Norman D. Landing

[mikie]

48 minutes ago, Dogsbody said:

It's a shame, really. I have better hopes for the Market Garden commemorations in September but you never know. I'm getting my first jab this coming sunday June 6th............

June 6?  Is that a coincidence?  Good luck with the jab.  

Mikie

[General Apathy]

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First of a series of new auctions here in Normandy . . . . .

 

Military Classic Vehicles based at Grand-camp Maisy are having their first auction June 5th, more auctions are already planned for later in the year and for the following year. Speaking to the owner Matthieu yesterday he said that next year they will be auctioning the entire WWII collection of a museum that is closing down. 

 

One of the items in the sale is a farm-find Canadian Ford built truck in unrestored condition, the rear floor still retains all it's wooden panels and metal strips, a great museum piece for sure. Another vehicle for sale is the exploded remains of a Daimler Dingo from the Operation Bluecoat British sector. 

 

Military Classic Vehicles is the premier military vehicle restoration company here in Normandy, they currently have something like twelve Shermans for total restoration, a Pacific transporter, a Dragon-Wagon transporter, several M-8 armoured cars, Dodges and several German vehicles including the Kubelwagon of a local friend in for a complete engine rebuild. 

 

so here's the link https://military-classic-auction.com/en/buy/

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 01 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

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[General Apathy]

12 hours ago, Dogsbody said:

It's a shame, really. I have better hopes for the Market Garden commemorations in September but you never know. I'm getting my first jab this coming sunday June 6th............

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Hi Rene,

 

need to make sure that the June 6th date is not cancelled for twenty-four hours as D-Day was . . . . . . . . . . . . 

 

I have had two Pfizer vaccines, hopefully not from the bottle that my neighbour recently dug up . . . . . . 

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 02 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

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[General Apathy]

11 hours ago, Johan Willaert said:

 

Really sucks not being there again this year... Especially since the Jeep is just about done....

Still have fun!
Will be over with Kristien in the Summer... See you then; Ken!

 

 

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Hi Johan,

 

Sad news I was looking forward to seeing the finished project, at least you will have a year to run the brakes in, check the oil and coolant levels . . . . . . . . . . looking good, add an engine bay shot for us please . . . . . . . 

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 02 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

 

[General Apathy]

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Military flea market yesterday . . . . . . . 

 

I spotted this heavily damaged dummy paratrooper at the military fair yesterday, the vendor offered no details as to its origin.  Looking at the actual material of the damaged edges it had a more modern appearance than what one would expect for WWII manufacture, possibly made for the 1965 film ' The Longest Day '.  Pity more information was not forthcoming, the asking price of 1,000 was way too much for an unidentified and damaged piece.  

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 02 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

 

[mikie]

6 hours ago, General Apathy said:

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Military flea market yesterday . . . . . . . 

 

I spotted this heavily damaged dummy paratrooper at the military fair yesterday, the vendor offered no details as to its origin.  Looking at the actual material of the damaged edges it had a more modern appearance than what one would expect for WWII manufacture, possibly made for the 1965 film ' The Longest Day '.  Pity more information was not forthcoming, the asking price of 1,000 was way too much for an unidentified and damaged piece.  

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 02 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

 

I don't think the dummy is real... it doesn't have a leg to stand on.

 

Any idea what that rectangular thing to the left of the dummy is?  Looks interesting.  And so does the hatchet. 

 

We don't have military fairs around here.  There was a large monthly flea market nearby that I would occasionally find a treasure or two at.  It's been closed since the shutdown and I have not heard of plans to reopen yet.  I miss going there.  Even if I don't find anything to bring home, its fun to wander around and look at stuff and meet some interesting people.  

 

Mikie

 

 

[mikie]

7 hours ago, General Apathy said:

.

First of a series of new auctions here in Normandy . . . . .

 

Military Classic Vehicles based at Grand-camp Maisy are having their first auction June 5th, more auctions are already planned for later in the year and for the following year. Speaking to the owner Matthieu yesterday he said that next year they will be auctioning the entire WWII collection of a museum that is closing down. 

 

One of the items in the sale is a farm-find Canadian Ford built truck in unrestored condition, the rear floor still retains all it's wooden panels and metal strips, a great museum piece for sure. Another vehicle for sale is the exploded remains of a Daimler Dingo from the Operation Bluecoat British sector. 

 

Military Classic Vehicles is the premier military vehicle restoration company here in Normandy, they currently have something like twelve Shermans for total restoration, a Pacific transporter, a Dragon-Wagon transporter, several M-8 armoured cars, Dodges and several German vehicles including the Kubelwagon of a local friend in for a complete engine rebuild. 

 

so here's the link https://military-classic-auction.com/en/buy/

 

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.

