Cheers and thanks as always for watching and commenting 🙂🙃🙂

Yeh I reckon your right there....I've become a sort of collecting point for all my extended families history, and long may it continue 🙂🙂🙂😀

Thanks yeh that's great.....its good to find out about relatives from the past...onwards and upwards 🙂🙂🙂

Thanks for the comment😊😊, it's really nice to hear from people who were really knew him.....obviously I only met him once, many years ago. My 'step grandfather ' was the only grandad I knew from my mother's side. I hope you don't mind the video and your grandads photo being in my display.....I'm actually in my man cave museum now and the photo is on the wall 😊😊, thanks again 😊😊

Yeh I knew he was in the army during ww2, despite the fact he had a deformed finger....you can see this clearly when he cocks his thompson sub machine gun in Kelly's heroes. I didn't know he was in the medical corps, great info telly m8🙂🙂🙂

Wow!....thats amazing and I hope you didn't mind me putting the video up?...obviously as I stated I only met him once, but as I am a collector of all things military, I thought it would be interesting to find something out about his service. My 'step grandfather' , unsure if that's the correct way of saying it, was in the merchant navy just after the war....I honestly thought he was my real grandfather until I was around 11 or 12....even when I found out , it didn't matter to me, divorces etc etc are a thing in life, although I suppose it was much less common in the early 50s. Thank you very much for commenting on my channel , all the very best to you 😊😊😊

Absolutely not. I love it mate. Great to see him in his uniform. Yer you’re right. They don’t air their laundry, not like these days all over Facebook 😂. Really appreciate the reply and great channel I will subscribe for sure. Take care mate. I should be able to source some more photos for you. Leave it with me.

Cheers Ashley, I really appreciate that...would be good to get more copies of photos . Thanks for subbing the channel, I just try to show the stuff I've got without being too serious. I'm on Instagram as well, same name...you can contact me through that if you want. I don't have fbook but my wife does so, are you on there?, if so I will look you up. Thanks again, and all the best 🙂🙂🙂

Thanks Chris m8 🙂🙂

Cheers Al, yes the photos of my father in law were destined for the bin until I saw them and mentioned to my wife I couls set up a display....I know we can't keep everything, but I'm willing to try!🤣🤣🤣. Yeh the bundy track top is nice, think it was epic militaria 🤔🤔🤔, maybe £20 or so 🙂🙃🙂

Cheers Paul, I've got another one coming from ebay , dedicated to someone who became a wing commander, video to follow 🙂🙃🙂

Thanks Paul, yeh I remember hogan's heroes...I can't stop collecting helmets, it's a disease I'm sure!🤣🤣🤣

Yes they all did their bit.....I suppose I'm just trying to sort out the family history, so much stuff is forgotten or thrown away , we must remember history 🙂🙃🙂

Great thought's WW2 family heritage.

Cheers Jim m8...yeh you've just jogged my memory...they had a rig up in the TA centre for practice jumping...I can't remember using it....all I recall is being told to run around the parade ground ....a lot!!🤣🤣

@@steelhelmetstan7305 Ha ha ! ..we had this ruddy great fan up a scaffold at first.. lol.. then we moved onto a balloon jump which really terrified me !! lol ..then the 'Get oot with a kick from a boot ' moment !! ..which filled ma troosers !! 🤣😂

@@JimTimber 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Thanks Jim, as I said I only met him once so its a tenuous link for sure....maybe my estranged family might see it!!🤣🤣🤣

@@steelhelmetstan7305 It is still someone to be very proud of mate !! ..awesome !! I never met either of my grandfathers.. one of them was a Sergeant in the Somme (my Dad's Dad).. he was a kind man !

Cheers CJ yeh I've heard that about the bombing....I suppose I'm becoming a depository for all things militaria in the family....🤣🤣🤣. Look forward to your new displays, I've got those £15 binos I mentioned, I've already had a fiddle with them and I reckon I will be able to sort them, ww2 prismatic binos with graticule and original canvas strap....not bad, just short of a screw....cheers CJ m8🙂🙃🙂

Such a fire also took place at the US army data offices in 1973. Unfortunately, a lot of WW2 was lost, including stories of known and unknown heroes.

