Avitas

Hello all, Inspired by Don's idea for an enamel membership pin/badge database here is my D.V.G. Westmark (Deutsche Volksgemeinschaft) member pin made by W. Redo, Saarlautern. These pins were worn by members of teh "German Community" in the Saar region of France. The pin has been glued together, but other than that it is in fine shape. Please leave your opinions on this one and post yours as well! Cheers, Pat

Yes, that is an extremely nice badge The construction appears to be very heavy and some intricate detailing there. Where do you keep finding these Don? Cheers, Pat

Hello all, Just a little more info on the Bevo eagle, it is fairly floppy and is not stiff, which I have recently found out is a good sign. And again, the threads do not glow under blacklight and it burns with no bundling at the end on the burn test. Either it is an esceptionally good fake or an unissued original I would estimate. Any thoughts? Also, some bad news on the "SA Kepi" eagle (I believe it is properly ID'd, but not confirmed yet), as I was looking for a maker mark and one of the back prongs broke off extremely easily, I was quite shocked. So now it is a slightly damaged original Kepi eagle The other SA cap eagle is still in good shape though! Please leave your opinions or comments on these items as I would really appreciate any help, Cheers, Pat

Well, it would appear this is the first "fake" piece from my good friend who I have had nothing but originals from. I will probably just throw it in my repro drawer as I didn't pay that much for it, and who knows, maybe some more info will come out (maybe an unofficial pre-war militia tag or something) and it will be redeemed, but until then it appears the jury has spoken. Thanks for the help so far on this one gents and please add any more info if you have some, Pat

Thanks for the details Greg It is a perfect match for the IAB stickpin on card I recently got and they are now going to spend many more years together in my treasure cabinet Cheers and feel free to add your comments on this RS IAB! Pat

Good eye Panzerpionier! Upon closer look it does indeed say "Orden" so that would make sense on it being the date of issue and it probably does say "Vestuario", it is just REALLY hard to read. The best I can make out on the date is it is either "1938", "1939", "1948", or "1949". Basically, the first two numbers are 19 and then either a 3 or a 4 in the third spot and an 8 or 9 or possibly a 5 in the last spot. These dates would fit into the estimate of late-30's to late-40's for the time frame. The identical cap and markings as mentioned earlier was on another major forum and the consensus did turn out to be a Spanish Franco era (40's-50's) enlisted man's field cap. IT would appear we have come to the same conclusion here as well. If anyone has more to add please do and I hope we have finally figured this one out. Cheers, Pat

That is one nice helmet-gas mask set and docs Chris I love finding out the whole story behind these items as well as it makes the piece that much more real and connected to history. Too bad about the "ebay marriage" though. I've had a couple of "sets" that turned out to be not originally together as well. Thanks for showing! Cheers, Pat

Here is the reverse of this cloth WHW tinnie. The pin is non-magnetic also, and probably original to the piece, but any confirmation on that is welcomed. Cheers and thanks for any help! Pat

Here is a beauty I picked up today on my trip to town, I think it is a WHW piece "Fur Mutter und Kind" 1934. These cloth "tinnies" are very nice and well made. The top part is made of a non-magnetic metal covered in a gold cloth material, and the metal piece is folded together holding the hanging cloth piece in place. I am not sure if the pin was on there originally or if it was added for display purposes as it was displayed on a card, and I can probably remove it if it is not supposed to be there. If anyone can confirm that this is a Winterhilfswerk piece that would be great, as well as any other info on it, and then I can add it to the Tinnie database as I don't think I saw this one on there yet. CHeers and thanks for looking, Pat

Just a short update on the makers of these helmets (Thanks Tony from Hun Helmet's post for the info). The HMCS Minas painted example with the initials S.R. (any lists out there, please help!) is stamped with the "C.L./C. 1940" for the Canadian Motorlamp Company. The A.R.P. example is another Canadian manufacturer, General Steel Wares and Aluminum Goods. Still not sure what the "D.P.&H" stamping means though, so any help on that is welcome as well as any info on the fine sailor with the initials "S.R." on the small Canadian minesweeper "HMCS Minas". I just love finding every detail about an item, it's a disease! But I know I am not alone on this site... Cheers, Pat

OOPS OF course, the SAILOR who painted this helmet I called him by his proper title on other posts but I guess I missed this one. CHeers Kevin and have a great day over there in Transylvania, Pat

Here is a great pic of the HMCS Minas at wartime, as well as its insignia. Cheers and thanks for any help, Pat

