Bundeswher low boots

[CIANO]

Hi,


I have this pair of Bundeswher combat low boots that actually ar selling at the E-Stand:
http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...d.php?t=355264

So if you are interested please send me pm.
I can accept offers.

cheers

[Guardian 5]

Hob-nails on early BW boots?

Gents - Attached find a picture of my BW low quarter boots.

They do appear to be very similar to those offered by CIANO but are lacking hob-nails.

Is it conceivable that the BW issued hob-nail boots in the early days when money was very tight and the need to conserve resources was paramount? I don't have any evidence to support this, but I do suppose it's in the realm of possibility.

Another possibility is that a re-enactor modified CIANO's boots to make them resemble late war Wehrmacht boots.

What say you?

TJ

[Gordon Craig]

Hi,


I have this pair of Bundeswher combat low boots that actually ar selling at the E-Stand:
http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...d.php?t=355264

So if you are interested please send me pm.
I can accept offers.

cheers

If they are listed on the stand that is fine but please do not advertise your sales in a regular forum.

Regards,

Gordon

[CIANO]

If they are listed on the stand that is fine but please do not advertise your sales in a regular forum.

Regards,

Gordon

Hi,

Sorry Gordon.
It will not happen again.

Back to the boots discussion, and those belong to TJ, are they marked?

I have no idea about these BW Combat boots...are they rare nowadays?

cheers

Luis

[Gordon Craig]

Gentlemen,

Boots are something that I have never taken the time to study. This looks like a good time to do so.
Luis,
I would appreciate it if you would tell us exactly what is stamped into the side of the tops of the one boot. I can not read what is there from your picture. The tops of your boots look like they are very roughly finished. TJ, would you please show us a photo of how the tops of your boots look and let us know about markings. Anyone else have any info they can share on BW boots or shoes and their markings?

Regards,

Gordon

[CIANO]

Hi,

Gordon, you are right, now we can try to study this footwear, as I have no idea about its features.

The side markings of my boots are:

27,5 1:61 12 20778

Taking in consideration the WW2 German Low boots, we can guess that:

27,5-SIZE
61-Year of Production

for the rest I don't know...

cheers

Luis

[Guardian 5]

Gents - The markings, if there were any, are long gone from the inside of my boots.

On the sole, there is a trademark from the firm "Continental" which shows a rearing horse encircled by the company name. Other than that, "Nr 7" is also stamped into the sole.

Not much else to add I'm afraid - anything in the reference books Gordon?

Thanks - TJ

[Gordon Craig]

CIANO,

The only reference I have for boots is in Walter Kunstwadl,s book "Von der Affenjacke zum Tropentarnanzug" and he covers them fairly well but not the markings. There are no boots similar to yours in his book. They all have a composit man made material for the sole with metal cleats on the toe. That does not mean that the BW didn't use leather sole boots in their early days though. No book is perfect.

TJ,
Kunstwadl pictures a pair of boots very similar to your which he calls "Bordschuh" but he doesn't show the sole. I have to do some translating of this page and compare the captions associated with two pairs of footwear that he calls "Bordshuh". The numbers on the pictures do not appear, at least at first glance, to relate to the numbered captions.

Of all of the pieces of militaria I have ever studied from any country footwear is the most difficult to get a grip on. It is either well marked, but inconclusively, as in CIANO's case or the marks have ben worn off as in TJs case. Anyway, I'll keep at it and report back if and when I have something useful to report.

Regards,

Gordon

[SprogCollector]

Ciano's boots bear a very strong resemblance to WW2-era Bergschuhe. Up through the 1960s, most alpine boots (Swiss, Austrian, etc) maintained leather soles with hobnails and cleats. Perhaps these are unique to Gebirgstruppen as opposed to a low boot on issue to the rest of the Army?

[Gordon Craig]

Sprogcolletor,

The WWII Gebirgsjaeger boots were quite distinctive and had much different metal bits and pieces on the soles than just nob nails.. Sorry that I can not post pictures of mine. They are another one of those things that are in storage. I have a picture of the soles of the WWII Gebirgsjaeger boot soles in one of my reference books and I'll post the picture tomorrow. Too dark to take pictures tonight.
The same thing goes for the BW Gebirgsjaeger boots. I'll post them tomorrow as well.

Regards,

Gordon

[Gordon Craig]

Gentlemen,

Here is a picture from my reference books of Gebirgsjaeger bbots worn during WWII. They are very similar to the boots that I own with the exception that there is a variation of the hob nails in the centre of the sole. The cleats around the outside of the sole are identical. If you look closely you will see a groove around the heel of the boot for the spring harness of the skies. These boots may also be found without this groove. Pictures of the Wehrmacht boots are from "German Army Uniforms and Insignia 1933-1945" by Brian L. Davis.

[Gordon Craig]

A picture of the standard type of llow boot worn by the Wehrmacht in WWII. I say"standard type" because the quality of the boots deteriorated rapidly during the war and they wore the boots from any and every army stocks they could get them from.
The purpose of posting the Wehrmacht boots befor the BW boots is for comparison purposes. Because the German armed forces wore something during the WWII period it does not necessarily follow that they wore the same thing in the BW.

[Gordon Craig]

CIANO,

After carefully studying your boots and boots worn in the BW I feel that your boots were not worn by the BW. The boots and the markings could be from any European army. The period between 1945 and the formation of the BW in 1955 could have seen almost anything in wear in Germany. Your boots could have been a German isue item but probably not in the BW.
Now on to the photos of the BW boots. All BW photos are from Kunswadl's book. First, the Gebirgsjaeger boots.

[Gordon Craig]

Some examples of issue footwear in the BW.

Regards,

Gordon

[Asbjoern]

CIANO,

I feel that your boots were not worn by the BW. The boots and the markings could be from any European army.

...and also made for civil market. Boots of this type - especially nailed - where made and worn as workers boots throughout the 50ies... .

Jens