At Marine South WL Gore told me that the the Woodland version of the Combat Desert Jacket would soon be approved for wear but that it would be a private purchase item. About three weeks ago I got an email from a reader on Okinawa who was looking to purchase one. I’m not sure if any have shown up in Clothing Sales but the MARADMIN is out authorizing their purchase and wear.
It’s a softshell garment featuring a lightweight, water-resistant fabric with a Gore membrane that is engineered to withstand rain, wind, and sand. Additionally, there are strategically placed stretch zones for increased flexibility and mobility. There is also a moisture-wicking lining. The CDJ also incorporates 99.9 percent pure silver in the gridded fleece lining to inhibit the growth of odor-causing bacteria and fungi in the garment. Early in the production of the original CDJ there were issues getting the printing to match on all of the different fabrics, but they long ago mastered that issue and as you can see from the photo, it looks great.
This waist length jacket features a chest mounted rank tab as well as a single chest and bicep pocket. Finally, there are slash handwarmer pockets on either side.
R 161326Z MAY 13
UNCLASSIFIED/
MARADMIN 248/13
MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC DMCS MCUB//
SUBJ/COMBAT WOODLAND JACKET//
REF/A/DOC/MCUB//31 MAR 03//
REF/B/DOC/MCUB//8 DEC 2009//
NARR/REF A IS MCO P1020.34G CHANGE 1-5; THE MARINE CORPS UNIFORM REGULATIONS/REF B IS MARADMIN 704/09; PROCEEDINGS OF MARINE CORPS UNIFORM BOARD NO. 211//
POC/NH III HARVEY WALKER, MCSC, PDM ICE/PM-13/TEL:-(703)432-3617 OR DSN 378-3617/EMAIL HARVEY.WALKER1(AT)USMC.MIL//
GENTEXT/REMARKS/1. PER CMC DECISION,THE COMBAT WOODLAND JACKET (CWJ) IS AUTHORIZED FOR WEAR WITH THE MARINE CORPS COMBAT UTILITY UNIFORM (MCCUU), AS AN OPTIONAL UNIFORM ITEM, PER THE COMMANDER’S DISCRETION. THE CWJ IS A LIGHTWEIGHT, WIND RESISTANT, WATER/SNOW RESISTANT, AND SAND RESISTANT JACKET INTENDED TO PROVIDE MULTI-CLIMATE PROTECTION, HAVE MINIMAL IMPACT ON THE COMBAT LOAD, AND UTILIZES DIGITAL MARPAT WOODLAND PRINTED FABRICS FEATURING MOISTURE MANAGEMENT, ODOR REDUCTION, AND BREATHABILITY CHARACTERISTICS. THE CWJ IS DESIGNED TO BE WORN WITH THE WOODLAND MCCUU DURING WINTER MONTHS PER ALMAR 035/07. THE CWJ IS AN OUTER GARMENT WITH A RANK TAB LOCATED ON THE LEFT FRONT OF JACKET FOR PLACEMENT OF RANK INSIGNIA. THE CWJ COVERS THE MCCUU BLOUSE.
2. THE CWJ WILL NOT BE FIELDED BY MARINE CORPS SYSTEMS COMMAND (MCSC), BUT WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR OPTIONAL PURCHASE VIA MARINE CORPS CLOTHING STORES (MCCS) AND OTHER APPROVED RETAIL STORES. ONLY THOSE JACKETS WITH A VALID MARINE CORPS CERTIFICATION APPROVAL NUMBER, PER PARAGRAPH 1007 OF REF (A), WILL BE AUTHORIZED FOR WEAR WITH THE MCCUU.
3. PER REF (B), EXTREME COLD WEATHER SYSTEM (ECWS) ITEMS, TO INCLUDE COMMAND ISSUED AND PERSONALLY OWNED GENERATION I AND II ECWS, ALL PURPOSE ENVIRONMENTAL CLOTHING SYSTEM (APECS), COMBAT DESERT JACKET (CDJ), MCCUU CAPS/HATS, AND THE CWJ, ARE NOT AUTHORIZED FOR WEAR AS CIVILIAN ATTIRE. GEN I ECWCS GORTEX AND TRI-COLOR GORTEX ARE NOW OBSOLETE ITEMS AND NO LONGER FALL UNDER THESE REGULATIONS (THEY MAYBE WORN AS CIVILIAN ATTIRE WHEN APPROPRIATE TO THE OCCASION).
4. QUESTIONS MAY BE REFERRED TO MR. HARVEY WALKER, PDM ICE, MCSC, AT COMM (703)432-3617 OR DSN 378-3617.
5. RELEASE AUTHORIZED BY COL T.S. DESGROSSEILLIERS, PMCUB.//
Tags: W.L. Gore
What is the mercury content of the silver being used?
That’s a very interesting question to ask. Why would you ask it?
The USMC will now issue a silver lining to each Marine, in case no silver lining can be found.
Just wait. Drop a few hundred dollars, just to have “PER THE COMMANDER’S DISCRETION” leave it hanging in the closet.
I love the desert version but Im not sure why we need this when we already have woodland Marpat Gortex which is fine for garrison. The cut and style of this jacket is more preferred for deployment.
It’s not clear to me from the description above whether this model has a waterproof/breathable liner or whether it is a softshell. The description mentions “a Gore membrane” but maybe that is Windstopper?
The Combat Jackets are softshells.
If I had to guess I’d say there is a all-but-waterproof membrane but the seams aren’t taped so the garment itself isn’t waterproof. I have an Incement Weather Combat Shirt that has a membrane in the arms and shoulders and it will hold up to a lot of water but the stitching goes right through.
Why can’t the Army have nice things like this? Lol… and yes, I get the whole ‘they are a smaller force, and can spend more per individual’ thing…
The whole 7-layer ECWCS ain’t enough? 🙂
Anyone know if there is a commercial version available? I’d wear the hell out of this jacket, but I won’t wear the EGA since I’m not a Marine.
I have yet to find where to purchase the Marpat Des. jacket Any idea where this will be available ?
The desert or woodland jacket?