After posting on Hun Helmet's Brit doughboy, another question popped up in my head about the "FLash" helmet for someone with some good sources (Michael Johnson?) on enlisted Canadian men in WW2. The initials on the inside of the helmet are "S.R." and they are on two different parts of the helmet, and he served on the HMCS Minas during the war, so I wonder if lists of who sailed on these ships exist? It would just add to the helmet's story (especially about the paint job) to know who the fine Canadian sailor was who owned it. Here is what I found on the HMCS Minas at u-boat.net: HMCS Minas (J 165) Minesweeper of the Bangor class Navy: The Royal Canadian Navy Type: Minesweeper Class: Bangor Pennant: J 165 Built by: Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd. (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) Ordered: 23 Feb, 1940 Laid down: 18 Oct, 1940 Launched: 22 Jan, 1941 Commissioned: 2 Aug, 1941 End service: History: Decommissioned 6 October 1945. Recommissioned after 1949 with penant number 189. Scrapped in August 1959. Noteable events involving Minas include: 21 Nov, 1942 HMCS Timmins (Lt. J.A. Brown, RCNR) and HMCS Minas (Lt. J.C. Barbour) together pick up 42 survivors from the British merchant Empire Sailor south of Newfoundland in position 43.53N, 55.12W. and from ReadyAyeReady.com Type: Minesweeper Class: BANGOR Class (39-40 Programme) Displacement: 672 tonnes Length: 180 ft. Width: 28.5 ft. Draught: 8.3 ft. Top Speed: 16 # Officers: 6 # Crew: 77 Weapons: 1-4" Gun, 1-3" Gun, 2-20mm Pendant (Hull Number): J165 Builder: Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd.. Vancouver. B.C. Laid Down: 18-Oct-40 Launched: 22-Jan-41 Commissioned: 2-Aug-41 Paid Off: 6-Oct-45 Remarks: After 1949 Recommissioned as Pendant 189. Many thanks to anyone who can help out on finding the name of this soldier and the story behind the "Flash" or "Detroit Red Wing" paint job and thanks for looking and for all comments, Cheers, Pat

Thanks for the maker info Tony The "Flash" HMCS Minas helmet I posted earlier is marked "C.L./C. 1940" , a Canadian maker, and I also have an A.R.P. helmet marked "G.S.W., D.P. & H" , also a Canadian maker. I wonder what the "D.P.&H" stands for though as it is not listed on Tony's list, probably just further company classification from the General Steel Wears and Aluminum Goods company (G.S.W.). Here is a pic of the ARP helmet with the extra markings. Cheers and thanks again and let's hear some more opinions on why these fine helmets are worth SO much less than all of their counterparts in ww2 helmets. Also, I assume the NZ, Singapore, Greek and South African and Canadian made ones may carry a small premium as they were probably rarer. Just my guess though. Cheers, Pat

And the reverse of the medal with the date.. Cheers, Pat

"Friedrich III (1888), who ruled for 99 days;" Hi Dan, Nice little photograph there, I wonder if it was meant as a tourist item at that time for travelling Englishmen and whatnot. I just thought I would add this little veterans medal to this mix as it is from Kaiser Friedrich's short 99 day reign (April 8, 1888 Very late in his life I believe). This is probably one of the last medals awarded during his time as Kaiser. Interesting story, and yes they are sporting some serious medals there! Cheers, Pat

Thank you Daniel for that excellent information, right down to the shoulder board detective work to find out he was in the 2nd Foot Artillery in the Metz garrrison I had to buy this piece at the flea market about a year ago when I saw it, and it is nice to know it is a piece of "Tramp Art". I am going to research this type of art when I get some days off and keep an eye out for it from now on. It is neat how it is a blending of militaria and art, very interesting as I said in the title of the post. If anyone else has more to add please do and thanks again to Daniel for the sleuthing and expertise Cheers, Pat

Hun Helmet do you possibly have a side view? I think it is just the angles of our pics but yours looks "flatter" than mine. Here is a side shot of mine to compare (Mine is stamped 1942). Also I hope more people contribute to this topic as there hasn't been enough chat about these fine helmets I would say. Cheers, Pat

These are getting harder to find though, and prices are beginning to go up a bit for Commonwealth helmets, especially for specifically marked types and ones with wartime art on them (I'll show my example). I think that Ebay is never a good measure of value as depending on who is bidding at the time there can be wild discrepancies in price over the same type of item that is listed on different days. Also the whole price of shipping a heavy steel helmet nowadays kind of turns people off so if someone bids $20 on a Brit Helmet it actually costs them around $40-$50 to actually acquire it, so I always take into consideration the huge shipping costs of heavy items like these on Ebay (much better to find a helmet in person I might add). Yours with the liner would carry a premium as they are not as common as the shells, and it appears to be in really good shape. It is slightly different than my Canadian models it appears, but it may just be the angle of the pic. Here is my soldier-painted example (I think it was meant to be the "Flash" comic book character's helmet as in the '40's the Flash wore a Brit doughboy helmet with these wings on the side) from the Canadian minesweeper "HMCS Minas" in ww2. Cheers, Pat

My only other thought about this is that maybe the paint job with the pebbled finish sealed off the connecting areas if it is a 3-piece cross. Everything so far points to it being one piece (non-magnetic) of brass (besides the silver frame, a problem if it is supposed to be brass) or possibly solid silver, but if this type of paint finish did seal the cracks between the core and frames then that is the only possible explanation for it being a 3-piece. I thought it was brass but Tom Y is right about the frame, so maybe my original gut feeling is right about it being all silver, but I don't know if any solid silver crosses were made (maybe if it was a replacement being purchased by a wealthy vet in the 20's) at that time. Any help on this mystery is welcomed of course, and I hope we can come to the answer as this is definitely a tough one to pin down! Cheers, Pat

Well..since you asked so nicely, here ya go Cheers, Pat

Thanks for the help Kevin and Larry I read somewhere that there were fewer helmets, but I guess that's why you can't believe everything you read! Any help on the paint job one is still greatly appreciated, as if it is indeed meant to be "The Flash" then as a comic collector this helmet will really move up my list of favourite items (it's already pretty high up, but that would be the topper). Cheers and thanks again for the clarification as always Kev and Larry, always great sources of info, Pat

Last pic of this fine set, the label from the medal manufacturers in NY on the box. There is pretty detailed maker info on here and it is neat to see for sure. Thanks for looking and comments, Cheers, Pat

...and a close-up of the back. Cheers, Pat

Closer view of the medal...