Lumsden Books

[Chris Boonzaier]

My opinion on Robin Lumsden, as we have discussed him and his books in the past, and now he is here among us.....

I think Lumsden wrote his books pre internet... ie. when you actually had to go out and find the info... some of it was good, some bad.

BUUUT he did make the effort to write some books and tell what he had learned. When he made errors, they were more on the conservative side, and I prefer a book that shoots down an original than one that praises fakes.

Sure... for the guy who has been collecting for years there is nothing new. There are better books on badges.... there are better books on uniforms.... there are better books on helmets.... but I still maintain that as a A.B.C. of collecting.... "see spot run" "I am going to learn to walk before I try to run" "covering all bases for the beginner" that Lumsdens books are a good start for the young/Starting out collector. (Saved me USD600 way back when.... back in the days where there was no internet and the only thing to help me at a show vis a vis a SS cufftitle was his book in my back pocket).

So....now Robin is online...it opens a whole new world to him.... I am sure he to will learn some new tricks...as have many collectors once they have arrived online.

Sure, everyone online is an expert...they all talk like it... but online collecting is easy, just type in the search engine on the forum and whammo instant answer to everything. many well respected collectors have found fakes in their collections since they came online... I have seen complete collections meltdown once the folks came online.


Robin is approaching the net with the enthusiasm that everyone has once they get webbed, and does not have the benifit of having participated in the threads over the last 4-5 years. its no big deal ALL non online collectors have some catching up to do.

All Militaria books have fakes and errors... So do Robins, but unlike some of the other Books out there, I am unaware that Robin published his books to sell fakes.

10 years ago many, many young collectors learned about souval hooks from Robin... many guys in the middle of nowhere at a show were able to say "sorry, this tunic is WEST-German"... sure, we are all experts now, we are in the internet age... but I am sure some of the older collectors will remember how hard it was to find info on some stuff 15 years ago....

So, its been done before... sound off on the subject...

I think Robins Books were /are a good start for the young collector who wants to touch a bit of everything, sure you can say that the fakes in their are SOOOOOO obvious... but then look at some of the crap a lot of folks post here saying "is this original...is it!! Is it ???"

Sure, if you want to go out and buy a RK, there are much better reference books, sure, Mike Beavers books are gonna help you more with SS cammo....

But, if you are starting out, and going to a show... and know very little, well, how many guys here saved a good few bucks thanks to Robin....

Sure some of the stuff he got wrong... the metal on the pins of spanish wound badges... they are magnetic AND brass, but it erred on the conservative side so lost me no money.... how many folks lost money because other books mentioned 200 panzer assault badges or round pilots badges????

Anyway, fire away, lets have opinions (The "I have been collecting for 45 years and Leraned NOTHING from the books!" is an obvious non starter)

[Bill D.]

"Knowledge is power".

It's that simple. And the more knowledge that you have, the more powerful you are in your efforts to build a fine collection of anythng.

I agree with the sentiments expressed by Chris. Robin's books, and particularly his "Detecting the Fakes", were and remain excellent starting points for a new collector. The "Detecting" book also reflects an admirable decision to provide information on the minefield of collecting. Aside from the volume by Cyrus Lee in the "Soldat" series on fakes, I don't think that there is any other book devoted solely to aiding the collector in this regard.

While many books have been published on militaria, and especially german militaria, in the last few years, a large percentage of them seem to be something along the lines of "coffee table books".The have magnificent color photographs, and display numerous rarities, but aside from the captions to the photographs, there is little substantive information provided.

It's nice to get books on your field of interest that you can actually read, as opposed to look at.

[Mike C]

Hello,

Heres an interesting question - how many members own books authored by Robin Lumsden? I have too - and very helpful they have been!

I second the opinions presented by Chris - well done, Mr Lumsden.

Mike

[Frank Scheepers]

Hello,

Heres an interesting question - how many members own books authored by Robin Lumsden? I have too - and very helpful they have been!

I second the opinions presented by Chris - well done, Mr Lumsden.

Mike

Actually my first book I bought about medals was written by him.

Frank Scheepers

[Dietrich Maerz]

I have 3 or 4 and I still remember the "Detecting the Fakes" as one that really helped me in those "pre-Internet" days, as Chris says so correctly. Robin made an effort to help us all and that is very much appreciated.

