WW1 Imperial Combat Infantry Tunic

[MGN]

Hello everyone,
This is my first time posting, and hope to continue; I am not really familiar with most of you guys. I have been intersted in mostly WW2 German items for the good part of my collecting years, until yesterday . I purchased a while back a WW1 German camo helmet and wanted to find a nice combat infantry tunic to go with it. So here is my question:

1.What kind of price range am I looking at for a really nice, unmessed with feldgrau combat tunic, infantry shoulder boards completly original?

2. Rare or not so hard to find? They are rarer then dress/parade unifroms right?


Thanks,
Michael

[PaulChep]

New

I am rather new to collecting Imperial German Uniforms. I have found that the feldgrey tunics are much more expensive then the pre-wwi tunics. I also find that wwi tunics are more reproduced and messed with. For these reasons I collect the pre-wwi uniforms. The attached link will be of great aid with uniforms. Good luck and welcome to the forums.

http://www.kaisersbunker.com/gtp/

[MGN]

Hey Paul,
Thanks for the reply, I will be looking at one this weekend so I dont have any idea but if the price is good then I guess I will purchase it, Does $1000 sound right?

Michael

[Dave Mosher]

Michael

There are a lot of criteria to determine the value of a feldgrau tunic; officer vs OR, M-1907/10 waffenrock vs bluse, unit or service branch and condition (including "modified" at a later date). IMO, $1000 is about half the starting cost of most tunics being sold out there now. I think you need to get some more info on this tunic before you spend that kind of cabbage.

Regards

Dave

[PaulChep]

agreed

I agree with Dave. Get some pics of the tunic and post them on the forum.

[MGN]

To Dave and Paul,
I should have photos by next Tuesday,
I have my fingers crossed

Thanks,
Michael

[MGN]

Here are a few photos of the helmet I purchased about 7 months ago, Liner is original to the helmet, early style reddish leather. two of the pillows are gone the other is there. There is what appears to be sap or a candy like substance on the back of the helmet, I always though this happened when the soldier leaned against a tree, Anyway here they are:

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Please ignore the white ring that shows up, its from my camera:

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[Paul B]

Hi Michael

Good luck in your search for a WWI German infantry tunic. I collect WWI German uniforms, headgear and equipment myself, and I would make these observations:

Original, untampered with field grey tunics are now very rare. Although infantry models were the most numerous, they are also the most desirable to modern collectors.

Many tunics were "civillianised" post-war by having belt ramps and shoulder straps removed. Some of these tunics have been "restored" to their WWI configuration by less than honest dealers, so beware.

Equally, original WWI tunics saw very hard service, including the reissue of tunics worn by casualties, so many were heavily repaired during the WWI period. Some earlier tunics were modified to fit in with later patterns before being reissued, therefore unmessed with tunics command a high price.

It's much more desirable to have an issue tunic than a private purchase piece. A central rear seam, high collar, absence of belt ramp buttons and no field-dressing pocket are all indicative of a private purchase other ranks' tunic.

This is how I would rank the basic styles of WWI infantry tunic in terms of rariry and price. The easiest to find is first, and I've left the prices in £ as this is the currency I'm most familiar with. Based on the tunic being complete, in fairy good condition and unmessed with:

M1915 Bluse -£1100 upwards.

Vereinfachte (Simplified M1910) tunic -£1500 upwards.

M1907/10 tunic in it's original configuration -£1900 upwards.

Basically, very hard to find and very big money!

I look forward to seeing the photos of your prospective purchase. Guys like Dave and Tony have a vast sum of knowledge when it comes to WWI tunics, so I'm sure you'll get some quality responses when you post them.

Hope this has been of some interest, all the best

Paul.

[MGN]

Hello everyone,
Well it finally arrived! Its a Model 1915 Mint Unissued Tunic! I have taken a few photos. Any opinions on this would be apprecaited. I just need one and this is the one to keep...

The photos:

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