Leaderboard

Found on a British Car group, Spitfire project which is a bit different from what I was expecting on a car group..

Well, here's mine, the poor man of the family...repro cockade as the cap came without one.anyone know the maker? Looks like 1942 stamp, but a bit faint.

Hi All, Here are some photos of my 1940 Lago Berlin made tropical peaked cap and it is about as DAK as you can get. The original owners name is written inside the cap. These early caps are extremely sort after and the prices are very high right now. This cap has an early type of tropical cockade and an not often seen smaller size early tropical cap eagle. D

Google for Belgian beers (just about anyone of them!)...my favourites!

A friend of mine used to be in 3 Para, he was also very involved in taking parties out to Normandy on tours, One such tour was at Merville Battery. He let the party wander around the site and went into the main casement to see the new exhibit, he had a book with him and was looking through it. There was an old gent standing next to him and happened to ask him if he was interested in what really happened, My mate said he was and so this chap walked through the whole area with him explaining what happened and where My pal thought that this guy must of been there during the battle as some of the facts that he was stating had,nt been heard of or written about, so he asked his name, LT Colonel OTWAY , the man that led the raid, Well my pal was in military heaven and later throughout the years was invited to many reunions with the survivors of the raid, In fact two of the Paras were within two miles from his home and one of them was the guy who threw the grenade into casement no/1, and you hear this in the re-enactment in the museum in casement 1, His name was Sid Capon and my friend spent many years and hours with him up until he died. Another interesting point is that before the Battery was opened as a museum, my pal and a couple of others went there. It was mainly overgrown but was being gradually cleared. He tripped over something in the long grass, it was a Bren gun, and he later donated it to the museum after a few years, and you can still see that there. One of the people he was with had to take a leak and when he looked down there was this German Belt buckle, but that was kept. When I went there with him I had all the various actions of separate soldiers related to me

I,d call it just plain getting old and eyesight playing me up........... Little joke, A very young Nun was having a bath in the monestery, there was a knock on the door, "Who is it" "Its the blind man" came the reply, she thought the chap was desperate for the loo, and her Christian duty to let him come in seeing he was blind, he came in ,said" Oh nice tits, where do you want these blinds"

I've been moving things about, always stuck for space..

Nice one Lenny! Good to see that sectioned one at the beginning as i got one last Thursday after ten years looking! Showed the assembly quite well. Loved the posters too in the background..

Ha Ha , I do like these old wartime advisory films from the" Ministre", we used to get ones on Atomic war when we were in the police, always narrated by the actor Patrick Allen, the 60s army films were good as well, we had them as cadets, How to use ranges correctly, Dangers of Ammunition and Ordnance etc, these went right through to the late 70s and were so outdated , the one i really liked was why you should,nt wear Ammo boots in an ammo or ordnance store!!!

Here is my first post and I figured I would put up some photos of my US WWI uniforms. I don't collect much outside of what would of actually been worn in the trenches, so my uniform collection is probably bland for those expecting to see unit patches and various other adornments that would of been added Post-Armistice. So first up is a rather interesting wool coat. This one in particular was made by Henry Sonneborn & Co., Inc. in Baltimore, Maryland. It is contract number 847 dated September of 1917. It is made of a heavier blanket style wool and does not have the cotton lining that is seen in earlier uniforms. The overall texture of the wool itself is rather soft compared to others that I own or have handled. Specifically, this tunic features the plain US and Infantry disks and a single corporal's chevron on the right arm as was the regulation during the war. So please bear with me as I am trying out a new camera and attempting to figure out the proper settings to get the best shot. So without further ado, here are the photos. Thank you, Mike

Here is my title collection, mostly WW2, some postwar and the odd repro, but good ones, no rubbish!

Got this one off eBay many years ago. I had been watching it, and forgot. It didn't sell the first time ($89.00 starting bid). Got it on the relist, but not for $89.00. I believe it to be a Med camo, as there are subtle browns in there, too. Apparently over-painted a festive green post-war, then that paint removed. A lot of paint loss on the rear and top but the liner is original to the helmet, and it is the early leather with the size (52!) embossed in the leather as well as on the aluminum band, and the liner band is the first model aluminum band (Schubert Werke 1937), and it isn't broken, amazingly. Shell is an NS60.

Ok, we know we're all into Militaria and military history, but what are your other interests/loves/hobbies? For me, apart from my family obviously, it's cars and guitars... Specifically Subarus and Les Pauls.

Recently picked this up. Japanese Type 99 "A" or mite commonly known as the "KISKA" named by GI after the island of the same name. Where this little grenade was first identified. I was happy to add this WWII mini to my small Japanese group. *all ordnance and related objects are completely inert and 100% free of any energetic material whatsoever."-TM

To increase member numbers, I'm thinking of an add on to the forum. Mail order Russian brides?

