Mr. Scratch

Off to St. Vinnies it goes then. Thanks guys!

Digging through a heap of Vietnam-era stuff, and found this boonie hat. Doesn't look like a modern military issue, but I know the early SOG ones were varied, and I'm not well-versed in all that.Black lining around the interior rim of the hat, but not on the top. Is this good for something or does it go off to Goodwill?

I'm in St. Vinnies today, and come across this ugly pair of beasts in with the car and tool junk. I didn't specifically recognize them for what they were, but they emitted that surplus glow and alerted my Spidey-sense, so I bought them My little but of research would indicate these are WWII...maybe made specifically for D-Day? waterproof bag for radio equipment, medical gear, and other things you couldn't afford to have get wet. Looks like these enjoyed a bit of travel after the war, one has some 1960s-era airline stickers on it. Any other history or nuances about these I'm mi

Okay, working to clear up a mystery here, maybe you guys can help. I've had this belt buckle for probably 10-15 years. It's somewhere in the heaps of junk anyway, right now I can't locate it. Anyway... It has been a bit of a puzzle. The inscription is definitely Korean, but the insignia in the middle seems pretty clearly Viet Cong. North Korean? But then why the NLF colors? A head scratcher. Well, here a bit ago I remembered I had a picture of this, and handed it over to some Koreans to translate. And they really went to town on it. They told me it says: top

This beret is from the 3rd Battalion, 505th (3/505 PIR). You can tell by the three "notches" on the flash. This Bn was inactivated in 2006. I should know. My old unit, C Co. 3/505, late 80s. My beret was exactly like it.

This is kind of how I interpreted the "going out in daylight" remark. I'd imagine there are some places where you don't want the local shepherds seeing a bunch of guys on the nearby hillside carrying American weapons, and scurrying off to tell the village chief about it.

This came up with a former NAVSOF personnel during a discussion about unusual AK magazines. The sailor said he obtained these scarce Russian aluminum mags in Kunar Valley, and then repurposed them for his own use in-country by applying camouflage, as the black finish had mostly worn off and "they were too shiny." I was very curious about whether SEAL use of Kalashnikovs was an official thing, or if it was just a matter of having an unofficial backup weapon around in a vehicle or at the FOB. But he wasn't super talkative about any of this, and I didn't want to pry. All he said was that t

I'm assuming these are 19th Century US, based on the Federal eagle on the lone surviving button and construction. Can anyone tell me what I have here?

😄 Yes. Yes I guess I did. Sorry. Mods, please delete. I guess it's time to get my eyes checked. 😑

Eh. Maybe if the price was right. Just trying to get an idea of exactly what it is time-wise at the moment. I'm feeling WWI based on it's construction, but want to be sure.

Close up

I've got this banner (I assume that's what it is, it has no suspension device). Double-sided. Made with some course, fairly light old-school cotton, with maybe lightly weather-proofed stars. 35" x 47". Has a pre-wwII , small-scale manufacturing feel to it. Anyone have any idea when this might have been made?

Nope. I just assumed they were some sort of obsolete British bayo grip, as they're stamped broad-arrow over WD.

I've got this giant cleaver of a weapon. I assume it is Australian manufacture, with the gear-tooth guard and the old Enfield bayonet grip. Does anyone know the maker? Anyone have any other examples?

Same here. He claimed to have some other stuff that I was ready to purchase once this deal went through. Even if he hadn't found the rest of the supply, I was prepared to buy everything he did have at full retail, and then purchase his supply of other fabrics that he had found. In all, I was ready to go a few hundred bucks down that road with him just to start. But he tried to jam me on a measly $125 for the time he spent looking for a thing he already sold me. And now he gets nothing, not even the $125 he tried to screw me for, and here I am blabbing about my bad experience to potential c