Vietnam Jungle Hammock

Posted on January 29, 2018May 25, 2023 by brad — Leave a comment

Sleeping in a hammock

When you are outdoors.

It’s hot, wet, and infested with mosquitoes, bugs and snakes; and the last place you want to lay-in for the night is on the jungle floor. A hammock is the best way to sleep out in the wild , since it offers you an escape from the ravages of extreme environments. We know that when you think hammock, a net material comes first to mind. The ventilation provided by a netting is perfectly optimal on the beach or out in the backyard on a lazy Sunday afternoon. But if you are on top of a 1 inch square mesh fabric, there is no protection offered against mosquitoes and biting flies. So the military developed the solid nylon material to sleep on. The nylon itself is heavy-gauge weave like the latest issue nylon cot covers are today. The jungle hammock is simple in design. A sleeve, sewn on each of the ends, allows for a braided nylon support rope to slip through each end allowing a simple bowline knot on the outside and the 10ft of nylon rope to hang this hammock between two structures (most likely trees). However, many an enterprising sleeper, has tied-off one end of the hammock to a vehicle, large tent, building or unique rock structure.

The hammock is multi-faceted and the first component is strength. The next is to shield against the elements such as protect against the rain, which in the jungles of Vietnam, can be torrential at times and linger-on for days. U.S. military engineers devised a way that allowed a rope down the length of the hammock, stretched between the two lines holding up the hammock. A special guy-line attachment on the support ropes allows for the roof support for the military issue poncho. Yes, the poncho that every fighter in Vietnam carried and wore, would make for the perfect roof on top of the jungle hammock. In addition, if the mosquitoes were especially bad, one could lay a mosquito net under the poncho as well.

While these original issue Vietnam hammocks are hot on the collectible and display market, they are great for your next camping trip as well. The solid material design becoming the norm in high-end camping hammocks. They are simple and very comfortable. Mesh net fabric has its drawbacks, not the least of which, you can get yourself pretty darn tangled up in those things.

M-1 Helmets

Posted on May 6, 2016October 3, 2023 by brad — Leave a comment

The military M-1 helmet was designed by the United States during World War 2 and was used until 1985. Its design is so simple and effective that many other countries adapted at least some form of the m-1. The iconic 2 pc helmet system features an outer steel shell and an inner safety type hard hat that carries a suspension system to allow the wearer to fit the helmet according to the size.

p 30565 hed2703 post ww2 steel pot helmet leather chinstrap 1 scaled

The steel pot was made from hardened manganese steel with a crimped outer rim made of stainless steel to give the helmet a smooth edge. In early ww2 the crimped steel ring met at the front of the helmet (called front weld) . By 1943 the weld was moved to the back. The steel pot holds a chinstrap via 2 metal rings or bails that was rarely worn around the chin as soldiers were afraid that the enemy could grab them from behind and use the strap to choke and pull them down. The “nape” strap that runs along the back of the neck was usually sufficient to hold the helmet securely to the head.

Early steel pots had fixed metal receivers or “bails” to hold the sewn cotton chinstrap. Because the fixed bails were prone to snapping off when the helmet was dropped or sat on, the bails were eventually made to swivel. Later chinstraps were nylon and easily clipped onto the helmet bails. Steel pots tend to last forever and are still relatively easy to find at just about any army navy store. It is the more fragile fiber liners that are the more difficult part of the m-1 helmet to locate.

p 28492 hed1444 Wwii Helmet Liner 2C Rough No Sweatband lg 2 — Ww2 Helmet Liners

At Omahas, we have not been able to sell many of the liners separately for quite some time as we have many more steel pots than liners and need them in order to sell complete sets.

The fiber liners have come in many different materials over the years and some even have paratrooper chinstraps on them for special model helmets. We have a good supply of the 1980’s paratrooper style helmet liners and it is the only m-1 liner we have available for sale separately.

p 26995 hed523 m 1 helmet liner paratrooper 1 e1516457034574 scaled — 1980’s Paratroop Liners

Vietnam Jungle Boots

Posted on April 29, 2016October 3, 2023 by brad — Leave a comment

The use of jungle boots in the military predates World War 2 where small units in Panama were given these to experiment with a boot that would protect their soldiers from the harmful effects of wet feet. The concept was not to keep the water out of the boot. That was impossible without wearing rubber. Rubber boots in a hot humid environment would not have been a good solution. The lightweight canvas upper and leather lower design that the military came up with included water drain holes in the instep to let water flow through. Along with a Saran mesh insole, the idea was to keep the wearer’s foot up off of the sole so that air could be exchanged with water through the drain holes. The drain holes featured a screen in order to keep the bugs out. Also, there was a stainless-steel plate inside the sole to keep out the “punji” stakes that were hidden in booby traps by the “VC”

By the time we were involved in Vietnam, several modifications and improvements were made to the boots. Most noticeably was the introduction of the “Panama” sole. This sole was designed to throw-off mud quicker. The jungle boot continued to be used throughout the 1970’s and 80’s. Some Marines even used the boot into the 1990’s. The green jungle boots were used in Desert Storm as well until the Type 1 Desert boot came along.

