my latest acquisitions

[B-Man2]

You must be somewhere around my age with that quote.

I popped out in 1947.....you?

 

[Stony]

I popped out in 1947.....you?

You're older. I discovered the "Beatles" in 1964, so I was about 11.

I then discovered Hendrix and Led Zeppelin in the late 60s and boy did the game change on my musical tastes.

 

[Edward]

thought long about this one for quite some time but just had to have it for a couple of reasons... you know from my previous posts about the USAAF repurposing Planter's Peanut tins, well this photo has it all! A-2 jackets, a mission briefing, hacking A-11's and a planters peanut tin front and center! its an original 1943 silver gelatin photo print for publication in a variety of wartime information books Graflex dealers offered, often for free, under various titles. (Graflex produced large format and medium format press cameras) Many sets of photos were offered from 1943-1945 as Boxed sets of 25 gelatin silver prints on 16x20 inch board mounts depicting U.S. military action in Europe and the Pacific in custom Graflex shipping cases. full sets in original boxes usually sell for thousands today. I wanted just the one. it has some water damage to the mounting board at the bottom but framed up nicely... paid $90 (OUCH!) but worth it to me for my specific collection.

 

[Carl]

Nice one Edward !!!!

 

[B-Man2]

Pretty cool!!

 

[Edward]

figured the fuze pin/tag should go under the B-17 spotter

 

[B-Man2]

Nice Touch!!!

 

[Thomas Koehle]

just "shot" on Ebay - unfortunately the Zipper is damaged on the bottom but think i will be able to give her a repair without any further damages

think there was an page on the net where it was possible to investigate for ex Military personell

was obviously not used by a Pilot ...

 

[Edward]

nice find Thomas! the painted ones are real keepers!

 

[falcon_ib]

Really cool how you can see the old layer of writing underneath the red "Put Weston" !

 

[Edward]

So STOKED! Boredom and eBay cruising leads to financial suffering. LOL!
I just acquired a pair of AN-3047 Type A-11 flexible lamps pulled from a B-17 restoration project happening in Asheville, NC (they were surplus to their needs.)
These particular A-11 lamps were installed on the navigator's and radio operator's tables on a B-17G but were common to many other large USAAF aircraft. I am awaiting more info on which airplane these actually came from but these lamps are coming to me from the Lucky Thirteen restoration project by Ray Moore Jr. who is resurrecting this 384th BG B-17 in his workshop in Asheville, North Carolina.
(His great uncle, MSgt Marvin Hudson, was a B-17 line chief with the 546th BS/384th BG during WWII at RAF Grafton Underwood in Northamptonshire, England. One of the aircraft he worked on was B-17F 42-3455, nicknamed Lucky Thirteen by her crew. However, Lucky Thirteen’s luck ran out during a bombing mission to Stuttgart on September 6th, 1943, when Uffz Kahlhammer shot her down in his Focke-Wulf Fw 190A-5 near Clermont in France. Amazingly though, Lucky Thirteen’s luck held for her crew though; they all bailed out successfully and survived the war to reach old age.)
Ray Moore came into contact in 2009 with a man named Gerard Lequien who had excavated some of Lucky Thirteen’s parts from French soil. Though just small fragments of this once magnificent aircraft, some of these parts will be incorporated into Ray Moore’s B-17. The project also has at its disposal several large sections of other B-17s, including B-17Gs 44-83316, 44-85813, 44-83542, which will
contribute parts and patterns to the project. Ray Moore has helped with five other B-17s under restoration including the rear fuselage of the Liberty Belle Foundation’s B-17G 44-85734 which is coming back together again following her near-total destruction by fire back in 2011. I'm hoping I can finish off the wiring and get them working.

 

[Thomas Koehle]

So STOKED! Boredom and eBay cruising leads to financial suffering. LOL!
I just acquired a pair of AN-3047 Type A-11 flexible lamps pulled from a B-17 restoration project happening in Asheville, NC (they were surplus to their needs.)
These particular A-11 lamps were installed on the navigator's and radio operator's tables on a B-17G but were common to many other large USAAF aircraft. I am awaiting more info on which airplane these actually came from but these lamps are coming to me from the Lucky Thirteen restoration project by Ray Moore Jr. who is resurrecting this 384th BG B-17 in his workshop in Asheville, North Carolina.
(His great uncle, MSgt Marvin Hudson, was a B-17 line chief with the 546th BS/384th BG during WWII at RAF Grafton Underwood in Northamptonshire, England. One of the aircraft he worked on was B-17F 42-3455, nicknamed Lucky Thirteen by her crew. However, Lucky Thirteen’s luck ran out during a bombing mission to Stuttgart on September 6th, 1943, when Uffz Kahlhammer shot her down in his Focke-Wulf Fw 190A-5 near Clermont in France. Amazingly though, Lucky Thirteen’s luck held for her crew though; they all bailed out successfully and survived the war to reach old age.)
Ray Moore came into contact in 2009 with a man named Gerard Lequien who had excavated some of Lucky Thirteen’s parts from French soil. Though just small fragments of this once magnificent aircraft, some of these parts will be incorporated into Ray Moore’s B-17. The project also has at its disposal several large sections of other B-17s, including B-17Gs 44-83316, 44-85813, 44-83542, which will
contribute parts and patterns to the project. Ray Moore has helped with five other B-17s under restoration including the rear fuselage of the Liberty Belle Foundation’s B-17G 44-85734 which is coming back together again following her near-total destruction by fire back in 2011. I'm hoping I can finish off the wiring and get them working.

