The new uniform.

[Gold Winger]

"Velcro is used by the military with field uniforms to attached badges that often change."

 

I've beem told by a few Army officers that the velcro patches are not very popular with the troops.

 

One colonel of the field artillery told me that the ACU is the worst uniform that he's ever worn.

 

What is so difficult about sewing on a rank patch? Other than laziness, there's no reason not to.

 

 

[Sephrina]

The comment regarding the pocket being for an mp3 player came straight from my local scout shop manager.

 

Karen

[Echotascouter]

I am interested in seeing the new design. I am new to scouter network. How can I access the images of the new design?

[FScouter]

See pictures:

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~bobgeier/BSA_newuniform.pdf

 

http://www.bsauniforms.org

[ManyHats]

Will the changes affect cub scout leaders/comittee members? Some of our members serve on both comittees. Will they need 2 different uniforms?

[emb021]

"Will the changes affect cub scout leaders/comittee members? Some of our members serve on both comittees."

 

Both of what committees?

 

The current BSA uniform will still be official. Nothing forces you to go to the new uniform. It remains to be seen if this uniform will be used alongside the current one, or if the current one will 'go away' when the stock is depleted.

 

"Will they need 2 different uniforms?"

 

Why would they need to do that? AGAIN, the current uniform will still be an official uniform. In face, ANY past BSA uniform is still an official uniform and may be worn. I do see, on occasion, people wearing the pre-Oscar De Larente uniform. Perfectly fine, and still official.

 

[ManyHats]

Sorry I didn't clarify. We have adults serving on both the Pack and Troop committees. The change that is most noticeable is the red numbers and trained patches going to green. I think I read that Webelos wearing a tan shirt continue to use red numbers and blue loops. I assume Cub Scout Leaders/Committee do the same. So if you serve both the Pack and Troop and the Troop switches to the green, do you have two uniforms, or just pick one or the other?

[emb021]

"So if you serve both the Pack and Troop and the Troop switches to the green, do you have two uniforms, or just pick one or the other?"

 

First off, as I noted they are NOT required to get this new uniform. The current uniform(s) they have are fine.

 

What is NOT clear is how this new uniform affects OTHER programs that use the tan shirt.

 

What do Webelos do? No idea.

 

What do Cub Scout adult leader do? No idea.

 

What do Council/district (and higher) adult leaders do? No idea.

 

I would think that the only thing that one would need to do with this new uniform would be to put the appropriate office patch and shoulder loops (ie, that the blue, silver, and gold loops are ok to wear on this uniform) and you're good to go. But nothing has been said.

 

The new uniform comes out in August. Unless these people need to get a new uniform, my view would be just don't bother. Wear the uniform you've got. Am sure we'll get more info when the uniform is rolled out then.

 

[davlafont]

Anyone notice that BSA's video clip has one image of the shirt backward/reversed? It's the segment showing the shirt in rolled-sleeve mode. I only noticed because it suggests that there's a pocket on the right sleeve, but then the image changes to the long-sleeve mode and the pocket is gone. After that caught my eye, it was easy to see all the left-side patches on the right side, etc.

 

I too would like to know how the new uniform changes will trickle into other programs. As a Cub Scout leader, I'll stick to the current field uniform but I'd like to make the move to modern fabrics and functional design.

 

No hurry, but there ARE second- and third-order effects that need to be addressed. As a veteran of several US Army uniform changes (to include the current change of our service/dress uniform from green to blue), I know that the bugs won't get worked out overnight.

 

YIS,

Dave(This message has been edited by davlafont)

[emb021]

"Anyone notice that BSA's video clip has one image of the shirt backward/reversed?"

 

I noticed, after re-watching in a couple of times. Kind of annoying, and you have to wonder who thought that was a good idea...

 

Frankly, I would have liked to have a seen a little more variety in the selection of patches on the uniform, if only to shut up certain 'discussion' points about it. Wish they would have included samples with a Lodge flap, Jamboree patch, and some knots...

 

"I too would like to know how the new uniform changes will trickle into other programs."

 

Totally agree. Pictures taken of the sample shown at the Scout Shop at the National Meeting has gold loops on it.

 

"No hurry, but there ARE second- and third-order effects that need to be addressed."

