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Paratrooper.be

WW2 US Paratrooper militaira

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AB-BL marked Belgian TL-122-D

Paratrooper.be Posted on September 12, 2021 by Wouter HasSeptember 12, 2021

These photos were sent to me by a collector called Mathieu. This flashlight is probably post-war, but I think it’s an interesting variation to inlcude anyway. AB-BL stands for Armée Belge – Belgisch Leger. Mathieu still has an open question that I can’t help him with: is it possible to date this flashlight to a certain era based on the ‘AB-BL’ marking? When did the Belgian army stop using this marking and changed it to ABL?

Go to the full article about TL-122 flashlights

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Posted in Collectibles | Tagged TL-122 | Leave a reply

TL-122 flashlights new variations

Paratrooper.be Posted on August 25, 2021 by Wouter HasAugust 25, 2021

I have just updated the article with 3 new variations sent to me by other collectors:

We have one similar to the TL-122-A that is marked ‘L122’.

Another one is a TL-122-C made by Bright Star. That’s a manufacturer I hadn’t seen yet.

And finally a TL-122-A with a different variation of the advertising for replacement batteries.

  • L122 marked instead of TL-122
  • TL-122-C made by Bright-Star
  • No.55 USA LITE LOK-TOP batteries

View the complete article about TL-122 flashlights

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Posted in Collectibles | Tagged TL-122 | Leave a reply

Escape compasses in disguise

Paratrooper.be Posted on August 23, 2021 by Wouter HasAugust 23, 2021

Peter Yates was so kind to send me photos from his own collection, including Brass and RAF black fly button compasses, unissued and still attached to the card they were issued on, razor blade compasses by six different manufacturers, and a compass hidden inside a cufflink.

Read the complete article about escape compasses

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Posted in Collectibles | Tagged escape compasses | 1 Reply

Types of identification scarf (marker panel)

Paratrooper.be Posted on June 26, 2021 by Wouter HasJune 26, 2021

I am looking for photos of these scarves in your collections. The one in these pictures is my own. It has a brown hem and bright yellow silk panel. There are no markings, other than a handwritten ‘4b’. As I did with the gas detection brassards, I thought it would be interesting to get photos from as many collectors as possible in order to learn about different variations. I know of 2 basic versions: both have a yellow silk panel. One has a brown hessian hem, the other has a white hem.

  • identification scarf brown edge
    The scarf in full view
  • Remnants of black marking?
  • Handwritten marking ‘4b’

It was issued to paratroopers at a limited scale and intended for aerial forces to recognize friendly ground forces. With paratroopers often far ahead of regular allied forces, or even behind enemy lines, this was a very useful, even life-saving piece of equipment. In period photographs they are most seen worn around the neck as scarves.

The scarves were British made, but markings aren’t always present or legible. So I would like to make an inventory. Bill Rentz’ Gernonimo! U.S. Airborne Uniforms, Insignia & Equipment in World War II shows an identical panel which is marked ‘COURTAULDS LTD. 1942’ in a square with a broad arrow, and another one, also with a brown hem, marked ‘COURTAULDS LIMITED 1943, also with a broad arrow but no square.

Even though these are early dates, I have only found photos of the scarves being worn by US paratroopers for Operation Market Garden in Holland and Operation Varsity in Germany. It would be interesting to be able to determine more accurately which units wore these scarves and when and where, and whether they were issued the scarves with the brown or the white hem.

Replicas of these scarves do exist and can also be interesting to add to the overview. A replica I oncee had was well made, but the fabric wasn’t silk. The material of the panel was too coarse and a kind of modern-day signal yellow.

I am looking forward to receiving your photos, including any markings that may still be legible.

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Posted in Collectibles | 2 Replies

Griswold bags – new photos

Paratrooper.be Posted on June 12, 2021 by Wouter HasJune 12, 2021

My Griswold bag review dates from 2008 and I had forgotten all about it. When Johan Willaert sent me some photos I thought it would be interesting to update the article. You can now see an interesting side-by-side comparison of the early and later types, as well as an extended type.