I for one have to give him a big "Thank You" and I welcome him as an "old friend" because of his books!

Dietrich

[Robin Lumsden]

Chris.


THANKS!

You've said what I've wanted to say since I came on here, but was too modest to do so

I am a collector/enthusiast, not a dealer, so have no vested interest in peddling duff information or using books as 'sales showcases' like some do. Sure, I made mistakes, particularly in the earlier books, but we all learn from our mistakes.

The bottom line is, these books were done with the best of intentions, in good faith, to assist fellow collectors as best I could at the time.

I have to say that the SS books are best though

Cheers,

Robin.

[SaraM]

Well, I haven't been doing this long and Detecting the Fakes was one of my first purchases. It's helped me out; I spotted my very first fake as a direct result so thank you Mr.Lumsden!

There is still very relevant information contained in this book which is definitely useful to a new collector. It would be fantastic to see an updated version but any book on fakes will be outdated nearly as soon as it is written. So my hat goes off to any collector who shares their knowledge in book form with good intentions.

Best wishes,

Sara

[ROBB]

Strangely I too have one or two of his books ,but the best thing about having Mr Lumsden on the forum is reading all the arguments (sorry discussions)its just like Prime ministers question time,Rob

[Mike C]

I have "A Collectors Guide to: The Waffen SS" and "SS Regalia". The PALM smock shown on the lower left cover of "SS Regalia" is now in my modest collection - and the fact that it is referenced in that book is very nice indeed!

Mike

[Mike C]

Oops - repeated message!

[Paul B]

When I first became interested in German militaria, the first books I got were by Robin Lumsden and Brian L. Davis. Yeah, there's some errors....yeah, they've maybe dated a bit....yeah, the production quality maybe isn't what we've all got used to.....but, if it wasn't for these guys, and the other collector/authors who pioneered reference books to our hobby and attempted to bring some logic and structure to it, then we wouldn't now enjoy the vast ammount of printed and online information we can all currently access.

Good to have you on-side Robin, hope all this nostalgia doesn't make you feel old...

Cheers

Paul.

[McCulloh]

I also agree with Chris' elegant posting above. Suffice it to say-Robin's book, had I owned it 10 years ago, would have saved me a tidy sum on a reworked M43 cap. Who knew about the interior stamps? Not me-until that book.

With this forum (and a few others over the years) we've come a long way in the hobby.

[David S]

I have the following by Mr. Lumsden

Detecting the Fakes
Third Reich Militaria (2 copies)
The Black Corps (2 copies)

These sit on my shelves proudly with the other reference books.

[Dave Suter]

Go back far enough and all of the reference books available to Third Reich collectors had (yes, it is true ) LINE DRAWINGS of stuff. No pictures at all.

Look how far we have come. Now there are some great reference books out there - all of which, probably, have errors in them. Robin's books may be a bit dated now (thanks to the advances made by the fakers), but at the time they were on target. I have 'em and used 'em - and like so many other collectors, he saved my butt a couple times.

Good on ya Robin, and welcome aboard.

[J.von Canon]

we owe you...

Chris.


THANKS!

You've said what I've wanted to say since I came on here, but was too modest to do so

I am a collector/enthusiast, not a dealer, so have no vested interest in peddling duff information or using books as 'sales showcases' like some do. Sure, I made mistakes, particularly in the earlier books, but we all learn from our mistakes.

The bottom line is, these books were done with the best of intentions, in good faith, to assist fellow collectors as best I could at the time.

I have to say that the SS books are best though


Cheers,

Robin.

Mr.Lumsden;
Thank you for making the effort to enlighten.As I mentioned on another thread-all the early books(including errors)have culminated in better information today,as I'm sure books written in 20 more years will progress accordingly.
As an "old collector"I can assure that references were very,very scarce twenty or thirty years ago.
Anyone who publishes knows the inherit pitfalls that any author assumes.Problem is that many "experts"have the notion that they know it all and assume an almost comical arrogance.I'm a collector of almost 40 years and only consider myself a "student"of the subject.
All collectors owe you and others who initially made published references available("pioneers", I call them)a debt of gratitude.
J.v.Canon p.s.-I bought your book many years ago...