Feldgrau wrappers with collar tabs and shoulder boards with different Waffenfarben

[Maxoumilitaria]

Hi everyone,

I have quite a few portraits of soldiers displaying a similar uniform/insignia combination:
- Feldgrau wrapper
- Collar tabs with a Waffenfarbe coming out grey on B&W pictures (most likely red I would say)
- Shoulderboards in dark material (dark green or black) with a Waffenfarbe coming out white on B&W pictures (NOT red I would say)

Would someone have an explanation for such combinations?
If the Waffenfarben were similar on collar tabs and shoulder boards, I would have thought of simple dark green tabs for "style" but the different Waffenfarbe are harder to explain (at least for me).

Thanks a lot in advance

Cheers,

Max

[Maxoumilitaria]

Next one (a soldier from the Stug.Ers.u.Aus.Abt 200)

[Maxoumilitaria]

3rd picture (collar tab with russian braid)

[Maxoumilitaria]

And here is the fourth one.

This one is less obvious as both the tabs and the boards might have the same Waffenfarbe.
Now it seems the boards piping and the unit number on the Überschübe use a different colour.

[Diane]

The slip tab could be chain stitch embroidered in grey as would have been proper for late War issue.

The difference between the piping on the shoulder straps and collar tabs is very interesting and could be an effect of different color absorption between varying materials.

A lot of your collar cab are piped in rayon, whereas mid War shoulder straps were still using wool piping.

Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk

[TWS]

Sometimes due to lack of availability, soldiers used the "wrong" insignia. Sometimes even in studio portraits. I've seen worse than what I think is going on in one of your photos: a Sturmartillerie Kanonier using panzer pink piped boards with his red piped collar tabs.

Your last guy is wearing a civilian shirt under his wrap to somewhat help prove my point.

You know they did this on purpose to irritate collectors 70 years in the future.

[longislandercjv]

Many years ago, I met my neighbor's father, an Oberleutnant in the Panzer-Lehr.
After finally getting around to his wartime experiences, he looked at the collection
with surprising interest..
Regarding my questions about insignia minutae, he stated that later in the war,
"we wore what we could get". Proper insignia was on little or no importance in the field, whereas warm undamaged clothing was.
Meeting and talking to veterans who "been there, done that" on both sides was one
of the major benefits of collecting in the 1960's.

[Maxoumilitaria]

Thanks for all your answers.

Cheers,

Max

[Frozzer]

I have a stug wrapper in wich I found hidden under the liner schoulder strap in pink colour in SS variant and chevron wich was removed from the wrap. I am sure the owner has pink straps on his stug wrapper because both items was hidden together and chevron definetly cames from the wrap - on the left sleve is still a trace of missing chevron.

I was writing about this find here:
http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...d.php?t=562266

[Johnny R]

The wraps were issued often with factory sewn tabs and red piping. My guess would be they just left those on and wore their unit boards. The quote above about "wearing what they had" is very true and I was also told this by many German Veterans. This was especially true later in the war. I have an officers field tunic that was brought back by a G.I. with white piped collar tabs and jager green boards as it was "captured".

[Frozzer]

I have an officers field tunic that was brought back by a G.I. with white piped collar tabs and jager green boards as it was "captured".

This has simply explanation, because after 1943y all infantry units (white waffenfarbe) was converted to panzergrenadiere units with green waffenfarbe. Schoulder strap was replaced because that was easy to do.

[Johnny R]

All infantry units were not converted to Panzer Grenadier [/I] in 1943. the name of Infantry regiments etc. was changed to "Grenadier" under orders of Hitler directly as part of what he thought would inspire his army with a tradition to the past and Fredrick the Great etc. All their insignia remained white until the end of the War.

[/I]The jacket is for the 17th Infantry Regiment which had a Jager battalion and 2 regular infantry battalions.