East German Radiation Dosimeters

Cold War Crap

East German NVA Personal Dosimeters

Manufacturer: ABC Technology?

Model: full kit model number unknown

Country: East Germany DDR

Dosimeters used: Gamma Neutron RDC III D

Dose measuring range: 3 - 1500 R (X-Ray)

Condition: New and sealed

Price: £3.50 + £3.40 postage

Vendor: seller sfrankish. on eBay

Shipped From: UK

First impressions

I'm always looking for a bargain and finding a new and unused cold war bargain is my current past time.  These NVA East German Dosimeters came in a sealed pack of two. (Why?) 

Each meter had a pouch for wearing and storage. The price seemed too tempting to walk on by so I quickly bought a pair.

 "Korper Siete" - place this side against the body

The package arrived in only a couple of days.
Inside were two separate plastic bags containing the pouches.
Each pouch has a desert/worm type camp pattern on it. I'm not sure what it's actually called.
The reason why two were supplied became apparent when I went looking for info on the net (which there isn't much).
Apparently a dosimeter is worn under each arm pit? Interesting.


How did these work?
A pair of these devices were found in the bottom of every kit bag of the soldiers in the Bundeswehr should they be unfortunately involved in a nuclear attack.
Each pouch had to be sewn into the soldiers combat jacket underneath each arm pit. - the soldier had to do the sewing himself.

The meter would measure the accumulated radiation exposure for later analysis on the RDC III A device.

The Gamma-Neutron RCD III D inside each meter has what's called an 'Ionising chamber'
A capacitor is charged to around 270V. As soon as radiation is detected the capacitor begins to discharge.
These meters are classed as thermoluminecent. Each chamber contains either Lithium Borate or Calcium Sulfate in the form of crystals.
Basically as the radiation is absorbed the crystals glow to varying degrees.
It's all a bit scientific so I will leave the physics class there.
(I probably got half of that wrong anyway!)

 The warning on the capsule says "Don't open" - oh well!

The Dosimeters are wedged in pretty well in their housings.
It took a great deal of force to pull one out. Both ends of the capsule are fitted with a rubber o-ring which I suspect caused a bit of a vacuum when trying to fish it out.

There really isn't much else to see.

This is how it should look with the capsule fitted

Take a look at the pic above and imagine the table being the inside of a German soldiers combat jacket. - Under each arm pit to be precise.

When I first saw this set I thought it looked a bit mad but now I get it. Discreet radiation meters worn without the wearer noticing. They are very light weight after all. The strange dragons tail cord which runs through the pouch is designed to allow the wearer to quickly pull the pouch open and likewise close it again. - well that's my best guess, it's hard to find much in the way of information on these devices.

Example of the official paperwork

Obviously I won't be able to test these meters. I don't have the corresponding reading machine for a start. And who in their right mind would intensionally give themselves a dose of radiation? Haha - just for a crappy review

For now they are just really nice relics from the cold war. 

Rating: ✅✅✅✅ 4 out of 5

These meters could still work properly. They were brand new in a sealed bag. The problem is there is no way of pre-charging them or reading the data without the special machine. For that reason I give this item a four. If your the sort of person who doesn't care about functionality then these represent a cheap piece of history. Great value!

German VM-40 Civilian Gas Mask

WWII Crap

Deutsche Volksmaske VM-40 Civilian Gas Mask

Manufacturer: Auer

Model: VM-40

Replaced: VM-37

Year: 1940 

Country: Nazi Germany

Condition: good

Kit Complete: No - missing the box and valve cover

Size: K - Kinder (Children's)

Price: £10

Description: Original 1940 German gas mask

Vendor: private seller on ebay

Shipped from: UK

 This is a kids mask - K = Kinder

First Impressions
I fancied getting myself a vintage gas mask at some point. Most of the time though these elderly masks are either too expensive or knackered and falling to bits.
Happily for me I managed to stumble across this fine German example from 1940.

