28mm late war British & Germans

[Harry Faversham]

Smashing piccys there, plenty of Airborne uniform detail to be gleaned from them. Here's Harry with his hunting horn to show 'em the way to the bridge...

[Ash]

Great pictures, thanks 'tin shed gamer'. 
What's that chap in the last couple of pics wearing? Looks like body armour.

Nice paintjob Harry.

Last beret question. Late war SAS red berets, were they the same as the airborne or yet another shade of red?

[Ultravanillasmurf]

Yup, body armour.

Example at Duxford.

[tin shed gamer]

It is indeed . Sinfully heavy and uncomfortable (very questionable effectiveness not something you'd skip carefree through a meadow in. As everything happily bounces and swings ever so conveniently away from where its needed most.) tended to be worn by jeep crews for a little bit of a confidence boost.

As for berets it's a combination of regs and the very nature of such troops.
SAS in Europe were under the umbrella of airborne forces and as such wore the Airborne maroon beret.However if you were from original units formed in North Africa or units that had fought in the theatre(Africa through to Italy.) They tended to blatantly ingnore the regs and used the original sand beret because they see airborne as another feather in their cap not a defining characteristic.but most importantly because they'd earnt them.
 You could really push the argument a little further(because original examples still exist.) and have a couple of senior ranks wear the original off white(dark cream) beret.But it was very rare .

Still in this hobby near every table ends up with something there was only ever two of.(the amount of requests I get for stuff that never made it past a prototype )

[Ultravanillasmurf]

The text I had read about the body armour was that it was for glider crew and in lieue of armouring the gliders..

Designed by the Medical Research Council and made of 1mm manganese steel plates. They were worn under the smock.

Probably more effective than the Vietnam era flack vest against fragments, but probably only while sitting in the glider.

I wish I had noted references for the above (and could have cut and pasted directly from my blog post about Airborne kit at Duxford).

Technology....

[tin shed gamer]

Sorry I just re read my last comment.Missed out a whole sentence(or three) I ment to write somthing along the line's of.. officially its  light and has minimal impact on the performance of the individual.But its often remembered as being sinfully heavy (and so on.)

I'm not sure about your source(not doubting you of course.) Your absolutely right that it was developed by the MRC.Origionally recommend for adoption for every branch.
Round about 75,000 sets were made .60k to the Air Force.15k to the Army of which a chunk was diverted to airborne forces.I don't doubt for a second it was issued to glider crews .But by no means was it exsclusive to the role.
There's plenty of accounts of first waves in assaults being issued it and stretcher bearers wearing.
I know several Canadian units in the first wave on Dday chose to wear it.(and promptly ditched it asap.)
As I mentioned it was often more of a moral boots as its basically a tin helmet on its side.

[Cubs]

I like to boil most of life's questions down to rugby analogies. Often when a player takes up rugby, or goes back to it after a break, they lack confidence and tool themselves up with protective gear - gumshield, headguard, under-armour, shin guards (guilty). But after lumbering around in it for a while, most of us realise it's just an encumbrance and next to useless.

[Harry Faversham]

TSG has nailed it in the minefield of melon coverings in the Airborne. I've got a couple of letters in my collection, from Geoffrey Powell and John Waddy, both Arnhem Company Commanders in 156 Parachute Bn. They both say that during the war they wore the cap badge of their parent Regiment on their Berets. This was against standing orders, but a blind eye was turned, for Majors and above!
Years ago I did some 54mm Conte Paras for 'big boy's toys' skirmishing...
there's always one, we've all met 'im, who delighted in pointing out my CO had got the wrong 'at on.

[Ash]

 Certain degree of irony when by going against the grain your ensure your CO has the 'right' hat on...

[Ultravanillasmurf]

Sorry I just re read my last comment.Missed out a whole sentence(or three) I ment to write somthing along the line's of.. officially its  light and has minimal impact on the performance of the individual.But its often remembered as being sinfully heavy (and so on.)

I wish that whoever describes stuff as "lightweight" got to wear it for a while ^___^

I'm not sure about your source(not doubting you of course.)

I wish I could remember as well.

Nice photographs.

[Blackwolf]

Weren't the SAS later on in NW Europe issued with armoured  corp berets after Normandy  when were  essentially being  used as recce?

[Ultravanillasmurf]

I wish I could remember as well.

Found it.

I took a photograph of the information board next to the body armour at the museum within IWM Duxford. I went back to my photographs for the day and found the above.
https://www.paradata.org.uk/article/airborne-assault-museum-iwm-duxford

[tin shed gamer]

  a little over a kilo.
curators the bain of my life. (our intern was told he couldn't sit a Lanchester car (he was 20 at the time) when we were taking photo's to make their display .As it was extremely rare and the only 100% original saloon in the country .Until I pointed out the lovely little yellow car had an ever so sweet little steel side panel with made in Taiwan stamped in it.)
I had another one tell me when I was asked to help out for city of culture that she didn't think the civil war was an important enough part of the cities history to warrant a display for city of culture.
I replied she was absolutely right Hull didn't have much of a role since it refused both King and Parliament. )


There's several grades of this type of armour starting at 3 1/2 lbs to 4 lbs(depending on model) upto the 10lbs (heavy)armour. Which was more commonly issued to air crews.
 
Interesting how it mentions how being unpopular since it only was the same as a bag of sugar.

[Ultravanillasmurf]

a little over a kilo.
..
Interesting how it mentions how being unpopular since it only was the same as a bag of sugar.

And the size of a parcel stamp....

[Kommando_J]

Not surprisingly they remain the best of Warlord’s offerings. I tend to think of Voldemort Games not so much as a manufacturer but a venture capital outfit that buys up companies and asset strips them. Christ knows why they replaced Paul’s other ranges, the replacements aren’t a patch on the original BA stuff.

Indeed, they snapped up bef miniatures just to get the vehicles, currently im ruing buying a membership card when  mostof the releases for the last while have been dredd, blood red skies, cruel seas or black seas.

I'm still mystified by the changes in scale, the old chindits were lovely Hicks sculpts(so a svelte but detailed 28mm)...while the new Australians are 32mm, it s like space marines and primaris .

Also to the one fellow asking earlier in the thread, Mt Hicks does do BEF era troops fro Britain in the empress miniatures ww2 range.