V505 Australian-made A2

[jack aranda]

Good morning,
I'm coming to the party a bit late, and, I've nothing new to add about the jacket that is topic of this thread. But, I have a historical point: the 'I' in CBI does NOT stand for Indochina, as averred by tater; it stands for India. I wouldn't care 'a toss', as Andrew says, but, the CBI patch in my GW A-2 came from my Dad's service blouson; he drove from Lido, India to Kunming, China on the Burma, or Lido Road in 1945. i don't recall him mentioning any detours through Cambodia or Viet Nam.

 

[Andrew]

I came second- no prize.

Anyone here responsible for beating me? :cry:

 

[tater]

Good morning,
I'm coming to the party a bit late, and, I've nothing new to add about the jacket that is topic of this thread. But, I have a historical point: the 'I' in CBI does NOT stand for Indochina, as averred by tater; it stands for India. I wouldn't care 'a toss', as Andrew says, but, the CBI patch in my GW A-2 came from my Dad's service blouson; he drove from Lido, India to Kunming, China on the Burma, or Lido Road in 1945. i don't recall him mentioning any detours through Cambodia or Viet Nam.

I never said the "I" was for Indochina, I know it stands for India I said that the 22d BG operated in the China and coastal Indochina areas and that USN units that flew in those areas were also known to have CBI patches. Odd since technically the "C" was only western China near Burma/India (at least in the original theater designation)—though the CBI included Malaya and Thailand.

Sorry if I created a misunderstanding (you should see the CBI section of my library, it's several linear-feet).

 

[Jason]

I just took a closer look at the photos within the auction, and noted the guy mentions he thinks its kangaroo.
Don't know about that. In some respects it has graining & creasing a little bit like horsehide, but in other parts it does look like it could be calf/steer hide. But I'm looking at the worn parts of the leather, and it doesn't have the characteristics of worn horsehide to my eyes. Horsehide when worn seems to produce long thready bits... the fibres in this leather seem to be shorter, almost like goatskin.

So what could it be?
Goat...? Probably not. Until about the 1970s we had a vibrant manufacturing industry where we'd source as much of any raw material locally. We didn't have a big supply of goats here in the 1940s and it probably wasn't a commercial market supply item then as best I can tell. However it is interesting to note that Australia is now the worlds top exporter of goat meat (most of it with skin still on the carcass).

Horse...? Maybe. We still had a lot of horses in the 1940s when trading had recently ceased, so perhaps this was seen as a readily available source of hides? Again interesting to note is that Australia has been quietly exporting horse meat since the 1970s, and that we have two abbotoirs and dozens of knackerys.

Kangaroo...? Unlikely. Harvesting of kangaroo meat & skins is a relatively new industry here, I think the first I heard of it was in the late 1970s.

Steer...? This would actually be my most likely pick. We've always had a strong beef & dairy industry, and an associated leather production.

From these photos alone, combined with my amateur research & knowledge gained from a specialist (think goat, deer, kangaroo, wallaby etc) meat supplier just up the road from me, I'd guess the V505 was made with either more likely steer or perhaps horse, with goat & kangaroo being outside contenders.

Never did get around to asking Stagg at Foster that day if they knew any more of their history. Will have to wait until the local holiday period is over now.

 

[Jason]

Finally have made a phone call to Stagg in Foster, Victoria this morning after stumbling across my note to remind me to make the call.
The fellow who answered explained that Stagg as a company went bankrupt around 1988, and he bought the company at that point. All corporate history was lost then unfortunately... though the fellow did go on to explain that it was his understanding that Stagg were making gloves for the war at the time, which adds a little bit of weight to the argument that V505 may be Stagg. Unfortunately thats where the conversation ran dry, as he couldn't think of anyone that might have the information to prove or deny the link between V505 and Stagg.

Unfortunately the mystery will continue for the time being.

 

[Andrew]

Thanks for doing that Jason. It's a typical story (see Rich's comment about Wareings) but it's hard to understand how old company records could just be lost so easily like that, unless it was due to flood or fire. When these types of leads run dry I doubt whether any more info will ever surface. I've tried searching the National Archives in the past but no luck either.

 

[Jason]

JC's keen eye for detail has found this image of a USAAF serviceman wearing a V505, thanks John for passing this gem on:

http://www.footnote.com/image/#55663315

 

[Roughwear]

JC's keen eye for detail has found this image of a USAAF serviceman wearing a V505, thanks John for passing this gem on:

http://www.footnote.com/image/#55663315

Jason, I believe John is correct. The picture is of Brigadier General Thomas E Rilea wearing a V505.