Brian Wolfe

My wife and I were discussing this very topic over this morning's coffee and came to a bit of a conclusion. While it is true that there are more and more collectors all of the time and the supply is therefore not as plentiful as it was several years ago there is another contributing factor. As the baby boomers are moving closer and closer to retirement age they have everything paid for, the kids have been educated and for the most part have left the "nest" etc. This leaves them with more expendable income than ever before. Along with this many are still employed so that increases the amount of money available to dedicate to their hobbies. What a few years ago was unattainable is now well within their grasp. The other factor is that since they have done without, in order to meet other financial commitments, that speciman may now be seen as a goal that is going to be reached at any cost. This plus the factor that many countries are experiencing an increase in wealth due to the global economy and are "buying back" the medals, decorations and orders of their countries. It all adds to increasing the price of staying in the hobby; a hobby that was never for those with limited incomes in the first place. Of course that never dissuaded most of us anyway. Regards Brian

Ah, the memories of yesteryear. I've never used this particular opener but the one with a similar cutter with a long metal handle was common place in my youth. Thanks for posting these. Regards Brian

Tom, Memory can be affected by many external and internal factors. Blunt force trauma for example would be considered external while the loss of memory do to the lack of brain cells due to excessive use of alcohol would be considered internal. I do not know your age, however, memory loss can be caused by the onset of Alzheimer's Disease. A low sugar count also comes to mind. So as you can see the problem you seem to have recalling events such as the measurement session noted above can be the result of many different causes and even combinations of said causes. I would suggest that you contact a physician if these symptoms presist. I've known both Mervyn and Peter for some time now and have never detected any signs of memory loss so I regret that I cannot comment on the state of their mental capabilities regarding memory loss. As for myself Nick was left with either deeming me an Old Contemptible or simply a Contemptible Old Buzzard as was the popular opinion. The decision was made that Old Contemptible was a shorter title, least I become vain, and there was no chance of invoking the rath of the SBNAS (Save the Buzzards of North America Society) by this decision. You probably know the bird as Cathertes aura. I hope this answers your question. Regards Brian

Hi Tom, Regarding Neatsfoot Oil, Personally, I don't like the fact that you have to kill all those Neats and cut off their feet to make oil. LOL Well, it's Danish Oil that I have always wondered about, isn't that just cruel? Regards Brian

Hi Chris, Yes quite possible especially for bomber crews. I know others will say that is not true but I know this is a fact simply because my father and others in the RCAF based in England but flying missions over Germany were NOT awarded the 1939/45 Star. Years ago there was talk about these veterans trying to get the government of the day to change their decision and award these but since that time they have all pretty well passed away so it never happened. Regards Brian

Hi Richard, I hope I am not being too bold in posting this image of Baron Major General Yasumasa Fukushima from your book without first asking permission. I figured that since we were discussing your book that I might be forgiven. Regards Brian

Hi Richard, I've just gotten past that part in the book actually I'm on the section regarding his petition to the Emperor and the Ministry of the Army to undtake the journey. Great book on an amazing man. Regards Brian

To be clear that last post was NOT directed at anyone in particular. I got thinking after I posted it that members might misunderstand. Believe me if I'm going to rip a strip off someone they will know it Regards Brian.

Hi Tim, There is a dirty trick that some sellers on eBay,and probably other online auctions as well, pull. They get friends to bid up their items to get a better price. There is a collector here in my little town who was (and probably still is) doing this on a regular basis. He told me about it and even said that he had other eBay seller ID's (one under his wife's maiden name and used his mother-in-law's address) and at times ran the bid up himself. The "deal" was if you bid his item up and won then so be it, no loss except he had to pay the selling fee. In live auctions this also happens and around here you can see these "shill bidders" as they are the roust-abouts who help move furniture and larger items on and off the auction floor. He asked me to run some bids up and I told him it was unethical and broke the rules of the auction house and betrayed the trust of the purchaser. Well, one word lead to another and not only are we not friends he won't even speak to me if we run into one another on the street (and in a small town that happens). No loss as he is a pure (censored). I wonder if this is what is happening to these high bids? There is a lot of dirty dealing and sneaky things done just to possess an item. Reminds me of Gollum and his "precious". Not very flatering for a would-be gentleman is it? But we don't have that problem here...do we? Regards Brian

