M 55 Shoulder board question ???

[Will]

On a "Zhukov" style tunic the shoulder boards are:
1. Narrow width;
2. Silver; with
3. Red stripe and piping.

There is, of course, no branch of service insignia on the boards.
Anyone able to tell me what branch, of branches, of the Soviet Army used this pattern of shoulder board in 1955?

Thanks !

[Lapa]

Will,

That sounds like administration to me.

Marc

[Jeffrey Meffert]

I didn't think they were still putting narrowed boards on in the M55, at least not on the parade uniform.

[Will]

Well, they seem to have been on there forever. Additionally, although they are completely sewn down to the collar in the correct fashion, they were originally slip-on shoulder boards, since when the coat collar is lifted you can see the button holes at the ends of the boards.

This is driving me crazy.

Right now there is a seller on Ebay offering an e book version of the 1955 uniform regulations. One of the photos in the listing shows shoulder boards, which include the narrow style with silver top and red piping. However, they are shown with various branch of service devices on them, such as medical, which these boards do not have.

[Jeffrey Meffert]

Sorry to hear that about the boards. They may have been there a long time but I'm pretty sure they aren't the ones that are supposed to be there. With the M55, I believe they were all a standard width with a diagonal cut at the neck. Is the piping on the uniform itself red?
One has to acknowledge that vets did all kinds of things with their uniforms once they retired and that may be what you are dealing with.

[Will]

Yes, the piping on the uniform is also red.

[Jeffrey Meffert]

I think you probably have a vet's parade uniform that they fixed up nice with components from their pre-1955 service. Likely some administrative service if there is no sign of device on the boards. (On the M55 parade there are not supposed to be corps devices on the boards; they are on the collar tab.)
How about some pictures?

[Will]

Possibly, Jeff, though it would seem odd to me to re-cycle boards when getting a new jacket and when, presumably, the wider boards were readily available.
But absent some strange sub-clause in the uniform regs of 1955, I suppose it will always be an unknown.

[Jeffrey Meffert]

I think some vets obtained some of their uniform pieces (perhaps in a larger size?) after they left the service. I've seen pictures of WW2 vets wearing very non-regulation m69's

[Will]

Oh, sure, I know exactly what you mean, Jeff.
But I'm just thinking that a junior admin officer seems an unlikely candidate to need to switch shoulder boards, unless the clothier happened to be all out, and he needed the jacket for the prom that same night.

Well, I guess this tunic will remain a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.

I just made that up. You guys feel free to use it if you would like.


:chuckle