
His webbing is 1937 pattern, the ideal is to get 37 pattern webbing with brass fittings and popper closures on pouches, if you cant get this don't worry but do look out for the earlier stuff if you want to look authentic.
The basic web kit you will need is two universal pouches, a belt, cross braces and a water bottle and carrier. If you contact Sabre Sales in Portsmouth they wil be able to get you the above with the correct fittings for less than £20
In the above pics the rifleman's webbing has not been 'blancoed'. Blanco was green powdery paint put on webbing to preserve it and camouflage it.
Warren at shoot and scoot have some blanco left at £5 a block, Yith will be putting a guide up on how to blanco at a later date.
Blancoed webbing looks like this:
In the rear view of the rifleman we can see he carries a small pack (useful for keeping your spare ammo, water and food in) and a smal light green 'lightweight' respirator case (i use mine to carry a modern water bottle in and keep it hidden). He also has an entrenching tool in a web cover below the small pack but we wont be needing those unless you really want to carry one!
Around his shoulder is a cotton bandoleer for rifle ammunition.
Footwear:
Our rifleman wear ammo boots, these are leather soled and hobnailed but for comfort and safety in airsoft (especially in urban game) you may use post war rubber soled DMS boots. As a stop gap modern boots may be used as long as there high leg is concealed with gaiters.
Our rifleman wears these gaiters (web material with two leather tabs) between his boots and trousers.
We'll accept puttees in place of gaiters but gaiters are preferable (and a lot less hassle than puttees).
Here's another shot of a well equipped airlanding trooper and anartists impression of a paratrooper wearing the same equipment.
Here the soldier carries a Sten bandoleer, this would not be blancoed and this pic shows us the contrast between blancoed and unblancoed web gear.
Lastly insignia.
On the beret - Staffords cap badge
On the denison - rank only, no other insignia
On the battle dress - Staffords maroon and yellow shoulder titles, beneath this a square patch showing a sky blue pegasus on a maroon back ground, beneath this a rectangular tab with 'airborne' in blue or white on a maroon background.
On the lower right sleeve a small blue glider badge on a khaki disc.
Once again a period pic showing this insignia in place but don't worry too much about it, we'll almost *never* have battledress blouses on show.
and the glider badge (note this pic was taken before I learnt about blanco!)
"I think we are in rats' alley - Where the dead men lost their bones."
Nice one Gadge... There is so much more to write, but that's a fantastic start!
Interesting point... the first insignia pic has the Queen's Crown (two titties) and the actual badge has the King's Crown (one... erm...)
We obviously fight for King George and want the King's Crown. 
Good point, I'd not noticed that, must be a 1950s illustration.
"I think we are in rats' alley - Where the dead men lost their bones."
Good point, I'd not noticed that, must be a 1950s illustration.
I've just ordered the no-boobied version! 
A fantastic guide, thanks Gadge!
Nice guide and good pics.
I seem to remember you were talking about making some leather chinstraps a while back for the RAC helmet - did that come to anything because we'd buy a couple off you?
No but i can still getthe template and we can make a set if we get togehter!
Oh i know you two dont like wearing insignia so i was going to sujest cap comforters or helmets if you'd both prefer?
Although as a former stafford i can tell you that my lot would be honoured not offended if you did us the service of wearing our badge.
"I think we are in rats' alley - Where the dead men lost their bones."
Will do cap badges for our berets but would feel very awkward about anything like rank pips/stripes or medals and the like.
Will do cap badges for our berets but would feel very awkward about anything like rank pips/stripes or medals and the like.
Think that would be great doing the beret badges.also since you'll be wearing the smocks no rank etc required - so your preference for unmarked battledress will be 'covered'.
Will do cap badges for our berets but would feel very awkward about anything like rank pips/stripes or medals and the like.
Same here... I don't do medals... I prefer only do rank when I have to... (for accuracy or for the games sake)
I dont do medals on brit kit but do combat awards on german kit as it looks bizzare without them, its more farby not to than if you get me as long as you odnt overdo it.
"I think we are in rats' alley - Where the dead men lost their bones."
Ace, i hope he does not mind us using him as an example!
"I think we are in rats' alley - Where the dead men lost their bones."
I dont do medals on brit kit but do combat awards on german kit as it looks bizzare without them, its more farby not to than if you get me as long as you odnt overdo it.
A bloke I know weares all the british Army medals on his BD, Not bad saying the Gulf&NI are a bit daft if anyone knows what they are looking at
Hi, details clarification to improve uniformity please.
Webbing - in the guide and illustration the water bottle and small pack are shown worn on the right and left or on the left and right. What convention are we using (my preference would be small pack on the left as it can be used as a magazine dump pouch that way)? Are there local variations to pouches and wear acceptable such as wearing the bren pouches however works best/ small side satchels in addition to battle order?
Beret - do the band ribbon end get knotted, tucked in, cut off or left dangling.
Badge - I saw in a post on the brit kit reference that the badge needs to be backed with hessian, is this natural coloured like off a sandbag or are we going to not bother or use another material? Does it need a card stiffener in the beret?
Dressing - Should the cap badge be fitted off center (as there is no slit for it in my beret yet though there is a badge flap inside) and the beret worn straight with the band ribbon at the back of the head or the badge fitted at the front center and the beret worn off centre so the badge is over, the left eye center/ further around or in the middle of the forehead?
At this point you will be thinking, GET A LIFE, but the little details (that don't need to be historically correct as different RSMs changed the unit 'style' slightly) make people gathered as PBI actually look like the same unit.
Saying that, I'll be a German at Varsity and probably until I have checked the 'look' of the brit kit is as per PBI so brace for more dumb kit questions at Vasity!
Peter Rabbit - Tank Killer
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawk914/2159973655/
Small pack on left, bottle on right. If you're comfier with it another way its ok, we're going for an 'in the field' look where soldiers where it within reason as it suits them.
Picures from arnhem show every combination worn from just a belt to full marching order in combat!
Try to stick to a small pack, two basic pouches and a ressi bag (makes a good dump pouch).
Small satchels for medics and officers.
Beret push the cords in the leather band.
Normal sandbag hessian is fine, no card required, fir the badge normally so it fits over the eye. I just cut a small slit in my beret for the slider.
"I think we are in rats' alley - Where the dead men lost their bones."
This pic should help quite a bit...
http://www.ww2airsoft.org.uk/zoom/staffs.html
Use the zoom function and you can even see how the hessian is fixed.
Are "Para trousers" (ie the ones with the extra dressing pockets and the reinforced map pocket) okay for South Staffs?
Cheers
CHThree
Yeah fine, they had an issue of about one man in five.
Great for a few of us to have them, but not essential.
"I think we are in rats' alley - Where the dead men lost their bones."
Thanks for the information. Where can I get a suitable respirator bag? I am hoping to make my M249 para into a sort of bren gun with a suitable mag fixed to the top and wooden butt/ furniture disguise and barrel extension with cone. Does PBI have a bren crew?; and if this works out looking reasonably convincing, can I use the bren pouches as the M249 would be magazine fed (side entry hidden with sand bag hessian to like an improvised shell catcher) and 100 rnd mags don't last long? What ammo limits and magazine types (e.g. no hi caps) are intended?
Peter Rabbit - Tank Killer
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawk914/2159973655/
