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Miniature airborne, glider rider sweetheart pin?


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Hi Guys

I don't frequent this section too often and don't know much about wings but have a question. I am trying to find my Dad's corporal from WWII and posted a bunch of AB stuff just to get attention. I have small set of glider wings that someone speculated might be for an officer's uniform like mini medals. I am putting a pic of them beside my Dad's glider wings. Does anyone know what they are? All they say is sterling on the back. I think that is all his glider wings and jump wings say also but I have not removed the in a while. I had no responses on the other forum except one email saying they might be for and officer's uniform.

Thanks

 

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Oops I missed the topic below with the glider wings when I did a search and just happened to see it. I'll leave the pics up.

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I've been told the same thing on this pair of mini-Para wings, that they would have been worn with the miniature medals on mess dress uniforms, circa post WWII. In that case, why aren't there a bunch more of these pin back mini badges around from the post war years? One would think they would be fairly common? I believe Allan H. told me that there is much evidence of these mini badges being worn on the o/s cap Para patches during WWII. I believe Mark Bando's site has a photo of a pair being worn on the o/s cap, so I tend to believe Allan that they're most likely of WWII vintage. No ideas where they came from, but they are nice, thats for sure!

 

Mine are also marked sterling only.

 

Gary

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I have a pair of mini wings from the surplus stock of Wossk, which went out of business in 47. In the book Paramarine, it shows some troops wore them against regs on sidecaps. Wossk also had a large supply of USMC sweetheart emblems, and my wings came in an Amico box. I believe they were intended to be sweetheart pins, or perhaps to be worn on civilian suit lapels

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Thanks guys. I usually play with guns and know little about uniforms. I think I will put it back on the OS cap. I'll look through my Dad's pictures and see if I can spot any of the little pins on caps. The little glider was not my his and is one of the few AB pieces I have that was not. My Dad was glider, para, AA, AT and later liaison to the Free French so he had a lot of neat patches for such a short time in service. Here is the patch(Anti Aircraft) and a pic of the uniform he wore when he got the above (full size) glider wings but the wings are not in the pic.

 

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copdoc,

 

Are your mini wings solo pieces or are they possibly detached from a set like these I have?

 

Greg

Greg you have some neat stuff. No I don't see any point of attachment. What are those? My Dad has a 13th, 82nd and Allied Airborne DIs but I have not seen anything like that. I am not getting email notice of this for some reason. Please email me if you see anything else.

 

PS I am going to post a small parachute with a 1939 date on the Misc section. Please take a look and ask your Dad. My Dad does not remember what it is.

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copdoc,

 

Those are "Sweetheart" pins. Dad just told me there was a guy in his outfit from New York that received a catalog while they were all overseas. Dad suggested they order some thinking the gals would like them. Dad got several sets of each but these are all that survived. They are quite small and I did not put anything in the photo that you could get a scale from pinch.gif .

 

I'll watch for the parachute pin..

 

Unrelated to the pins,... Dad tells me that quite often the guys would order items from the States and have packages sent to them. One time Dad and some buddies placed and order for some smoking pipes and blended tobacco. The order was almost $200.00. Dad's pipe was rather stout and he would stick the stem in his jump boots and his never broke. Another guy in Dad's outfit was Italian and he would order pasta and get shipment. He then when he could make his own sauce.

 

Sorry to get off subject but it amazed me how the soldiers could order items from the States and get them delivered.

 

Greg

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sweetheart pieces have an additional little loop or ring for the chain suspension to be attached to. Minis are exact replicas of the full size but mini

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copdoc,

 

Those are "Sweetheart" pins. Dad just told me there was a guy in his outfit from New York that received a catalog while they were all overseas. Dad suggested they order some thinking the gals would like them. Dad got several sets of each but these are all that survived. They are quite small and I did not put anything in the photo that you could get a scale from pinch.gif .

 

I'll watch for the parachute pin..

 

Unrelated to the pins,... Dad tells me that quite often the guys would order items from the States and have packages sent to them. One time Dad and some buddies placed and order for some smoking pipes and blended tobacco. The order was almost $200.00. Dad's pipe was rather stout and he would stick the stem in his jump boots and his never broke. Another guy in Dad's outfit was Italian and he would order pasta and get shipment. He then when he could make his own sauce.

 

Sorry to get off subject but it amazed me how the soldiers could order items from the States and get them delivered.

 

Greg

 

Interesting. I don't think my Dad ever mentioned getting anything for the states while he was overseas. I'll ask him. The parachute I posted was a small (~20") parachute not a pin. Sorry if it sounded like a pin. I think I put it in the wrong Misc setion to get noticed.

 

That is amazing about the pipe surviving. My Dad said they expected 10% loss of men on a jump (not dead, but injured, in trees, off course etc) before thay started combat. Not too good of odds.

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He also had family back home send him popcorn a few times. He introduced a Belgium family to it while he and some others from his outfit were billoted with the family in their home during the Bulge.

 

Your small chute sounds almost like a pilot chute. I have one if you care to see it.

 

Greg

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He also had family back home send him popcorn a few times. He introduced a Belgium family to it while he and some others from his outfit were billoted with the family in their home during the Bulge.

 

Your small chute sounds almost like a pilot chute. I have one if you care to see it.

 

Greg

Thanks Greg I would like to see it. I found the part number and it is consistent with an early pilot chute.

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PS I just found this in one of my books. Ref the small glider badge. I found a reference in Military Collectables Joe Lynhurst. His little one looks the same as mine.

 

US Army Glider badge, authorised 1944 for wear by personnel who made one or more combat drops with a glider-borne unit. This sterling silver miniature was for wear above medal miniatures or dress mess only.
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