New to Soldbuch/Wehrpass - Need advice

[HJ12]

I've been collecting Waffen SS cloth items for years now and I'm looking to brach out. I would like to purchase either a Waffen SS Soldbuch or Wehrpass but I know very little on the subject. I don't want to get burned buying a junk item. The only stipulation I've decided on is it must be from the Waffen SS and I want one with a picture of the owner wearing his SS uniform (no police uniforms or civilan clothes).

-Are there any "must have" books on the subject I should have to educate myself before I make a purchase.

-What tips advice would you give someone like me, any major red flags I should be aware of.

-Are there any dealers that you would recommend or any that I should avoid.

Thanks for any help/advice you can give me.

Dave

[bsmith56]

If I were you, I would start off by buying a cheaper ($100 or less) Heer soldbuch first and become familiar with a soldbuch and everything in them. The pages in an SS one are almost identical and it should have the same type of entries.

SS soldbuchs are relatively rare and will probably run you close to $500 for a fairly basic one with a nice uniform picture. Also the SS soldbuch market is a huge minefield... Tons and tons of fake ones or ones with added entries are out there right now, and some of them look pretty quality.

Also, most wehrpasses will not have a uniform photo, unless it is a replacement issue... So in that case, the soldbuch is probably the way for you to go.

I wouldn't say there are any must have books, there are a few nice ones like this : http://www.amazon.com/German-Third-R...761521&sr=8-13

But honestly, the best 'book' is a cheaper Heer soldbuch, a basic understanding of German, and browse this section of WAF to understand whats in them.

[rickenbacker]

Hi there, just remember that not all SS Soldbuchs will have a uniform phot in them ,especially if they were killed in action prior to 1944,also a lot had them removed during their time as p o w s Out of the 4 in my collection, two have photos and two dont, 3 out of the 4 were p o w s ,and one was killed in action.

Sometimes with Wehrpass you might be lucky enough to recieve a uniform photo with it eg a studio photo etc cheers Rick

[HJ12]

Thanks for the helpful advice guys. I'm going to keep reading the forums watching the E-stand and hopefully the right piece will present itself.

Dave