jon m.

Does anyone have advice as to how to go about cleaning the ribbon on a Purple Heart?

It is the older variant, so I am guessing that it is possibly cotton

Thanks, Jon.

You are referring to WAF aren't you????

Jon.

Here one my favoite Soviet Items, hope you like it

I love it!!

How heavy is it?

Jon.

11. Medal "30 Years of the German Democratic Republic" (GDR ??)

Yes, "German Democratic Rebublic" would be GDR, or DDR, or in Polish, NRD.

Jon.

And the presentation photo -

That is very nice!

I found it!!!!

It was used in the now obsolete M85 machine gun.

Many Thanks for helping.

Jon.

IIRC = if I recall correctly.

Cheers,

David

Oh crap. I knew that . I was in a "military" state of mind, trying to figure out what that meant in military jargon .

Yes I knew that, and at the Des Moines ordnance plant (DM), but what I have no idea about is the kind of MG it was used in.

I feel stupid for asking this, but what does "IIRC" mean?

Jon.

It is just black lacquer (AP Tungsten Core). He got them during his time in the US Army (late 1960s and early 1970s). I do not remember if he served in Vietnam or not. I think that he might have because he did not like talking about his time in the Army (he would literally change the subject if asked about his military experience). However I do know that he was some kind of instructor at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

Jon.

Could someone give me some background information on this .50 cal. MG cartridge link?

My uncle gave me them some years ago and I have yet to know what they were used in (My uncle has since died, so naturally I can't ask him). The ammunition is all WWII dated ("DM 43") and the links are stamped "M15 BRW". I assume that the "BRW" refers to John M. Browning.

Any help is appreciated.

Jon.

[attachmentid=44128]

The two rounds on the right are GermanWW2 2cm flak38 rounds the red band (just visible)indicates a tracer was present and the yellow overall colour indicates HE.The small round appears to be a 20 X120 mm round more likely of US origin but also used by other countrys inc germany see the attatched article i just found as for wether its practice or HE its hard to tell without any markings ,,does any colour remain at all.try wetting it around the driving band to see if any colour got trapped .

Did you guys ever figure out what it was?

I completely understand what you guys are saying about safety . About ten years ago, ok maybe nine, a .50 cal. BMG primer cap exploded in my hand . The anvil lodged into my left ring-finger, and the twisted primer cap went in one side of my left thumb and out the other (missing the bone thank God!). I still have my "shrapnel." I have no idea why the entire cartridge did not explode, but I have always been extremely thankful that it didn't.

Will work on posting some pics.

Jon.

I apologize for maddening anyone on this forum. My original post was written out of the (now corrected) belief that the HSU was originally a Military award and later expanded to include Civilians.

Jon.

Thanks for joining us. It is always great to have a real NVA veteran.

Jon.

Yes I was referring to German.Militaria (Torsten) as having served in the NVA.

Sorry for not noticing the confusion sooner, but I have been caught up in "The Devaluing of the Hero of Russia." I sure stirred up a hornets nest over there.

http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=10543

Jon.

Medal for International Brigades in Spain, 1936-1939

With document to Hristov Pipperov Yanko, awarded 6 February 1975, decree # 462

See also: http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=1245...eimler&st=4 and following posts.

Hi Ed, nice medals. What does BPFK stand for?

Thanks, Jon.

In then end it comes down to how individual people define the term "Hero." I essentially define it as doing something that most people would not do and at great risk of severe injury or death.

Slava. thanks for posting that link, I had given up ever finding it again.

To all:

Personally, I wholeheartedly agree. To award a Hero of Russia for winning a slew of Winter Olympic medals (see first post in this thread), however, is a major distortion.

Regards,

slava1stclass

That is what comes to mind when I refer to the civilian awarding of the HSU/RF medals. Specifically the ice skaters. I do not consider that in any way, shape or form to be heroic.

Now I really have to go. Jon.

I thought about my earlier post and realize that I left out Cosmonauts. While not all deserve the award some truly did, such as Yuri Gagarin, for he was the FIRST MAN in space and his name is subsequently known the world over.

I am biased for the military, firefighters, police and cosmonauts because they operate in a field where a violent death is a part of daily life (such as being blown into a million pieces by high-explosives; burned to death; shot to death; and having your blood boil after being exposed to the vacuum of space - respectively). While the civilians are functioning in a much more "civil" environment, I acknowledge that some may do something that merits the HSU/RF title, but I can't think of any instances at the moment.

This has been a pet peeve of mine for some years and I nearly shat myself when I read the title of this topic.

Anyhow, I am off to class for my first exam over Russian involvement in the Korean War.

Jon.

That may be true, but that isn't the way it has (Soviet => Russian) been awarded. Why the military bias?

It is just that when I think of "Hero" automatically a soldier comes to mind, then to a lesser extent Firemen and Police. Perhaps it is because I live in US where there is a clear division between awards for military service and civilian service (that is: Firefighters, Police etc.).

In my view, when the Gold Star medal is awarded to a civilian it lessens the magnitude of what the soldiers did to earn the title "Hero of the [soviet Union or Russian Federation]". I mean no disrespect to any civilians who earned the title, but in my opinion ice skating and combat do not come close to each other.

By the way, in modern Russia if you earn two or more "Hero" medals do they still place a bust of you in your hometown?

Jon.

I read in Krasnaya Zvezda a couple of years ago where they gave the Hero of Russia medal to some Chechen boy who was killed. Personally I think that it should ONLY be awarded to SOLDIERS for HEROISM, either in war or during times of peace.

Hi all,

This is the newest addition to my DDR collection. It was actually found on Ebay by Vic (Order of Victory) who passed it on to me. (Many thanks Vic!!!! ). I managed to win the bid and can't wait till it arrives.

It's an Urkunde (award document) for a Polizei long service medal dated 1955 and awarded to Volks Polizei Unterkommissar Heinz Mueller and numbered 1271.

From the picture of the medal I believe it's an early type that was later redesigned. Of course I'm always open to more info if anyone knows more about this or any of my items.

These are the sellers pics by the way. His name is Torsten and goes by German.Militaria on ebay. I know several of our members know Torsten from other forums. And he should be joining us here at GMIC very soon. In fact he has some information to add about this document and I can't wait to see his post when he comes on board.

He's a Gentleman and a Scholar and will be an excellent addition to our membership! And keep in mind that he runs some terrific auctions on Ebay so please, check out his listings... you never know, you might find a real prize like I did!

First the outer cover:

[attachmentid=54853]

Full shot of the inner document:

[attachmentid=54854]

The picture of the award:

[attachmentid=54855]

Serial number:

[attachmentid=54857]

He also served in the NVA