This is my first m1 garand i picked up a few weeks ago. Made in May 1943 with an original 1943 springfield barrel, a Model 1905E1 (the shortened 10-inch or 254 mm for those who haven't been to the moon) bayonet and more enblocks than i could count at the time (110). A solid 2 on the muzzle gauge and a 3 on the throat gauge which is a lot better than i expected for a 1943 barrel. Top handguards are walnut and the stock is birch so if you have a walnut stock with a springfield cartuche im currently in the market. Shoots pretty awesome for a rifle decades older than i and i could agree with Patton more about his quote of this rifle. More pictures will be added when i get home but these are when i first picked it up. Very dirty and almost no grease where it needed to be. Thank you for reading and i hope you enjoy. Cheers, Tyler

This visor was brought home after 1945 and given to his mother by Ardis W. Kelley (Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart Winner). He was in the Battle of Normandy-Northern France-Rhineland-and Central Europe. When he passed in the early 1970's I obtained the visor and have had it In protective glass cover for over 40 years. It has very little mothing and has never been handled to speak of after I obtained it. The red or pink piping has faded slightly but one German Forum member who I let see it in museum felt that the piping was probably pink (Motor Div) . I have never seen another like this in the U.S. but they probably are more common in Germany or Europe. He told me that the visor would have been worn by a mid level or low level leader.I am certainly not an authority on visors but I do know it is authentic .I will include several photos that I took of it. Terry G. Waxham

Those things are awesome!

Hi there, Lenny here, boss of the MCN. I've collected Militaria since I was about 10, my first item was an Imperial Iron Cross 2nd Class that my grandfather brought back from WW1. Over the years I've collected most things, from British cap badges, to helmets, bayonets, deacts, buckles, etc. etc. At the moment, nearly 40 years later, I collect German Belt Buckles and German Grenades. I'm a member of most of the web forums, and started up the Militaria Collector's Network in 1998. It had been in existence a few years before that on bulletin boards, Fidonet and then a mailing list and Yahoo Groups. It ran it's course and unfortunately fizzled out about 8 or 9 years ago. I had given up collecting for a while and it was only less than a year ago I started up the MCN again, this time as a Facebook group. https://www.facebook.com/groups/Milcol/ which now has over 10,000 members. Facebook has it's issues, they can be funny about certain things, and seem to close down groups for no good reason. Also, it's hard to find anything as there's no structure. Everything just ends up at the bottom when someone new posts. A web forum is ideal for this, it can be structured and split into different areas.I for one, am excited that it's back. Onwards and upwards... You'll see a selection of pics from my collection in the gallery.

Oh Wow! I acquired these from the son of an RAF Bomb Disposal Officer a few years ago and have been meaning to get them framed. After a bunker clearout last week,i found them and took them to said framers. Got them back this morning. Some have stains on where they were repaired years ago with sellotape,but i think it adds to the character? Cant wait to get the place decorated,these are in the living room as ive no room left in the bunker! Enjoy!

Thanks for sharing chaps, as they are super posters and handbooks. D

Hi Lenny, I definitely understand the difference between real battlefield archaeology and what the black diggers are doing and I have nothing but respect for the people who are helping to preserve and record the historic battlefield sites of WW2. D

Is it a Tommy helmet stuck on top of a crankshaft for an ironing board Or perhaps it's going to be a lamp? D

You are most welcome D

Very nice Dermot Barry

@Patrick Lawrence Off topic but...GO IRISH! ND fan myself!

Looks great @DAK D! Fabulous set!

Yea you should recognize em. Thanks my friend!

Hi Dermot, the acceptation stamp was B40 IIRC and that means that it could have been made anytime between 1938/1940.As you know the data and stampings of the depot not necessarily mean that a garment or any item had been made on that particular year! IMHO it's 100% 1940,as you've pointed out! Cheers Manu

Topics like this are very emotionally charged. Personally I do not care for any ground dug items. If I wanted rusty hunks of metal in my collection, I would just keep the rotten parts that keep falling off my bloody truck. I did at one time a few years back, follow a post about these guys bragging and showing off their booty. I was quite surprised at just how open and loose these people were with remains and such.

As said already, that horrendous liner really spoils a nice helmet and it would be a lot nicer as a Collectable without it.its your lid, and your call entirely, but I'd be inclined to let the shell speak for itself...

Hi Manu, I love Kettenkrad's too The prices are astronomical on early M40 tropical peaked caps now and it is a real shame as even early depot queens sell for big money. I think as collectors we all sell an item and then regret it ..... D

...and all in BBC English too old chap!

