My Dad's official USN pea coat is still at my Mom's house somewhere.

It was issued to him in 1944 just before he shipped out for the south Pacific during WWII!

Evidently those islands in the Pacific get really cold at night or some other time of the year.

Unfortunately, he was a 42 back then and I have pretty much always been at least a 52 long. It's a good thing the KaBar he gave me wasn't issued in different sizes.

US issue peacoats are available on EBAY. There is a dealer in Norfolk who is quiete good at recommending the best fit. If you are patient and lucky, look for older ones. They are in a 'kersey blue' vs today's black. This is a very deep navy almost black colour. There are also a few styling details in the collar that are superior.You may want to look for a canadian issue coat up there, given the sometimes bizaar shipping problems and duties from the US to Canada. Once you get it, have it dry cleaned regardless of appearance. Modern cleaning will disinfect against wool moths. After that simple hygiene will dissuade the critters. They are superb coats when layered and vent very well. I came home with 3, one a rare USCG CPO's with gold buttons and upgraded pocket corderoy liners. They must be good- all were borrowed and never returned.

Thanks Chris. Useful information as usual. BTW I found a post from a certain Kav at the askandyaboutclothes forum. Is it you by any chance?

If you would be so kind as to post the URL of the ebay dealer I would appreciate. Also, how old should the Kersey blue be? From the Vietnam era or older? When did they stop producing the superior ones?

I'll try to find Canadian issue peacoats here.

Thanks
Frankie

I use a so-called Bridge Coat purchased a few years ago from one of the military/government contractors available on the web. The really nice thing about the Bridge Coat is that it is a Pea Coat, only it is longer, about knee length. Sorry I cannot recall which contractor though, of course, a swift web search for "Bridge Coat" should reveal all. Good Luck!

IIRC, from my days when I had uniforms, a Bridge Coat is something for one of the more formal uniforms. It went along with "Service Dress Blues," which is the uniform with the white shirt, tie and jacket (like one for a suit). Pea coats went with the uniform like the one on top: http://buperscd.technology.navy.mil/bup_updt/508/unireg/Chapter3/Enlisted/em_13_Wk_WinterBlue.htm

"Sleeves are to reach about three-quarters of distance from the wrist to the knuckles when arms hang naturally at the sides." I guess I will have to choose the long version. It's not so obvious to order online.

Thanks for the link.

Frankie

As an Army guy, I wouldn't be caught dead in a pea coat, opting for the OD green field jacket or some shiny nylon reversible thing with pen slots on the upper sleeve and lots of "I've-been-here" patches.

But..the pea coat is a versatile, durable, trend defying jacket.

IMHO I would go with a genuine Navy pea coat and not a designer one. No biased but think the original would again bust trends and seem more vintage and inexpensive an option.

I should have added to my previous post about the Bridge Coat: when I received it I changed mine for my intended purpose for street wear by removing the epaulets and brass buttons put there originally for officer use, obviously. I also replaced the largish-sized brass buttons with the classic "anchor" black (plastic) buttons for my use; a much more comfortable look for me.

What I owned (and have since given to my daughter) is the USCG dress version of a peacoat. It is very warm in winter but it is NOT a PEACOAT by any means.

If it's a straight pea coat the above are good ideas. If it's just a tough, classic wool coat you want, here is what I have used for the last 5 years: http://www.filson.com/product/index.jsp?...rentPage=family