Rather than doing the smart thing and buying a cheap and plentiful standard CS95 cut combat shirt in Desert DPM, I decided to try and hunt down something more unusual, that would still be practical for hobby usage. The end result is this trial/prototype UBACS (Under Body Armour Combat Shirt) which has a few hold-overs from the CS95 type, but is mostly representative of the design of first issued items featured within PCS.
The main fabrics are very mainstream with a typical coolmax torso as per the standard issue UK forces t-shirt (pre-anti static) and a Poly/Cotton twill for the arms, as per the vast majority of the DDPM that was ever issued. This combination is poor in terms of FR performance but is durable enough, fast to dry and comfortable in hot climates.
Overall, the size and design of the arm pockets is largely the same as other issued PCS shirts that would come after this one, just a single storage area with a top access flap the closes via two small pieces of velcro. Unlike on MTP PCS however, the mandatory Union Jack is stitched to the pocket flap so as to sit horizontally when the wearer is stood at rest. This is more in line with the CS95 family of uniforms. No blanking plates for the loop fields are featured (which would be standard with all MTP PCS) and the solid loop field is slightly smaller than the first batches of standard issue PCS shirts.
You will notice in the headline image that there are large, squared off reinforcements/extra pockets attached to the elbow and forearm area. These were typical to the late-CS95 era issued UBACS and on all CS95 cut MTP and early production PCS. These 2 pocket areas store rectangles of a dense closed-cell foam around 3-4mm thick aimed at protecting the forearms, especially when prone. This was a common feature in the early issued PCS shirts, but has been omitted for some years at this point. The padding could be good in some specific circumstances but retained a lot of heat and made the sleeves generally heavy, stiff and uncomfortable.
Cuffs are adjusted in the same was as almost every shirt the MoD has ever issued; with two slotted buttons. These allow either – a close fit to the wrist for standard barrack wear (or to keep nature out), a looser intermediate sizing, or a fully open cuff if neither button is used. In this particular case the colours are mis-matched between the tan button and green mounting fabric, which would not be seen on a standard issue item.
Information displayed and layout/formatting on UK prototype uniform pieces varies quite a bit from what I have seen, and unfortunately I think only the specific personnel who were employed full time as part of the relevant trials would have been able to expound further. Obviously this example is not in a woodland type camo pattern but the same labels were likely used in other combat shirts that featured different camouflages.
‘ilasco’ is a British manufacturer of protective clothing and equipment which is linked to the better known brand Keela. ilasco themselves don’t display a military catalogue or clothing line on their site, but there is a Tactical section and I would wager that Keela is simply their military-branded sister company (something like Arc’teryx and LEAF). I don’t know if they actually cut and sew in the UK, but for small batches of test items that might have been something that was paid for during the trials in question.
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