P-38 Can Opener

Posted on April 27, 2016October 3, 2023 by brad — Leave a comment

Many say the P38 can opener was named after the P-38 lighting fighter plane because you can get into a can of rations so fast. Others point to the fact that after you open a can of k-rations or c-rations with one of these little busters, you can count 38 puncture marks around the outside of the lid. However, the can opener also has a big brother called the p-51, but it leaves less puncture marks because of the size. Still another theory is that they are named after their measurement in millimeters.

p38 can opener original issue otg316 (1) — Original P-38 in paper wrapper for rations

They sit right there in front of any cash register, in any army navy store, across the US. An army surplus staple, every other customer either has a question about, or wants to tell you about, the p-38 can opener. Whether you call them a “John Wayne” like the US Marine Corps, or just a can opener, they are an absolute essential impulse item for those that have never seen them or those that already have one, or two, or ten.

At 98 cents apiece, you can’t go wrong. They do not take up any room in your gear bag or your pocket. Lightweight, strong and long lasting, they never run out of batteries. They never dull and you can open a can quicker with one of these than any other manual can opener on the market. There is a hole on one end so you can put one on your keychain and never be without a way into vintage can of k-rations, or Beenie weenies.

Omaha’s has them available in all original issue or current production. We still have some of the issues in original brown paper wrapping with instructions. Most of the ones you see now are manufactured by “Shelby’, but there were others who made them as well.

Why are they called a “John Wayne”? Good question.

They were actually developed back in World War 2, but back in the 60’s, the Duke did some training films for our boys in the military. One of those films just happened to be all about the can opener the military developed as a way for our boys to get into the cans of c-rations without having to carry a large scissor-type of kitchen utensil in their backpack. Cause let’s face it, who wants to carry large kitchenware around when you’re fighting the bad guys.

p 29145 msc1909 P 38 Can Opener 2C 4 Pk lg 2 — P 38 Can Opener

WW2 Army Leggings

Posted on April 25, 2016October 3, 2023 by brad — Leave a comment

We happened across an incredibly large stockpile of the cotton canvas khaki leggings many years ago and bought them all.

p 26247 bts96 ww2 leggings size 3 2 scaled — WW2 leggings size 3

Sizes available are 1 or 3. We at first thought that 3 was rather small and size 1 even smaller. However, that was before we realized that you do not wear them over an existing boot. Rather they become a way of turning a high-top leather shoe into a make-shift boot.

Made of durable canvas, the leg protectors offer guard against bugs, plants, rough terrain, snakes, and other annoying critters that can leave a soldier stranded with a foot or leg injury.

Dawning the leggings can seem quite daunting if you haven’t seen the procedure before. First, you lace the string back and through all the holes on one side of the spat. Tying the top and bottom off and leaving enough slack to pull each spaced string across the opposite hook on the other side of the leggings. In this way you can take them off and put them back on easily without having to pull the strings out of the holes like you would with a traditional shoe or boot.

For the WW1 or WW2 reenactor the legging is one of the iconic clues to the time period of an army ground troops uniform and is recognized the world over as classic to the look of a doughboy or WW2 soldier.

Mk15 Mod 4 Practice Bomb

Posted on April 21, 2016May 15, 2019 by brad — Leave a comment

Our Father bought these mk15 mod 4 100lb. practice bombs way back in 1982.

The blue metal bombs were new in the original packing crates of 20 each and probably one of the best finds “the Old Man” ever bought. Our dad recognized that these were not something you could just call up and get anytime you wanted them, so he bought them all. Today we still have quite a few remaining, and it is one of our most popular items for sale on the website.

The bombs are completely inert, as they were only used for training purposes. Pilots will drop this type of training device to practice getting the bombs to their desired target. The hollow, steel structures were filled with water and sand to a weight of 100 pounds. Note: they only weigh about 20 pounds empty so don’t worry about the UPS driver throwing out his back getting them to your door:-)

We ship them in custom heavy duty stapled cardboard boxes made right down the street at Ward Packaging company. The box and packaging material alone cost us about $18.00, but it is well worth it to protect the fins and insure their safe arrival to you.

We have sold these eye popping attention getters for just about anything you can imagine: movie props, man-cave decor, signs, donation and ticket-taking vessels, bar lights, door stops, trench art, etc.

Several of our cutomers have devised a way to cut them in half length wise and make pool table light fixtures.

If you have bought one of these from us, leave a comment and let us know how you used them!

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