URGENT HELP NEED from WWII Scholar!!!

[carvel2]

to lighten the mood of SS memorabillia and linking to an Old lady and her pig...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_sfnQDr1-o

[Correus]

There's no doubt that the liner was original but one check could be to see if the dates and size numbers match up and that would seal it.

That's the next step. Just need to be real careful getting it out so I can look.

Why anyone would pay this amount of money for an old helmet is honestly beyond me.
Quite extraordinary to see how sought after SS memorabilia are following those links. Nothing new there, of course, but it still astonishes me.
But I won't start a rant..

@correus
I hope you can make a lot of money out of it!
And spend it on toy soldiers

Thanks SP.

I totally, wholeheartedly,feel the same way. I about pooed my pants when I saw what people were paying!!!! I don't have a problem paying for a nice addition to a collection, but MAN!!!!

I do hope to make some money off of this but I'm not going to rape anyone's wallet either. What goes around comes around.

SWMBO has been pushing me to get into the militaria business for years now but I've never taken the plunge. I have a knack for finding things - kind of like a truffle pig. I seem to stumble across them. Not too long ago we went to an auction. We had to park a couple blocks away and walk. While doing so we passed a garage sale. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a pair of boots sitting on the junk table so I went to have a look. The price on the boots were just $1! I had a gut feeling what they were but wasn't sure and at $1 I wouldn't loose much.

Anyway, I got home and did the research - turns out I was correct - they were WWII US paratrooper boots. They weren't just any paratrooper boots either - they were mint, unissued, boots! The little tin of boot polish/soap was still in it's wrapper stuffed in the toe, the laces were still unlaced, but attached to the top eyelet with the paper wrappings around them!

I sold them for about $400. They are now in a museum in Europe.

And it's not just militaria stuff either. I have people ask me to help them find all sorts of stuff they just can't seem to locate. Most of the time I find it, but not always.

[Suetonius Paullinus]

The desire to collect SS stuff is strange though...bit like a hype
Nowt wrong with militaria as such at all, of course.
I found a MkI Brodie helmet in a farmer's field at the Somme last year.
I asked the chap in broken French if I could keep it, he just smiled and showed me his collection of around 50 helmets alone. He had a whole barn full of WWI relics, mainly shell cases, wire, and other harmless stuff, the actual shells are being disposed of by a designated unit of the French Army he said.
I know a WWI Tommy tin hat is not worth a lot but I wouldn't sell it anyways.
Actually in Albert is a very nice little museum where one can even buy original helmets for around €30-€100.
Both, WWI & WWII, German helmets en masse!
The ones I've looked at were mainly Luftwaffe though. The friendly lady at the counter said that no one wants French and British stuff, they all go for the German Stahlhelm..

Cheers

SP

[Parus Ater]

A WWI Tommy lid might not be worth much but find one with an American liner and you can ask a lot for it.

I hear you about the non-German stuff, American gear is pennies.... Unless the seller puts the words "Airborne" in front of the name and price.

[grant]

The funny thing is, I would rather have a British and an Adrian French helmet, especially for WW1, over the WW2 stuff.

[Comte Michel]

Talking of SS stuff, we were 'fighting' against SS re-enactors in the mock battles over the weekend at Tanks in Town, and they had a *drumroll* genuine WW2 Schwimmwagen. They even drove it through the stream. I didn't dare ask how much the guy had paid for the thing. He did say that he owns an old farmhouse in France and he has three Panther wheels that he dug up in his garden :p

[Correus]

@Suetonius Paullinus - That is just TOO cool!!!! I would love to go see the battlefields. So, do you have the helmet sitting at home? What kind of condition is it in?

As to the ammunition...they call it the "iron Harvest". Every year the farmers in France and Belgium will place the crop of unexploded ordinance plowed up along the road for the French Département du Déminage; not sure what the one for Belgium is called. About 1 in 4 shells did not explode and some are still viable. There are cases of some exploding. Both countries also have facilities to destroy the gas shells. However, since people find this stuff throughout the year the unit is busy all the time.

On a side note...I can actually list myself as a casualty of the Great War's gas. As a kid I acquired a US Corrected English (C.E.) Mask. I put it on for grins and giggles and started chasing a friend around the yard. In just a few minutes my eyes were burning and I felt like a was going to cough up a fiery lung. My parent's had no idea what the hell happened. About 20 years later I found out what had happened - I was gassed. Turns out the gas residue that the activated coconut charcoal, soda-lime, and cotton pads in the canister do not neutralize the gas. The gas does not even weaken with age and in some cases compounds and gets worse. So, over the years the rubber parts that act as a back-flow in the respirator weaken and when I agitated the respirator I inhaled some of the dust. If you ever get into WWI re-enacting this is one of the first things you will be told how to deal with - removing the tainted innards of a gasmask respirator canister. I had a spare German Lederschutzmaske GM17 (did you know the leather was from dogs?) and cleaned the innards out. I now have the remains in a seal glass container so they can be seen. You can actually tell, in some cases, what gas the wearer encountered by the color of the particles.

A WWI Tommy lid might not be worth much but find one with an American liner and you can ask a lot for it.

I hear you about the non-German stuff, American gear is pennies.... Unless the seller puts the words "Airborne" in front of the name and price.

You are spot on PA!! I bought an America lid about 30 years ago that was worn but still mint complete with liner an felt pad. Back then it cost me $20 - today it would cost about $300. However - painted on the front is the 3rd division symbol, so throw another $200 on to it.

I have a Springfield M1903 in my collection, along with a G98 and SMLE Mk III. I have bayonets for all of them except the Springfield. The bayonet for the Springfield costs more then I paid for the G98 & SMLE Mk III combined!

The funny thing is, I would rather have a British and an Adrian French helmet, especially for WW1, over the WW2 stuff.

I have a British Mark I model tin hat but it's been through a lot and all that's left is the helmet it's self. I've toyed with restoring it but what I'll probably do is get a cover to put on it.

I was able to acquire an Adrian helmet at the same time I got the American helmet. It cost me the same. Funny thing is, the antique store owner had no idea what kind of helmet it was - she thought it was a fire helmet!!!!

Talking of SS stuff, we were 'fighting' against SS re-enactors in the mock battles over the weekend at Tanks in Town, and they had a *drumroll* genuine WW2 Schwimmwagen. They even drove it through the stream. I didn't dare ask how much the guy had paid for the thing. He did say that he owns an old farmhouse in France and he has three Panther wheels that he dug up in his garden :p

COOL!!!!!!!

I know a guy who's selling a genuine 1943 WW2 VW Schwimmwagen. All he is asking is $150,000.00. It has been so beautifully restored it looks fake. I can send you the link if you want to make him an offer!

[Suetonius Paullinus]

@correus
Yep, got it at home
Although the Missus says it's a piece of scrap metal and I should be keeping it in the garage I have it in the house.
After 90 odd years in acidic soil it looks a bit rusty of course and the liner is long gone too but it's got no holes or dents otherwise.

Cheers

SP

[Parus Ater]

You can buy a tank for that kind of money.

[Correus]

@SP - that is so cool...battle field finds are great. The rustiness just adds to it in my opinion.

@PA - yup! I knewof a doctor in California that had a fully restored WWI FT-17 tank he wanted to sell, had even been in movies, and all he was asking was $55K. I think that guy is nuts! it's been for sell for a few years now.