National service

[fleetwood]

I have some photo's of some Sheffield lads that I served with in Egypt when I did my NS, this would be around 52/53. We were in the Royal Signals stationed at Mackworth Camp (I believe i've got the name right) near Moascar, we were attached to the 3rd Infantry Division (black triangle with inverted red triangle flash) or was it the other way around? I don't know. Anyway here is my problem, I would like to post these pictures on this thread, is there a quick and easy way to do this, 'easy' is the operative word here.

[flyer]

1952 25th armor in Libya also with the R.Signals glad to report we're the scruffy lot in uniform, stayed well away fm the Scot Greys they use to bull their tanks with a toothbrush but they were 40 odd miles away, spent a lot of our time deep south felt much better living with the Arabs more my type:|:|

[Texas]

As soon as I saw you latest post on National Service I thought 'Here we go again.'

It was mentioning the Scots Greys that did it. I've always had this thing about being in a regiment like that. My great ambition was to be in the 17/21st Lancers, I even put it down on the questionare when I registered for National Service. When the registering officer glanced at it I couldn't help noticing the blood on his lip from biting it to stop laughing.

But to the 17/21st and Egypt. On the Transmitter site where I worked we had a gang of East African Pioneer Corps. I mentioned this ways back on this thread. The Pioneer Corps sargeant was called 'Pop' by us and he was a great guy.

Anyhow one day he had a mishap climbing into a 3 tonner truck. Remember the steel step that folded down on the tailgate? Well he put a foot on as normal, slipped, and took a strip of skin off his shin about 6 inches long.

Naturally, there's no M I room when you need one so Lance Corporal McAuley and myself took him to the nearest. Which was.......... the 17/21st Lancers.

Now the worst dressed people in the British Army back then, apart from cooks, were Linemen. McAuley and myself were no exception.

I was wearing a plaid shirt and cut off denims. I honestly dont know how I got away with it. The guard on the gate looked quite non-plussed, but he let us through when he saw the blood and heard the explanation.

We got to the MI room and the corporal there gave the treatment to 'Pops' leg. While we were waiting two Lancer NCOs came in and gave McAuley and me a right bollocking for being in sh**order. I nearly told them that I could've been in their mob. Fat chance.

[Harleyman]

I still remember the traumatic first weeks in Royal Artlillery Training regiment, Oswestry.

Being marched to the camp supply stores by our training bombardier on our first evening there and buying a candle, a large spoon, tin of black shoe polish and a polishing rag. On return to the barrack room the rest of the evening was occupied in starting to pound out those pimples on the toe caps of our new hob nailed boots.

 

The first morning being woken up by the sergeant and bombardier marching up and down the room banging dust bin lids yelling

"Lights on, socks on, hands off c*cks" and in the evening a reversal of this.

 

Washing those black berets to get them to shrink and then shaping them.

I got a critical comment from the sergeant on mine

"Where do you think you are laddie, in the German navy?" he bellowed in my ear

 

Cleaning our white lanyards with toothpaste to make them look even whiter.

 

Those belts we had to blanco and god help you if any of the blanco was on those brass buckles. The cap badges that had to be Brassoed twice a day because they would

tarnish within hours

 

The old soldiers tip on how to stop the trousers riding up above the gaiters. An elastic band inside the trousers and around the top of the gaiter kept the trousers down around them very effectively

 

The locker layouts. Pieces of cardboard carefully cut to size and placed behind the tee shirts, undershorts and PJs so that they were all perfectly squared off.

 

Our first Saturday outing to Oswestry two weeks into training and the last minute check by the bombardiers just before we were allowed out. The stricken expressions on the faces of the unfortunate few who had their belts and lanyards tossed into the mud because they weren't up to snuff. "Manky" was a word used to describe that.

 

Going through all this made it somewhat easier for me years later when I was a US Marine recruit. I knew something of what to expect but the Marine Drill Instructors were a truly terrifying lot compared to their counterparts in the artillery.

[flyer]

me with a busted hand, month beard and hair just a mud pack we bounced along for 3 weeks in a med' truck #1 in truck had a huge pair of balls some mishap & had to nurse in both hands all the way #2 had opened up his back passage fm eating those hard tack and had blood streaming down his legs,we had most dozy medic who taken a 1week course trying to bandage in this bouncing truck and to top it all we arrived in the Scot Greys camp just as they was going on work parade,bull like the Queens birthday to the S Major credit he said not a word I still don't know if it was my scowl or he was just dieing laughing.:hihi:

[fleetwood]

Jazzing up the old uniform was a work of art for some, you either had to have a tailor or a mother that was adept with a needle and thread or try and do some of the remodeling yourself. It started with cutting some of the bagginess out of the jacket and stiching two pleats into the back, iron and press a sharp crease accoss the shoulders. When you were on leave you could always complete the ensemble with a couple of collar badges and knitted tie rather than the issued one, all topped off with a small beret well moulded to the head. Before any of that took place you could shave the uniform of all excess knapp and fuz, just to give it the well worn gaberdine look and feel. HARLEYMAN we used weights when gaitors had to be worn. A rather memorable parade overseas was prior to a visiting high ranking officer inspecting and taking the salute. The sergeant major gave the order that everbody wearing glasses should take them off 'as you bloody well all look like a load of Japanese Admirals'. To top this off, he gave the order that everybody will be on this parade with no exceptions, so a guy puts the record on which is going out over the intercom, it's the 'Signals' march 'Begone Dull Care' he runs on and joins the parade, the rest is like right out of the 'Carry-On' series. The needle sticks in the groove, it's playing the same passage over and over again with a loud audible click in between, this went on for a while until he brought the few hundred men to a halt dismissed the office n.c.o. to go and stop the music, it was hilarious, I don't remember how that little episode ended really.

