The SOE thread, special operations executive.

[SiPo]

A nice later model B2 made an appearance at the Max show.

[SiPo]

But WOW......look at the price he's asking for it, $9750

Someone can have mine for half that!!!!

[Rogerd]

Nice one but indeed, the price is to high!
You rarely see them anymore for sale... And if you see one its the B2. But I like these the most

[SiPo]

Clive,

Just noticed the unusual orientation of your Yugoslavian agents set?

It appears that if the set was going to be used whilst still in the wooden tool box, which would make sense, it would have to be operated upside down? Great set.

Rogerd,

I seriously doubt that the set displayed at the Max was sold at that price but stranger things have happened. I agree with the scarcity issue having only seen 8 B2 sets for sale in the last 2 years.

Personally, I prefer the Type A. A wonderful and perfectly sized piece of kit of which I have only seen 2 for sale in the last 6 years.

With regards to your Paraset, my second favourite especially the earlier version in the wooden box. Can't say I've seen any ORIGINALS for sale in the last few years.

You and Clive have some amzing stuff. Keep them coming

[Rogerd]

Thanks for the kind words Sipo. I have seen you have some rare items too!!
Indeed the type A MKIII is a beautifull made set too. Some high-tech for those days!

In Belgium there was a resistance group who operated the Paraset by telephone connection from a safehouse. They changed every 5 minutes to another set. This was the only group who used this real safe method, as they had a headquarter in the basement of the most emportant Belgium telephone network-building.

[Rogerd]

A Paraset in use by the Belgian resistance group MILL
The set is opened on the table. The picture was taken during the war.

[Rogerd]

This is the picture:

[SiPo]

Brecht,

Great picture.

[MikeP]

Basically disagree on your concept of safe transmission.

I had to go to school for this in the army and hated it.
our training was directly related to clandestine operations.
It was in fact, oriented to cold war operations.

Some aspects don't change. Somewhere in every message is a word or phrase, prearranged, that authenticates the sender.

Without that bit, no traffic is to be accepted as genuine or authentic.
It is considered compromised at the outset. Does not matter where it originates.

It appears that not only was the entire network compromised in Holland, someone high up on the receiving end was tainted.

We had a couple radios that were clumsy to operate, the ANGRY 9, among them. A different key, like a leg key helped.

Also interesting that some operators can be researched. For many reasons the identities of assets can never be revealed. Relates to retaliation.

I hated working with and around radios and cannot stand them today.

[Rogerd]

It was safe 100% ( only for this one resistance group). Normally an agent working with a radio could be tracked within 15 minutes by german GFP radio finders. So they had to change places every 10 minutes with all the danger of being couth along the road. The messages themselves in code could most of the time not be diciphered by the germans as agents used a one-time-pad code.

The group I am talking about had a system with different radio's that could be operated by phone. So no agent was with the radio, so no arrest could be made even when the radio was found. But finding the radio was also almost impossible because they changed radio every 5 minutes. This was to fast for the german range finders... Thats why this system was very safe.

But this was only used by a small resistance group who had some workers in the Belgian telephone network. Most other agents had to work with one radio and took great risks...

[Rogerd]

Some soe related pictures. 13 original pictures (23 on 17 cm!) made during a gathering of Belgian SOE agents.
On the top picture, in the middle we see Major General Colin Mc Vain Gubbins, director of SOE in 1943. On his right is Walter Ganshof van der Meersch, head of the Belgian State Security and coördinator of the Belgian resistance in occupied country.

[Rogerd]

When interested I can show some close ups. This is now the item of the month on my website.

I also found a second Paraset, will show some pics when I have the time... :-)

[seebee1]

Superb images Brecht, many thanks for sharing

[SiPo]

Wonderful pics..

A second paraset

[seebee1]

Spike Blade with hooked end.

This pattern of dagger I did not have in my collection, so have taken a punt with this example. I believe they are usually attributed to use in the Far East. The problem with such items is really knowing, in the absence of cast-iron provenance, when and where it was made. This example, just under seven inches long, is definitely well made and could be of WW2 origin, but also could be far more recent, I certainly like it.