The ONE piece of kit..
 

.. the one, the ONLY one piece of kit you want (wanted) to leave with? And did you get away with it?

WITHOUT PREJUDICE.

Mine was a rather spiffing Seiko watch with lots of shiny dials on it and a compo tin opener (ok, thats two).

Does Dignity count?
I left it ages ago when I got a job photografing fat turists...

Great comeback! :)

I got issued one fair and square and seeing as I haven't worn one (or any other watch for that matter) for about 14 years, its a fair bet to say that, no.. I wouldn't be 'selling it on ebay' (how terribly gauche to do such a thing). That is, if I had one anyway, which of course, I don't. Seen below, a photographer's impression.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...Picture015.jpg

AI R - as we could work out who you were from your rather individualistic watchstrap, you may not be getting away with it as easily as you think...:=


SMT

Didn't everyone have Animal straps in the 90s? ;)

For general interest of course, I attach a link which may be of mild interest to all MoD Japanese wrist watch afficienados.

http://www.thewatchforum.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=9346

I got away with an 18'' Nav Plotter, but I don't use it as a rule.

Helmet, plain old GS Mk 6. No, I didn't get away with it.

Almost everything else though. Can't for the life of me work out why, but the de-kit storeman wanted my green plastic mug, and my helmet.

Everything else was mine. After 15 years' total service, blagging left right and centre, and all he wanted was a worthless used green plastic mug, and the ONLY thing I really wanted to keep, since it kept me safe. If only I had just paid the bill and kept it.

The specification for "Stop Watches 1992" is a riveting read

Got the helmet, g suit, leg restraints etc when they were written off by flying clothing. Seemed like a great idea at the time but apart from watching the odd 9 year old playing fighter pilot they just block up my wardrobe.

Ghostflyer:

Sell it to a fighter controller. The majority have the same mental age as a 9 year old and they would play with it more often.

Light blue touch-paper and retire to a safe distance.........:E

I've still got my pusser's Mk2A bone dome, and just about everything else from Flying Clothing store ;)

All except the string vests, which had to be returned, and the RAF blue boxer shorts, one pair missing which cost me £1.30 :rolleyes: I'm sure that they re-issued the one pair that I returned :p

never mind the stop-watch specs.

what a master stroke to link the permitted strap colours to the building paints colour charts.

I've still got a compo tin opener, and a pair of long johns issued to me in 1978 that were made in 1953. A compo tin opener is a great "what's this for" quiz item.

There was a time (Seiko) that I would have 'lost' my watch, but now that it has been replaced with a cheap Pulsar; when the day comes, they can have the lot back.

I in turn will rejoice at getting the ammount of garage space that is presently filled with crap that I cannot meanwhile return. Such as AR5, issued in 1987 and timex decades ago, but cannot be returned as nobody on my unit can 'service it' before the blunties will take it.

Aaah, the long johns. I lied of course, I have more than one item. I have (annoyingly) just the one puttee (still beautifully pressed), a ghillie suit (great for hide and seek), and a few other odds and ends.. :=. Who remembers 'FoFaD'? This ('F#ck off, fire at Donnington') was the answer you always used to get from the stackers in the early 80s whenever you went to Stores to get something. They should have come to me instead.

Ok, you mentioned quiz questions. What is the proper term for a compo sweet? In fact, don't waste valuable time fretting, I'll tell you. Its 'Confectionary/ General Service Issue/ Hard boiled/ Colour various/ Suck or chew'.

Isn't it just? While you're on that page, people who have read that have also enjoyed this:

http://www.dstan.mod.uk/

Hows this for a catchy strapline? Is not 'Achieving Interoperability Through Standardization Excellence' a right royal belter? Aside from their inability to standardise standardization with the rest of the MoD, I would have a little more confidence in them if they could at least standardise use of the fullstop on their home page.

- another from that era was "Falklands Air Bridge" - the standard reply from June 82 until the opening of MPA when any request for AT was submitted, particularly if it involved Albert.

The only item I handed in when I demobbed was my No2s. Since they'd lasted 18 years, with several tailorings, they weren't missed.

The storeman at Lisburn couldn't find any of my records. Probably because they were handed to me several years earlier. To be fair, the growbags had only sentimental value, and the two bonedomes only collect dust these days. The watch became a birthday gift for a mate, but the socks, both aircrew and G10 are still in use 11 years after leaving.

About time they were washed? :p

My flying boots, issued 1974, are still used for aviating :ok:

Very funny, John. The big surprise is that they've survived repeated boiling in the rig laundry.

On reflection, the biggest prof has to be a certified copy of my complete medical records, very handy when it came time to make a disability claim, as the originals had 'disappeared'.