Red Army Equipment...

[Special Department.]

Comrades, Here is some ideas for you..






Red Army Webbing Belt, Grenade Pouch( 3 off F1 or RG 42 Grenade),Water Bottle, E Tool, Magazine pouch for SMG PPSh41 or PPS43.

Red Army Equipment is worn with the E Tool on the right side of the Body, this is important as everyone else wears it on the left, it makes the Red Army different, the Water Bottle is Worn to the left opposite just about everyone else...







Some items of Equipment, The Small Pouches are for Small arms Ammunition, worn on the Belt with or instead of Leather Mosin Nagant Pouches, Packets of SMG Ammunition can be carried in them also... The Bayonet is a SVT 40 Bayonet, the Weapon was obsolete in 1942, the Bayonets were issued as Fighting Knifes as needed..



The Haversack is used as a Holdall, the Respirator was largely being held in the Company Baggage or lost ,out of the sheer need for Baggage to carry the necessaries of War, Food, Ammo etc, ... they make a useful "Dump Bag" for Air Soft, The Respirator Haversack is always worn on the Left Side of the body.

Use of Captured Equipment would only be permitted with the permission of an Officer, they called all such things as "Trophy" it is a good term to use... Lease-lend Weapons were supplied with Vehicles as they would normally be equipped with they were normally saved for uses were the lack of Ammunition would not be a problem, NKVD Security, Crews of Lease-lend Vehicles.. British Ammo Boots were disliked as the Leather and hob nail soles were as bad as Fascist Boots in the Cold.

Due to the Lack of suitable Weapons of a Soviet nature it is impossible to be Normal Red Army and look Correct, best act as Scouts or Razvedchiki, they can get away with Fascist Weapons to a point, it would also suit Air Soft Battle Tactics which are mostly small Fire Fights/ meeting engagements, disengagements.

Many Red Army men would have nothing to do with Fascist Weapons or Equipment, their hatred of the Vandal Invader of Mother Russia was total, use only what Fascist Trophies you have to. It is best look like the Red Army, not a joke, Russians are a Proud People, do not disrespect The Bear, they can turn the Natural Gas off remember..

I hope this helps.

[Special Department.]

Thank you Comrade, we will continue...

Water Bottle Caps..



GPW Pattern, Red Army 1939 Dated, chain missing, no mounting on neck of Bottle to fix one to,The Cap does have fitting for ring/clip.






GPW Style Soviet Army 1953 dated.


Later Soviet Style 1983 dated.

A cheap way to find a GPW looking Water Bottle with a Cap is to use an old Aluminium DDR Produced Bottle of the 1950's, It is to a Red Army Pattern but with a German Cover and Cup (you swap for the correct Red Army issue items). It has a fine screw thread ( not the same as a Red Army one but better than the course Post GPW cap) and same ridged Cap. A War and Peace or Military Odyssey show with Foreign Dealers of Military Surplus being you best bet, I got one for £5.00.

My Water Bottle has been pictured in the Kit Layouts already posted.

I don't have a Glass Water Bottle yet ( I have its Cover though) so I can't assist you in that direction yet.

I hope this Helps.

[Special Department.]

Comrade, You can get painted GPW Water Bottles I'm informed.... Its up to you.

[Sasha]

Yes, you get painted bottles in wartime - the usual shades of green.

It involves a slight bit of work but it's far from impossible to get either the right thing or something that you'd have to look at the stamps with a magnifying glass to tell the difference.

It's like my wartime British brown mug I found it in a box of the lighter 50's dated ones.

[Special Department.]

Comrades,
Please also check Comrade Sasha's Thread on this Subject, it covers it in more depth and has useful Images....

Red Army Steel Helmets, You need the SSch-40 It has three Pads that grip your head, not a liner and Spider which is more normal for Helmets, it must have a Webbing Chin strap of one Strap through a Steel slipper type toothless Buckle... the end of the strap has a semicircular metal tab to stop it fraying.

It must be Green, (a New leaf coloured Green), Red Stars and all that was an early GPW thing, I don't have one on my SSch-40, THe Red Army didn't paint their Helmets Camouflage so don't do it... Splash Mud on it and wipe it about a bit, in Winter, grind up some Chalk into a thin paste with water and paint that on... it washes off.
Slogans on Helmets would have to be permitted by an Officer and his Deputy, the Political Officer, best not go there, Russian Air Softers laugh at us and our attempts to use their language, think of it as having a Five year old doing it...

A little use of Home made Nets is noted, more loops of string tied together in fact, but they work..I use this look as a gag.


You can also see a Pilotka worn under a Helmet also, these Comrades are wearing earlier 1935 Dress Regulations so they have Raise and fall Collars rather than 1943 Dress Regulation Standing Collars on their Gyms, which is likely the Order of Dress you use.


