Authentic Military Dog Tags
Centered text is not military spec. Here is an example of each alignment:
Emboss–Newer Style (Raised lettering). Adopted by the US military in the 1980s. Approximately 50% of all US military bases use Emboss–it depends on what equipment is available at each base.
Indent–Vintage Style (Sunken lettering). Indent was the only type used during WWII, the Korean War, and The Vietnam War.
Examples of hole placement:
Black tag with regular text. The paint is not removed from the letters.
Black tag with the paint removed from the letters, making the letters look white. The “white” color is achieved by seeing the underlying metal.
Traditional Stainless Steel is standard military issue.
Sometimes, Shiny Stainless Steel is used.
These are the only two options shown on the current form.
Other colors are available and are not standard military issue. If you want to order one of these colors, click on the images shown below to visit those respective order pages:
Rolled Edge to Front (the rolled edge can be seen when reading the text) is how we usually stamp Current Issue dog tags.
WWII and Korea era dog tags were stamped with the rolled edge to the back (the rolled edge can not be seen when reading the text).Rolled Edge to the Front or Rolled Edge to the Back—neither is better than the other; it’s simply your preference.