Posted: 12/6/2005 9:28:50 AM EDT
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The Army Field Jacket w/liner or the Army ECW Parka? We have been having a discussion on this and I would like more soldier input. I think our consensus was that the ECW was warmer if layered w/field jacket liner. |
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The parka is very bulky and very warm. I spent four years trudging around the forests of the FRG and only used mine on (stationary) guard duty, in the cold part of Winter, at night. If the temp is below 0F or you're sitting still use the parka otherwise the jacket with liner should be enough. |
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By itself the Gore-Tex is not as warm as the field jacket, also by itself. The Gore-Tex is nylon which feels cold to the tough and is pretty much a very heavy wind breaker or rain coat, the field jacket is two layers more of nylon-cotten. Add the field jacket liner to either one, and they are about the same, plus the Gore-Tex will block wind better and keep you dry. The field jacket even though treated to be water repellant, will eventually get wet and have a negative insulating value. If you are talking the old OD green parka, then it by itself was not as warm as the field jacket either. It's only a single layer of material to the field jackets 2. With the liner in, it's still not as warm for the same reason. It wasn't meant to be worn alone. It was supposed to go over the field jacket with liner. The old layering system was cold-wet: Wool shirt and pants, with field jacket and liner. The cold-dry (or arctic really) added the cold weather parka with liner, pants with liner, mickey mouse boots, and trigger finger mittens. |