Reichsbahn Eagle

[Miltaria_Dealer]

Hi gentlemen

could you please give your opinions about this eagle?

let me thank you all in advance for help, cheers Dan

[Miltaria_Dealer]

..

[Miltaria_Dealer]

-.

[Berghof]

It's good. Just a bit of surface corrosion.

[cobra-2001]

eagle

I have my doubts because the eagle look like it still has sand in the recess areas of it or it is just ruff never finished. And the back is the same and the maker marks look weak . I could be wrong .Cliff

[Berghof]

I think it's good Cliff. It has surface corrosion, not a rough sand casting. I've had a few that were corroded just like this one (with machined studs). They photographed exactly the same as this one...looking like it was a rough casting. It looks like someone tried to clean the front up.

In my experience, ones stored in damp basements (or on damp concrete) for years hammers these things just like this. It's not worth as much as a mint one, but it's my opinion it's legit. I know some will jump in and hammer it (usually people that never even owned one)...because they don't like the unmachined studs, but I wouldn't hesitate in buying it.


.

[Berghof]

Here's an example of a good corroded eagle. It's very common to find them in this condition...I've seen a lot of them like this (machined/non machined studs). Some people oil these to preserve them, darkening the corrosion. Others try to sand them to remove the corrosion and polish them. When they do that, the fine aluminum debris sticks into the corners/corrosion pockets making it look like the example that the original poster posted. Photography makes these dark spots look like deep crevasses when in reality they are not. I can totally tell someone tried to clean this one up.

The below photos of this look like it's an awful cast, but it's not. The corrosion is very fine. Photos are tough, but if you handled/photographed enough of them, you know exactly what to look for.

[bodes]

I too believe it to be a good Reichsbahn eagle....Bodes

[mrec27777]

bird in question looks atificially aged ...too many these fakes flying around ...would not buy unless 100% money back ,so one could see in person ....question .does it have unfinished stud on back behind swas??? can"t tell by blocked-out pic .... EC

[no1canuck]

An original eagle IMO

Steve

[bodes]

bird in question looks atificially aged ...too many these fakes flying around ...would not buy unless 100% money back ,so one could see in person ....question .does it have unfinished stud on back behind swas??? can"t tell by blocked-out pic .... EC

The blocked out sections in the photos appear to be for covering up the swastika......Backside included....Bodes

[Berghof]

This is not artificially aged (see my earlier comment)....the fakes flying around don't have the details this example has. I can guarantee the crud in the font on the back is just that...crud and corrosion. Pictures can mislead.

Here's one thing you can look at... This is only one thing out of many I look for with finished or unfinished stud examples. Some eyes may gloss over reading this but it is what it is.

If you look at the top of the unfinished studs, you will see grind/sand marks going from top to bottom. All of the lugs will have those subtle grooves, part of the finishing process prior to being machined. The examples with the finished studs still have those sand/grind marks going from top to bottom on the end of the studs. When they machined the studs, the machining takes place only on the sides of the studs, maintaining the sand/grind marks. They don’t touch the end of the stud.

You can use a profilometer to measure the deepness of the grooves on the surface grind marks showing they are identical depth on the authentic unmachined and machined examples. Reproductions don't even come close. Anyone can sand the base of a stud, but will you come close to an original "Ra" value (surface roughness measured to 4 micro-in)? No. Most reproductions don't even have the unfinished stud in this shape. The reproductions that do, are pathetic. The unfinished cones have the identical footprint as the finished stud bases. I hope you can grasp what I’m saying. I’ll try to illustrate in a picture.

I'm not worried about some "forger" learning about this. If they invest in the equipment I have access to, it would not be financially viable for them. I have access to equipment (profilometers, metallurgical microscopes) to analyze surfaces and graining structures in metal. A 1930's aluminum graining structure is going to be much different than a modern day aluminum graining structure.

I'm a fact oriented hobbiest with an engineering/metallurgy background that hates to cast doubt on a piece that I know is authentic. In general, some say these unfinished studded versions are not authentic. I just pointed out 1 fact to look for using a profilometer to measure peaks and valleys on the end of the stud measuring at a microscopic level. No recast will produce the "Ra" value of an authentic piece...it just aint happening.

To the folks that think the unmachined studded versions are fake, how the hell could a 2bit forger reverse engineer a machined studded version and recreate the perfect pre-machined dimensional cone with the exact Ra value surface on the end?? Debunked.

There is another attribute on the end of the stud (machined or unmachined) to look for that I won't disclose. And honestly, you don't even have to go through the aforementioned exercise if you've seen enough of these. It is minute details, like I've mentioned, that my eyes go to whenever I look at anything WW2....you have to look at the sum of the parts.


'

[mrec27777]

would like to hear from JR on this bird ....EC

[JR.]

Measure the eagle from wing tip to wing tip, and it will in 5 seconds tell if this LOK 600 is period or not. That removes and guess work about the appearance of what the photos show, or doesn't show.

[JR.]

Usually all of the "un cut" LOK 600's it has been assumed came straight out of the foundry, and have that new likeness associated with an eagle that was not used or exposed to the elements. So it is kind of surprising to see this much oxidation on an un cut example.