1949 sleeping bag

[5MadFarmers]

The oddity I found in the bags is the M-1942. Two sizes with the stock numbers listed in the QM catalog. Strangely the stock number on the bags (3 examples seen) is 10 higher (-280 instead of -270). That stock number (-280) is an evacuation bag (viewed one).

They were confused.

[Johnny P]

I had one of the evacuation/casualty bags, and it was super insulated with down. Don't know if my son still has it or not.

[BlitzKrieg]

I slept many a cold miserable night in that model bag. It was barely adequate and my feet always were cold in it.
Weight was too much and forget it if your luck ran out and it got wet.

It was made cheap and half great on its best day. I slept in the KW versions, right up to the late 70s era versions: all unsat but its all we had
in the infantry.

I don't miss it. It needs to sent back to North Koreans who devised it to make my life miserable.

[joem]

Had one of those in my bunker (RVN) 68-69. Didn't really need a bag that heavy.

[Maury Krupp]

...It was made cheap and half great on its best day...

Man, you got that right.

Uncle Sugar wouldn't spring for 100% down so he mixed in crushed chicken feathers

Couldn't afford to put in a proper inside flap for the zipper either. Nothing like rolling over and hitting that ice cold metal zipper at two in the morning

Or trying to pull it up just a tiny bit more to keep in what little warmth you managed to generate only to have the whole zip come undone thanks to the "quick release" feature

Better than nothing but even by 1960-70s standards for sleeping bags it was a real POS.

Maury

[thorin6]

When I deployed for Desert Shield/Storm, I ditched the bag (I, too, remember Korea in the winter time), and took two poncho lines, had one sewed up and a velcro opening added, and bought a gortex bivy from Campmore (not sure they're in business any more). I added a sheet also sewn up (not all the way) and layered the entire set up as the temps dropped below freezing (yes, it gets cold in the desert at night). If it really got cold I'd just put on my wool knit cap and wrap my field jacket around my feet. I was never cold sleeping, and the entire set up was light. Now I find that the Army uses the same system (with different components, of course, and skipping the field jacket around the feet!).

[dave]

We had them in Korea ( lived in tents--AF) no blanket just the bag.

[Silver80]

I hear you.....that's what we did in Korea in the '50s.except we were in tents.