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Showing results 1 - 10 of 12 for the category: Uniforms and Footwear.
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The Birth of a Collector (9/4/08)
 I was talking with my friend Mike Bockman, a militaria dealer and owner of BBmilitaria.com, when we got on the subject of the Niobrara River that runs across the Northern part of Nebraska. I had canoed this river several times in Boy Scouts and Mike had canoed it with his family when he was young.
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Hello Beijing! (9/4/08)
 After spending over 15 hours on a to jet to Beijing, my rubber legs ambled off the plane, through customs, towards the baggage carousel, where I waited to be reunited with my luggage. I was not too groggy to notice the gigantic Kentucky Fried Chicken mural and chuckle over its absurdity. Across the airport, I saw a man wearing something that caught my eye.
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WWII Inland Paratrooper Liner: A Treasure Found in an Unlikely Place (8/26/08)
 Of all WWII US Airborne military collectibles, Original helmets are one of the hardest items to obtain for a collection. There were three main types used in WWII. A fiber (cardboard) liner was used early on. This was soon replaced by high pressure (fiberglass) liners made by Inland and Westinghouse.
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Always a Marine: Reuniting history with a collectible uniform (5/24/08)
 My favorite antiques and collectibles tell a story. It’s been my experience that unearthing the story is more rewarding than the challenge of obtaining the item. My most recent “story” began at the Hastings, Nebraska military collectibles show in March 2008. I had just set up my dealer table and started walking the floor to see what other dealers brought to sell.
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Special Forces Beret With Provenance (12/14/07)
 I recently won a Vietnam era Special Forces beret from an online auction. Prior to bidding, I emailed the seller with specific questions because the auction description was vague and the accompanying image was not great. The seller never responded to my questions, but I could tell that the insignia was a desirable variation, so I took my chances and placed a bid anyway.
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Hearing the Veteran’s Story (11/29/07)
 I just read an article stating there are only three living WWI vets left. It seems like they all faded away without receiving the recognition they deserved. I’ve only met one WWI vet in my life. He was my great uncle Benny. Benny served with the 88th Division and told me that he survived the war but nearly died on the troop ship coming home because of a serious flu outbreak.
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Not all Visor Caps are “Crushers” (11/8/07)
 There is rampant misuse of the term “crusher cap” in reference to US visor caps in the WWII militaria collecting market. A crusher cap is a type of visor cap that is intended to be soft and pliable. Germans also had a crusher cap designed for field use, but that is another topic. US crusher caps were designed for pilots and air personnel to comfortably wear under their headset.
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WWII Airborne Reinforced M42 Jump Jacket ID’d To Vet (11/3/07)
 I recently acquired my first M42 Reinforced jump jacket. This jacket was even CC-2′d (Chemical impregnation to protect skin from gas), which led me to believe that it was used on the Normandy jump. Based off the canvas used and the rigger sewing construction, I could tell that it was 82nd Airborne.
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MACV-SOG 1-0 Jacket: A Symbol For Vietnam’s Elite Among The Elite (11/3/07)
 Until recently, little was known or published about MACV-SOG, an elite US Special Forces reconnaissance unit in Vietnam. SOG was under joint command by 5th Special Forces Group and CIA with an objective to recon and disrupt the Ho Chi Minh trail by running cross-border operations into denied areas, primarily Laos and Cambodia. SOG recon teams were small, typically 6 to 8 men.
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