Luftwaffe Hbt Summer Tunics -2 Different Styles

[Gerard/Relic Hunter]

Hey Guys, I have had this on my back burner for over a year, wanting to bring it to the light of day. While most of you may know this, I thought for newer collectors, I would post the 2 variations of Luftwaffe HBT summer tunics. One is the standard "Luftwaffe" cut, the other is the army cut. Also, the Luftwaffe "felddivision" green cotton jackets are done in the army cut. Maybe the army M43 cut was also adapted to some extent by the Luftwaffe? Here are the major differences-

1.shoulder board buttons- luft cut -removable, army cut- sewn on buttons
2.cuffs-Luft has buttoning French cuffs, army has buttoning standard cuffs
3.pockets- Luftwaffe pockets are pleated on the top 2 only, army cut-none pleated
4.collar closure- luft has extra glass button and tab under right collar, army-none
5.Linings are different- compare
6.eagle-luftwaffe eagle goes slightly over the pocket, army eagle is above the pocket (this one is mostly true, but in 6 tunics I found one variant where the army tunic had the eagle placed like the luft)
7.collar liner buttons- Luft tunic does not have these, army tunic does.

Just some notes-The army cut Luftwaffe HBT summer tunic can have either a Luftwaffe blue-gray rayon or a color more typical of the army (ie. gold) used for the partial lining. Also, on the army cut, the markings can be placed on the inside right, army style or inside right army style and then also Luftwaffe marked on the inside left, as is common with the Luftwaffe. Also, it can be marked only on the left in the standard luftwaffe area. Confused?

Here is an external comparison of both, using blue hbt examples.

Enjoy ,
Gerard

[Gerard/Relic Hunter]

Here are what I would consider the "luftwaffe" style details.

[Gerard/Relic Hunter]

Here is an example in the army cut features-

[Gerard/Relic Hunter]

Here is another army cut example showing the details-

[Gerard/Relic Hunter]

Here is the cotton ground jacket, which is army cut, notice the similarities-

[galizien41]

Very Nice analysis Gerard. Thanks for posting this. Great picture to demonstrate your points. Thanks!

[NickG]

great comparison

Great and learnful comparison! I am the proud owner of a standard LW cut field division green HBT uniform
with angled pocket corners (2) and pleats on the chest (1), no pleats on the skirt pockets (3) and it should have had
fake French cuffs LW style (4) but in my case the cuffs have been modified (lengthened or repaired) so this feature was period altered...
no big deal!

[NickG]

on a mannequin

here it is on a mannequin now with LW pionier boards!

[NickG]

my blue HBT

Here's my blue LW warm weather tunic (not HBT but cotton) which is actually a tailor made piece, most likely made in Holland as that's where it came from in the mid seventies and has typical the LW features like fake french cuffs+angled pocket corners + all pockets pleated here BUT the back is entirely different...tailored like a rock uniform, a style commonly seen also on most Dutch tunics, another clue that this piece was commissioned in Holland for a senior LW officer! The material has faded and it appears that the fabric is loosing its blue color...

[NickG]

collar detail

under the collar LW blue wool! (not exactly the theme of Gerard's thread... not LW HBT... but still LW summer wear related!)

[NickG]

insignia

rank insignia!

[NickG]

on a mannequin!

Sorry I did not mean to high-jack your thread Gerard, a study showing the differances between the various LW HBT summer tunics, but I thought this is also good opportunity to also show other LW (non HBT) cotton summer wear tunics!
Nick