I will ask my cousins (yes,really) what they use. I'll working up in "Amish country" later this week and will stop by. Regards Brian

Hi Stuart, That does look like an interesting product. You may have found something that many of us here will want to give it a go. If you do try it please keep us informed. There is a product called Conservator's Wax that claims to be good for everything including leather. I've only used it on metal objects but I'll try it on an old pair of work boots I have. Regards Brian

Hi Stuart, Coincindently I was talking about this every same topic with a friend just yesterday. Years ago Neatsfoot oil was THE product to use on all leather goods and like a lot of those products time has proved them to be less than promised on the lable. I forgot to mention Saddle Soap when I was speaking with my friend and only remembered it after reading you post. I believe Saddle Soap has lanolin as one of the ingredients. Perhaps a search on Google (I know I should have done that before responding) will reveal whether it is a good alternative to Neatsfoot Oil or not. It could be just Neatsfoot Oil under a different name. Not much help but perhaps a place to start. Regards Brian

I know of some very high priced dealers near me and they've sold these for a lot less than that. We were discussing such prices here on the Japan section resently; people will pay crazy prices if they just HAVE to have an item. Glad I got mine. Regards Brian

Hello Paul, Those are some useful statistics, thanks for posting them. So...the 253,509th collector who wants a 1894-95 medal will consider them rare? Thanks again. Regards Brian

Hi Mike. It's great to welcome to a fellow Canadian to the GMIC. Nice group of artifacts. Regards Brian

Hi Leigh, Another beautiful cross design, it's sad that it conveys such a great loss. Thanks for posting it. Regards Brian

Hi Mervyn, No dates of service are shown. I wondered about this myself and made the assumption that they must have decided to leave the Police Service for the military sometime after the start of the war. From the photo that I posted a while back of the group of "Specials" it looks like some were very young when they joined the Police Sevice as an SC so would it be possible that they joined the Police Service and then when they "came of age" they joined the military? Regards Brian

That rings the rusty old bells of my memory but I don't recall the details. The ringing is too loud. Regards Brian

We use to see these here in Canada thrown in a display case of odds and ends at antiques shops years ago. No one wanted them (antiques collectors) as, first of all they were not what they collected and secondly they were not "pretty". You could make the dealer an offer of a couple of dollars and you had your knife. Now they realize what they are and you occasionaly see them in the same shops but they are treated with more respect as a collectable. More respect in antiques dealer's language means higher prices. Regarding the horn-handled specimen. I've seen this style of knife offered, newly made, in sports stores. So I know that this style of knife has been sold privately for a long time. I wonder if modern "sport" sailors use the spike for rigging? The grips on the modern versions are plastic or aluminum-looking metal, at least on the ones I've seen. Regards Brian

Hello Jan Arne, I nice example of a very functional piece of equipment. Much more appreciated in the field than the fancy dress daggers of the period. Thanks for posting it. A note to Canadian collectors: If you purchase one of these for your collection make sure you keep it out of sight while in transit from seller to your home. These "gravty assist" knives are prohibited under the Criminal Code of Canada. I know several collectors who have these in their collections and have seen them at militaria shows for sale so they are not high on the priority list for the police but... Just be careful. Regards Brian

Hi Chris, I believe I've read that if the serviceman died of his wounds the cross would be awared. The time period didn't matter as long as death was due to those wounds. Is it possible for you to post your example? I've yet to add a QEII version to my collection. Regards Brian

Good one Paul. Regards Brian

The insides of the boxes are identical and differ only in the condition due to storage. If any of the members would like to addto this post please feel free to do so. I purposely didn't title the post as "my collection" so that members might be able to add to it. Regards Brian

Here are the original boxes. The one on the left is the WWI box and the one on the right the WWII box. The difference in the two boxes is due to the degree of care taken in storage over the years.