Spasm

I had no idea that these were stashed in the little City? (it has a Cathedral) of Brecon - Mid Wales. It has the highest concentration I've ever seen of VCs. 

The local:

The actual Flag:

And the VCs: 

The photo'd one is the only one they do not own (replicas in the display, the museum owns the originals):

M40 Lufty, a couple of German ammo boxes and a painted repro train eagle - I've tried to make the eagle look like polished wood.

Jock - I very much agree with you, None of my helmets would fool anyone for long but they do look very nice on the shelf. 

There are indeed very talented people out there forging stuff and have been doing so for a very long time. Long enough for the fakes to be pretty old. Remember those very highly priced daggers a few years back that were made in German factories just after the war. Given the prices helmets are going for i would rather spend on a known reproduction rather than risking on a supposed real one as I neither have the knowledge or the money.

I've got 29 of these large format (370mm by 320mm) colour pictures hanging around and have been meaning to scan them in for a while (before they get bunged back up in the loft.) No idea why I got them and have no ideas what they were originally for - prints for a book? signal magazine? Any ideas?   

Here's a not so well preserved PAB in silver to Panzer Jager Lehr 130. Dated Jan 1945 presumably due to actions in the Ardennes.

I think these guys were mounted in Panzer IV/70 (V) tank hunters - the Jagdpanzer IV. 

Any ideas on who the signature is?

I haven't really been to the forums to look other than a photo showing some overspray next to a supposed gap made by masking tape. I must go and have a closer look. 

Continuing with the winter camo theme. A resprayed 1/16th scale radio controlled (with engine sound, recoil, exhaust smoke etc) T34/85 medium Russian tank. Jolly hockey sticks what what.....

Larry - all the helmets are reproduction. All were straight out of the brand new box a couple of weeks ago with me then trying not to lose too much blood twisting up the wire baskets 

Jock - technically pretty easy to do with a bit of homework. Particularly SS runes as they are the easiest to reproduce. I believe these 'decals' runes were produced some years ago - like maybe the early 70s. In those days us custom sprayers were using cellulose paints, having to come out of garages full of fumes before we fell over. The paints mixed in thinners pretty well with flakes, metals and candies - just about anything would dissolve. The three or maybe four stencils could have been fairly easily measured and cut. Then basing on a couple of datum lines spraying the base, runes and lacquer could be lined up pretty accurately each and every time. The slightly blurred edges would be achieved by using a stencil that was placed and held with tape rather than a sticky (frisk) stencil. Given the simplicity of the design it wouldn't have needed an airbrush but was probably an old passche  as that's what we had then. The overspray seen in the pictures looks like a pretty thick mix which was probably not controlled too well as the faker was producing lots of them with the minimal of masking. Not having checked but I expect any chemical analysis would be a pretty close match. 

Accuracy would obviously be a lot easier these days with computer cutters sorting out the stencils once the design is done - and that design could be anything you like, cut more accurately than you could achieve by hand. Multi mixing of paint colours including metals and content could also be sorted with some homework.

Given that there's very accurate repro Fallschirmjager shells selling for £500 and that I've seen a DAK Fallschirmjager helmet advertised for $25,000 just recently I wouldn't touch any of them.  

I seem to have been doing a few winter camo helmets of late:

Well worn Fallschirmjäger Luftwaffe DD

An M35 Waffen SS SD

And a Fallschirmjäger SS of 500/600 penal battalion

I can't remember where I found these but are a good reminder of models of helmets, also, those of you who have relics with no stampings there's an identifying method for the manufacturer (well sort of as long as you have comparisons),

Graham

Try the Museum of Airborne Forces

https://www.facebook.com/Airborne-Assault-The-Museum-of-the-Parachute-Regiment-Airborne-Forces-109068972454849/

or Chalk Living History

http://chalknumber.blogspot.co.uk/

all very knowledgeable chaps with access to records etc

Come back and let us know how you get on 

Thanks again Frank, took me ages to get the runway, roads and beaches in the right alignment and from an angle above. Had to draw from aerial photos of the time and not too obscured by clouds. The northern (Yorke Bay) and southern beach (Surf Bay) can be seen as white arcs. 

Thanks Frank, yep I did these 

Cheers Gunner 

Nick - thanks very much for that.

Any ideas about the top paragraph/heading? I'm assuming it states what the award is for and to what unit they were in. I'm sort of hoping I can then google about and find some more details about the dates and actions around Stalingrad

Just bought a Defence of Stalingrad medal and certificate awarded to a tank regiment member as a backdrop to a painting I'll do sometime soon. However, I have no ideas as to translation.

