Ss Skull Good ?

[Felix]

Thanks for clearing this out!

I now also see the differences!

Boy, those skulls are tricky!!!

[SScollector]

Yes, the first one is a repro. Does anyone know about the die flaws that are on the reverse of all original 499/41 skulls?

[bwanek1]

Yes, the first one is a repro. Does anyone know about the die flaws that are on the reverse of all original 499/41 skulls?

Perhaps we should save those fine details for less public discussions?

[Anders S]

Yes, the first one is a repro. Does anyone know about the die flaws that are on the reverse of all original 499/41 skulls?

Perhaps we should save those fine details for less public discussions?

Hi guys.

I'd love a PM about this subject.

Kind

[BenVK]

Anders, you have developed a very good eye.

Bravo.

Brad

He had one long before joining these forums, upmost respect to him!

[SScollector]

No, in my opinion, it will not hurt to share this information because there are already fakes that are much better than the one in this thread and they have the die flaw. So, it only means that a 499/41 skull is bad if it doesn't have it, but if it does have it, it could be good or bad, (kinda like the blacklight test for cloth items; "If it glows, it's definitely bad, but if it don't glow, it could still be fake").

Anyway, here it is: On all originals, the "1" has a tail at the bottom and it should always look exactly like this one.

Best,
Chris

[Killerbee]

No, in my opinion, it will not hurt to share this information because there are already fakes that are much better than the one in this thread and they have the die flaw. So, it only means that a 499/41 skull is bad if it doesn't have it, but if it does have it, it could be good or bad, (kinda like the blacklight test for cloth items; "If it glows, it's definitely bad, but if it don't glow, it could still be fake").

Anyway, here it is: On all originals, the "1" has a tail at the bottom and it should always look exactly like this one.

Best,
Chris

Thanks for the education Chris

[SScollector]

Here is one of my fakes: It is crude, but it shows a little on this one.

[Stahlhelm]

Bill,

That's quite the perfect example for comparison (or, in this case contrast).

Chris

[John T]

The original pictured shows crimped on prongs while the repro shows soldered on prongs..a difference that seems to have been overlooked.

John

[bwanek1]

The original pictured shows crimped on prongs while the repro shows soldered on prongs..a difference that seems to have been overlooked.

John

That is a fair observation. However, I have seen some original insignia with wartime repairs or post-war restorations in which the pins, which were originally crimped, had been reattached or replaced by soldered pins in the locations where the original crimps once were. Therefore, I would not recommend that anyone rule out a piece of insignia with soldered pins where crimps should/used to be for this reason alone. That being said, there are plenty of other reasons (many already stated) to call this one a fake in addition to the suspect pins.