Hi,
Hackaday recently ran this article which I found interesting. I'm sure there a few of you that already know this old story, but if not...
"Hacking When It Counts: DIY Prosthetics And The Prison Camp Lathe by Dan Maloney
For as interesting a story as this is, source material is hard to come by. Searches for “prison camp lathe” all seem to point back to a single document written by one “R. Bradley, A.M.I.C.E” in 1949, describing the building of the lathe. The story, which has been published multiple times in various forms over the ensuing eight decades, is a fascinating read that’s naturally heavy on engineering details, given the subject matter and target audience. But one suspects there’s a lot more to the story, especially from the few tantalizing details of the exploits surrounding the tool’s creation that R. Bradley floats..."
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-- Leon Fisk Grand Rapids MI
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the Japanese tolerated and partly assisted because the lathe was useful for their needs too. I've read that Japanese who had been overseas, mainly Naval officers, were more tolerant with Allied prisoners than those who hadn't.
In many cases the Germans treated British prisoners quite well, as mentioned briefly in Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five" (he was the captured infantry scout) and further in Douglas Bader's biography "Reach for the Sky".
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When sent to escape-proof Colditz Castle after several escape attempts he was still allowed to roam the area on his prosthetic legs with an escort and trade the goodies received in Red Cross packages to farmers for fresh produce for the prisoners.
Until a guard was killed the commandant was amused by the prisoners' inventive escape attempts and kept a museum of them. The inmates managed to build an airplane and launching catapult in a hidden attic.
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A deep cold empty meat locker of slaughter house #5 was Vonnegut's safe shelter during the bombing and burning of Dresden.