Brig

Recruiting is about salesmanship, not experience. Today, the average Marine recruiter has 4-12 years of service, with the majority probably being on the lower half of that estimate.

The GCM to Rozier is most certainly for Rozier #2

I have seen a lot of Politi badges missing a wing but assumed it was due to a manufacturing flaw. I find it hard to believe that departments would allow such a noticeable flaw in uniform to be worn. I know this is an ancient post, but as far as the far right emblem goes, it appears to be an old British fake. My guess is that it has flat broad prongs on the rear rather than the narrow wires of originals

Here's a two-row bar to a career US Marine in my collection who fought in WWII and Korea. Both Purple Hearts were earned in Korea And here's a two-row (displayed as a single long row) to a WWII and Korea War veteran. He served as an enlistedman in Iceland with the Marine Corps and fought in the Battle of Guadalcanal, where he was wounded severely enough to be stuck stateside for the rest of the war. A few years after the war ended he joined the Army as a Warrant Officer and served in Korea with them. Interestingly, it seems that aside from his ribbons and a few photos, that he didn't keep anything from his time in the Army, but did keep a lot from his Marine days. I also have his Marine Corps ID, some EGAs, and his polar bear patches from Iceland

This is a great thread with lots of good information in one place. Hard to find a lot of info in English. I've been thinking of dabbling in Finnish miniature medals, this thread will certainly be helpful.

This might be the most sage advice I've seen on a forum. Over the past 20 years, I have been a member of countless forums, and one-by-one many have turned to paid membership requirements. As such, I've ended up leaving many of them and paying for only a couple most-trafficked sites as I wanted to get the most "bang for my buck". Donations, paid banners, and merchandise could easily fund the forum. USMF runs entirely off of donations and banners, and doesn't overcrowd the page with banners. They have been operating on this model for a long time.

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Some miniatures I've added over the last several months... non-USMC ones won't be staying in the collection

And someone's selling cheap churned out replicas of the above proposal on eBay now... Iraqi Commitment Medal

It's my understanding that no one actually got a medal, Biden got a planchet/medallion and the ribbon was never even produced in prototype beyond the artwork

DOD allows horizontal stripes on ribbons...USN/USMC PUC is a prime example I doubt this is ever going to come to fruition

Thanks for the info...definitely older with the nice patina and enamel, so much be Austrian

Thanks. I have shot him a message

I picked this up with an assortment of pins, mostly Austrian. I am assuming there was once a crest in the center. Really cool badge with a button hole type device on the rear. Can anyone tell me more about it?

Some great Nasjonal Samling items in there...can we see some closeups? I see you're in Trondheim, was fortunate enough to spend some time there in 2017...beautiful city

I've always been a fan of stickpins, and I buy a lot of small stick pin lots in the course of collecting militaria badges, as I'm sure others do as well. There are thousands of stick pins that have been used in Europe for decades, for everything from city crests, to organizations, to decorative. It's not uncommon for me to pick up stickpins or membership/lapel badges that I have no idea the purpose of...and I'm sure I'm not alone in this. Figured it would be fun to post a thread where members can post the various lapel pins or stick pins they pick up for possible ID. I'll kick it off. I picked these up, and believe most of them are likely of Austrian origin. I have identified that the OAAB 25 pin is for Austrian Workers' Union, and that Furstenfeld is a small town in Austria, but I have no idea what the RHV is or what that pin is for. Can anyone ID any of these other pins? Post your own in need of ID!

It wasn't uncommon for HJ to go to international youth events, particularly those of Fascist leanings. There was an event in Oslo, the HJ had an award for distinguished foreigners (very rare, only confirmed awarding that I know of was a female in Norway, but I'm sure there were more) Or maybe this youth's family simply answered Hitler's call for native Germans to return to the fatherland in the 30s?

Glad to have stumbled on this thread by accident...I have a photo of an HJ Marine member wearing this medal I have been trying to ID for a few months

Here is a closeup of the first bar. Three of the bars have reserve medals, however this one has the short-lived, early ribbon that was replaced by the ribbon we all know and still award today

I collect USMC mounted mini medals. Here are some of mine...

No, and it most likely will not happen. There was a single presentation to (at the time) Vice President Joe Biden It is my understanding that there are two criteria for the US to accept a foreign award 1) The medal cannot be strictly for foreign troops, but must also be a decoration for those of the presenting country's troops who partook in the campaign. 2) Initial issue has to be made by the awarding government. Once that happens, the US will authorize it be produced by US firms and sold in the PX, etc, for troops to buy as replacements, or for higher quality strikes that conform to US regulations. (It is not uncommon for other countries to have different width ribbons) Incidentally, Afghanistan also authorized a medal that never materialized.

It is what 57er collectors refer to as an early to mid piece, with a narrow C-Clasp and what I assume is a closed block hinge (solid piece, rather than a piece of flat medal that has been folded and attached). Looks like a nice, honest worn St&L piece 57er dating is tricky, as hardware stocks were used until depleted and usage overlapped. Generally, dating can roughly be determined by the following: -Very Early---Lates 50s-Early 60s---narrow C-clasp, solid block hinge, and thin round pin (the most desirable and sought after pieces. The earliest of these badges still used some of the pins and clasps from wartime surplus hardware stocks) -Early---Early/Mid 60s---narrow c-clasp, solid block hinge, narrow/tapering flat pin -Mid---Mid-Late 60s---wide c-clasp, open block hinge, narrow/tapering flat pin (this is by far the era with the most overlap, and it's not uncommon to see mid-era produced badges with a hodge-podge combo of hardware typically seen on early and late badges listed here) -Late---Late 60s/present---wide c-clasp, open block hinge, wide/tapering flat pin (these are the least desirable, as quality significantly begins to drop and these may have been made well after most recipients had retired from service. Firms continued to produce replacement awards for veterans and collectors for decades, and in fact St&L still offers Iron Crosses for sale)