 

Uniform comes out in mid-August. At a minimum, having more info would slow down the speculation.

 

Some of the things not clear:

 

* How does this uniform affect Webelos Scout? (assumption, not at all, they just wear blue loops, etc).

 

* How does this uniform affect Varsity Scouts? (assumption, not at all, just wear the orange loops, etc.)

 

* How does this uniform affect Cub Scout leaders? (assumption, not at all, they just wear blue loops, etc)

 

* How does this uniform affect district/council/area/region/national scouters? (assumption, not at all, they just wear silver or gold loops, etc)

 

* Any issue with wearing lodge flaps, jamboree patches, knots? (assumption, none at all. wear them as you would with the current uniform shirt)

 

* How does the spacing of the left pocket on the sleeve affect the size of CSPs or the existance of veteran unit tabs? (assumption that you wouldn't be able to make oversized CSPs, no idea about the veteran unit tabs, as there is now no room for them).

 

* With the new color for the unit numbers for this new uniform, will they be allowed on the current (ie older) scout shirts? Are white on red unit numbers allowed on this new shirt? (assumption is that white on red is not allowed, would think the khaki/tan not allowed on the current shirt, but no clear directive on this. white on red unit numbers are STILL needed, btw, for blue cub scout and green venturing uniforms.)

 

* With the new color for the boy scout loops (forest green instead of red), how does this affect Venturing and its used of the slightly brighter spruce green? (really, how do you answer that?? You just know some people will get them confused...)

 

* With the new color for the boy scout loops (forest green instead of red), how does this affect the use of red? Are red loops restricted to the current uniform? Are the forest green llops allowed on the current uniform or restricted to this new uniform? (really, how do you answer that??? I would think the loops would be restricted to the particular shirt, but you just KNOW that won't happen...)

 

 

Now, some of these you can kind of guess the answer. Some are more tricky. Personally, not loosing any sleep over it. But it would have been nice if these answers were given when this uniform was rolled out, and since many of us knew this was coming, I think many of us assumed this would be the case.

 

 

 

[Bob White]

I do not think you can say that the uniform has been "rolled out" yet since you cannot actually purchase it at this time. According to the available information it will not be for sale until the fall.

 

That still gives the BSA months to get the details communicated.

 

Patience is a virtue.

[MarkS]

I have more than enough unifrom clothing to satisfy the needs of our program. I think I'll keep wearing it until it wears out. I have a couple of the older shorts that I bought before switchbacks that I no longer need. Think I'll try to sell them on ebay. Also have a couple of the older long pants. I wear those to troop meetings during the winter so I can save my two Switchbacks for camping.

[GKlose]

I'm a newly-registered adult volunteer, and I think I'll wait before buying a uniform, just see what the new duds looks like in person (I guess I'm kind of disturbed by the pocketage too), and hope that old shirts are still available in case I don't like the new ones.

 

But the real purpose of my note is this: as I recall, when I was a newish scout back in 1972, one of our JASM's went off to the Philmont Training Center for a course. When he came back, he not only had a new uniform to model for us, and he had grand stories of the new program (skill awards, et al). I remember thinking it was all very cool at the time.

 

So my guess now is that, in general, scouts will welcome the change, and parents will not, perhaps hoping for aging out or growth spurts before changing anything.

 

(My own son will probably outgrow his tan shirt within a year, so we'll wait -- I'm not so sure about the 2-for-1 switchbacks, though -- if those last awhile, he'll be wearing them awhile)

[Gold Winger]

New and different is usually cool to the young and not so cool to the older. Why is that? As we age, we usually learn that change for the sake of change is rarely a good thing and we also learn to evaluate the new and determine if it corrected any of the defects in the old.

 

One big flaw with the new shirt just occurred to me. The new design offers no features to keep it tucked in. A slippery fabric isn't going to help keep it in. A square cut tail isn't a bit of help.

 

Proprerly fit trousers probably would help but getting today's teens to buy pants that fit is like . . . I don't know but it's difficult.

 

Maybe they could put rubber grippy things in the waistband like they have in my referee unifrom to hold the shirt in.

 

 

[schooley117]

That should only apply to the 100% nylon shirt. The cotton/polyester new shirt shouldn't be as bad.