A Marine Corps all-weather coat is tailored at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C., on Aug. 29, 2018. The service is suspending sale and initial issue of the coat due to a manufacturing defect that causes the jacket to bleed an orange substance when wet. (Yamil Casarreal/U.S. Marine Corps)

The Marine Corps is making its all-weather coat unavailable due to a defect that can cast an unsightly hue, according to a new memo from the service.

The fabric of some of the trench coat-style garments bleeds a noticeable orange substance when exposed to water or rain, resulting in an “unprofessional appearance,” the Marine Corps said in the Monday message. Such exposure also can stain and damage uniforms.

The manufacturing defect was identified in a specific production lot of the gray double-breasted coat, the message said. Typically, the coat is worn to protect a Marine’s dress uniform and ribbons from inclement weather.

All sales and initial issuance of the coat are suspended until further notice, and the Defense Logistics Agency was directed to notify the Marine Corps once it had identified the contracts and lot numbers of the affected coats.

The service also ordered recruitment depots to issue guidance on “de-issuing” the coats and track affected Marines, among other requirements.

Additional guidance to include replacing defective coats would be issued to all Marines, the message states.

The Corps’ 263-page guide to uniform regulations covers every aspect of Marines’ appearance, from placement of ribbons and medals on a dress uniform to undergarments, belts, gloves and more.

“Marines are not known just for their battlefield prowess, but for their unparalleled standards of professionalism and uncompromising personal conduct and appearance,” the guide says.

Defective coats aren’t the only problem the service has faced in recent years in the area of its members’ personal appearance.

Following the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain and manufacturing issues caused a yearslong shortage of the Marine combat utility uniform, prompting commanders to loosen some standards.

That shortage largely ended with the uniforms, known as cammies, back on the shelves in summer 2024, Military.com reported at the time.