cap cord of mdi

[gmg]

i have a question in vopo,trapo etc....fire....the em have a plastic cord o a colored cord ??
in fire the cord is blue o black or both?

[iannima]

It is a twisted coloured chord. Green for Volkspolizei, Light Blue for Transportpolizei, Grey for Justiz. I don't know about Feuerwehr, logic would demand it being red.

[Bone Collector]

I don't know about Feuerwehr, logic would demand it being red.

Purple, not red. This has bothered me as well, it doesn't make sense.

But that is just the way it is, the cord is black and nothing else.

/Mikael

[Gordon Craig]

Mikael,

Can you post pictures of the Feurewehr professional fire service to illustrate the "purple" coloured cord you are talking about? According to Uniformarten Und ihre Trageweise for polizie the Profesional Feuerwehr cord is a slightly lighter blue than that of the one used on the TRAPO cap or possibly the sdame colour as inks use in printing might not reproduce exactly the same shades of blue from two different photos. Since the two photo in the book are on different pages. It isn't easy to compare them.

gmg,

As to the plastic cap cord in use by ploizie organizations. I have seen only one photo of a cap with this type of cap cord and I have never seen a real cap with this type of cord. If this plastic cap cord was ever used with the polizie caps, and I doubt it, it would have to have been used a long time ago and I do not have any uniform regulations for the early DDR times.

Regards,

Gordon

[Gordon Craig]

gmg,

Here are some scans of pictures from my collection. The first one is of a uniform and cap listed as being for a Volunteer Feurewehr. I do not recognize either the shoulderboards or the cap. It is possibly a very early uniform that I have no reference for.

[Gordon Craig]

This second image is from a book in my library and was produced in the mid 90's. The author does not differentiate between Volunteer Feurewehr and Professional Feurewehr. I have my doubts about this cap and a few other caps in the book.

Regards,

Gordon

[SCHUPO]

gmg,

The flat plastic chinstrap was used on low rank police caps in earlier regulations. They were worn by ranks of VP-Anw******228;rter bis VP-Wachtmeister and the twisted green cords were worn by VP-Oberwachtmeister bis VP-Meister in the 1950s. The same for Feuerwehr and Grenzpolizei during this time period. The twisted cap cords for EM/NCO Feuerwehr peaked caps are black per early and late regulations. No malino colored cap cords authorized in DDR FW or FFW, although I have seen red ones at militaria shows. I suspect they are West German volunteer FW cap cords.

[Matthew S.]

Can someone answer a question. Why are the cords on some Volkspolizei caps green while other cords are silver like on the Army/Air Force caps?

[torstenbel]

gmg,

Here are some scans of pictures from my collection. The first one is of a uniform and cap listed as being for a Volunteer Feurewehr. I do not recognize either the shoulderboards or the cap. It is possibly a very early uniform that I have no reference for.

is it possible that this is a West German Feuerwehr uniform and cap? Cheers, Torsten.

[gmg]

in zoller book the FW or FFW have black cord but i see also many fw that have blu cord as reported by gordon so in DDR fw have 2 cord?

gmg,

The flat plastic chinstrap was used on low rank police caps in earlier regulations. They were worn by ranks of VP-Anwärter bis VP-Wachtmeister and the twisted green cords were worn by VP-Oberwachtmeister bis VP-Meister in the 1950s. The same for Feuerwehr and Grenzpolizei during this time period. The twisted cap cords for EM/NCO Feuerwehr peaked caps are black per early and late regulations. No malino colored cap cords authorized in DDR FW or FFW, although I have seen red ones at militaria shows. I suspect they are West German volunteer FW cap cords.

[Gordon Craig]

Torsten,

I think you probably correct and that the picture I posted is of a West German Feurewehr uniform. The shoulderstraps certainly look West German now that I tke a closer look at them.

SCHUPO,

Sorry, but I must disagree with your statement that Professional Feurewehr cords were black woven cloth. I've scaned a page from the reference I quoted above and there is no doubt to me that the regulations, at least for this time period, specify a blue cap cord for enlisted men. Unfortunately my regs are not dated but I suspect they are from the 80s.
Thanks very much for clarifying the cap cords in the 50's. I rather suspected that what you said was the case. Be nice to see a hat with the plastic style cap cords that we had some provenance on and could date. I am sure they are few and far between.

[Garulfo]

Volkspolizei : green
Transportpolizei : blue
Feuerwehr : black (volunteer and professional)
Staffvolzug : grey

Officers ranks : silver

[Bone Collector]

Mikael,

Can you post pictures of the Feurewehr professional fire service to illustrate the "purple" coloured cord you are talking about? According to Uniformarten Und ihre Trageweise for polizie the Profesional Feuerwehr cord is a slightly lighter blue than that of the one used on the TRAPO cap or possibly the sdame colour as inks use in printing might not reproduce exactly the same shades of blue from two different photos. Since the two photo in the book are on different pages. It isn't easy to compare them.

No, what I meant was that it should be purple (as the piping is). The cord is black, nothing else. I have never seen a slightly lighter blue cord. All FW visors I have handled have black cords. On the other hand, all of those caps have been Freiwillige Feuerwehr, not the professional.

/Mikael

[Bone Collector]

Can someone answer a question. Why are the cords on some Volkspolizei caps green while other cords are silver like on the Army/Air Force caps?

Officers have silver cords.

/mikael

[gmg]

i scan "Kopfbedeckungen der DDR 1945-1990 W.Zoller" page about fire
black cord .... i can't understand...there is an original reference of DDR period??

gordon could you send me the name of your book?

Torsten,

I think you probably correct and that the picture I posted is of a West German Feurewehr uniform. The shoulderstraps certainly look West German now that I tke a closer look at them.

SCHUPO,

Sorry, but I must disagree with your statement that Professional Feurewehr cords were black woven cloth. I've scaned a page from the reference I quoted above and there is no doubt to me that the regulations, at least for this time period, specify a blue cap cord for enlisted men. Unfortunately my regs are not dated but I suspect they are from the 80s.
Thanks very much for clarifying the cap cords in the 50's. I rather suspected that what you said was the case. Be nice to see a hat with the plastic style cap cords that we had some provenance on and could date. I am sure they are few and far between.