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Major Dick Winters-Band Of Brothers


RANDALL 1953
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One of my other hobby interests is modeling. This in action model figure of Dick Winters was done by another Clubhouse forum member. (I wish that I was that good!) As you can see a lot of effort went into this one as it really looks like him. A superb job by a very talented modeler. Enjoy!post-2427-1202942839.jpg

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Jim, I stand corrected and I apologize. Now I know that these were a limited run of 500 figures. It is possible that the one pictured was a preproduction model built or painted by the person who posted the topic before the 500 became available. He may also be associated with production of the 500 as well. I really thought that this one was one of a kind.

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I really wish that these model production companies would actually LOOK at original uniforms and equipment before slapping this stuff together. thumbdown.gif

Allan

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collectsmedals

Actually it looks like Damian Lewis who played Dick Winters in "Band of Brothers", not so much like Major Richard D. Winters.

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I remember seeing an ad for this figure in a magazine and it never really says it is D.Winters it most certainly looks like they used the Band of Brothers actor as the inspiration for sure

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  • 5 months later...

I saw an article in Finescale Modeler where someone took this figurine and accurized it, getting rid of the Thompson and giving him an M-1 Garand, as well as accurizing other details and repainting. If I can find the article, I'll post which issue it was in so everyone can take a look.

 

Wayne

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Well it is a nice model. Perhaps not accurate, but a nice model still

 

Yes, looks like Damian Lewis (who played Winters in band of Brothers). During the war Winters actually looked a bit like Clint Eastwood in some photos; Damian Lewis is not that far off actually, hard to find a good "face double" for a film. Best film for that sort of thing I've ever seen is "Gettysburg"

 

No idea why the dark trousers...perhaps it was wash day and Winters found a feldgrau's pants on the clothesline? ;)

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Well, non-matching uniforms have always been an issue (literally) for as far back as there have been uniforms. I remember my first pair of BDU's issued when I was in the National Guard... They were clearly cut from two different rolls of cloth. The color variation was such that some had to stick with the ERDL cammies or the OG507s until better matching BDUs were issued. The shirts were all mostly green, the pants mostly brown, and it looked really funny. Personally, I thought the ERDL was a much better uniform anyway.

 

Pants always seem to take a heavier beating than tops... maybe that is what is protrayed here.

 

Wayne

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101combatvet

:lol: I'm sorry but the knife hand always gets my goat.... unless of course you're in the hand-to-hand pit. disgust.gif

 

I like the knife hand
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I dont like the knife hand either, I think he is giving orders or giving someone directions?....like" covering fire over here!!" or whatever, even though a little inacurate it sure is cool, would love to see those pics that a modeler did that were more acurate.....mike

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Seems unlikely the left hand is engaged in a karate chop. Seems much more likely that this is the artist's impression of a hand signal, especially considering the facial expression. I don't think this model deserves the fine toothed comb here...I mean, I have people tell me that my WWI era cartridge belt, my 1919 bayonet and my 1943 scabbard are "wrong" to display together as they aren't "right"...so becasue the model has a tommy gun it's "wrong"...so Winters never held one? What rule says "Dick Winters only ever held an M1 rifle"? See what I mean here? It's a nice model

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101combatvet

Don't yeah mean kung fu grip? pinch.gif

 

Seems unlikely the left hand is engaged in a karate chop. Seems much more likely that this is the artist's impression of a hand signal, especially considering the facial expression. I don't think this model deserves the fine toothed comb here...I mean, I have people tell me that my WWI era cartridge belt, my 1919 bayonet and my 1943 scabbard are "wrong" to display together as they aren't "right"...so becasue the model has a tommy gun it's "wrong"...so Winters never held one? What rule says "Dick Winters only ever held an M1 rifle"? See what I mean here? It's a nice model
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Yeah. I'm pretty sure the GI Joe figures I used to play with had kung-fu grip like this:

 

atkfg.jpg

 

I know very well that when I go online and say that my opinion is different from other peoples', that it's not popular many times. I don't really give a hoot for popularity contests; I said the model is a nice model and I stand by it. Is it hyper-accurate? I don't know, probably not. Seems like a model based on an HBO series and not precise history, and all I will say is that it seems that way, because I know damn well that after all the 'experts' shout down the nay-sayers, some WWII vet could stroll by and say "no, that could be correct, mine were that odd color too". How many collectors have run into the exception that makes the rule when scrounging up their militaria? Lots. It's really hard to say "No, that definitely never could have happened". So all I can reasonably say is "it seems like it might be incorrect"

 

But anyway, yeah, the model plausibly looks like Winters as far as I am concerned. As I said before, Damian Lewis bears a passing resemblence to Winters in general. Not twins maybe, but his face is reminiscent of Winters'

 

