Great coat question

[2ndMassTom]

Hi All! I am new to reenacting, so I will ask what may be a dumb question:?
I do dismounted union cavalry. I am looking to purchase a great coat and there is a infantry version on this forum at a good deal. Would it be at all correct for cavalry to have an infantry great coat? Thanks in advance for the help!;)

[RJSamp]

Am sure there was one cavalryman somewhere in the 4 year war that picked up an infantry great coat at one point in time......hey if you are cold you do what you can.

You'd be best served by getting the cavalry great coat.....heck the longer cape and collar keep you warmer than the infantry variant.....

[1stWiscTrooper]

Tom, I know it was not that of an uncommon thing for a mounted trooper to have been issued a infantry pattern greatcoat. I use a infantry greatcoat in my Cavalry impression. Give me some time to do some digging to find some accounts and I will get back to you on it.

Dan Chmelar

[Rob Weaver]

I would get the cavalry coat right off, since it's right for the unit you're portraying now, without any explanations of how you came by it. They were also popular with civilians and officers. If it's a matter of $$, I'd save up rather than buy an infantry coat now.

[Lee Ragan]

When it came time for me to buy a greatcoat, I was doing both War Between the States and Indian Wars Army Engineers. I opted for the mounted mans coat even tho Engineers were foot troops. The reason being that not long after the war, the Army eliminated the infantry coat & everybody got the same greatcoat that mounted troops had been issued. The other points already mentioned about mounted troops getting infantry coats and vis versa came into the equation.
I also drew on my own experience as an Air Force supply man back in the 60's when items to keep the troops warm in winter were not always issued by the regs, but by what was available.
The federal mounted mans greatcoat also works good for a Confederate impression because lots of Rebs through out the war often utlized captured or discarded federal greatcoats.
As one of you mentioned, the longer cape and the larger collar are also a plus for using the mounted mans greatcoat. It's one of my most prized pieces of reenacting clothing.