I am wanting to find a better Union Officer uniform than i have now if any one can help me out then please do so.
paul kepper  

--Last edited by ltkepper on 2008-08-16 10:11:34 --

Hi,

Welcome to the forum, please sign your posts with both your first and last name per the forum rules.

Thanks!

i will do so

Paul:

If you're inquiring about authentic clothing on the Union side, I believe you'd do well to visit Nick Sekela's site, along with Don Smith's of the Trans-Mississippi Depot. I'm sure there are others, but, since I do the Confederate thing, I'm not all that familiar with authentic Union clothing suppliers.

FWIW, I think Trans-Miss Depot is on an "in stock only" basis for the time being due to a back-log of orders.

Hope this helps

Mark,

Thanks for the plug on Nick's gear.

Speaking of Nick Sekela, I recently received one of his forage caps.  This forage cap was actually better than what I had anticipated and I had some high expectations.  It made all the others forage caps in this house look sad.

I have to agree with Curtis on this one.  I also ride as Confederate as my primary impression but often have to galvanize.  Just so I do not fade completely into the mass sea of blue (vanity requires small concessions!) I don my Lincoln McDowell cap.  Great quality and attention to detail and quite spiffy!  I own way too much of Mr. Sekela's products to be truly objective.

  Hallo!
 
 Define "western theater?"  ;)
 Are you thinking Kentucky or Tennessee, or rather  "New Mexico."

 IMHO, you may want to consider that officers purchased their own uniforms and gear (from military clothiers and tailors)- some like Custer having more money and leeway as a general than he did as a lieutenant or captain.  Junior company type officers also had to contend with how strict their colonels or generals were in how "regulation" or "by the book" they ran their outfits.  Plus, practice as well as regulations later allowed officers to use enlistedmen's clothing and gear.
 And last, there is always the personal druthers, statements, and "visual impressions" of dress an officer wished to present about himself.

 I would suggest looking through surviving CW images of actual officers for ideas of what "suits" you, your F/M/C/P/H/A needs and requirements, and your wallet.

 And, if you are portraying a particular unit at a particular time and place, research and documentation may reveal what that impression would entail.  

 Yes there are vendors who will make "authentic" officers kit, although that can tend to be on a custom-order basis compared to the "everyday" line of products they offer (as the demand is smaller for officer).
 
  Others' mileage will vary...

   Curt

i am thinking like around Tennessee thou Louisiana
Lt Paul Kepper  

--Last edited by ltkepper on 2008-08-11 17:08:28 --

Amen to the Sekala forage cap.  I got mine and before I got it out of the box even my wife could tell the quality.