Although this mask did not come with the original cardboard box, value cover and instructions I wasn't perturbed and decided to bid on it.

For £10 + shipping I managed to land a rather nice childrens VM-40  in quite good condition.
With a little bit of isopropanol and a careful hand I managed to removed about 77 years worth of grime which had embedded itself in the rubber.
After I finished cleaning the mask, I looked at it again and found absolutely no cracks or signs of rubber perishing anywhere on the mask.  Built to last I reckon.
That's German engineering for you!

 Various markings including the Reichsadler symbol

A little bit about the Deutsche Volksmaske VM-40

These rubber masks were issued to the civilian population after 1940, previously there had been a VM-37 in general circulation which this model eventually replaced.
Presumably in 1940 the Nazis thought we Brits, the US or the Russians were considering gas bombing the general public. - which I don't think ever happened. None-the-less they still needed something to protect the public just in case.


The VM-40 was available in four different sizes
Starting from the smallest
K = Kinder (children's)
F = Frauen (Women's)
M = Maenner (Men's)
M-uE = Maenner Uebergr (Men's large)

German school children drilling for a gas attack 

As the above picture shows, the VM-40 "K" size (like mine) were issued to every school in Germany during the war. 

"Everyone Gets a Volksmaske" 

The above poster tells the Germans population that everyone is to be given a gas mask. 

The Filter

The filter on the VM-40 is made from Aluminium with the screw port on one side and a shower head style inlet underneath.
This underside is filled with over 100 tiny holes.

 Looks like a shower head - 

The top of the filter can is stamped with various numbers and letters which I haven't deciphered yet.

⚠⚠Does this Filter contain Asbestos?⚠⚠

Absolutely, make no mistake, the Germans as well as us Brits were making civilian masks with Asbestos filter material inside.  Obviously then it's not a very good idea to wear masks of this age with the filter on. (Not that I could get this small mask to go on!) Purely for collecting purposes would be the advice here.

The filter contains different gages of asbestos matetial designed to trap nasty shit 

 More Reichsadler symbols inside

Inside the face piece we find a strange looking wad of cotton which surrounds the inlet valve. Some have speculated that this was to stop people from banging their teeth against the metal parts when being worn? I'm not sure.

The eye pieces are made from glass with plastic anti-fog lenses fitted. These are quite discoloured and I'm thinking of carefully removing them and revealing the original clear glass again.

The exhaling side of the mask is handled by a strange looking flapper valve attached to the nose of the face piece.
This style of valve is typical for the time. Our British duty respirators had a similar flapper installed.

Teddy gets to be the model today

The mask is attached by way of a four point harness. It's made from a fabric material and seems easy to adjust. 

This mask is tiny!

There isn't much more to say about this mask, I can't try it on as it's way too small for me. It's in great shape for something that's 77 years old. I'm really pleased to own it.

Rating ✅✅✅✅ 4 out of 5

The mask deserves a higher mark here but it's missing the other stuff like the box etc. It's still worth the investment though. Anyone with an interest in gas masks or the second world war should get one. Just don't wear it!

Kappler Zytron Z400 Hazmat Suit

Kappler Zytron Z400 Chemical Protection Suit

Manufacturer: Kappler
Model: Z400
Style: Z4H428
Country of Origin: USA
Condition: New
Price: £13.00 free shipping
Vendor: Private seller on eBay
Shipped from: UK
Description: Personal Chemical Protection suit

First impressions
I think I have always wanted a real hazmat suit of my own, I'm not quite sure why? Perhaps it's because I have seen so many in the movies over the years.
Due to my recent venture into selling cold war crap it's as good a time as any to buy one for testing with a gas mask.

With my mind set on buying an NBC/Hazmat suit I started searching through the eBay listings looking for a bargain or two.
The auction lots are awash with British army NBC suits and similar but very little in the way of a special coated suit at a good price....Apart from this Kappler Z400

I paid just over £13 for it with free postage which didn't seem too bad for a first purchase.

