Some time ago, I bought a British army sidepack from Silvermans in London. I don't know much about this stuff, but it's 44 pattern or 58 pattern. It's grey and ... well, that's about it.

The point is, after relatively little use, it's fraying badly down one seam. The one before also fell to pieces pretty quickly, especially the strap.

Does anyone know if this British canvas clobber is supposed to be treated in some way, or is it all dodgy?

This isn't one of those nasty and cheap import sidepacks that Silvermans sells (Chinese made or something). This looks like the "real" thing (but it doesn't have the MOD crows foot thingy inside). However, it's worn prematurely. At least, I think it has. The govenor himself flogged it to me as genuine, and it smelled pretty old when I got it.

Any views on this stuff? Or should I buy German in future?

email (option): dannydefazio@sumpmagazine.com

Don't blame the army Danny. If it's grey then it's not theirs ! Airforce or Civil Defence ?

Blanco was used for keeping it tidy looking but I don't think that it has any protective effect. They're usually proof to anything except mice.

I believe that some of the wartime Indian-made webbing wasn't of the same quality and stocks in the UK could have come from anywhere. Many countries manufactured British-style webbing for their post-war forces. Are there any markings at all ?

Hello Rik, thanks for that. I should have realised that it wasn't likely to be army, but I use that term very loosely. It never occured to me to question anything. I just bought it when I was looking for a heavy duty sidepack to put my toys in and hung it round my neck.

But no, there's no markings at all. It's mid-grey. No pockets. One flap. Two front straps. A bit larger than A4 paper and four or five inches wide. It's the same basic thing I've seen soldiers and ARP wardens carrying (I think).

Not sure what the fittings are made off (or whatever they're called). They look brass, and were pretty oxidized when I bought it, though. But I think I was told that they weren't actually brass, but some other metal. I think the brass stuff was earlier. But you'd know more about that.

I've also got a couple of army rucksacks (or backpacks) in khaki. These have the crows foot device inside, but the quality looks the same as the side packs. As I said, it looks like it ought to last forever, but like the last one (bought somewhere else a few years earlier), it's wearing badly. Maybe it was made by British Leyland.

I just wondered if maybe the MOD figured that the average Tommy wasn't going to last much longer than the sidepacks, anyway, so they didn't have them built to the right spec. Also, I need another one and was wondering if there's stuff to avoid.

email (option): dannydefazio@sumpmagazine.com

Hey Danny,
That sounds like a 37 patt small pack to me, look at ebay 221173784964.
There are still loads of these in surplus shops around here, but they are not as cheap as they used to be. It makes you wonder just how many were produced.
Cheers, Mick.

email (option): mick@motorbikemike.org.uk

I was under the impression that all the British WD stuff from the war/early post war period was marked and dated?...Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com

Hi Mick, yes that looks like the same thing. Except that the one on eBay says it's got two front pockets (must be inside).

But like I said, Silvermans told me mine was either a 1940s pattern, or 1950s pattern. Been in the basement or something.

I was just surprised that it had worn so much and wondered if I'd inadvertently abused (by not putting some kind of blanco type stuff on it) that's all.

Note to Ian: definitely no WD markings, so maybe it's a copy. But still, the fabric is very thick, and when it gets wet, it's like heavy cardboard.

email (option): dannydefazio@sumpmagazine.com

danny dont forget some of these packs/webbing are from the mid 1940 and would be 70 years old so i should think some stitching/webbing would be rotten and frayed i have stiched some webbing packs myself as the original stitching has rotted

email (option): roger.beck@node6.com

Yes..I bought a pile of late 40's early 50's large packs for the webbing material...They were still tied in bundles with the original string. Some bundles showed the signs of damp storage and of these some just required a light tug to pull the stitched seams apart..The cotton had completely lost its strength...Also it wasn't difficult to tear the material.
Much of this stuff hasn't been stored carefully enough...ask Rob Miller about the time the arm came off his DR coat.. ...Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com