Good stuff.
chris
Good stuff.
chris
Mate looks like you've done some great fosiking up your way, have you ever come across any ww2 vintage aircraft crash sites??
Love you up dates and keep up the great work
Hey Blokes
First for the adjust knob ~ getting close now ~ Been put onto this ~ Aiming tripod or tank fire direction!
SIGHTS AND LAYING
Thanks for the positive feed back ~ nice to know my humble offerings are of interest !
As for aircraft~
Yes there were prolific numbers of aircraft here ~ USAF B17s operated heavily out of Mareeba which is 40 km form here and flew to New Guinea and on to bomb Rabaul right through to 1943 ~
Prior to the USAF, RAAF flew Beaufort Bombers out of Mareeba before being transfered south and the USAF moved in ~
Then USAF Lightnings took over till 1944. They were followed by Australian Boomerangs and misc other aircraft.
There was one major crash of a B17 in Sept 1942 when a fully laden bomber took off , fully armed with additional crew. It faltered and crashed killing all on board !
But there were many crashes and fatalities ~ Most are on private property.
Plus several P40s disappeared over land and most likely crashed in heavy rain forest ~ jungle around these parts, including a mountain (Mt Bartle Frer) some 15 KM from our front door !
Mareeba Airfield - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mareeba airfield, Queensland, during WW2
PS ~ This also Gold country ~ so that's on the agenda too ~ LOL
Last edited by AT P Sweep; 07-11-2013 at 04:51 AM.
Mate lived in Cairns when I was younger working in the bars, chasing Swedish lasses and going out diving most days. I knew there were plenty of old bases and camps up that way but never had a MD or car to go hunting these things out. Currently based in Norway but heading back down under in the new year. Would like to get up there some day and have a good scratch around. Keep up the good work and maybe some day you will come across that great gold nugget .
Been playing around with a "new" cleaning chemical by POR15
The results thus far are mixed from amazing to Hmm!
Will report as results come in ~
AIF military button which was retrieved from a 1 metre hole under (fresh) dam waters for < 60 years>
Great result~ in fact the snap does not do it rue justice ~
This button was actually a struggle to even clearly read the print !
These coins I had written off ~ they were totally encrusted or blackened ~
I am now getting real Ballsy as I have one of my Rising Suns and more valuable coins in the soak ~
Been blowing and drizzling to pouring for almost three weeks now ~ so it's all about indoors jobs ~
Decided the POR15 is not the great deal ~ despite the good results the overal decision by the jury is that is not the Silver bullet ~
As a filler I am posting several period photos of Atherton duirung the War years ~
The main street has little changed . The War memorial now resides at the opposite end of the main street ~ The hotel further down the main street on the left was Blamey's HQ, and officer's club.
Macarthur had it ear marked for himself but Blamely jumped in first ~
There a lot of B&W photos on the walls today and oen can see much of the period furniture is still place .
A shot of the Atherton Post Office War years ~ I believe it was on Mabel St ~ based on the mountain / hill in the back ground.
Last edited by AT P Sweep; 02-17-2018 at 03:35 AM.
Finally Sunshine again ~
So headed bush on yet another camp site ~
When I first geared up I headed into the bush where I figured the camp site was 70 years ago ~ And Bang !!
Straight up ~
I thought ~ a WWII camp site ~ you bloody ripper ~ a Florin !
Not to be~ frustratingly NOT to be ~~ The coin Gods are teasing me yet again ~ And worse still it was in rough bush !
How the Hell a 20 cent coin ended up here is anyone's guess ~ but intriguingly ~ it is a 1966 coin which was the first year of decimals in Australia.
Then I actually found a firing line ~ with dozens of 32 calibre shells ~ that has to be Owen Gun/ s ~ Seems they were firing north - up hill.
So I walked away ~ enough brass shell ~ and moved around ~ No evidence of a camp site
I then moved further along the access road ~ both sides ~ then I found a 303 firing line ~ essentially 90 deg to the previous fire line and 50 metres away ~ but Nothing else ~
Then ~
Bloody Hell ~ it's on again ~ Police... Dept of Defence ~
Fully armed ~ end cap in tact ~ actually in beautiful condition ~ immaculate ~ looks like it just came out of the box ! ~ considering it has been there for 70 years ~ I recognised the signal immediately on the MD ~ I knew it was the deal even before i uncovered it !
This is a Museum piece ~
( I do wonder just how difficult and dangerous ~ after seeing our Russian compatriates on site disarming grenades ~ Better stil i probably need flogging for even thinking this !!
The days end ~
A mere fraction of the shells ~ only collected for the brass content ~ a failed Florin / 2 shilling and a failed three pence- 1 cent~
But yet a gain a pleasant MD outing ~
And example how far Ii won't go to access a site ~ in my pocket rocket ~
You do right, its just not worth it, hence why the EOD guys will take it some where safe and Dem it rather than try and make it safe. You could buy a inert example over here for £50 to £100. Its just not worth the risk for that sort of money.
Your .32" shells will me 9mm as I believe only the first experimental designs were in .32
.You could buy a inert example over here for £50 to £100. Its just not worth the risk for that sort of money
Thanks for your input Bobby ~
I don't NEED a type 32 that badly ~ more the point this puppy appears to be in such good shape after 70 years that it seems sad that the D/'\D would simply blow it up !
But if I was even think about importing such an ( dummy ) item I would more than likely be looking at time - four grey walls and being some dude's bitch, as Australia has some of the tightest gun and munitions laws in the World ~
Even recent events in USA, the comparisons have been made again by would be legislators and wanna be law makers by example of Australian laws.
But having said that ~ it is estimated that 30,000 illegal weapons were imported into Australia alone ~ So now ALL the Bad dues have the guns ~ and I can't even have my old M1 Carbine ~ regardless of any club assoc ~ full stop!
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