​@@steelhelmetstan7305yep I'm at the stage now where I need to keep uniforms on their own mannequin stands and not keep changing them about,also got in some 37 patt webbing...brilliant find with the binos.

​@@paulwee1924dussadly theres a lot of ww2 related records including photos that were probably dumped after the war and looked upon as no big deal and no great loss,I reckon it happened everywhere.

Thanks Jim m8, yeh that really make my helmet collection stand out....better get back to buying military surplus junk🤣🤣🤣

Thanks, yeh that's what I thought, and they could be fragile, I've broken to many bits of militaria with my bad handling 🙂🙃🙂

Thanks, shame the family didn't want to keep it , but that's what happens to a lot of stuff over the years 🙂🙃🙂

Cheers Graham and thanks for the comment m8...regarding the chinstrap, unsure as I'm not up to speed with modern German kit. Are you restricted to Spain only for your buying?...if not there are some great surplus shops online on ebay......'military surplus from around the world aka Sfrankish ', 'germandotmilitaria ' , he's ebay and stand alone website, also 'red monkey collective'....a lot of his stuff is DDR, but give them a look , all 3 are on ebay, cheers m8 🙂🙃🙂

Ah ok, thanks for the info m8.....well it is what it is , I've got it now so that's that....I still like it as a piece, the damage makes it all the better for me 😊

Cheers James m8 🙂🙂🙂

Cheers , yes indeed , I wonder how many helmets are really untouched after all these years 🙂🙂🙂🙃

To be honest I'm unsure....I reckon though that after ww2 , all the surplus arms would be used by anyone who could get them 👍👍

Cheers Chris....a nice cheap item....all the best 🙂🙃🙂

Thanks Chris, yeh it looks good I reckon....also with old leather stuff , it can sometimes be very fragile , as I've found out myself too many times 🤣🙂🙂

Cheers David m8 👍👍👍

Thanks Liam m8, all the best 🙂🙂

Cheers CJ m8 yeh a nice item 🙂

That's nice 👍

Yeh I reckon it looks OK, I will update the label for future reference 🙂

Cheers Al, yeh I thought about a real chinstrap but I reckoned, easily faked, more expensive and definitely more fragile. The helmet didn't have one so it looks complete now...the other two have partial chinstraps so I'm leaving them. Enjoyed your close up video of your MP40, made me realise my airsoft replica I have on my mannequin has the sling attachment on the same side as yours...I'm leaving it like that 🙂🙂

@@steelhelmetstan7305 Yeah, most airsoft and the denix repros have the sling attachment on the left - blame it on all the movies showing them being fired from the shoulder à la Clint Eastwood!! Anyhow, chin strap looks good on that lid and glad that you managed to get them for your collection. You'll need a deact MP40 next...!!!

@@Landsturm 👍👍👍yes a deac MP40 is kn my radar....but obviously its an expensive item so I had better stop buying tat and save up 🤔🤣

Yes makers mark says 'Kut hing swatow'....unbelievably I did read this months ago when I got it...just slipped my swiss cheese brain. Swatow street is in Hong Kong so presumably that's where a lot of this type of stuff is made and sold. It's a nice personal item that was probably someone's pride and joy keepsake wise....until it no longer mattered to the fellow or his family if he had passed on.....and yep definitely no drinking out of it...🤣🤣

@@steelhelmetstan7305 Sadly, that is true. There were a lot of Scottish soldiers so I often see similar stuff in my local charity and antique shops. In fact, there are two Egyptian 'trench art' items in my local junk shop right now, little ashtrays with one having a real Italian coin brazed on it, the other a genuine German eagle shield off a sun hat. No doubt brought back by a soldier who served in North Africa.