 

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 01 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

 

 

To me, that truck is a thing of beauty just the way it is.  Get it in working order, stop any decay going on, fix that broken glass and headlights, and it's done.  Silly me, I know. 

Mikie 

[mikie]

6 hours ago, General Apathy said:

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Hi Rene,

 

need to make sure that the June 6th date is not cancelled for twenty-four hours as D-Day was . . . . . . . . . . . . 

 

I have had two Pfizer vaccines, hopefully not from the bottle that my neighbour recently dug up . . . . . . 

 

.

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 02 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

 

Full blown allergy attack seems to be dulling my ability to come up with a witty reply.  I'll leave it to someone else.  I'll just say I got a good laugh here.

 

Mike 

[General Apathy]

1 hour ago, mikie said:

I don't think the dummy is real... it doesn't have a leg to stand on.

 

Any idea what that rectangular thing to the left of the dummy is?  Looks interesting.  And so does the hatchet. 

 

We don't have military fairs around here.  There was a large monthly flea market nearby that I would occasionally find a treasure or two at.  It's been closed since the shutdown and I have not heard of plans to reopen yet.  I miss going there.  Even if I don't find anything to bring home, its fun to wander around and look at stuff and meet some interesting people.  

 

Mikie

 

 

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Mikie,  you're a real dummy of course it's not real . . . . . . . . . .

 

The rectangular piece to the side of the carton I believe comes from the dark side of collecting, ( no pun intended )possibly a German folding candle lamp similar to the one shown.

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 02 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

 

[Johan Willaert]

22 hours ago, General Apathy said:

Sad news I was looking forward to seeing the finished project, at least you will have a year to run the brakes in, check the oil and coolant levels . . . . . . . . . . looking good, add an engine bay shot for us please . . . . . . . 

 

 

 

Thx Ken!, still have a some detailing to do... but here's a view of what a mid production GPW engine bay looked like...
Will post photos of mine later on but will be very similar...

 

 

[Johan Willaert]

22 hours ago, General Apathy said:

possibly made for the 1965 film ' The Longest Day '. 

 

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Yes, definitely one made for 'The Longest Day'...

 

Here's the one displayed in the Ste Mere Eglise Museum..

 

 

 

[General Apathy]

2 hours ago, Johan Willaert said:

 

Thx Ken!, still have a some detailing to do... but here's a view of what a mid production GPW engine bay looked like...
Will post photos of mine later on but will be very similar...

 

 

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Hi Johan,

 

thanks I am familiar with that photo, look forward to seeing your engine bay.  There's a strong possibility that this weekend I will once again see the Willys Slat Grille that I sold before moving to France fourteen years ago.  I sold it to a friend in Kent in the UK, a few years later I introduced him to a guy on Jersey island who bought it, when he wanted to sell it I introduced him to a guy from here near Vire.  So it now lives about 30/40 kilometres from me but unfortunately all these Covd19 lockdowns prevented me from visiting it, I believe he's bringing it up to here at the weekend. 

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 03 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

[General Apathy]

2 hours ago, Johan Willaert said:

 

Yes, definitely one made for 'The Longest Day'...

 

Here's the one displayed in the Ste Mere Eglise Museum..

 

 

 

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Hi Johan,

 

thanks for the photo and confirming it to be a ' Longest Day ' dummy . . . . . . . . 

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 03 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

[General Apathy]

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If you have it, display it . . . . . . . . 

 

this week I decided it was time to pull a couple of my German barbed wire stakes out of their hidey-hole and display in the garden, they have been sat in storage for the last eight to ten years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 04 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

[Dogsbody]

On 6/2/2021 at 11:38 AM, General Apathy said:

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Military flea market yesterday . . . . . . . 

 

I spotted this heavily damaged dummy paratrooper at the military fair yesterday, the vendor offered no details as to its origin.  Looking at the actual material of the damaged edges it had a more modern appearance than what one would expect for WWII manufacture, possibly made for the 1965 film ' The Longest Day '.  Pity more information was not forthcoming, the asking price of 1,000 was way too much for an unidentified and damaged piece.  

 

.

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 02 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

 

For a 1000 euro I would at least expect some attached limbs.

[Dogsbody]

On 6/4/2021 at 11:40 AM, General Apathy said:

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If you have it, display it . . . . . . . . 

 

this week I decided it was time to pull a couple of my German barbed wire stakes out of their hidey-hole and display in the garden, they have been sat in storage for the last eight to ten years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 04 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

Nice garden, Ken. With some barbed wire you could turn it into a temporary obstacle course.

I also see part of a M3 half track suspension but what is that part on the right of that ancient bench?