  • Late and early types
  • Extended type

Go to the Griswold bags article >

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Posted in Collectibles, Weapons | Leave a reply

Airborne 44, volume 9 – Black Boys

Paratrooper.be Posted on May 31, 2021 by Wouter HasMay 31, 2021
Airborne 44 – Black Boys

This latest volume came out in April and in my opinion, it’s one of the best in the series so far. You know from earlier posts that the other volumes are also excellent though.

Philippe Jarbinet had a bit of a late start as an author, but you wouldn’t know from reading the albums. They are stunning in graphic detail and the story line is more than just telling the history. There’s human emotion, especially in this latest album.

We are first taken to Nice and the liberation of Southern France in August 1944. A black soldier called Virgil who is attached to a field artillery unit gets into a scuff with a white airborne soldier and is transferred to Bretagne and then on to Belgium, where he ends up in the Battle of the Bulge.

In Belgium, he will again run into the white officer and they come to rely on each other to escape the hell of the firefight at the ‘Skyline Drive’.

I already look forward to the next volume, completing this story.

Here’s a link to an interview with Philippe Jarbinet.

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How to make plexiglass sweetheart grips for your Colt

Paratrooper.be Posted on May 14, 2021 by Wouter HasMay 14, 2021
How to make plexiglass sweetheart grips

I made a step-by-step guide showing how to make plexiglass sweetheart grips for your own Colt M1911A1 replica.

Doesn’t this look amazing? So much better than the often terrible fake grips on Denix and airsoft replicas, and it’s pretty easy to do.

When I got my hands on a piece of scrap plexiglass, I got the idea to make a pair of custom grips for a replica Colt 45. My earliest memory of one like this is an example on display at the Imperial War Museum in London. They can also be found in reference books and many examples (original or not) can be found online. Pistols or revolvers with plexiglass grips were more common towards the end of the war, as I gather from photos in the many reference books I have.

Click here to read the article showing you all the steps

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Posted in Re-enactment, Reproductions, Weapons | Leave a reply

BC-611 Handie Talkie reproductions from WPG

Paratrooper.be Posted on March 20, 2021 by Wouter HasMarch 20, 2021
BC-611 Talkie Walkie reproduction from WPG

I bought this set second hand, and I’m really happy with them. These radios look just like the original handie talkies, even down to the simulated crinkle paint finish. They have an actual PMR radio built in, so you can talk on any channel you like, and this on just 3 AA batteries. This as opposed to the original ones that could only communicate on one channel, and only with radios fitted with the same crystals for the same frequency as yours, and using a 90 Volt (!) battery. So for re-enactment these are just perfect. I already had my working EE-8 field phone set, but they are not so quickly set up, and of course they require a cable to connect them. With these BC-611s, you can also communicate with other PMR radios, which is great for historic vehicle tours and events. I look forward to taking them along on our next event! (when they are allowed again)

This reproduction has been around since 2014, but I never wanted to order them from the US. It would have been expensive, with shipping and customs duties. Now I just a chance to buy a used pair.

If you want to use them for display on a mannequin or in a showcase, there are some details you need to correct first, mainly to replace all philips head screws with regular screws. Orginals may still be found, but I think it’s not worth it for re-enactment and actual field use, which is what these were made for. However, I do plan to darken the paint to make it look older, and to add some white paint markings of my own. In books about Market Garden, for example you see these radios with large numbers hand-painted on them (usually at the bottom), so I might do that. Then there’s the antenna. The antenna cover and chain are like the orginal, but the actual aerial is a bit different from the original, which wasn’t as shiny and was slimmer, longer and had a small metal ball at its tip.

If you want to know more details and see a side-by-side comparison of an original BC-611 and the What Price Glory replica, I recommend this article: http://www.90thidpg.us/Equipment/Reviews/WPGBC611/index.html

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Posted in Collectibles, Re-enactment, Reproductions | Tagged bc-611, handie talkie, scr-536, talkie walkie | Leave a reply

Unmarked zinc-aluminum TL-122 flashlight

Paratrooper.be Posted on February 15, 2021 by Wouter HasFebruary 15, 2021

Dion Ruppert from Germany sent me these photos of a very special variation of the TL-122 flashlight that I had never seen before. At first sight, it looks like a TL-122-B or C, but it is not made of plastic. The whole body is made from a zinc-aluminum alloy (zamac) that looks like it was green anodized.