I had never heard of Kappler before or their suits but a quick search on Google revealed that this US firm was highly regarded as a supplier of quality protective wear.

This Z400 series suit features the Zytron formulated coating which offers protection against a broad range of Chemicals.
It's available in a few different styles including a full helmet version.


What does it protect against?
According to some test results posted on the Kappler site the Z400 suit has been tested against a few nasty things...

Rather than listing every chemical and gas tested against this suit I have left a link below to the Z400 webpage

http://www.kappler.com/index.php/products/zytron400

This suit features a tough zipper which has a protective flap to cover it.
One long piece of sticky tape ensures the flap stays in place.
It feels sturdy enough

The hood part of the suit is elasticated around the edge and offers good head protection.

The inner material can be seen as a white cotton wool looking lining. It's very reminiscent of a standard CSI style boiler suit but with a super coated layer on the outside.

The label inside says it's a 'Disposable' garment and I suppose it is but I can't help thinking that it is strong enough to last out for a while. It's really tough.
The shelf life of the suit is 20+ years according to official data so it can certainly be stored in your shed for a few years I suppose.

One great feature of this suit is its reinforced seams. Totally air tight and waterproof.

I believe the material is folded and heat sealed along the seams making this suit very hard-wearing. 

Testing

I don't plan on chucking battery acid over myself in a feeble attempt at a functionality test, No chance, instead I'm going to take Kappler and the customer testimonials on their word about how effective this suit is. 

As for wearing the suit its really easy to put on.

Just unzip the front and step into it. 

This version of the Z400 has elasticated ankles, wrists and hood which means that a pair of gloves and overboots are also required to be completely protected.

Mobility inside the suit is very good. Plenty of room to move about without feeling baggy.

The size of my Z400 suit was medium with a maximum height size of 5ft 8"  - Just right for me.

Every part of the suit seemed to fit quite well. 

Why would you want one of these?

Well if you are a prepped type then a good cheap suit could be a great addition to your SHTF arsenal. 

Others may buy it for protection for a specific shitty job you have to do. They certainly seem a useful thing to have in the house. 

Rating: ✅✅✅✅✅ 5 out of 5

You cant knock the Z400 for the money, it's terrific value compared to other comparable suits. Preppers take note!

Russian GP-7V Gas Mask

Russian GP-7V Civilian Gas Mask

Manufacturer: ?

Model: GP-7Vm

Country: The Russian Federation

Type: Half face 

Year: 1992

Condition: New and sealed

Production Run: 1988- 1992

Bought From: eBay

Description: Soviet gas mask + filter new sealed

Price £24.00 free express shipping

Vendor: Seller epic_militaria  on ebay

Shipped From:UK

First impressions

ooh this was the mask that I most wanted! The rather cool looking GP-7V.  Those who are paying attention will notice that this mask is almost identical to the one used in the rather crap "My Bloody Valentine" film remake of 2011.

The homicidal maniac miner goes on his underground rampage wearing one of these, albeit with a slight modification here and there.

Cue photo from "my bloody valentine" 

Yes this is indeed the same mask but the movie prop makers switched the inlet and outlet ports on their GP-7V and ditched the face fitting green filter can. All very interesting

On eBay these masks seem to be fetching a premium price so paying around £20-£25 shipped is about right at the moment.

Compared to other mask kits - such as the GP-5 this thing is double the price.

I don't mind splashing out a bit once in a while so £25 isn't going to bankrupt me. Will it turn out to be worth it?

Russian or Soviet?

This mask was made in 1992, about a year after the dissolution of the Soviet union making this mask a Russian republic offering. 

Other GP-7V masks made before 1991 will be Soviet.

Who were these issued to?

The civilian population. Contrary to belief, this is not a military mask. The military version is called the PMK and is identical in every way except for different shaped eye pieces.

What was in the Box?

This kit arrived in a nicely packaged cardboard box. Often gas masks are sent in plastic bags through the mail which fills me with dread at times. It wouldn't take much bashing about to crack a glass eye piece. A cardboard box is much more civilised.

