I really do like CADPAT.

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"The other Gareth"

Ohhhh score!! DD finds the elusive white beret!!

NICE one bro!!

(sorry Kev, I do know I'm being a pain in the ass...)

I must have been typing when you posted the link to the shoes DD, right on! Another good score!

As Derek posted, this is our first "pony up to the bar" as far as contributing to the Delta pins.

I'm down for $50-

It's a badge we'll be able to use multiples in various USCM uses I'm sure!!

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USCM- The Colonial Marines- A Brotherhood of Bad Asses!

Ok, one thing I think at least needs to be discussed on the Delta pins. I've never seen enamelled pins on a military uniform. Now I'm not saying they are there, but does it make since to do them enamel vs plain shiny brass?

Oh and Dom, he said "On this uniform". Once you get past the whole "DON'T WEAR YOUR COVER INDOORS!!!!!!" thing it looks fine with that outfit.

I'm actually envisioning an open brass design. So the jacket material shows through where the background of the delta would be.

I'll see if I can knock up a quick image...

*edit*

...and here it is. Not as quick as I'd have hoped - I got sidetracked.

Two possiblities here...one far sturdier than the other.
Remember that the blue is not enamled onto the badge, it's an open area where the material will show through.

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"The other Gareth"

I would think a big factor in the "enamel vs. brass" discussion is cost.

I'm good with it either way, really. Sure, it's not done on uniforms now... but that doesn't mean it can't be.

One of my concerns with the "white" beret is the listing of it being "off-white"... that kind of hints to me that it wouldn't match the belt we're considering. Regardless, a white cover (dress cover, beret, whatever) I think would look sharp.

Have we done a mock-up or considered a red beret?

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CPL Conley, D. A06/TQ2.0.72147E1



"To err is human; to forgive, divine... Neither of which is Marine Corps policy."
"In Onoraigh Ar Marbh" ~ We Honor Our Fallen

If it really is THAT off-white (beret) it could be bleached out pretty easily I would imagine.

I'm not sure about patches, other than rank insignia. Its just not something I really see as belonging on a dress uniform.

Since I left the thread a few days back it looks like things exploded. I guess you guys are going towards the reverse of my design, IE a dark blue coat and black pants. (I had it the other way around).

Hmmm, yeah, I wonder "white" "off-white" is?

Might me cool...or?

Those photo etched pins sound cool, but I wonder at the cost? That price that Derek got was pretty darn good for the Delta pins...

This project is really coming together!! I'm darn jazzed about it!!

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USCM- The Colonial Marines- A Brotherhood of Bad Asses!

Wow. Man, those look great.

I'm partial to #1.



Generally I'd agree with you... however, I think this particular dress uniform needs to be emblazoned with patches and identifiers for people at the conventions to know who we're portraying; remember that people may just be observing or taking pictures, and not necessarily come up and go "who are you guys"... so if they see the insignia and "USCM" stuff, they'll probably get a clue.

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CPL Conley, D. A06/TQ2.0.72147E1



"To err is human; to forgive, divine... Neither of which is Marine Corps policy."
"In Onoraigh Ar Marbh" ~ We Honor Our Fallen

As far as I know, your medals can be worn for formal affairs, so as long as I'm wearing formal attire... I'll wear what I earned. We have to stop treating our medals like loaded guns and not be afraid of showing them. The jubilee medals was also given to civvies and they don't have a uniform to wear them on. If someone can point me to a different direction, I await further info
None for Canada! We're not a medal hungry nation. Unfortunately, a US Air Force 2LT can make a Canadian general look like a rookie. Up here, you really have to go above and beyond... no medal for completion of recruit training or being injured in a combat zone here. Can't talk for the Brits... but our military systems are rather similar... except for the fact that they drink twice the amount of beer as we do... and we drink twice the amount of beer that you do... so go figure. Sexy, innit?

Hey... in our defense.... it's hard to earn medals in the USMC. We've been known to make a few... off-color comments.... about some of the ribbons the other branches wear; I will say, however, that I know exactly what you mean about the Air Force.

