new member question, unidentified poncho

[daimaesteg]

hi guys im new to this forum.

i have recently purchased a camouflage poncho.
i didnt cost a lot and was picked up in a boot sale.

anyway after much research i cant find much information on it.

the camouflage pattern is similar to both french, brazilian and portuguese lizard and also similar to 32 battalion variant of transkei camo.

so far i have narrowed it down to being either:

a 32 battalion sa army poncho
a portuguese mil poncho
a brazilian mil poncho

but as for finding its true origin im stuck.

the poncho is as new showing no visible signs of issue or wear, with taped seems, steel eyelets and poppers, it has a hood with drawstrings and unusually has steel rings and ear flaps for hearing when the hood is on.
its full mil - spec and similar in weight and build as the old british army green ponchos.
it has that surplus smell too so i believe it to be genuine, but having trouble finding out much more.

its a really nice bit of kit, ive only owned three ponchos/bashas in my time, one was a mil tec dpm basha which was terrible, the second was a genuine aus army hootchie which was outstanding and then this mystery one which is very good.

anyway sorry to bang on

any help would be much appreciated.

theres some photos here to help you all out also.

thanks in advance

dai

 

[Gill]

I have one the same and considered it to be south african.

 

[Bravo4]

Hi daimaestag, welcome to the forum. I have a hammock in the same pattern, a friend brought back from Brazil I believe. Ragged leaf lizard camo.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lizard_(camouflage)

 

[daimaesteg]

thanks guys, seems that the world and his brother have used lizard pattern at one time or another.
lack of any label is very frustrating though, as i collect interesting camouflage patterns but its nice to be able to source them.

the hammock you mention bravo 4, is it the brazilian special forces sleeping system, ive seen pictures of that and the similarities between what i have and the brazilian one are very plain to see. minor variations between the two, but on the whole the same lizard pattern.

 

[Bravo4]

the hammock you mention bravo 4, is it the brazilian special forces sleeping system, ive seen pictures of that and the similarities between what i have and the brazilian one are very plain to see. minor variations between the two, but on the whole the same lizard pattern.

Not sure if the hammock is Brazilian SF sleep system. Looking a little closer, it is a slightly different pattern than your poncho. Hammock is the same camo as this,
http://www.tridentmilitary.com/new-photos15/bchb.jpg

 

[Bravo4]

here's the hammock,

 

[daimaesteg]

thanks bravo, yours is more fragmented, offering better concealment i should imagine. nice bit of kit.
spent most of the day researching mine but with little luck. i did turn up a fact that all 32 battalion equipment was manufactured without labels which is leading me to believe the one i have may be 32 battalion 1990 issue rain cape poncho.
they were made without labels as the camouflage 32 battalion used was a derrivative of portuguese lizard camo as used by their opposing enemy forces in angola, hence the need for a camouflage pattern similar to portuguese lizard for counter insurgency operations inside "enemy territory" angola.

also found out that the lizard pattern matching closely with mine was used by the french, and also a version similar was used by the rhodesian army.
and also used by the transkei military forces until they became joined with the south african defence force.

also found out from warstore.co.za that a similar poncho which was identified as a 32 battalion item sold for US $200. although im not expecting anything close to that figure in future as im unable to verify the item.

but i have no solid evidence to back it up.

one thing that has amazed me is what can turn up at a local bootsale!!

its of practical value to me at the moment, and if its not valuable i will use it for hide building and rough shooting.

 

[Trojan]

Hi

I have the exact same poncho with the writing to!

When I bought it I was told it was Rhodesian pattern!

Personaly I always thought it was a fake but has served me well!

Now I am confused!

Trojan

 

[Big Steve]

That pattern also bears a marked resemblance to the Indian army's jungle camouflage pattern - see examples at http://www.tridentmilitary.com/World-Militaria/India.html

 

[daimaesteg]

thanks guys, the indian camo is very very close to this.

rhodesian lizard pattern is very distinct, and to be honest my first thought was rhodesia.

it may well be a fake.

i would love to be able to identify it as i could re sell it then and get a few goodies on my wish list lol.

 

[Raw01]

Nice piece of kit, i like the holes for your hearing.
As for the 32 btn and the rhodie camo it is not, this is a Malaysian army poncho.
Have a look at the link below

http://camo.henrikc.dk/details.asp?autono=201

If you look at the jacket label it also reads ATM.
ATM stands for "Angkatan Tentera Malaysia"

 

[daimaesteg]

cheers raw you are a saint.

was this pattern just used by the special forces of malaysia? or is it a general issue item.
also any idea of resale value?