Best Christmas Gift Ever

[LRRPF52]

A fellow forum member, who is a long-time friend of mine from the Finland, sent me this:




Sent chills up my back when I opened the box, because I was pretty sure I knew what it was right off the bat.

Anybody think they can guess the back story on it....

[Mountain Man]

I'm stumped, my Finnish is a bit rusty......

It appears to be something fired from a Nagant though.

[montana]

I'm guessing it is a 7.62X53 cartridge case from the famed Finnish sniper of the Russian Finish winter war of 1939-40, Simo Hayha.

[LRRPF52]

I'm guessing it is a 7.62X53 cartridge case from the famed Finnish sniper of the Russian Finish winter war of 1939-40, Simo Hayha.

[montana]

Great friends you have made, that is a piece of history that should always be cherished and held on to . My childhood friend is Finnish and they make the Ruana knives. He was the first person to tell me about Simo Hayha and his accomplishments. I have to admit I'm a little envious but I am glad it is with someone who appreciates the value and historic significance of what you were gifted. That is a great Christmas present.

[dmsims21]

Very very special and cool.

[LRRPF52]

Great friends you have made, that is a piece of history that should always be cherished and held on to . My childhood friend is Finnish and they make the Ruana knives. He was the first person to tell me about Simo Hayha and his accomplishments. I have to admit I'm a little envious but I am glad it is with someone who appreciates the value and historic significance of what you were gifted. That is a great Christmas present.

When my sniper partner and I shot FinnSniper in 2010, they gave us knives as awards. When I showed my mom, I discovered they were made in the factory my great grandma used to work in, making the leather sheathes for them. That blew me away too.

[montana]

When my sniper partner and I shot FinnSniper in 2010, they gave us knives as awards. When I showed my mom, I discovered they were made in the factory my great grandma used to work in, making the leather sheathes for them. That blew me away too.

The Ruana knives leather sheathes are second to none, and a work of art in their own right. Finnish knives and sheathes are unique and have a style I have always appreciated. Beautiful yet very functional. Your knife award had two values, perfect!

[Nukes]

There is much to be said for heroically fighting against evil, especially against great odds, but once a man's life, even an enemy's life, is ended he can no longer repent evil wrought and is consigned to his eternal fate, an eternal fate earned of one's own free will. When it is our time and the time of our enemies may God have mercy on us all.

[KentuckyBuddha]

The Winter War has a lot of lessons on the strategic level of how METT-TC (or whatever they are calling that this week) can be exploited to make what should on paper be a complete mismatch into a bloody stalemate in which in this case the Soviets barely gained enough ground to bury their dead. When there was a thread this last year about the Carl Gustav 84mm being a better and more popular option lately than the AT4 it made me think of Carl Gustav Mannheim, and that chapter of military history, but I didn't mention it because it was a little too obscure for many.
What Simo Hayha and his spotter/partner did on the tactical level was to define "sisu" and what is possible for only a couple of finely honed and determined men to do.

It would be a fantastically valuable thing to me and obviously to you to be reminded of those people every time you walk through your house and glance at an artifact on the wall. I am glad you have it as I know you would enjoy it as much as I would. : )

[NugginFutz]

That's quite a treasure there. I'm certain it will be hung prominently, where it can be shared and admired by you and your friends. It has already proven to be quite the conversation starter.

Merry Christmas!

[lrgrendel]

Great story.
Thanks for sharing!

BTW How is that round as a sniping round?

[Sniper338]

Sweet

[CPT.CRAZY]

That would be one of the best gifts ever! Very cool.

[Slappy]

Very cool piece of history. BANG BANG!!