m75 chinstrap

[James C]

picked up this replacement chinstrap for my 1983 dated ground troops m1 this upgrade replaced the t1 hook and claw chinstrap and was the final version before the pasgt's introduction of which it looks very similar ,in my opinion its very close in design to the vietnam m1c too,well i havent fully commited to the upgrade as i cant bare to cut the original stitched on straps off so im leaving them in place on the bails im now wondering how this liner managed to dodge the upgrade back in the day ,in case your wondering why this m1 is fitted with the fall side of the mitchell cover ,southern comfort was one of my favorite films as a small child the drink became a favorite later on these upgrades can also be found on the m1 euroclones ,i can bring to mind the danish m48 as an example on a side note the shell i later found out was a reissued ww2 period schlueter

[battle gear]

hi James, the soldiers in the movie Southern Comfort also wore a mixture WWII sewn on chin straps & Vietnam era T1 straps so your helmet would be correct with the sewn on straps

they appear to be wearing a variety of camo covers, one looks like a ERDL type, another looks like a faded KW style camo cover and they have the metal subdued metal rank insignia on the front of their helmets.

the clip on straps with web chin cup date from around 1973 - 1983 era , Ive seen photos of US Marines during Operation Frequent Wind during the Fall of Saigon in April 1975 with those straps.

[James C]

many thanks for the info and superb picture stills ,so my m75 designation is incorrect more m73 ,ie got a subdued metal insignia someplace i will dig it out to complete the look of powers boothe's m1 ,i never noticed the erdl covers ill have to watch the film again with a keen eye ,cracking film all the same ,thanks again for your help mate

[battle gear]

I could be wrong but this photo kind of looks like a erdl camo cover?

[James C]

i think you could be right there Battle gear" remo armed and dangerous well thanks to your pictures i managed to find and mount that subdued staff sergeant insignia into the headband as i dont want to damage the mitch cover ,there a lot rarer over here in the uk so best not damage ,also just to compare chinstraps ive placed my nam m1c alongside

[James C]

i notice there are a few OD covers in the film too battlegear

[Opex]

Great looking M1's James, also your fitting of all the accessories finishes then off nicely,have a good crimbo mate

[ruddersrangers44]

Very nice display james,looks great with all the trimmings,neither you or BG are wrong with the dates,first introduced in Feb 1973 but only as a kit form field replacement,normal T1 chinstraps continued to be added on the production line,only after April 1975 was the chinstrap added on the final production M1 contract awarded to RJ Stampings Company Ltd of Montreal, Quebec Canada.

[James C]

many thanks gary for the nice comps and merry christmas to you too mate and also thanks to you too rudders ,very diplomatic of you seriously though some great follow up info regarding the date of issue for the strap ,ive learned something new ,all the best to you and yours cheers james

[Steelhead10]

Very nice and will display well too.