French MLE-1950 Gaiters, Surplus

The only thing classier than the US M-1938 leggings are naturally the French post-war creations clearly inspired by their American cousins. The most visible addition to the design are the ultra cool leather straps.

Slightly outdated when they were introduced in the 1950s, these French gaiters are sure to answer many a call for adventurer style boot accessories. Some people actually used these in in conflicts like Indochina War and the struggles in Algiers, so they have all kinds of fun colonial history behind them.

But how do they work!

These gaiters cover the upper half of the boot, all the way up the calf. The donning process is a multi-part adventure in itself; first stuff the metal tongue inside either of the leather "pockets" on the inside face, then anchor the front hook on the boot laces. Now you can fasten the leg strap under the gaiter and start running the lace up the hooks. No idea how to officially finish the lace - use your imagination? Last but not least, fasten the leather straps. Donned so the laces are out. If they're facing each other, you'll risk tripping in your own gaiters, which is very embarrassing.

Size info

It's always fun to figure out clear sizes for army surplus gaiters marked "1", "2" and "3". In short, they're Small, Medium and Large. They get wider as the size increases. Of course along with the obvious ankle and calf circumference there's the personal preference of how thick socks are you going to use with these, are you going to wear the pant leg inside our outside and how long legs you got (in other words, where the calf starts).

We have given the gaiter circumferences from the center strap and the top strap (ankle and calf) with minimum and maximum adjustments. The height is 28 cm regardless of the size, measured from the leg strap buckle to the top. Measure your circumferences with the boots, socks, pants, whatever you're going to stuff underneath. Remember, you can also wear the gaiters under the pant leg if you blouse the leg cuff over the gaiter - see the extra photo.

The sizes are NOT the same as with the US M-1938 leggings - these run slightly larger!

Condition

The general shape seems pretty good, although some of these have been used and all of them stored for a looong time. Prepare to grease the leather parts and wipe the canvas with a rag. Be also prepared to replace the tie cords, as they might be damaged or just so old that they will snap. Standard shoelaces will do.