After more than two years of hard work by WWII enthusiasts Sam McCallum and Tim Green, in conjunction with J Hudson and Co. of Birmingham England, the Acme No. 470 clicker, known to the men of the wartime U.S. 101st airborne division as the 'cricket' is being made again.

Originally designed and produced as a handy sized time keeping device for band and orchestra leaders in the 1920's the bulk of the production was exported to the United States. It is possible that one or two examples of the clicker came back to England with visiting U.S. Army bands and was somehow 'discovered' by a member of the 101st airborne division as an excellent signalling device for the hours of darkness.

An order was placed with J Hudson and Co. and the factory increased production to meet the large order, making up the quantity with existing stock. Examples exist in brass, nickel plated brass and even tin which was employed when stocks of brass sheet became very low.

The crickets were used during the night of June 5th / 6th 1944 by the young men of the 101st with the intention that they should be discarded thereafter. Many of the men retained their 'crickets' long after the war and they have since become iconic symbols of the U.S. airborne brotherhood and indeed D-Day itself. Crickets have appeared in numerous well-known feature films (The Longest Day ®), television series (Band of Brothers ®) and documentaries and are recognised the world over.

To minimise the chance of the new clickers being passed off as originals the manufacturers have stamped an additional discreet pressing into the body of the clicker which can only be seen by looking inside the cavity. This measure does not detract in any way from the totally original appearance of the clicker which looks entirely authentic externally. These genuine J Hudson and Co clickers are the best available and are the must have for the true airborne aficionado or re-enactor.