There are no markings anywhere. It has a spare bulb in the battery cover. It also looks like the actual switch has had the rivets removed and replaced with screws.

Read the complete article on TL-122 flashlights here

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German made TL-122 type flashlight

Paratrooper.be Posted on January 11, 2021 by Wouter HasJanuary 11, 2021

The pictures below were sent to me by Paul Reijnders some 10 years ago, and only now do we discover it’s true origin.

The flashlight has the crookneck shape, it’s green and looks old enough, but otherwise can’t be identified as a military issue flashlight. But then again, it may be. Given the all-metal construction, I would have pre-dated it to the TL-122-B and C. The lense cap is identical to the TL-122-A. The switch is of yet a different design. The clip is different in that it doesn’t have a simple round hole, but a shaped hole to easily hang it on a nail (I guess). Finally, there’s the manufacturer’s monogram on the battery cap. I am not entirely sure what letters it’s made up of. It looks like B S, so would that make that a ‘Bright Star’as well? Seems logical, but why is the logo on this one different from the other one?

Then Bastian Stieler from Germany sent me a comment, saying the marking on the batter cap is actually PS, and it’s a German made one. These a post war contracts made by the Metallwarenfabrik Peter Schlesinger located in Offenbach am Main (near Frankfurt am Main). Under the brand Hassia they already produced flashlights for the Wehrmacht.

I think it’s wonderful how new information on these flashlights and other items like compasses keeps turning up after all those years.

Go to the full article about TL-122 type flashlights

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About me

Wouter Has

I have been collecting WW2 militaria since I was a boy. About fifteen years ago, I decided to focus on WWII US Army, specializing in the history and equipment of the US Paratroops.

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Along with many new releases around Saint Nicholas Along with many new releases around Saint Nicholas, we finally get to read and admire the second part of the story that started with volume 9 - Black Boys, which came out in April 2021. It was worth the long wait! You can really see the craft en dedication that Philippe Jarbinet put into this new album.
The scenario is strong, and even though it's emotional, it does not become cheesy.
All the uniforms, equipment and vehicles look very realistic, but maybe the most impressive achievement is how Jarbinet manages to capture the sensation of the winter. The watercolors really come to life in the snow, the tracks in it and the wrecks of vehicles half buried in it.
I hope that new albums of this same standard will keep coming every year.
#1944 #1945 #ww2history #paratrooper #airborne #battleofthebulge #militariacollector #bandofbrothers #ww2collections
Pre- November 11 flowers for ‘our’ soldier Jam Pre- November 11 flowers for ‘our’ soldier James V. Schairer at Flanders Fields American Cemetery. It’s a wet and windy day, but the colors of the autumn leaves are pretty. #flandersfields #freedomisntfree #1418 #armymedic
Kees Smulders sent these very clear pictures from Kees Smulders sent these very clear pictures from a Canadian made luminous disk in his own collection. He bought it 30 years ago at an army surplus store in Arnhem. It’s a Canadian disk, marked R.L.I. 1942 (RLI stands for Radium Industries Limited). It is still complete with its brown nubuck leather pouch with a brass press stud, and a tie down cord. I have never seen one like this in such good condition and with a pouch.
#1944 #1945 #ww2history #paratrooper #operationmarketgarden #militariacollector #bevrijdingsdag #bandofbrothers #ww2collections #marketgarden
Bob Esposito kindly sent me this picture of the pi Bob Esposito kindly sent me this picture of the pillow cover that his father in-law Cosmo Barbieri sent to his parents while training at Ft. Bragg. He was a paratrooper with the 101st Airborne, serving in WWII during the years of 1944 to 1946.

This is one of several Ft Bragg souvenir pillow covers featured in my ever growing overview.

Camp Bragg was renamed Fort Bragg, to signify becoming a permanent Army post, on September 30th, 1922. Mainly paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne trained at Bragg (although apparently also Bob's father in-law). Fort Bragg is still the home of the Airborne and Special Operations Forces today.

