DAK Field Made Boards?

[John Hodgin]

Thanks for the reply and further information Diane.

Another question I would ask would be what waffenfarbe you and others have encountered on Heer tropical straps? I am not a Heer collector, but this color on a tropical strap strikes me as very unusual. I can tell you that Luftwaffe tropical straps were produced in a very limited range of waffenfarben.

Regards,
John

[Diane]

Army Tropical issue shoulder straps



Hi John,

I would imagine that Army tropical shoulder straps would have been manufactured right up until the end of the war. I once had a 1945 dated Army four pocket tropical tunic with M - 45 style (no toungue - but straps on the reverse) tropical shoulder straps piped in Panzer-Gren green.

The Army used the Tropical style tunics in the Crimea, Ukraine, Greece, Italy, Southern France and the Balkans. I would imagine that Army Tropical issue straps were made in all waffenfarbe.

I have personnaly seen; lime-green, grass-green, lemon-yellow, dark-yellow, pink, red, white, light-blue, dark-blue, crimson, copper-brown & black. I have never encountered a pair in Bordo or light brown but they must also exist.

The problem with shoulder straps, unless they have a complicated embroidered cipher, is that they can be faked easily enough. That is why these are a tough call.

All the materials appear correct and the workmanship is pretty good. Rememeber, after 1942 a lot of work was being done piecemeal at home by Mom & Oma.

Diane



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[Willi Z.]

I do not like these straps either, and for various reasons.

To try to justify them as field-made straps, yet they do not appear to have been ever worn on a uniform, is just one of my concerns.

They do not exhibit features consistent with either early or late war Heer tropical straps. Yes, we can "what if" this to death.

[90th Light]

Gentlemen, there are some good responses to this one. I would not even try to say one way or the other about the straps which started this thread because I can not handle them. These are a mine-field and every thing looks the same over a computer image, the good, the bad and the ugly. Also collectors more experienced than my-self have given an opinion which I have noted and respect.

My point has been, there is one avenue which is not being given sufficient consideration and that is Italian/ Arab manufacture and mass production verses tailoring. Why do I raise this point ?

A very good friend and fellow collector specialises in New Zealand uniforms made on overseas service by New Zealand personal. His collection covers both WW1 and WW2. These items were manufactured in Europe, the middle east and the far east. He has an amazing array of material. When compared with the standard issue items, some is very close, others are so different you wonder how they got away with it. In his WW2 collection he has items made both in Africa and Italy usually by tailors commisioned for the task. The soldiers needed some piece of clothing so they went and found some one who could make it and they got it made.
In several cases it was taking advantage of having something made by a top quality tailor at an affordable price, other cases it was simple necessity.

Now if the New Zealand Army was doing this in the period 1940 to 1945 and it only numbered an over sized division why would the German Army not also do this ?

There is also the possibility that these were made in one of the other tropical theatres ie Southern Russia, Greece or France and are nothing to do with the DAK. ( That is if they are real at all of course)

I am not trying to justify a reproduction, I am stating a historical fact. Theatre made material exists in far greater quantities than it is given credit for on this forum.

We must all be careful we do not get it wrong and that means accurately identifying what is a reproduction verses what is right ?

Some days collecting this stuff is not easy, Chris

[B. N. Singer]

[QUOTE=Diane][FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]The Army used the Tropical style tunics in the Crimea, Ukraine, Greece, Italy, Southern France and the Balkans.

It is Likely that Most of the tropical tunics that were produced for use in these areas and in the later stages of the war were used with "normal" continental boards and NOT tropical boards.

B. N. Singer

[Diane]

Think about this . . .

Hi Gang,


If someone were to go through the trouble and expense of manufacturing fake tropical shoulder straps wouldn't they go for maximun profit?

The "Bautruppen" are NOT exactly one of the most glamorus branches of the Heer!

I should think we'd see Panzer, Panzer-Gren, Infantry, Artillery, Pioneer straps sell before we'd see the "Construction troops".

These straps are just too unusual. Most collectors wouldn't buy them because of the branch colour and other inconsistancies.

Collectors like to buy what other collectors approve of, not oddball, difficult to catagorize items.


Thanks for an engaging discussion.


Sincerely,

Diane

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[galizien41]

Interesting discussion going on here, and I like to see it. Glad there are some opinions on both side, with some open to the possiblity.

I personally am not sure on them, I saw them briefly to take the photos. I have not seen any other repros like them, which is a good sign. But sometimes wanting something to be real so much blinds the evidence before oneself. But I keep an open mind on them and am interested to hear what you guys think.

The material seemed maybe a bit "lighter", and the piping of course interested me. I am going to ask my friend if the wool piping is the same as luft signals piping. That may clear up where the piping came from, but of course not when! The condition is unused, so no signs of any wear.

PS. I have seen a brown backed early DAK bau rayon piped board about a year ago.