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CPL Conley, D. A06/TQ2.0.72147E1



"To err is human; to forgive, divine... Neither of which is Marine Corps policy."
"In Onoraigh Ar Marbh" ~ We Honor Our Fallen

Hi, guys, been lurking in this awesome, awesome thread. Just about every point I've thought of making has been raised by someone else so I just kept on lurking. But I'll start shooting off at the mouth now!

random thoughts (some of which are admittedly contradictory):

- I think one patch per shoulder is plenty. Looks cleaner. Thus I like the idea of rank pins instead of patches.

- 1" bloodstripe? Sounds a little wide. Unless that's a standard width for band uniforms or whatever and thus easy to obtain that way.

- Just a personal thing, but I hate berets. If that were made the standard I would not do the costume. Really.

- Affordability is essential. I think it would be a really fun costume to put together and wear, but it simply isn't important enough to me to plunk down a lot of coin. Thus the more affordable jacket, and the cheapest shoes that are shiny and black.

- Dom made an excellent point about the cut of the jackets for more "generous" physiques such as mine. Fitted tailoring looks sensational on guys with thin waists. The rest of us, it kinda needs to go the other way! (I'd like to think my gut will be gone by next DC but I must also be realistic.) I don't know if that really affects anything nor do I have a solution, just spewing thoughts.

- I like the brass idea for the delta pins. While I do like the more open version, I think it doesn't provide a big enough solid space for a pin to be soldered.

If it even matters yet, my ribbons would be
Dragon: 2
Megacon: 3...or will be 3 come March. Orlando colors are, well, pick from the flag:

http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/images/u/us-fl-ol.gif

(I can't find attendance records for MegaCon but it's pretty damn big)

About the 1 inch stripe- really I'm just eyeballing what the USMC pants look like- the stripe is pretty thick to me:





About the beret- You might be the odd man out on this one Rex. No offense, but I'm going with a service cap. Besides I wouldn't want to be confused with this guy:





If you don't want a service cap simply because they're expensive, I say save up your money to buy one. But if you truly do not want to wear one because you prefer how a beret looks as opposed to the cost factor- that's entirely another reason and is fine with me. You just won't see a beret on my head.

About the ranks- I prefer rank patches not pins. I'm not keen on shoulder patches (Delta, Eagle, Flag, etc), but in this case I think the nature of the uniform warrants it (just as Derek said). However the Eagle might be a bit large- we could either:

-Go with the Eagle on the right shoulder with no rank insignia on the right arm, and Flag/rank on left arm or...

-Have something smaller (like a Delta patch) on the right shoulder with rank on both arms.

I could go either way with this one.

About affordability: Yes I want to spend basically the least amount of coin needed to make this costume work for me. But personally I will not make compromises (such as berets instead of caps) simply because I can afford the component at the moment.

This will most likely be the last costume I put together for a long while (perhaps years). I've always managed to come up with the cash for new costumes and to attend D-Con every year no matter what my financial situation is. However after this year it looks like my disposable funds are coming to an end. As a result, if I really want to purchase something expensive, I'm forced to liquidate parts of my collection that I feel I can live without.

Not trying to write a sob story here. What I'm trying to say is since this will be the last costume I put together for who know's how long, I want it to look spectacular! I want it to look razor sharp! I want that WOW factor!

It goes for pretty much any costume I do. With my Grayson suit, I had a choice of finding the exact boots (which were in the $250 range), or buying a much more affordable pair that were close... but no cigar.

I went with the correct boots. Yeah it hit me in the wallet, but it was worth it in the end.

In the same respect- I don't want this costume to cost $800+ dollars either. Those days are long gone too. I figure I could probably put this together for under $400 and have it look just as I imagine it.

Anyway- didn't mean to ramble.

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I told you I'd shoot, but you didn't believe me! WHY DIDN'T YOU BELIEVE ME!?!

My problem with the eagle on the shoulder is what I'll call "eagleitist". Right now we are talking about having the eagle on the cap and the belt. If we place it on the shoulder it will look like we are just sticking it everywhere just because we can. Same with the the delta (if we put them on the collars).