This Comrade is using the Early GPW Personal Camouflage Net, it was soon no longer issued in the reverses of 1941-42

For Comfort wearing your Pilotka, (Side Hat) looks good is correct and is comfortable, in fact it is designed to be worn under a Helmet.

Red Army Pilotkas have no sweat band, thanks to its construction methods it is added last so you can unpick the stitching and remove it without damaging the Garment, they help keep the sweat out of your eyes.

The Pilotka can also be a useful Camouflage Garment with local materials to improve your personal Camouflage.

[Special Department.]

Comrades, The Palashch-palatka is one of the best things about Red Army Equipment, it is large, Water repellent to a very high level and generally a useful Garment, It was much used and has a good Red Army Look.(I will not Repost earlier posted Images.)





You will see a Hood in a Corner of it, by pulling on the Cords you form it and the shoulder piece which is a Double thickness of material, the trailing Tail Eyelet is hitched up to the Toggle which is 3/4 down the inside of the Palashch-palatka.

The Eyelet's for GPW are Sewn like a Button hole, then Post GPW you have the Eyelet's with a stitched reinforcing of Leather on one side, then both sides, use of a stitched Vinyl Material to replace leather, and finally Metal.

Colours range from Dark Khaki Brown to a very Grey Brown.. all fade in UV light, I have Two Khaki Palashch-palatki which are almost Sand Colour ( as of March 27th 2010 almost white, that is just two years of Smashing Gitlerite divisions will do), just down to Sunlight.

As Rain Protection they have served well as a Cape and two laced together with string as a Basher to sleep under, I used them last weekend ( 6th and 7th Sept 08) in all that Rain, not a Drip Comrades, not a Drip.

They used to carry a Guy Rope of about Three Metres to lace them together or as Guys to a Temporary Shelter structure.

The Red Army Sleep system was... You, rolled in your Palashch-palatka, with the Great Coat as a liner, your feet and the Palashch-palatka thrust into your Meshok Back pack( to hold it all together), your Respirator Bag as a Pillow, while you wear your Head Gear... No Blankets, they were not issued for field use.

The Red Army mostly didn't build Tents as we do, they just tended to rap themselves up in it and sleep in a bush.. as Red Army you can live like a Pig... great fun.

Wearing one, you can throw the flaps back thus showing you Chest of Awards and Metals... its a Good Look and correct to what they did.



To carry it slung, It is folded in half* and then rolled, you strap it together with a Red Army Webbing Strap, or a Picked up Leather Strap, maybe a Trophy one or failing that a length of String/Guy Rope, you then wear it Horse Shoe style over your body, keeping your Weapon shoulder clear.

* If you need to carry stuff in it then fold it in from the edges so you trap the articles in it before it closes and is strapped together to form the Horse shoe.

The wearing of it like this will give you the Correct Silhouette of a Red Army man, most important so not to get shot at by your own side.

Practice with it and you will see the many uses it has...

I hope this is of assistance to you.

[Special Department.]

Comrades,
This Rezidency has been ordered to develop ( by Moscow Centre ) an early Water Bottle cover to this pattern..


Period illustration from a Red Army declassified Historical Document.

This Complex is only cleared for early GPW deployment, I will use it no later than 1942.

Due to the advantages of a Centrally Controlled Command Society (with very strong Internal Security) this Iron Horse advance of Red Army Water Bottle Cover Technic has occurred because of the heroic work of the 1145th Guards Separate Water Bottle development Bureau Batt, Kent Military District, which was charged with the historic mission to develop this Complex for the advancement of World Peace/Revolution.









All this completed to the laid down quota on Victory day, our most sacred day of the struggle against the Gitlerite Vandal Horde.

Urrah!!.

[Special Department.]

Comrades,
This is the latest development to conform to the Historical Document..





A normal Soviet period cover was used, the Belt loop is made of the strap you cut off, you source the Snap/clip and D rings.

[Special Department.]

Comrades, Recently the Glorious 13th Guards sent an Order to "Shuster", though the overall contents is still Classified this item has been released for Imaging.
This is Shusters Re-production BN Respirator Haversack , newly declassified for Imaging and Posting.







It is a well made Haversack, good to become a Hero with during the Border and Encirclement Battles of 41/42

Recovered at the Beltring Front....


Short hafted Pioneers Axe ... I have Cover already... Happy time!
Metal Tin for Decom-kit used in a Red Army BN Respirator Bag...

[Yith]

Comrades, Recently the Glorious 13th Guards sent an Order to "Shuster", though the overall contents is still Classified this item has been released for Imaging.
This is Shusters Re-production BN Respirator Haversack , newly declassified for Imaging and Posting.

It is a well made Haversack, good to become a Hero with during the Border and Encirclement Battles of 41/42

Recovered at the Beltring Front....

Heh, I've had one of those for over a year now. They're brilliantly made and very good value.

I wish he did one of the late war bags as well.