Kenneth Whitcomb

Thanks for all of your posts. Very interesting and well written.

I appreciate your efforts and time. Are the sources you recommended translated into English?

Thank you for all of your efforts.

Hello Bob, please PM me with any stories you wish to share. As you can tell from our Presidential election postings the USA has dropped all standards of decency. LOL

I, too, have heard tales told. It would be interesting to read any soldier letters who write of such things. Thanks for posting. I have added this to my collection.

Thank you again for these posts. That is a shocking story about the colonial. This is going into my medical file.

Thank you for posting this. I would be interested in your postings about his medical care. I am very interested in WW1 medical care.

Thanks again for your information. I was tardy in thanking you because i have been away for awhile. I heard that Rohan has a book about military binoculars but when i looked it up it was about $495. Oh well, the search continues.

Thank you, Paul. No wonder I could not fine the ship! Do the numbers printed on these binoculars give any clue as to the age of them?

Thank you for posting this. I will try the sites you mentioned to see the x-rays of ww1.

I just bought a pair of binoculars marked: Baldur Military, P 8 X 94, 18106 QM, HMS Dover. I can not find any information on the HMS Dover. I have only used Google. I have found a list of Bitish ships listed for WW1 and WW2 and the Dover is not among them. Can anyone tell me what I have? If this ship actually existed can you guide me to it's history? Thank you for any help you can offer. Ken

You have a wonderful collection. Thanks for sharing.

Great photo. Thanks for posting.

Thank you soooo much for this information. This has been added to my archives for further research. This is really appreciated.

Have these 1916 x-rays ever been published for our viewing? Thanks for this information.

Sorry to say that I still do not know how to post photos. i can adjust the size, etc but when i try to post all I get is a photo number but no photo. This is maddening. I'll stop pouting and try again. Thanks, Ken

[An interesting read: "Paris 1919"( Six months that changed the world ) by Margaret Macmillan. Discusses the peace conference and it's successes and failures. New insights into the personalities of the major leaders.

I believe that this is a posed Hollywood photo but i do not believe it is of Victor McLaglin (McLaughlin). These guys both have the rough look but the McLaglin of John Wayne movies has a distinctive appearance. Also, this guy is wearing a colonel's insignia and I do not ever remember McLaglin in the role of an officer in a cavalry movie. He is usually an NCO.

Thanks for the tip. I'm on my over there now. Didn't know they even existed.

I have an original Japanese helmet with the long helmet ties. Does anyone have a detailed description how the soldiers tied these helmets to their heads? I certainly don't want to tie a square knot with a cute bow! Thanks for any help you can give to me.

Just got back from a short trip. I will follow your suggestion about ethanol, etc. Thanks once again. Ken

UPDATE: As suggested I used mineral spirits to remove the cosmoline. Surprisingly I only had to place the spirits on a rag and wipe off the cosmoline. Super easy! So, next question: what do you suggest I use to remove the smell of the spirits from the blades? Once again, these are machine made blades. Thanks for your suggestions. Ken

OK, mineral spirits it is. My quest is to find a long open top plastic type of container such as might be used by dry wall installers. It must be long enough so that I can lay the blade inside for a good soak. I can use this tray for other metal parts as well. Thanks for all the tips.

Thank you for the information Brian. Mineral spirits seem safe. It was also suggested that I heat the blades with a hair dryer and just wipe the cosmoline away. Would there be enough heat generated to discolor the blades? I notice that the handles are held with a screw so if I can remove the screw without scratch marks I will do so. I will have to do some homework to figure out how to post a photo. I would like to show the blades before and after. I am going to sell one of the swords and keep the other. It has been an education for me to look up the various armory marks and inspection marks present. Setting a price is always a hassle for me. Using ebay is useless because of the junk being offered. Thank you again for your time and knowledge.