6 Reasons to Buy a Vintage Vietnam Jacket

You can buy modern styles and new clothes, or you can save money and get something like a vintage Vietnam jacket like an M-65 field shirt or jacket, which will offer style that’s impossible to approach or replicate, and which probably will end up being more affordable than anything new production anyway.

That being said, the next time you’re in the market for a jacket, consider getting a vintage Vietnam jacket or any other military surplus jacket or coat instead of something new. In this particular instance, here are a few good reasons why.

Impeccable Style

Arguably the best reason, not just to add a vintage Vietnam jacket to your wardrobe, but actually to wear it, is that you can’t imitate or duplicate the style. There’s something missing from reproductions that’s captured by military surplus, and on top of that, the plain austerity of vintage field gear is something that’s hard to match in new production clothing.

In other words, there’s a style that’s communicated by vintage field shirts and jackets, not just those from the Vietnam era, that’s hard to replicate nowadays.

Comfort

The clothing worn in the field by our troops in Vietnam was not designed for style but for protection, and for comfort. First and foremost, field shirts and jackets tend to be roomy and comfortable, in the case of clothing issued to troops in Vietnam, particularly in hot, wet weather.

Modern M-65 field shirts and jackets are often made from durable yet comfortable ripstop cotton blends and are comfortable worn on their own or layered in cooler weather. Either way, they’re not restrictive, tend to be highly breathable, and overall fairly comfortable in a wide range of different conditions.

Functionality

Vintage Vietnam jackets aren’t just practical for cultivating an aesthetic of ruggedness commonly found in alternative streetwear. Since they were designed to perform in active combat zones, they are also highly functional.

As light jackets for use in warm to cool weather, they are highly comfortable and practical, but they also tend to be roomy enough to allow you to add a few layers underneath for when the weather is colder than usual.

Beyond that, these jackets are commonly colored OD green or sport camouflage patterns, both of which are highly practical in the field when some degree of concealment is necessary. This makes these jackets useful for airsoft, paintball, reenactment, and of course, for hunting.

Plus, given their comfort, utility, general durability, versatility, and adequate storage, there are numerous use cases for these types of shirts and jackets.

Storage

One of the great things about the vintage Vietnam jackets we offer here is that they offer so much storage. One thing you don’t want in a field shirt or jacket is a design that’s devoid of places to store your personal effects, and fortunately these are no exception to that maxim.

Depending on the jacket or shirt, or on the design it is trying to replicate, normally you’ll get somewhere around 4 pockets on one of these, sometimes more. Most are made with 2 breast pockets and many also sport 2 additional waist pockets.

The best part is that these are often buttoned pockets, which adds a little security onto the fact that there’s some extra storage to begin with.

Durability

Many vintage Vietnam jackets are made from a durable, ripstop cotton fabric or cotton blend. While there are certainly tougher, more durable, more abrasion resistant fabrics out there, these are far from bad, and do resist tears, helping to prevent them from traveling in the fabric.

Either way, there are some really tough Vietnam jackets and shirts on our website that will hang with you through some seriously adverse conditions and which will still continue to perform, season after season.

Affordability

Lastly, but definitely not least, we have the fact that many pieces of vintage field gear and military surplus are shockingly affordable, especially when contrasted with new production equivalents, or the closest thing to.

The irony is that rarely does new production clothing match the quality and durability of the old stuff, so when you end up paying more for new, you’re actually getting less value. To us, that just doesn’t make any sense.

Either buy original vintage gear or get a reproduction that’s designed to capture everything about the old stuff that made it great in the first place. You’ll get more for your money when you do it that way.

Go Beyond Vintage Vietnam Jackets

Vintage Vietnam jackets only constitute a small cross section of the military surplus gear and other reproduction field gear and clothing and outerwear that we sell here. Take a closer look through our collections to get familiar with what we offer and refresh your outdoor wardrobe today.