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Nice score!

 

[Edward]

I purchased these lamps from historian Gerad Blume who works with Ray Moore both of whom are consulting on the restoration of Memphis Belle at the NMUSAF. (on display last May, but some of the interior is still incomplete.) They recreated several labels, tracked down several parts, and reproduced all of the aircraft’s interior charts.

They were hired by Don Brooks of Douglas, Georgia to rebuild the back half of Liberty Belle - the B-17G that caught fire over Illinois some years back. The front half is being rebuilt by Tom Reilly’s team in Georgia.
They purchased the lamps from a B-17 Parts scrounger in Oregon. Unfortunately, they are not correct for an F model so Ray (L13’s project lead) gave them to Gerad Blume to recoup money spent on materials for last month. Mr. Blume runs the website, tracks down parts, and does all of the airplane’s carpentry work.

So while I don’t know the specific airplane the lamps came out of I have plenty of professional reference for authenticity just the same. They will look great on my desk with my Army Air Forces collection!

 

[Legion]

got a proper styrofoam display head for my latest pieces to my AAF collection.
I got an authentic Bancroft Flighter crusher (“BY BANCROFT Visor Pat. Pend.” post-May 1943).
Its not in the best of shape but it displays well. There's a few moth nips and it certainly was well worn! I'd like to think it saw plenty of action. I can't imagine anyone with a head smaller than mine but I can get away with a 7 and this doesn't fit me! It may be a
6 7/8 or smaller... do adults have heads that small? this guy was child sized! (but with balls of steel! ) LOL! its really floppy so it probably spent more time in his pocket than on his head. LOL!

cheap aviator repros. hope to replace them with some vintage specs one day.... more to come soon....

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LOve the pin-up girls in the background!

 

[Edward]

LOve the pin-up girls in the background!

thanks! that was my first collection in the WWII era. I have over 50 Varga and Petty girl pinups framed but not enough wall space. I only occasionally get one if its a good deal but any more like everything else the prices have gone up higher than they should be.

 

[Edward]

Got my B-17G Navigator/Radio Op lamps today and they are so cool! They were powered buy the on board 12v batteries so in order for me to use them at home I have to use 120v bulbs. These use the BA9s Miniature Bayonet connector type bulbs and fortunately they make them in 120v (as well as in bright LED version in 120v) so I should be able to use these providing the wiring isn't broken otherwise I'll rewire them.
Instead of bolting them to my desk as I don’t want to ruin it I got free pergo flooring sample blocks from Home Depot and used clamps to hold them to the desk. This way I can move them around and use them on my other table. Oh, and he sent me a t-shirt!

 

[Edward]

Today I received an original and rare 1942 USAAF recruitment poster!
Has some water stains and one small tear at top otherwise really nice condition!
And at a whopping 24" x 36" in size so it has impact!
* 3 B-17E forts
* 7 crew members (colorized photo by Ivan Dmitri for the Saturday Evening Post)
* mentions Bombardiers, navigators and pilots...
* dated 5-16-42!
The posters were printed with "Young Men, 18 to 26 ..." but enlistment age later changed to 17 and this one still retains the printed, cut and glued age change sticker!

this poster had all the right elements for my specific collection so I had to have it... spent: $420

 

[B-Man2]

I couldn’t tell you if you got a deal for that price or you over paid. What’s the general price for a WWII original poster these days??

 

[Edward]

I couldn’t tell you if you got a deal for that price or you over paid. What’s the general price for a WWII original poster these days??

well, of course its the usual "its worth whatever someone is willing to pay" but... I have seen decent WWII posters fetch $1000 and up. Movie poster of the era can be high value depending on the movie, actor portrayed etc. So All depending on the size, condition, content and rarity. typically aviation is hot and especially anything with a B-17 is desirable. There are many reproductions out there flooding the market so an original is going to fetch more. There is a big collector's market for WWII propaganda posters. I have yet to see the one I have available anywhere and I have searched many rare WWII poster websites.
this one below is quite common and fetches over $800 right now but there is one currently on eBay Original 36" x 24" in fair condition, with some minimal paper loss on borders, with minor nicks, scuffs, scratches, and somewhat ragged edges. The poster is expertly backed on linen with a buy it now of $425

2009 Antiques Roadshow appraiser Nicholas Lowry appraised two "Rosie the Riveter" World War II propaganda posters for $6000 and $8200. having said that the show is notorious for over valuing items... but just the same that is now "out there" in the collectibles buyer/seller mindset.
Typically, I find that most of the large size WWII originals are fetching between $300 to $1000. In my personal opinion I feel considering the condition that mine is in I paid a fair and agreeable price. Now if I come to find that dozens of these come up in better shape then that could devalue mine. I would certainly ask between $400 and $500 should I ever decide to sell. Current Ebay Propaganda Originals

 

[B-Man2]

Thanks Ed!
I didn’t have a clue that these things were such sought after items. I appreciate you taking the time to educate me on this area of collectibles .
Cheers