Inside the box was 

Haversack (new)

I  make that November 1992 

The green haversack which accompanies this set is pretty crap it has to be said.
The cotton used here is as thin as a cigarette paper, quite why they didn't opt for canvas is beyond me.
A little padding here and there wouldn't have hurt them. When you consider the quality of the mask you'd expect it to arrive in a protective bag.  It's neither waterproof nor protective.

It looks nice but it's as flimsy as hell!

When the face piece, filter and water bottle are put in the bag everything sinks to the bottom. Like carrying tins of beans in a Tesco bag.

Not a good product and the only bag point about this kit.

GOST 40mm Filter Can (New)

The E0-1 filter canister features ridges on the top unlike the GP-5 small can. This one was brand new and sealed. The original brown paper surrounding it. As everything else in this kit is from 1992 I suspect this filter is also from that year.
Many conspiracy theories circulate the internet regarding Russian filters and asbestos. Well, I really don't mind using this one as it's quite recent compared to many found on eBay. I doubt the Russians were still messing about with asbestos in the early 90's.

Russian codes all over the place

Apart from the E0-1 model number I can't work out what the hell the rest of the codes on the side of the can relate to? Presumably batch numbers and factory details.

This filter uses the standard Soviet/Russian 40mm GOST screw fitting to attach to the mask. 

Face Piece

Now we get to the meat! 

I really like the look of this mask. It's really well made and features a great strap adjustment system which I haven't seen before. 

The main part of the face piece is made from a thick latex with a thinner latex 5 point strap system at the rear. 

Just inside the mask is a double skin of rubber adding to the masks air tight qualities. 

Clever but flawed fixing system

Getting this mask on is a bloody nightmare!. Because the whole of the fixing harness is made from rubber, it sticks to your hair and cause great deal of pain. Once it's on its alright, very comfortable etc.
Had they opted to make a fabric harness it wouldn't be so bad.
Fitting the filter sand tightening the straps, the mask is quite good. Mobility is good, vision is good. No problem.

The exhale valve and drinking straw

Tucked inside the face piece is a strange looking black straw. This is for taking a drink from the yellow bottle of course. Having the ability to rehydrate without taking the mask off is a great safety feature.

Factory number and date 

The glass eye pieces are the standard GP-5 style only zinc plated or something. As the mask is new the glass eye pieces are clean and scratch free.
One thing missing from this kit was the extra ballistic outserts. An extra set of lens that fit over the ones in the mask offering extra protection from breaking. Not sure why I didn't get mine?

Numbered notches? What a good idea!

The harness although made from the wrong material has at least one good thing going for it. The brilliant numbered notches on each of the 5 straps.  The benefits of being able to fit the mask properly speak for themselves.

Hydration Canteen

This civilian task mask kit comes with a handy rehydration system. The yellow bottle is made from a soft type of plastic whilst the cap is made from Aluminium.

Capacity of 75cl or 700ml 

Pressure valve drinking spout

To stop unwanted crap contaminating the contents the Russians fitted a pressure value fitting inside the cap.
By inserting the end of the drinking straw into the cap a plunger attached to a spring  is then lowered allowing the liquid to flow.
When the bottle isn't being used, the hole can be plugged with the attached rubber bung on a string..

You rig the drinking tube like so...

Once the connection has been made between the drinking straw and the cap, the bottle must be held upside down to allow gravity to shove the liquid up the tube.

I don't plan on drinking anything out of this bottle. It shall remain new and unused.

Overall this is a really nice kit. I consider it to be worth the extra money. The quality of everything (except the bag) is really good and seems hard-wearing. I won't be selling this one!