[Bushbaby]

Anyway here is my problem, I would like to post these pictures on this thread, is there a quick and easy way to do this, 'easy' is the operative word here.

Probably best to put your piccies on a recognised foto site (Flickr.com is probably easiest)

The put a link to that site on this thread

 

That's about the easiest way

[Kidorry]

I still remember the traumatic first weeks in Royal Artlillery Training regiment, Oswestry.

Being marched to the camp supply stores by our training bombardier on our first evening there and buying a candle, a large spoon, tin of black shoe polish and a polishing rag. On return to the barrack room the rest of the evening was occupied in starting to pound out those pimples on the toe caps of our new hob nailed boots.

 

The first morning being woken up by the sergeant and bombardier marching up and down the room banging dust bin lids yelling

"Lights on, socks on, hands off c*cks" and in the evening a reversal of this.

 

Washing those black berets to get them to shrink and then shaping them.

I got a critical comment from the sergeant on mine

"Where do you think you are laddie, in the German navy?" he bellowed in my ear

 

Cleaning our white lanyards with toothpaste to make them look even whiter.

 

Those belts we had to blanco and god help you if any of the blanco was on those brass buckles. The cap badges that had to be Brassoed twice a day because they would

tarnish within hours

 

The old soldiers tip on how to stop the trousers riding up above the gaiters. An elastic band inside the trousers and around the top of the gaiter kept the trousers down around them very effectively

 

The locker layouts. Pieces of cardboard carefully cut to size and placed behind the tee shirts, undershorts and PJs so that they were all perfectly squared off.

 

Our first Saturday outing to Oswestry two weeks into training and the last minute check by the bombardiers just before we were allowed out. The stricken expressions on the faces of the unfortunate few who had their belts and lanyards tossed into the mud because they weren't up to snuff. "Manky" was a word used to describe that.

 

Going through all this made it somewhat easier for me years later when I was a US Marine recruit. I knew something of what to expect but the Marine Drill Instructors were a truly terrifying lot compared to their counterparts in the artillery.

 

 

Remember it well. I was there in `54.

[flyer]

I think i was in Tripoli but I'm not sure,in 53-54 the marine's was shiped fm Malta, rumor said it was a punishment march for them beating up on some local toughs, it was said they wrecked half the bars?but the Signals went along to give wireless support with the medics, they had steel cage on their backs with bren gun on top it had to be around 120%,its been a long time so i forget how many miles they had to go but after a few?hrs they started dropping like flies

[Harleyman]

Jazzing up the old uniform was a work of art for some, you either had to have a tailor or a mother that was adept with a needle and thread or try and do some of the remodeling yourself. It started with cutting some of the bagginess out of the jacket and stiching two pleats into the back, iron and press a sharp crease accoss the shoulders. When you were on leave you could always complete the ensemble with a couple of collar badges and knitted tie rather than the issued one, all topped off with a small beret well moulded to the head. Before any of that took place you could shave the uniform of all excess knapp and fuz, just to give it the well worn gaberdine look and feel. HARLEYMAN we used weights when gaitors had to be worn. A rather memorable parade overseas was prior to a visiting high ranking officer inspecting and taking the salute. The sergeant major gave the order that everbody wearing glasses should take them off 'as you bloody well all look like a load of Japanese Admirals'. To top this off, he gave the order that everybody will be on this parade with no exceptions, so a guy puts the record on which is going out over the intercom, it's the 'Signals' march 'Begone Dull Care' he runs on and joins the parade, the rest is like right out of the 'Carry-On' series. The needle sticks in the groove, it's playing the same passage over and over again with a loud audible click in between, this went on for a while until he brought the few hundred men to a halt dismissed the office n.c.o. to go and stop the music, it was hilarious, I don't remember how that little episode ended really.

 

That's hilarious and typical of some of the Army's carryings on

 

I got really stressed out when I was issued my battle dress. The QM sergeant either couldn't see it or couldn't be bothered dealing with it but there was a difference in shade between the blouse and the trousers.

I had bad visions of going home on my first leave and facing my dad, a world war 2 veteran and hearing his comments on the state of my BDs.

However luck was with me for I found another bloke in another barrack room who had the same problem and who took the same size as me and we swopped out blouses which took care of the mismatch problem for both of us

 

That beret was my nemesis during training . I shrunk it and moulded it so that there was a tad pushed down on both sides to make it look like the berets the tankers wore. Anyway once I finished training and got posted to my service regiment no one ever bothered me again about it and all the other bull disappeared like snow in July also