Ditch the Neckerchief

[Stosh]

Our Philmont contingent had neckers.  Everyone signed everyone else's necker and it made a nice momento.

[WissX]

Nice. Maybe our camp staff can do that

[Back Pack]

Our youth leaders ditcched ours. Many happy faces.

[Stosh]

I still have my camp necker (a lot cheaper than a t-shirt) from my years at scout camp.  I have many of the high adventure neckers as well.  To each their own.  When I was getting ready for Philmont and hyping up the boys, I would wear different high adventure neckers from my past and it started a lot of discussions.  When each boy got a necker for Philmont, as I stated earlier, the others signed them and I, too, have another necker in my collection.

 

My boys in my current troop opted for patrol neckers.  Adults wear blaze orange cloth with white border, the border for the boys, (currently only one patrol) is black.  When we get enough boys for a second patrol, they can chose their own color.

 

My boys voted to have neckers, 36" square ones, and use them for many tasks around camp and at camporee competitions.

Edited May 22, 2017 by Stosh

[Eagledad]

Take a look at this, and then go read the "Iconic Mayday Scout image" discussion in the Issues and Politics section.

 

For all the uniform options discussions we have had on this forum, I found the picture striking. Anyone in the world knew at first glance the organization to which she belong. I wish the GSUSA was so bold. 

 

 http://i.imgur.com/9UKDt6W.jpg

 

Barry

[Sentinel947]

I'd rather ditch the overpriced uniform shirts and pants than ditch the necker.

[Col. Flagg]

I'd rather ditch the overpriced uniform shirts and pants than ditch the necker.

 

Have you priced the neckers. They used to be $5. Recently they were $6.99. They are now $9.99!!! And that's for the generic ones. The Webelos one is $11!!! Custom ones are $13. Slides are $6!!!!

 

Sorry, but $20 for a part of the uniform the boys hate to wear, and lose fairly often, is too expensive.

 

Agree on the expensive uniform shirts and pants, but for the pants there are other options that are half the price and look the same.

[TAHAWK]

Make your own.  Might cost $1.00.  Need a sewing machine and operator.  One of the Dads.  

 

With what is going on around us and all the cool topics, it is striking that eight pages are devoted to a detail.

 

In the interest of dealing with the obvious boredom:

 

I think the buttons are too small on the shirts.

 

We should go back to all-dark khaki uniforms.  WWII is over and that color fabric is now available,  Much more stylish - "Coyote Brown"

 

Too many things to sew on.  Replace many with things that snap on the epaulets - rank and office to start since they change regularly.

 

Return to patrol "colors" pinned on shoulder.  One less thing to sew on.

 

Lose the plastic backing on the patches - makes sewing harder than it needs to be.

 

Official "Boonie" hat for $14.99.  Keep the sun off the neck and ears with something you can roll up, stick in a pocket, and wash.

 

[Stosh]

We make our own neckers, use basic cotton, blaze orange, 36" square, the Mrs. surges the edges and there are no markings on the necker.  Cheap, useful and the boys like them.  Saw a boy using his necker as a hot pad, another used his to hold his pudgy pie, and followed it up as a napkin.  They wash, no big deal.  This was two weeks ago at the camporee.  If they didn't use them, I wouldn't worry about it, but my boys come with shirts, with tails out, every sort of pants imaginable, and the necker.   

[Col. Flagg]

We have too much going on to "make your own" for an item the guys would rather see done away with totally. If we had a meeting to do this we'd get 5 guys showing up, mostly because they didn't read their email about what the meeting was about. This would be right up next to the "bring your youngest sibling to Scouts and baby sit them" night. 

 

Smaller units might  be able to do this, but larger ones where the necker is not popular, this would be a non-starter.

[TAHAWK]

[TAHAWK]

[Col. Flagg]

Well, BSA has to move along with the times, so we always hear. Maybe getting rid of the necker is just another step in the name of progress. 

[TAHAWK]

Important to keep up with the times.

 

 

Wouldn't want to be left behind the more successful Scouting programs

 

 

 

 

 

 

Must be cool.

 

 

But some things are hard to forget.

 

 

[qwazse]

Well, BSA has to move along with the times, so we always hear. Maybe getting rid of the necker is just another step in the name of progress. 

Judging from the current National Leadership photos (http://www.scoutingnewsroom.org/about-the-bsa/national-leadership/), they have.

But, there also was a brouhaha last year (I think) when Scouting published a photo of Wayne Perry in tan shirt and brown pants.

 

Meanwhile, a couple weeks ago some scouts were going over first aid, so I asked them if they could secure their victim's sprained ankle.

Cricket's.

I say "Pity that we don't have a triangular bandage that we can fold into something that might brace a foot ..."

Off comes a necker, and away they go!

Edited May 24, 2017 by qwazse