👍👍👍👍 Great mask - crap haversack

Czech Military M60 Canteen

Cold War Crap 

Mini - Review

Czech Army M60 Canteen

Manufacturer: ?
Model: true model number unknown -part of M60 kit
Country: Czechoslovakia
Year: ?
Production Run: ?
Price: FREE when bought with a spare gas mask Hose (£5)
Condition: Used but in very good condition
Vendor: Seller bea27storee  on ebay
Shipped From: UK


First impressions
I wasn't expecting to receive a Czech Army canteen in the mail if I'm honest. It came bundled with a spare gas mask Hose I had ordered earlier in the week - so finding this furry water bottle in the packet was a very pleasant surprise!.
The original order was for a £5 gas mask Hose and the price included free courier shipping - not bad at all

Buy a Hose - get a canteen free!

After trawling the internet for a while I could find hardly any information on the M60 canteen. The only thing I could find out was that these were issued to Czech soldiers during the cold war. I have no idea as to how old this thing is. I'm guessing at late 1970's issue at the very least. I'm still trying to identify it's true age. 

One thing I did find out was the normal asking price on eBay. 

It seems that the M60 canteen goes for around the £9-£10 mark in the majority of stores. As the hose I bought only cost me £5 it's interesting that my free gift is worth double the amount?! I'm not complaining about it though 👍😂😂😂

What is it made from?

• Outer jacket made from synthetic or Woollen Felt 
• Harness made from Leather
• Canteen made from Aluminium
• Stopper made from plastic
• Tether made from string

The reverse side

The canteen is really well made with a tough and rugged feel to it. Exactly what you would expect from a Soviet run factory back in the old days. Tough as nails.

The actual capacity of the Canteen is around 800ml so it does seem large enough to be useful. 

These canteens also available with a cork stopper rather than the plastic one used here. Both styles will do the job I suspect. I'm wondering if the cork version might make the canteen older looking?

As for testing the canteen, I haven't bothered yet. I haven't plucked up the courage to take a swig - not without sterilising
Someone may have pissed in it?

There really isn't much more to say about this soldiers accessory. It's a really nice thing to have. Definitely one for the collection.

👍👍👍👍👍

Recycled Radio: Weierwei V1000 UHF Transceiver

Recycled Radio Series

Weierwei V1000 UHF Transceiver

Manufacturer: Weierwei

Model: VEV V1000  aka Puxing px888

Band: UHF (tri-band programmable)

Frequency: 400-470MHz / *300-360MHz / *134-172MHz

Programmable Channels: 128

Scrambler?: Yes

Battery: 3.7V 1600mAh

Antenna: short helical rubber duck 

Price: £10 + £5 postage
Sold As: Used
True Condition: Immaculate condition as new

Vendor: private eBay seller
Shipped From: Northern Ireland, UK

*The V1000 can be programmed to other bands via the Weierwei software .

 How do you pronounce that name again?

First impressions
My radio radar is always switched on, especially during late night browsing on eBay. So I was very happy to see this fine specimen in the used walkie talkie section late one night.

I hadn't seen a Weierwei radio before - never even heard of them in actual fact, so I was curious to find out if this radio was a rebadge of something else.
Indeed it turns out that this V1000 is a Puxing 888 in disguise.
A radio priced much higher than your average baofeng.
Looking on eBay for new V1000's I found that they are still for sale costing around £70 and shipping from the far East.
Bagging this used unit for £10 seemed an obvious bargain.

 Solid Aluminium Chassis

The radio arrived in its original box. Inside the handset and accessories were all as they should be.
I suspect this radio is an ex-demo unit or has hardy been used judging by its almost new appearance. The item came from an airsoft online store but I don't think it has been used in combat!.

Much like the trusty Baofeng family this set contains a host of accessories. These ones are suspiciously similar. The ear piece and charger look very familiar indeed.

 The Battery is pretty solid too

The radio is really well made, much tougher than your average baofeng. The plastic used here seems a heavier gage to the plastics used on other Chinese radios. The unit feels more solid and weightier than its cheaper rivals.

The battery pack is a standard lithium type with a capacity of around 1200mAh. It fits really nicely to the chassis of the radio and doesn't creak or move about when it's mounted unlike some.
Much like the handset the battery feels well made and tough.