This is why I suggested the country flag with rocker over it. I realize some of the larger groups (UK and Canada for example) might have the people to handle getting their own screaming animals for the hat and belt if they wish to (much like those groups have already started doing custom non-US patches), but not every group will, so most will be using the eagle which is the USCM mascot. By placing the flag on the shoulder, it allows us to show that we are a multi-national group, not a US centric one. And if we are going to put a patch on the shoulder, then why not include the Colonial Marine rocker. It's simple and helps denote exactly who we are to people who don't know the CM logos.

My thoughts exactly Wookie!! Exactly!

Annnnndddd okay Kev, no more mention of the beret! I'll stick w/ the service cap...may bitch a little bit about the cost, but I'll wear one! (not my fault I thought the beret looked cool in your mockup! )

As for the metal "open air" pins, those are cool, but do we have a cost factor on them yet? Also, remember the minimum quanity is often 100, and most places have a set up fee that's usually at least $65-

The place Derek found has no set up fee, and the traditional Delta pin, after everyone has a set for their uni, we will have lots left over, (back to that minimum of 100), so we have to have uses for them. Don't get me wrong, I think the "open air" pin looks bitchin', but we have more uses for the "standard" style Delta pin.

We're at $274-plus shipping for the enameled Delta pin. That's shipped to one addy. Then shipped to everyone from there. Yes, the shipping won't be much, but it still has to be factored in as well.

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USCM- The Colonial Marines- A Brotherhood of Bad Asses!

Here, here! lol
But you guys have the best beef jerky!!

No supurfluous "medals" for us either.
When you complete basic training you're reward is being part of the service you wanted to sign up to.
Over here "medals" are honers rather than qualification badges as some branches of the US forces seem to use them.




RAF Marksman badge:

Worn on the lower right sleve of the No.1 Jacket only.


I agree that we should probably try to keep patches to a minimum - some form of identifier, rank and qualification.
I think the screaming eagle and or the delta patche will make the uniform too garish. Especially if the design already adorns the buckle, cap badge and buttons.

How about something simple like a USCM (or the full "US Colonial Marines" wording) mudguard worn at the top of each sleve.
Perhaphs with a metalic thread.

...again a very quick throw together.
Gold to match the rank or red to match the piping shown.



I think gold looks best.

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"The other Gareth"

Sure, qualification badges look cool, but we don't exactly have an e-rifle range here....


Ripper

I like both "USCM" or " Colonial Marines"!

Only reason I lean towards "Colonial Marines" is that it's easily identifiable as not USMC.

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USCM- The Colonial Marines- A Brotherhood of Bad Asses!

My thoughts too.

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"The other Gareth"

I agree that the screaming eagle and delta patches are a little big and loud, but perhaps that's needed for the recognition/confusion prevention factor.

Maybe smaller and/or subdued versions of them?

I will not even wear this uniform without these patches on it. We must be, even in a small way, recognizable.

I agree.

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CPL Conley, D. A06/TQ2.0.72147E1



"To err is human; to forgive, divine... Neither of which is Marine Corps policy."
"In Onoraigh Ar Marbh" ~ We Honor Our Fallen

Though I see your point, I counterpoint with this:

How many actual sub-orbital dropship insertions have any of us been on?

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CPL Conley, D. A06/TQ2.0.72147E1



"To err is human; to forgive, divine... Neither of which is Marine Corps policy."
"In Onoraigh Ar Marbh" ~ We Honor Our Fallen

Enlisted bloodstripes are 1 1/8", Officer bloodstripes are 1 1/2".

Bloodstripes are readily available fur purchase online.

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CPL Conley, D. A06/TQ2.0.72147E1



"To err is human; to forgive, divine... Neither of which is Marine Corps policy."
"In Onoraigh Ar Marbh" ~ We Honor Our Fallen

Me? 7... simulated!

Well, if we are making patches a must have ...

I was playing with a set of patches on one of my old dark blue Class C uniforms, trying to see what would make them unique, and not overly garish.

The eagle patch ... I think is overkill. Its big, shiny and blocky. Something that did look "different" was the "U.S. COLONIAL MARINES" rocker under the Delta. Together they did not look all that bad on a dark blue, or even black sleeve.

I also like solid buttons, because they are easier/cheaper to make and buy, and ... they are easier to polish!

I dunno, just another idea.