Everything you need to know to get started in the world of collecting militaria is here in this 136 page digital bookazine.

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From finding items to buying, restoring and displaying them, this is everything you need to know about collecting militaria!

AUCTIONS & EVENTS
This is your guide to the places where you can see and buy militaria, from online auctions and military shows to battlefield tours.

Militaria for sale
The traditional place to look for militaria is at a dealer, but these days most have websites. Here’s the kind of thing you can look for.

Under the hammer
Most militaria these days gets sold at auction. Here’s the results from some recent ones which gives you an idea of what’s available and the prices the items sold for.

Tales from the Saleroom
When buying from an auction room you need to have your wits about you. Steve Woolnough draws on his 30 years experience to offer some advice.

Militaria shows for 2023
Once a year The Armourer publishes a guide to the military festivals, shows and events taking place. Here’s what’s taking place in 2023, but bear in mind these are usually annual so most will be around for 2024.

Military Odyssey
One of the highlights of the year in deepest Kent. Enjoy 2,000 years of military history, re-enactments, displays and countless militaria dealers.
 
GCR War Weekend
The other type of military show is one based around a historic attraction, such as steam railways. Here’s where you can combine your love of military history with collecting.

Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum
Another place to discover genuine militaria is in a museum, and there are plenty of military ones around the country such as this one, dedicated to the heroes of D-Day.
 
Take a trip to Crete
Scene of fierce fighting in WWII, Crete now offers a compelling combination of traditional beach resort destination and iconic battle locations, museums and war cemeteries.

ESSENTIAL ADVICE
Here is everything you need to know about actually buying militaria, from online auctions, collecting on a budget, to getting good deals in the sale rooms. Then you can discover how to research and look out for fakes.

Bid to win
Discover how to register and bid in online auctions. Just remember to factor in the Buyer’s Premium and online extras.
 
Beginner’s guide to collecting
All the advice and wise words you need to take in before you start collecting, brought to you by our expert.

Collecting on a budget
Of course we’d all like to have a money-no-object collection where you can buy the rarest militaria going, but if you’re not in that lucky position, here’s how to collect on a budget.

Buying in the sale room
The first of two features about the dark art of buying on the ground in the auction sale room. There’s general advice for how to check out lots and what to look for.

Getting good deals
The second feature about buying in the sale room tackles the sneaky ways you can load odds in your favour and bag the best deals.

How to research
Just picked up something interesting but want to know where it came from and who it belonged to? Read on for top tips on the ways to do just that.

Battlefield relics
Dug up from the Eastern Front and now on a slightly shifty looking table at your local militaria show. What to think about when getting into the battlefield relic scene.

Are your photos original?
It’s not just medals and awards that have been faked extensively, the scammers are busy printing and ageing photos to create entirely fictional photo albums.

Fantasy Nazi awards
Some of these were on the drawing board as the Third Reich collapsed while others never existed except in the minds of the fakers after WWII. Either way, these are the ones to avoid.

Getting a firearms licence
If you want to collect weapons that actually fire then you need a firearms licence. Bear in mind that due to strict UK gun laws you can’t own live-firing automatic weapons.

Militaria insurance
All that militaria will be worth a few quid one day, you may say to yourself. Well that day is already here, so take out specialist insurance to cover yourself against loss.

MAINTENANCE & DISPLAYS
You’ve found your militaria, you’ve bought it, now you need somewhere to put it and possibly to clean, fix and restore it as well. This is how to look after and showcase your militaria.

Space for your collection
The first thing to do in any home is to decide where you are going to put your collection, after all, there’s no point in keeping it all in a cupboard.

Displaying your collection
You know where it’s going to go, now to determine how to display it all, from mannequins to framed mounts.

Cleaning and fixing daggers
The first of an extensive guide to repairing and restoring militaria starts with how to clean and fix up daggers.

Restoring leather militaria
Leather tends to dry out and crack so here’s how to restore items that have seen better days.

Removing storage grease
Surplus weapons are greased up for storage so when released to dealers may still be covered in gunk. Discover how to get them nice and shiny again.

Restoring metal objects
Metal is long lasting but not if you don’t look after it. Ed Hallett looks at the different methods of bringing steel, brass and aluminium items back to life.

Restoring firearms
Whether it’s spent 75 years in an attic or in an Eastern European bog, firearms will deteriorate over time. Here’s how to smarten them up.

Repairing uniforms and clothing
Moths, muck and wear and tear will all contribute to turning pristine uniforms into tatty rags but all is not lost. This is your guide to restoring their former glory.

Fixing up ammo boxes
There were millions of these made for the world wars but many have had a tough life in garages since. Fix them up and they make great collectables and set decoration for re-enactments.

Practical display and storage options
Want to know what you can showcase your militaria in and what it’s likely to cost you? Here’s some options, along with where to buy them from.

COLLECTING INSIPRATION
From the stories behind the militaria to using your gear in a practical fashion through the Living History scene and showing off what you have, here’s some inspiration for your collecting.

War Stories: Thomas Alfred Jones
Discover the story of a British soldier who single handedly captured 100 German soldiers in WWI.

War Stories: Wilf Peek
Amidst the chaos of the Battle of Arnhem, here is the story of one man’s service and the medals he left to the family.

Re-united with family medals
Trying to track down medals won by a relative 100 years can be a challenge but one that was successful in this case.

Getting started in Living History
All you need to know about getting started in the re-enactment scene with the first part of this guide to Living History.

Beginner’s guide to Living History
In the second part, Ed Hallett looks at using weapons on the Living History battlefield and tackles the thorny subject of Axis re-enacting.

Living History on the Home Front
In part three it’s the subject of re-enacting on the Home Front which has the advantage that all the family can be involved.

Going back in time
To round off this series, Ed Hallett is looking at various periods of history from before WWII, which brings arms and armour into the equation.

My militaria: Joseph Grant
See what other collectors have put together with this brace of features. Firstly we have Joseph Grant’s Third Reich collection.

My militaria: Phil Froom
Phil’s collection is based around RAF escape and evasion items for aircrew shot down over enemy territory.

Collector focus: D-Day flag
Steve Billey talks about how he came by the first American flag to be planted on Omaha Beach on D-Day.