The chassis of the radio is made from aluminum alloy with a rubber gasket around the contacts - presumably to help keep dust and moisture out.
The design is similar to other Chinese radios but this one seems to be better quality.

Not bad for a stock Antenna to be honest

The V1000 receiver is supplied with a small stubby stock antenna.
At first sight of it I laughed and thought it would be a load of crap like the GT-1 or stock UV-5R.
It's probably a coil dummy load in a thick stumpy shroud - usually a recipe for shite RX/TX.
This antenna appears to be cut to length for UHF only.

The Weierwei V1000 does not include the obligatory flashlight on the top. Instead we find the more traditional rotary channel selector dial along side the on/off volume knob. Arguably a better feature than the led flashlight in my opinion.
The rotary selector dial has a few benefits which only become apparent when you start playing about with the radio.
Firstly I can be used to quickly select either the pre-programmed channels or the actually frequency whilst in VFO mode and secondly it can be used in conjunction with the scanning feature. It's much easier to move the scanning on from an unwanted hit with a twist of the dial than hitting the scan button again on a Baofeng for instance (which doesn't always work)
With the rotary dial being as large as it is, it means that channels can be flicked back and forth between the fingers very easily. You don't need two hands to operate at all.

The Antenna connection is the standard Chinese SMA-M type so any SMA female antenna should fit when it comes to replacing the stock for something else.

Along the side of the radio we find the PTT button and two programmable secondary buttons.
The button marked with one pip (see above pic) was already programmed for the emergency siren - a pointless feature which sends out a distress call on the frequency you happen to be tuned to at the time.  Fortunately this feature can be substituted for another in the software. I set mine to open the squelch - the same with the second button (with 2 pips).
This handset does have the facility for receiving commercial FM stations.
The reception on FM is OK, local music stations come through strong.
There is the ability to program 9 different stations into the memory.

The LCD display on this handset is rather good.
It looks similar to the Baofeng displays but has a higher pixel density (the photo above doesn't illustrate it that well) and has a few extra bits and bobs on it.

The colour of the LCD backlight can be changed to suit tastes. Orange, blue or a off white colour can be selected.
Personally the orange (which actually looks green!) looks the best.

There isn't much to say about the back of the radio. It looks like any other handheld.
The belt clip is well made and seems solid enough.
Unlike the Baofeng radios, the belt clip is not secured to the chassis by a pair of screws, rather a more traditional slip on and clip arrangement. - easier definitely.

The keypad on this thing is good. The membrane is made from a soft rubber which has a nice feel to it.
Seeing the keys in the dark is not a problem due to a white LED backlight behind them. Plenty bright enough.
Most of the menu options can be accessed by pressing the menu key followed by the number of the cooresponding function.

The internal speaker on this radio is good for its size. It's not the most bassy of sounds but it is clear and loud.


Good Points

• Voice Scrambler feature 
• Tri-Band programmable 
• Good front end - very little break through from strong RF
• Rx sensitivity
• Build quality
• True 5W power output (tested)
• Long lasting battery
• Rotary tuning dial up top
• Ability to name channels on the fly
• Ability to add/remove channels from scanning on the fly
• Priority scan
• Fast scanning
• Easy to edit channel settings on the fly
• FM commercial stations + 9 channel memory storage

Bad Points

• Complicated dual watch set up
• Cannot monitor two different bands at same time
• No voltage meter - only a small bar scale. Not accurate.

Overall the good points far outweigh the bad and to be fair, these are probably nothing more than nit picking on my part.

I'm still conducting a few tests with this radio. Hoping at some point to do a few videos and such but from what I have seen so far over the past few weeks its a very capable radio indeed.

I have got over the fact that it isn't a dual bander, or at least dual bands at the same time and I have forgotten about the convoluted dual watch thing. I can survive without them just fine.

The Weierwei V1000 is a professional looking radio. I really like it.

£10 is an absolute bargain for this

Test videos and more waffle to come.....