Yes,you're PERFECTLY right,Steve,and I apoologize for not double-checking before posting!This is NOT the link I wanted to post and,I repeat,I'd have double-checked before hitting the button but I just can't stand seeing certain things anymore! I'll check again and hope to find another similar thread I had bookmarked! Thank you Steve and sorry if I have tarred everyone with the same brush!Looks like you've been personally offended so my apologies go to those guys and to you if they are your friends or if I have offenfed you somehow! Manu

MANY died there Dave!I try to stay the hell away from what these scumbags post on Youtube or on several fora!The dig,destroy,play with skulls and bones..they're the REAL SCUM of the Earth! There was a thread over at a forum started by one of these unterm....scumbags showing a REAL time capsule in Kurland or a place like that!There were bodies,helmets,weapons and all kind of things scattrered all over the place.The bodies were skeletons of course but the whole scene looked as if it had been frozen in time,say,six month after the War! Guess what?The 200-pages long thread shows these punks amassing piles of items that would have been sold for a lot of money;SS rings,dogtags,buckles,boards,papers...all kind of stuff!Now, if the MIAs Sturmbannfuhrer Schmidt and Felwebel Meyer were amongst those men we'll never know! Can you imagine those bums leaving everything alone and turn on their heels?They even sell their sisters and girlfriends,let alone leaving those things on the ground!

They are a scourge on the collecting world, if you find items on the surface then its not too bad but these guys are digging into graves and disturbing history of a site, for the only reasons ...Profit and greed, they show no respect for anyone who fought in these positions and probably died there

Superb.

If I ever decide to sell it I will but right now for me I am okay with it Bought it for the helmet and the trench art not the liner I'd rather have a fake liner and original helmet then an entire fake helmet.

What an awesome collection. There is so much history and tradition with British units!

Hi All, Here are some photos of a French made bleached German tropical shirt that has more modifications than the previous one, but this one has had work done so that the buttons can be removed..This shirt started life as an early French tropical shirt just like the other one in last thread, but it does not show the heavy wear that is normally seen on shirts from North Africa. Perhaps it was taken from a POW and never worn afterwards. D

I collect anything which takes my fancy, but specialise in steel helmets and British WW2 cloth insignia....

That "butter fly bomb" brings back some bad memories, but the incendiary is another matter, One of the coppers I worked with was sent to a local residential home for handicapped children. Some work was being carried out in the over grown garden and some new footings were being dug, They found something they did,nt like the look of, and so did the copper, It was a half buried German incendiary that was still intact. Instead of leaving it and calling for BDT, he grabbed it, pulled it out of the ground, walked all the way through the home with all the kids there and put it in the boot of the police car, then drove through a populated area brought it back to the station and logged it in and put it in the found property locker, right next to the main reception desk. Eventually someone realised what it could be and the station was evacuated and BDT was called, That copper was given a citation for bravery, he should have had his arse booted out,What made it even worse was that after my encounter with a live Mills bomb, I did,nt even get a thankyou, Very pissed off about that, even now, especially as this guy went on to be in charge of the firearms team, before being removed for dangerous behaviour and endangering other police officers, but I suspect it had something to do with his father being a Chief Superintendent in another force

Combat helmets of the 20th century, nothing high-end; strictly garden variety. Its a fascinating hobby which I enjoy immensely and, lucky for me, my wife is very good sport about it all.

Had these a few years. Not sure what era to be honest. All i know about them is im assuming the far right green one is from a medic perhaps?

I also picked up a nice Gas and Flame Regiment patched cotton tunic. It doesn't have any rank, but does have a honorable discharge chevron on the left sleeve, and just above it the G&F patch. At the same seller there was a painted helmet with the same insignia, but both the uniform and helmet are not original to each other. It is a British Brodie as you can see by the split rivets on the bails and it does have an intact liner and chinstrap. The uniform itself is a little rough, but it is a scarce item as there are very few of either of these around.

Wow it has been a long few days. I have been away at the Show of Shows in Louisville, Kentucky over the weekend and picked up some uniforms that I will share with you all. First up is a World War I 78th Division Infantry 2nd Lieutenant tunic. This one is tailor made and features a 78th Division patch on the left shoulder. One of the things that is interesting about it is the LT. bars are directly embroidered to the uniform. It also came with a rather nice pair of matching breeches that have the button up calves, which I neglected to photograph. It is named and I will attempt to research it later on. The seller was pretty sure it was unidentified, even after showing him the tailor tag in the inside pocket. There is actually another neat feature about this uniform that I did not discover until after I got back to the hotel. Inside the breeches was an early Pennsylvania United States Volunteers dog tag in the pocket, which happens to match the name on the tailor tag. Which is pretty lucky for me considering I have only found tobacco and a dirty handkerchief in all of the others I have owned. Unfortunately it is missing one button and there is one that doesn't match and I will fix the missing one in the near future. If it looks like the bottom button is off, that is because it is. Apparently the veteran continued wearing the uniform after the war, and after gaining weight, and moved the bottom two so it would fit a bit better. Thanks, Mike

An interesting one, unlike the reichsbahn patches with gold piping. This one with silver piping is for the private/small railways not run by the reich. Nichtreichseigene Eisenbahnen. It's a 1941 pattern collar patch for wear on the closed collar tunics.

Band Of Brothers