Lido / BMC Troops Visit the Museum

The docent let me use the vehicles for a base for the troops to pose upon.  Here are the former Lido, now BMC 60mm GI's on the hood of a Jeep.

Also on the fender of a Jeep.

 Posed on a command car bumper.  Figures stood up just fine.

Closeup of the command car bumper.
 

P61 in the background.

Lyon Museum

Another view of the Japanese motorcycle at the Lyon Museum.

Interesting motorcycle combination.

Standard Jeep.

A block from the museum was this army truck.

There is a private company that takes Deuce and a Half trucks, cuts down the bed, removes one axle and substitutes a trailer body for the rear bed to make a sort of giant pick up truck.

A Special Announcement From Bunkermeister

After having been born and raised in Southern California, MRS Bunkermeister and I have retired, sold the house....

Packed up 100 boxes of terrain and buildings, and GI Joes....

And three hundred boxes to troops and vehicles to move to a New Life in the Off World Colonies.

Cars at The Air Museum

Despite being an Air Museum the Lyon has a lot of vehicles.  This is an old Helms Bakery truck.  Here in Southern California they used to drive up and down every neighborhood and tooting their horn.  People would go out and buy fresh baked goods.  These little vans were gun but they had small trucks when I was a kid.

Mercedes Gull Wing.

From 1955, like me.

Kettenkrad, halftrack motorcycle.  They towed trailers and light anti-tank guns.  Some had the front wheel removed and just operated with the tracks.

Indian Motorcycle.

WWII Japanese motorcycle.

WWII German motorcycle...

And the Soviet copy!

American Army bicycle.

Moving Day

The last couple of days I have posted a bit of foreshadowing.

Not only have I retired, but I have loaded up the trucks.

MRS Bunkermeister and I have sold our home in California and are moving 2,000 miles away to Kentucky.  My family is from there, but I don't know anyone who lives there now.  We are retiring to a more rural environment to slow down, relax, and spend more time with the loved ones; each other and the Army Men.

This will be the new home.  There may be some disruption in Internet service as we travel or as we get the new house built, so if I miss a few days, keep checking back, because I won't be gone long.

Load the Trucks

Amateurs study tactics, professionals study logistics.  Well, here are some of my WWII US Army logistics.  Mostly Paul Hieser Models 2 1/2 ton cargo trucks.  They actually carry 5 tons on roads and 2 1/2 tons off road.

The short bed trucks were used by the artillery.  The complaint was that ammo is heavy and artillery crews often over load their trucks.  So the spare tires were put up front and the bed shortened to cut the size of the cargo space and help prevent over loading.

My open trucks have a removable plastic insert that holds various cargoes; ammo, supplies, tools.

I also resin cast them and so have truck loads of boxes and oil drums.

Left over tank parts, and even electric motors become cargo for these Eager Beaver trucks.

Everyone needs a spare tire now and again.

Retirement

While I have been a Captain in the US Army Reserve, Military Intelligence,

and I spent most of my civilian career as a private security officer, supervisor, manager, and trainer,

I have also been a volunteer Designated Level One, Reserve Police Officer, Sergeant, with the City of South Pasadena, California, for the last 28 years.  During that time I have been a use of force instructor, been the officer in charge of parades, fireworks displays, and many other public functions.  I have been a use of force instructor for patrol rifle, shotgun, handgun, baton, OC spray, and tactics.  I have arrested people, ran into burning buildings, and managed make it to retirement.

My first day on patrol.  I will miss the good men and women of South Pasadena Police Department, but it's time to say goodbye to them now.  I have retired and plan to devote more time to my wife and to my hobbies.  Bunkermeister

Hitler Automobile

A parade car for Hitler.

Rumored to have been found in a Russian generals barn a few years ago.

Brought here and cleaned up, but no real restoration needed.

The passenger front seat folds up so the passenger can stand at the window and greet those who watch the parade.

My daughter with the parade car.

In close up you can see the true color of the car body is a gloss panzer gray, the trim is all black.

Note the back up light and the registration stamp on the license plate.

Hitler had a special step installed so that Eva could step up to the seats without having to step too high while wearing a short skirt.

The information plaque for the vehicle.  Always take photos of the vehicle plaques at museums so that you know what you saw when you get back home!

Lyon Museum

 http://lyonairmuseum.org/about-us  Recently my friend COL Jim and my daughter Sarah and I visited the Lyon Air Museum, in Orange County California.

It is a small, but excellent museum.  They have a C47, a DC3, B17, B25, B26, and a number of vehicles and a few other aircraft.  All the aircraft are flyers and all the vehicles run.

The museum is spotlessly clean, even in the tiny corners.

The planes are beautiful.  I have been so several museums and have seen these types of aircraft before, but not any that were this well maintained.

It is amazing how shiny the aluminum is on these planes, the B17 is spectacular.

American Airlines US Mail carrier passenger plane.

Great nose art!