@@Landsturm the trench art items sound really interesting....yes I understand that we can't keep everything and that families lose interest in artifacts from the past. I've got a photo album of an RAF guy based in Egypt, late 40s early 50s, his wedding is the last few photos ....shame nobody he knew wanted it....thats life unfortunately 🤔🤔

To be honest I bought them from my m8 and the price was decent , but yeh they are still not a cheap item , cheers Andrew m8🙂🙃🙂

Yes indeed John, I reckon I won't buy another one, but hey you never know!🤣

Ha ha, yeh I'm getting on with it...drinking that is🤣

Cheers jimbers, yeh I've heard about the Kings coin at the bottom of the glass....I'd of been stuffed as I'm too fond of the old empty jug of ale!!🤣🤣

@@steelhelmetstan7305 Ha ha ! ..we used to play a trick on the girls at the Kings Arms pub in Berkhamsted as kids. We would press a penny onto their foreheads (they believed it was stuck there !! lol.. but it wasn't !! lol) and then they had to 'knock the coin off into their glass and we'd the 'buy them another drink !' lmao.. the amount of lasses that I got slapped from when they realised the truth !! lol.. having sat there slapping the backs of their heads for a minute or more !! 🤣😂

@@JimTimber 🤣🤣🤣

Are you going to put up a video on the restoration?....if so that would be a good watch 🙂🙂

Yeah I might do and explain the overall process.

@@helmetproductions good idea 👍👍👍

Ha ha yeh.....my misses might string me up like!!!🤣🤣

@@steelhelmetstan7305 Where there's a will.

@@anvilbrunner.2013 where there's a will there's a shed .....and I will be living in it soon!🤣🤣🤣, she told me to stop buying....oops just bought another pair of ww2 prismatic binos today, £15....can't go wrong Anvil I reckon 🙂😀

@@steelhelmetstan7305 Not at them prices. Lucky.

@@anvilbrunner.2013 video to come when they arrive 🙂

Flipping heck!!!...thats a lot , but yeh prices going up...just was watching a helmet that was on ebay as a ww1 austrian helmet, starting at 99p...open to offers, well its gone, don't know how much for. There's still some bargains to be had on ebay , I've just paid for a pair of ww2 british prismatic binos with original webbing strap, open to offers...I offered £15 and got them....they might need work, I can do that....great display or trade items.....I love binos, and steel helmets...oh and deacs!🤣🤣🤣

Cheers Telly, ah good stuff....I'm going to keep it as it is....it looks like it was painted a long time ago...🙂🙃🙃

Correct m8, you are right....I'd never heard of it before 😊😊😊😊

@@steelhelmetstan7305 It was a box-office flop.

@@paulwee1924dus ah ok, cheers 🙂🙃🙂

Yul Brunner did another movie, named "The triple cross from '66. That's a good movie.

@@paulwee1924dus cheers Paul, I will try to track it down 🙂🙂

Cheers and thanks 🙂🙃🙂

Cheers KTM m8, hope you are well....it was my wife getting in my ear about the dates....🤣🤣

🙂🙃🙂

As in follow the...

@@swcarp 👍👍👍🙂🙂🙂

Thanks yeh books are very important when it comes to german helmet collecting 🙂🙃🙂

Yes they are an odd design, but ballistically very good apparently 😊😊😊

Thanks jimblers , glad you enjoyed it m8....yes its a beautiful country and its a great place to of lived.....plus I loved the bloody beer m8 🍻🍻🍺🍺🙂🙂😀

@@steelhelmetstan7305 Yeah.. well I've blown the froth off a few in my time !! 😂😂🍻

Cheers Al, yes there are a lot of differences between the English or western countries, so much so that people who have never lived in such a situation do not appreciate it. I've heard from people a few times, 'oh it didn't work out', 'ah your back , I knew you would come back here', 'you were only in Australia, its just like here, my brother has been there for years'.....etc etc etc. I spent around 5 years all up and became a citizen, true it obviously didn't suit me as I'm living in the uk, but it's a place that has a draw for me. It's a vert different place than the uk, some good some bad....but its just my opinions in the end , based on life experience rather than fact....all the best 🙂🙃🙂

@@steelhelmetstan7305 I am an immigrant I live in Spain.

Cheers Baron......I hope I don't come across as mocking Australia and Australian life....the country has different customs and ways of doing things....its just my wry observations on the way I see things...its a place I may return to.....one day perhaps 🤔

Cheers, they are a nice helmet to have..cheers Andrew m8 🙂🙃🙂

The only wreck was me!!🤣🤣🤣🤣