Thoughts on this KC

[leib grenadier]

I also find it a bit of a stretch that Stephen Wolfe would have said this is an original St&L Knight's Cross.

Bob Hritz

Bob:

You are most welcome to call Steve and ask him. I am NOT a liar sir!

Bruce Hermann

[leib grenadier]

Who is the seller? I dare to say, this is an attempt to fraude.

I strongly doubt Wolfe has given his OK to this bad cross!

Give us the name of the seller, please!

I would choose my words very carefully Ludwig.
Bruce Hermann

[leib grenadier]

Knight's Crosses are not something regularly offered on my site, as I honestly know very little about them. I believe that I have only offered two in the past eight years. This is why this one was taken to Stephen Wolfe for his opinion, and authentication. Use some logic here gentlemen, if I was trying to pull something unethical, would I use Stephen Wolfe's name of all people? He could, and would sue me for liable, besides he is a friend of mine.
Thank-you,
Bruce B. Hermann
Grenadier Military Antiques

[donlon]

I do not say that you are dishonest, or your RK is a reproduction/fake because I don't have the skills to say so.

But if you where convinced that your RK was an 100% genuine wartime RK, why did you only ask 5000$, it's aprox. half the price other dealers ask for a RK ??

[Bob Hritz]

Hello Bruce,

Your reputation for integrity is not in question. I just think you and Stephen may have been off the mark on this cross.

I appologize if I have insulted you without such intent.

Bob Hritz

[Don D.]

Isn't Stephen a member here?

[all1knew]

This is very strange indeed! This Knight's Cross was personally examined by Stephen Wolfe, before my very eyes. He spent 30 minutes examining it, So who is one supposed to believe? I have always been under the impression the Mr. Wolfe was a leading expert in Knight's Crosses? I welcome any and all comments, as I am very confused by this. If anyone doubts my story, they are welcome to contact Mr. Wolfe directly @ 562.596.6610. In the meantime the cross will be pulled from the site.
Thank-you,
Bruce B. Hermann
Grenadier Military Antiques

Did he recommend the low-asking price after he examined it as well?

William Kramer

[leib grenadier]

Hello Bruce,

Your reputation for integrity is not in question. I just think you and Stephen may have been off the mark on this cross.

I appologize if I have insulted you without such intent.

Bob Hritz

Thank-you Bob,
You are a gentleman, and I appreciate your words.
Thanks again,
Bruce

[leib grenadier]

The cross was the property of one of my customers who asked me to sell it for him. He set the price. Since it was missing the suspension ring and ribbon, it seemed rational to list it at a "reasonable" price. Once I had it examined by Mr. Wolfe, I felt confident to list it. As I said, Knight's Crosses are not my usual stock and trade.
Thanks again,
Bruce

[nutmeg]

Did he recommend the low-asking price after he examined it as well?

William Kramer

Good grief , most the complaining around here is about high dealer prices, now it's about ones that are too low!

[all1knew]

Good grief , most the complaining around here is about high dealer prices, now it's about ones that are too low!

Too low can be a bad sign. I'm not saying one way or the other, but these dealers' aren't idiots.....

William Kramer

[streptile]

I myself own a repro RK with this same core. It's been around a while. The frame is also still used on "fake" 1957 RKs that appear regularly on eBay.

[John Pic]

I havent seen one for under $8000 even in bad condition.

[Mike Coleman]

An opinion

I think Bruce is being honest and open with everyone here and is simply reporting what he was told by someone he trusts. I think there are two lessons to take away from this: first, nobody is right all the time and second, money may buy the best but it does not always buy comprehensive knowledge. That takes study. There are people on this forum that have small collections and others that have large collections and both can tell you if an item is good or not. What they have in common is intense study of the subject matter. That is the great thing about this web site-it brings those people together in one place. Perhaps Bruce should have come here first instead of second in 20/20 hindsight.

Perhaps it is because I am reading the printed word devoid of any emotional feedback from some of the authors but it seems that some of the comments come across as harsher than I hope they were intended - we should all try to remember that when we leave comments here. I don't feel it is right to throw stones at Bruce, Steve Wolfe or criticize someone's choice of pricing. An opinion was asked, opinions were given and appropriate actions were taken based on that. If Bruce chooses to pass this information on to Steve Wolfe in, I am sure, a gentlemanly manner then that is between Bruce and Steve. That should really be the end of it.

Mike

[ben bijker]

I would choose my words very carefully Ludwig.
Bruce Hermann

Bruce,

this was fake kc number.... presented as the real deal, complete with a nice story
Seller wasn't mentioned at first.

That is probably the main reason the comments are a bit harsh.
in the (recent) past we have see a number of questionable rk's pass by on dealers sites as well, sometimes with a nice story to.
If you do a search on 'fake kc" you will find a number of threads, and you will see what I mean.

I to find it hard to believe that mr. Wolfe made such a mistake, but anything is possible.
So please don't take it personal.

Best regards,
Ben