[General Apathy]

14 hours ago, Dogsbody said:

Nice garden, Ken. With some barbed wire you could turn it into a temporary obstacle course.

I also see part of a M3 half track suspension but what is that part on the right of that ancient bench?

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Hi Rene,

 

underneath the stone bench is a 1928 dated support for rail-track, on the right is an ancient French cider press.

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 06 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

[General Apathy]

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Military fairs yesterday 5th June . . . . .  

 

there were two fairs yesterday one at Carentan and one at Ste Marie du Mont.

 

I bought a pre war unmarked German jerrycan ( 1937 / 1938 ) for 25 euros, the dealer was trying to sell it as a first pattern American gas-can, however it had the original German ' Dunklegelb ' sand color paintwork under the dust. great condition and no holes in the bottom.

 

I also picked a good condition can it had been overpainted matt black ages ago but underneath the handles where the black had worn off was the original German field-grey paint.

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 06 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

[earlymb]

German field-grey is actually very dark; I have a German jerrycan in the original FG and it's almost black. I also have one of those very early cans :)

[mikie]

June 6 is just getting started here, but getting close to wrapping up Over There. There may not be any parades or public commemorations again this year. But I'm sure we are all honoring the memory of the great deeds and great horrors of what began that day in our hearts and minds. I look forward to seeing your reports of all the gatherings and events a year from now.

Mikie

[mikie]

On 6/4/2021 at 2:40 AM, General Apathy said:

.

If you have it, display it . . . . . . . . 

 

this week I decided it was time to pull a couple of my German barbed wire stakes out of their hidey-hole and display in the garden, they have been sat in storage for the last eight to ten years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

 

.

 

.

 

 

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 04 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

I agree with Rene. Nice garden.  I enjoyed seeing a brief tour you once gave of some of the plants and flowers you did a while back. I love all the little treasures you have tucked away in it. I remember you mentioning once the triangular stone thing behind the bench. But don't remember what you said it was.

Mikie

[mikie]

On 6/5/2021 at 8:15 AM, Dogsbody said:

For a 1000 euro I would at least expect some attached limbs.

There is a joke here somewhere about it costing an arm and a leg, but I just can't seem to come up with one that even with my low standards I'm happy with. My ongoing battle with allergies must be wearing me down. For which I'm sure the world is grateful. 

Mikie

[General Apathy]

7 hours ago, earlymb said:

German field-grey is actually very dark; I have a German jerrycan in the original FG and it's almost black. I also have one of those very early cans :)

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well I have pretty much collected all the relevant German cans from WWII I have several of the unmarked cans to cover 37 & 38, and dates from 39, 40, 41, 42,42, 44.  I also have the ' Wasser ' versions in grey and Dunklegelb, and yesterday I finally got a great condition ' SS ' one. now it then becomes more complicated as it does with US M1 helmets.  There are 1939 cans with the straight X indent on the sides and 39 cans with the square embossed in the centre of the X indents . . . . . . . . . etc, etc. 

 

The SS can I got yesterday and a few of the German cans on the can shelf . . . . . . . .

 

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Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 06 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

 

 

[General Apathy]

2 hours ago, mikie said:

June 6 is just getting started here, but getting close to wrapping up Over There. There may not be any parades or public commemorations again this year. But I'm sure we are all honoring the memory of the great deeds and great horrors of what began that day in our hearts and minds. I look forward to seeing your reports of all the gatherings and events a year from now.

Mikie

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A bitter disappointment for us all today . . . . . . . 

 

Hi Mikie,

 

Sorry to tell you that I was up and out of bed before 05h00 this morning to hit the ground running, I put my phone on charge to ensure two things, # one, so that my daughter who is in hospital today waiting for her first child could contact me, # two, to take photographs for a report here on the forum.

 

I loaded all the requirements for today, tables, chairs, picnic food, plates and cutlery, drinks etc and left the house, it was when I got to the first rendezvous that I realised I had left the phone on charge at home, no reports for you, no contact with my daughter. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

 

So no news either way, for the details of D-Day, nor any report of the baby being born so far it's now 19h00.

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 06 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.

 

[General Apathy]

2 hours ago, mikie said:

I agree with Rene. Nice garden.  I enjoyed seeing a brief tour you once gave of some of the plants and flowers you did a while back. I love all the little treasures you have tucked away in it. I remember you mentioning once the triangular stone thing behind the bench. But don't remember what you said it was.

Mikie

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Hi Mikie,

 

it's a blitzed damaged door-arch of a Wesleyan church from the UK . . . . . . dated 1879.

 

Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, June 06 2021.

 

" Life's too short for reproductions "

 

"  Life is like a tank of gas, the closer you get to a quarter tank, the faster it goes "

 

.