Just like the US ARMY , The United States Marine Corps went to war in Vietnam using the same uniforms that where at the time being used for every day tasks , the uniforms where not suited for the conditions they encountered in the jungle environment in Vietnam.
OG-107 Cotton Sateen Utility Uniform.
These where similar to the ARMY uniforms but with the EGA and USMC stenciled on the left
pocket of the shirt.
Shirt
Trousers
Jungle Fatigues
Third Pattern Jungle Fatigues were introduced in late 1966 / early 1967 , unlike the Sateens
the Jungle Fatigues didn't receive the Stenceling as often
Shirt
Trousers
Starting in 1968 the Marines switched from the O.D. Jungle Fatigues to the new ERDL camo
Jungle Fatigues , however the full switch to camo did not happen until the middle of 1969
Shirt
Trousers
Undershirts
Early in the War White cotton undershirts where used
Later on the O.D. cotton undershirt was introduced
Shirt , Sleeping Man's
The Sleep shirt was used mainly in cold areas of Vietnam .
M-1951 Filed Jacket
The M51 was used by Marines until it was replaced by the M65
M-1965 Field Jacket
The M65 was introduced into service in 1965 as a replacement for the M-1951 field jacket , but did not reach Marine Depots until 1967
M55 FLAK vest ,this was the standard issue vest for Marines until it was replaced by the 3/4 collar vest in the mid '70s
Boots
The first boots used in Vietnam where the standard all leather boots
Because the all leather boots where not well suited for the jungle conditions , they where replaced by a new boot type designed for jungle warfare
The Jungle boot came in two versions the Jungle Boot (Vibram Sole) introduced in 1966 and the Jungle Boot (Panama Sole) introduced in 1967
Panama Sole on the left , Vibram Sole on the right
Webgear
For moast of the war , the Marines used the USMC M1961 webgear set (refered to as 782 gear) , wich consisted of a mix of WWII and Korean War era items together with new pieces produced in 1961.
The gear is M1961 belt , M1961 single magazine pouch for the M14 magazines(each grunt was issued 4 pouches , the Automatic Refleman wouls be issued 6 pouches , but most grunts would get their hands on more pouches to carry extra mags) P41 suspenders , same design as WWII suspenders but in OD , WWII/Korea jungle first aid pouch(some grunts supplemented this with an extra WWII ARMY first aid pouch attached to the bottom) WWII/Korea M1910 canteen/cover/cup
and a 3 cell grenade pouch(designed to carry 2 grenades per pocket, however it was found that carrying 2 grenades per pouch could lead to accident, so only one grenade was carried)
Miscellaneous equipment
Top row , left to right
M17 Gas Mask and carrier , angle head flashlights
Middle row , left to right
Claymore bag (this can have many uses) , M18 Smoke grenades . 40mm illumination grenades , 40mm practice grenade , Serum Albumin can , M56 entrenching tool(some examples start to show up in Marine hands around Tet '68)
Bottom row , left to right
M16 bandoleers , M79 bandoleer