Here's Lewis standing under what looks to be the same arch that Winters stood under while posing for the following next photo, after helping to plan 'the raid'

 

nd_of_brothers_richard_winters-vi.jpg

 

Here's Winters under that arch, then what seems to be a publicity shot or a 'send home' shot. I don't know the photo's origin at all. In the first photo, like I mentioned before, Winters looks more like Clint Eastwood than Damian Lewis. In the second shot, Lewis and Winters bear a much closer resemblance; I assume Winters had been eating better during that photo. Hard to find an actor who looks exactly like the person he's portraying. But I think the model looks like Winters enough

 

dickwinters.jpg

Winters2.jpg

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Grins for a moment

 

in the 28 years I've been in the service, I've been on the receiving end of quite a few knife hands... and even dispensed more than my fair share... two reasons really... One, when "dispensing" the knife hand to a subordinate in a heated discussion of whats right and what's wrong, the open hand is less threatening than say, a closed fist. Secondly, when "utilizing" the knife hand in a combat situation, a full handed gesture leaves no doubt where you are pointing... Close in, say less than a few feet, a finger point might work well, but at more than a few feet, and under the stress of combat, where soldiers dont notice the small details like, say a finger pointing, a full handed gesture leaves little doubt where his attention should be directed or where he should go. Claims of inaccuracy aside, gestures like this ARE used quite regularly in combat.

 

As for whether Winters used a Thompson or not, it has been documented that lots of officers eschewed the Thompson for the M1 for one simple reason... It made them a target. Germans tended to target the high rate of fire weapons such as the BAR, the M1919A4 and the Thompson. Do a youtube search for the farious weapons, and you will find plenty of videos showing the rate of fire of these weapons. Here are a few...

 

BAR hi rate

BAR lo rate

M1 Rapid Fire

M1928 Thompson Full Auto

 

Wayne

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101combatvet

The knife hand is much more resent then WW2, if you look at the hand signals used then they were open hand but to move "forward" the arm is raised above the head and brought down to waist level with the open hand being parallel to the ground. Obviously, the signal should be given before you start running forward so that the men around you can see the signal. Okay, I'm done psycho analyzing the doll. whistling.gif

 

Grins for a moment

 

in the 28 years I've been in the service, I've been on the receiving end of quite a few knife hands... and even dispensed more than my fair share... two reasons really... One, when "dispensing" the knife hand to a subordinate in a heated discussion of whats right and what's wrong, the open hand is less threatening than say, a closed fist. Secondly, when "utilizing" the knife hand in a combat situation, a full handed gesture leaves no doubt where you are pointing... Close in, say less than a few feet, a finger point might work well, but at more than a few feet, and under the stress of combat, where soldiers dont notice the small details like, say a finger pointing, a full handed gesture leaves little doubt where his attention should be directed or where he should go. Claims of inaccuracy aside, gestures like this ARE used quite regularly in combat.

 

As for whether Winters used a Thompson or not, it has been documented that lots of officers eschewed the Thompson for the M1 for one simple reason... It made them a target. Germans tended to target the high rate of fire weapons such as the BAR, the M1919A4 and the Thompson. Do a youtube search for the farious weapons, and you will find plenty of videos showing the rate of fire of these weapons. Here are a few...

 

BAR hi rate

BAR lo rate

M1 Rapid Fire

M1928 Thompson Full Auto

 

Wayne

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Did R. D. Winters use Thompson SMG? If I am not mistaken he is mentioned as a M1 Garand user.

 

You are correct. Major Dick Winters did carry an M-1 Garand.

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SilverbackMP
The knife hand is much more resent then WW2, if you look at the hand signals used then they were open hand but to move "forward" the arm is raised above the head and brought down to waist level with the open hand being parallel to the ground. Obviously, the signal should be given before you start running forward so that the men around you can see the signal. Okay, I'm done psycho analyzing the doll. whistling.gif

 

I've given a "knife" hand underfire (to a SAW gunner in a HMMVW--I was dismounted and moving at the time) and there sure wasn't a thought of official "arm and hand signals" running through my mind at the time.

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  • 3 months later...

Having done very little research on Maj. Winter's I hold forth no expertise at all,I only wanted to say that the only photo I personally have seen with Winters with a weapon was a foldong stock carbine.That said,the photo was from doing training in as he is wearing the one piece coveralls they wore at that time.Mayhaps stateside being more TO& E and regulation following he had to tote it? Though a fine weapon many felt it was under powered and he took to carrying the Garand in combat for it's stopping power?

The knife hand thingy is sometimes less a military thing then instinctual,plus it lends more strength to the sculpture then a pointed finger,which could break-off more easily.

Me,I'll stick with it's a nice sculpture and I like it,rather then nit-pick it!

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