It's an interesting moment to bring this up, as Fort Bragg is soon to be renamed to Fort Liberty. Fort Bragg is currently named after Gen. Braxton Bragg, a Confederate general associated with being a slave owner and losing battles during the Civil War.  It is one of nine Army installations slated for a name change.

#1945 #1944 #ww2history #paratrooper #wwiisouvenir #militariacollector #bevrijdingsdag #bandofbrothers #airborne #ftbragg #101stairbornedivision #82ndairbornedivision #ww2collections
Memorial Day at Flanders Field American Cemetery a Memorial Day at Flanders Field American Cemetery and Memorial. This year, Pvt. James V. Schairer’s cross has a QR code you can scan if you want to read his short biography. Maybe something that could be done for all graves? That would be interesting.
🇧🇪Freedom is not Free🇺🇸
December 1944 SHAEF issued handbook for military g December 1944 SHAEF issued handbook for military government in Germany, prior to defeat or surrender. This is a very interesting period manual, including instructions on organizations to be disbanded and officials to be arrested, and many other matters of martial law. 
#1944 #1945 #ww2history #militariacollector #ww2collections #ww2collector #ww2militaria #usww2
WW2 Coca-Cola advertisement showing GIs in Brussel WW2 Coca-Cola advertisement showing GIs in Brussels. If you know Brussels, this scene may confuse you, but this is in fact Place de Brouckère and this statue and fountain really used to be there. It is currently located at the Place Sainte Catherine. #1945 #ww2history #ww2pictures #brussels #militariacollector #bevrijdingsdag #ww2collections #ww2collector #ww2militaria #usww2 #militariacollector #cocacola
A lieutenant pointing at the American Officers Lea A lieutenant pointing at the American Officers Leave Club at the Hotel Central in Brussels, 1945. You may recognize this building as the Mac Donald’s across the Bourse. #1945 #ww2history #ww2pictures #wwiiphotos #ww2souvenirs #brussels #militariacollector #ww2collections #ww2photos
Jumpwings with 506th PIR oval background #ww2histo Jumpwings with 506th PIR oval background #ww2history #101stairbornedivision #paratrooper #dday #militariacollector #currahee #camptoccoa #bandofbrothers #ww2collection #airborne #506thpir #506thparachuteinfantryregiment
This mountain troop knife is in new condition, com This mountain troop knife is in new condition, complete with its original wax paper wrapper. These knives were issued to the 10th Mountain Division. This paricular knife came from a farm in a village in the Tosco-Emiliano Appenines, together with the German propaganda leaflet which was shell-dropped over American lines on the Gothic Line where the 10th Mountain also served. As one of the last divisions to join the war in the ETO, the 10th Mountain Division joined in Italy at the end of December 1944. It was to see combat on the 8th of February 1945 near Cutigliano and Orsigna, the region where this knife was found. The propaganda leaflet was adressed to soldiers of the 85th anf 86th Regiments of the 10th Mountain Division.
These knives were issued in boxes marked 'Knives, Pocket Stock No. 7444-8 For Ski And Snow Patrol'. This was the first knife supplied to the army to have a Philips head screwdriver, used to tighten ski bindings. The knives were also issued to the First Special Service Force. #1944 #1945 #ww2history #militariacollector #ww2collections #ww2collector #ww2militaria #usww2 #militariacollector #10thmountaindivision
US Mk 2 machete, marked True Temper - 1944. The bl US Mk 2 machete, marked True Temper - 1944. The blade and leather sheet are in beautiful condition. Note the green plastic handle. Latest addition to the collection. #1944 #1945 #ww2history #militariacollector #ww2collections #ww2collector #ww2militaria #usww2 #militariacollector
Still looking for a complete pack of Military Marv Still looking for a complete pack of Military Marvels. This wrapper still has a trace of the tax free for armed forces label. Let me know if you have a packet you would want to sell. #1944 #1945 #ww2history #militariacollector #ww2collections #ww2collector #ww2militaria #usww2 #militariacollector
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