slava1stclass

Jeff, "Plutong" is an obsolete Russian word that, in a naval context, would be the equivalent of a shipboard gun battery. It went out of use in the early 20th Century. МСЧиАМ is the acronym for the Naval Forces of the Black and Azov Seas. Hope this helps. Regards, slava1stclass

Jeff, Based on the grammar, Grigoryev was the cruiser's commander and this badge was awarded to him. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, Given the continuing malaise of the world economy, there has not been much to report. The well-known NYC-area dealer has not had any fresh Full Cavalier-related inventory for quite some time. That inventory which he does advertise - a complete Full Cavalier set ($29,000.00) and a single Order of Glory 1st Class ($9,700.00) - has been sitting for months with no takers. The Full Cavalier set (post # 96 above) has been on the market for 16 months. Either his price points are too high and/or the collecting community is leery of investing capital in these challenging economic times. A word of caution. A few obviously fake Full Cavalier sets have been offered on eBay over the past year - largely originating from sellers in the Baltic states. Regards, slava1stclass

Chris, This guy was a no-stripe Private assigned to the 120th Rifle Regiment, 69th Rifle Division, 65th Army. He was a machine gunner. Regards, slava1stclass

Chris, This guy was a Guards Private assigned to the 74th Separate Guards Commo Company, 48th Guards Rifle Division. He was a motorcyclist/courier. Regards, slava1stclass

Francois, You can't go wrong with the Order of Glory. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, Full Cavalier of the Order of Labor Glory A. M. Malyuchenko. He earned his decorations over a career of service in the Soviet merchant marine. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, Full Cavaliers of the Order of Labor Glory N. T. Petrenko and S. G. Musin. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, Full Cavalier of the Order of Labor Glory B. N. Prudayev - Master Oil Rig Engineer. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, Yet another superb image - this time of an unidentified well-decorated veteran coal miner. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, An unidentified general officer Full Cavalier. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, Who says men of the cloth can't fight? Russian Orthodox priest Georgiy Pukhnov of Urzhum thinks otherwise. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, As it liberated Soviet cities and villages, the Red Army would routinely accept orphaned children into its ranks . In this October 11th, 1944 image from the 1st Ukainian Front, Guards Captain A. Chernavin speaks with 14-year old Fyodya Samodurov in a village in Voronezh Oblast. Fyodya had earlier been awarded the Medal for Valor for bravery in action. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, Lt Col F. K. Rumyantsyev, Chief of the 30th Guards Tank Brigade's Political Section, presents the Medal for the Defnse of Leningrad to Kolya Makryakov. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, This vet's nine wound stripes are also noteworthy. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, Records are meant to be broken and so it goes with wound stripes. If this vet is legitimate (he does tend towards being a "Badgefinder"), I count 13 wound stripes on his right sleeve - nine gold and four red. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, This unidentified veteran tops them all thus far - three gold, five red and two blue wound stripes. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, 18-year old commo man A. Volkov in 1944. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, An image of an unidentified former Terek Cossack Full Cavalier taken on November 7, 1963. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, 19-year old HSU A. A. Ryabov. He was a submachine gunner assigned to the 26th Guards Tank Brigade. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, A new Choibalsan image I've come across. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, A nice image. Regards, slava1stclass

Gents, A third double Ushi winner has surfaced. Regards, slava1stclass

This young sailor assigned to the Caspian Flotilla was awarded the Medal for Valor and the Medal for the Liberation of Prague. Regards, slava1stclass

Guards Private Volodya Vobrintsev-Pushkin.