As many of you know, when Mike Beaver died a few years ago, he had been in the process of amassing a number of photos to illustrate future books on SS headgear and insignia. Many collectors across the country and around the world donated photos of items in their collections. However, Mike died far too young, at a time when these projects were not yet completed. Bill Shea inherited the research materials and he has completed the SS headgear book, which will appear later this year.
Bill has turned-over to me, two binders of SS insignia photos compiled by Mike B. before his death. He brought about 12 binders to the last SoS and after looking at the massive amount of material, I concluded that to show all of this would require a huge 3 volume set, such as Mike B. did for his SS uniform series.
This is a larger and more ambitious project than I have the time to complete.
However, I did borrow photos of cap and sleeve eagles, tab and board variants, and cuffbands for Germanic Waffen SS units. I do not wish to take-on political SS insignia, Foreign Volunteer units, specialty badges, etc. It is just too much. What I do envision is showing known original variants of the above-types of insignia, especially cut-offs and salty, tunic-removed examples. I'd also like to combine pictures of W-SS artifacts picked up on the battlefield, which have veteran stories or at least vet provenance attached to them.
So, although the scope of the book will be mostly insignia, I will include some weapons, headgear,uniforms, ID books, identity tags and other items taken on the battlefield.
If you have such items and would like them to be in this book, I'm looking for contributions.
I am not paying for these photos and stories but contributors will be credited in the book. If we get enough storied pieces, I think this will be a book such as has never been done on TR and especially W-SS collectibles to date.
With some teamwork and co-operation from many collectors we can make this book what many of you would want it to be. The finished product will be eye candy for W-SS collectors for sure.
As an author with several other works in-progress now, I thought I wouldn't be able to devote a lot of time to this project until 2012. However with the help of a Michigan area graphic designer who is a real fast worker, I think this project can be completed by some time next year (2010).
Anyone who wishes to donate pics and/or stories to this project can email me 350 dpi or higher scans at: markbando@aol.com.
Hard copy photo contributions can be sent to my regular mailing address at:
Mark Bando, PO Box 350, Walled Lake, Mi 48390.
Photos will only be sent back if I am requested to do so.
I am missing some specific cuffband variants, which I know exist, but are not among the pics collected by Mike or myself up to now. In the near future I'll be posting requests for pics of such variants. I realize that many pieces exist in private collections which I don't even know about, but would look great in a book. Please contact me if you can help with anything related to this project. Thanks, M. Bando
Bill has turned-over to me, two binders of SS insignia photos compiled by Mike B. before his death. He brought about 12 binders to the last SoS and after looking at the massive amount of material, I concluded that to show all of this would require a huge 3 volume set, such as Mike B. did for his SS uniform series.
This is a larger and more ambitious project than I have the time to complete.
However, I did borrow photos of cap and sleeve eagles, tab and board variants, and cuffbands for Germanic Waffen SS units. I do not wish to take-on political SS insignia, Foreign Volunteer units, specialty badges, etc. It is just too much. What I do envision is showing known original variants of the above-types of insignia, especially cut-offs and salty, tunic-removed examples. I'd also like to combine pictures of W-SS artifacts picked up on the battlefield, which have veteran stories or at least vet provenance attached to them.
So, although the scope of the book will be mostly insignia, I will include some weapons, headgear,uniforms, ID books, identity tags and other items taken on the battlefield.
If you have such items and would like them to be in this book, I'm looking for contributions.
I am not paying for these photos and stories but contributors will be credited in the book. If we get enough storied pieces, I think this will be a book such as has never been done on TR and especially W-SS collectibles to date.
With some teamwork and co-operation from many collectors we can make this book what many of you would want it to be. The finished product will be eye candy for W-SS collectors for sure.
As an author with several other works in-progress now, I thought I wouldn't be able to devote a lot of time to this project until 2012. However with the help of a Michigan area graphic designer who is a real fast worker, I think this project can be completed by some time next year (2010).
Anyone who wishes to donate pics and/or stories to this project can email me 350 dpi or higher scans at: markbando@aol.com.
Hard copy photo contributions can be sent to my regular mailing address at:
Mark Bando, PO Box 350, Walled Lake, Mi 48390.
Photos will only be sent back if I am requested to do so.
I am missing some specific cuffband variants, which I know exist, but are not among the pics collected by Mike or myself up to now. In the near future I'll be posting requests for pics of such variants. I realize that many pieces exist in private collections which I don't even know about, but would look great in a book. Please contact me if you can help with anything related to this project. Thanks, M. Bando
Comment