I've tried to use the cryillic alphabet aid on here but us oldies who have to use glasses to read the screen and then not to write things down gets the better of my patience. Rather than just give in, maybe a Gent can help me translate the top paragraph of this award list

Many thanks in advance  

The awardee is number 31 on this page

German Air Force Panavia Tornado at the 2011 NATO Tiger Association air display in Cambrai, France

Sturmgeschütz III Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42.....a frost-bitten dawn advance on the Eastern Front.

Sunday 17th September 1944

Early morning on the 4th May 1982, Operation Black Buck Two's stick of twenty one 1000lb bombs hits the Western end of Stanley Airport's runway.

Black Buck One's craters from a few days before can be seen across the runway.

The Royal Canadian Air Force monument constructed from 3 blocks of granite, red, grey and red. The maple leaf on top casts a shadow on the large base that aligns at 11 o'clock on the 11th day of the 11th month.

IG, yes normally just trees and once these young ones grow it'll be really an impressive wood full of groves to sit and ponder.

Not too keen on this one as it seems a bit erm, bring and show schoolike but am showing for my mates, the Junglies

This memorial celebrated the Centenary of Naval Aviation that honours the sacrifice made by the 6,749 who gave their lives over the preceding 100 years

Carrying on with the Commandos. The Association badge, wreath in copper and Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife. All 1205 commandos who died during WW2 are named on the roll of honour.

Probably will not see another of these. A commonwealth gravestone commemorating the war graves commission.

The main Armed Forces Memorial is in the centre of the arboretum and dominates the surrounding wooded landscape. It was dedicated by the Queen in October 2007. It is a 100 metre diameter 6 metre high earth mound inspired by the ancient landscapes of prehistoric Britain. Two curved and two straight walls faced with over 1000 tonnes of Portland stone are carved with the names of those who have given their lives in the service of the country since the end of World War Two.

In recognition of the importance of Armistice Day a narrow gap has been left in the two southern walls that allow a shaft of sunlight to fall onto the central wreath on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

An obelisk stands at one of the entrances to the centre of the memorial 

Made from Chinese granite and designed to give a different perspective when viewed from different angles, the Star of David memorial commemorates all members of the Jewish community who have served and to the many who lost their lives. I assume the loose stones on the base are from those who remember the fallen.  

The South Atlantic Medal Association memorial is very similar to the Blue Beach Cemetery memorial at San Carlos in the Falkland Islands. The cap badges of the forces that made up the task force that recaptured the Islands after the invasion in 1982 are engraved in the tablets on each side of the main memorial tablet. Underneath is a map showing the task forces' route.

The Parachute Regiment and Airborne Forces memorial is the large statue of Bellerophon mounted on Pegasus which is the symbol worn on the Airborne forces shoulder. A paratrooper is also represented pulling in his gear bag after landing.  Really nice that all the memorials can be approached, touched freely and are not fenced off - a pottery poppy has been placed in the para's jacket.

At the far Eastern edge of the arboretum - where the dawning sun first strikes - is the 'Shot at Dawn' memorial.

During World War One, 306 British and Commonwealth soldiers were shot for desertion, cowardice, striking a senior officer, disobeying orders, casting away arms and sleeping at post. Most of them were sentenced after a short trial at which no real opportunity for defence was allowed. Several of them were under age when they volunteered and many were suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.

A posthumous pardon was granted to all of them in 2006.

Each post bears a name

Walking down another avenue of trees with memorials on each side in their own grove I next visited the Army Wood and the Army Air Corps memorial. Formed in Middle Wallop in 1957 bringing together the various elements of Army Aviation in their attack, assault and surveillance roles. Over 150 members of the AAC have died in service since 1957. 

At the Eastern end of the avenue of trees called the Beat is the imposing Polish Forces Memorial. Four figures representing the Polish Army, Navy, Air Force and Resistance Fighters are topped by the Polish Eagle. The surrounding circular wall has some of the history of their forces. On the seating that forms part of the circular wall is a bronze Polish army cap. 

The Royal Army Medical Corps has a large woodland with red and gold leaved tress each dedicated to members of the RAMC. The central avenue of purple leaved trees are dedicated to those who were awarded the Victoria Cross.  

Passed the entrance building and the available guidebooks, site maps, information and guides (there is also a land train tour available with a recorded spoken tour for a fiver) it is obvious how many memorials there are to visit. Randomly wandering off I'll post those that I photographed where the photos actually came out ok.

This is the Polar Bear Association Memorial (the first to be included in the arboretum) dedicated to the 49th Infantry West Riding Division who were based in Iceland under 20 feet of snow for most of the campaign in WW2. The bear is 9ft long carved from yellow hardwood and weighs in at 2.5 tonnes. Under the bear are small wooden carvings of the Regiments that formed the 49th.