SS Tunic Opinions.

[Mike C]

Steve,

It is not that I do not like what i am reading. In fact, I am reading nothing either way, bad or good. I merely asked a question about an item from a seller everyone swears by, hoping to perhaps learn something about a great potential source, but received not a single word of input on the item, only some sort of a run-around. Oh well.

Thanks In any event.

Having just read this, I would, with respect, suggest that you run the risk of being accused of petty vindictiveness - resulting from having initially referenced some obviously good items (helmet covers, etc) as bad or suspect and then being publicly corrected.

You have received lots of input - on this dealer's general reputation, many items on his site, and conflicting perceptions of the costs/availability of items in this hobby. You have not however recieved any input on the cap - positive or negative - but this does not constitute a run around. People are free to post or not.

I think this thread is done - in any case, it is for me after this post. If you want to, as suggested, open a specific thread on this cap, stating your reasons (the owner has too low prices and too many items ergo the cap is bad) and see what happens. Maybe you are right and we will all learn.

Mike

[DKNYC71]

SS Tunic Opinions.

Having just read this, I would, with respect, suggest that you run the risk of being accused of petty vindictiveness - resulting from having initially referenced some obviously good items (helmet covers, etc) as bad or suspect and then being publicly corrected.

You have received lots of input - on this dealer's general reputation, many items on his site, and conflicting perceptions of the costs/availability of items in this hobby. You have not however recieved any input on the cap - positive or negative - but this does not constitute a run around. People are free to post or not.

I think this thread is done - in any case, it is for me after this post. If you want to, as suggested, open a specific thread on this cap, stating your reasons (the owner has too low prices and too many items ergo the cap is bad) and see what happens. Maybe you are right and we will all learn.

Mike

Hello Mike,

No petty vindictiveness, I have referenced a captains tunic, an M-43 cap, a cufftitle (which I was wrong about), and lastly this rare SS NCO visor. I do not know anything about camo covers or any kind of camo, therefore I did not question camo covers (feel free to review the thread if you please) I referenced items that would be of personal interest to me. Thanks again for your input,maybe I will start a different thread.

Cheers

[SJP]

Hello Mike,

No petty vindictiveness, I have referenced a captains tunic, an M-43 cap, a cufftitle (which I was wrong about), and lastly this rare SS NCO visor. I do not know anything about camo covers or any kind of camo, therefore I did not question camo covers (feel free to review the thread if you please) I referenced items that would be of personal interest to me. Thanks again for your input,maybe I will start a different thread.

Cheers

That about sums it up

Cheers Steve

[DKNYC71]

SS Tunic Opinions.

That about sums it up

Cheers Steve

This definitly sums it up, aside from being corrected about a cufftitle, I received no comments or replys from any of the experts here concerning the SS Captains tunic, SS M-43 cap or the ultr-rare color piped SS NCO visor that I inquired about. It was only mentioned how awesome this dealer is. I guess I will start a thread about these items seperately, since if all 3 turn out to be 100% authentic and untouched, I would be a candidate to purchase all three of the efformentioned items.

Thanks Again to all the folks!

[gew98]

This definitly sums it up, aside from being corrected about a cufftitle, I received no comments or replys from any of the experts here concerning the SS Captains tunic, SS M-43 cap or the ultr-rare color piped SS NCO visor that I inquired about. It was only mentioned how awesome this dealer is. I guess I will start a thread about these items seperately, since if all 3 turn out to be 100% authentic and untouched, I would be a candidate to purchase all three of the efformentioned items.

Thanks Again to all the folks!

While I do not collect anything remotely nazi , especially uniforms and medals ( minefields they are are'nt they ) , I have to concur with DKNYC71'S point of view. If a dealer had 50 matching untouched gew98's , or german sniping rifles for sale with an unseemingly constant flow of merchandise I'd be boogered to stupidy believing all is rosey and right.
I see the lockstep worship thingy in all circles of collecting. I have seen absolutely corrupt persons run a genre of collecting through idol worship of them while they sell monkeyed with peices to their cronies. Have even seen the sale of so bad of fake garbage being sold "quietly at auctions with no reference to the mighty owner(s) even though it was featured in some of their published efforts.
And then there are the closet nazis in the collecting circles -they ruin it for everyone. To listen to their intense self absorbed love of the nazi items and if you let them all else teuton , blah blah blah. It's sacks of human waste like that that turned me from anything third reich collectibles.
I am a firm believer in evalutating the item , not the stupendous story nor instant stamp of approval just because of the dealer/individual selling it. There enough museum curators that have been boinkered by buying multimillion dollar fake art. BUY THE ITEM and not the story .

[N.C. Wyeth]

BUY THE ITEM and not the story .

I think that's what most here are attempting to tell DKNYC71 - buy the items he's asking about, and if he doesn't like them, send them back. I don't think anyone here has said that he should buy anything on Martin's reputation alone - only that if DKNYC71 wants to step up to the plate and make a purchase, and finds that he doesn't like what he receives, that Martin's reputation as stand-up guy for returning a questionable item should not be in question. "Buy the item, not the story", is a great tidbit of advice to keep in mind - but sometimes you have to buy the item before you can prove the story wrong . . .

Interjecting doubt about someone or something without evidence to validate the doubt is a poor approach to getting proper assistance for solid advice from people . . .

Brad

[John Pic]

I said in a previous post,there is nothing wrong with the Captains tunic it has all correct insignias and it also has a history behind it. Its up to this nameless collector who believes only one person has access to such tunics to prove it is not a good one and state why. Other than using the foolish reasoning he is trying to use..pricing.

I for one would like to know who you are that you know so much maybe your name would smoothen the rough rebuttles.

"gew98" it appears to me that two nameles entities are making a vinidctive passive agressive attempt to play games with a mans business. If you know me I am not a defender of dealers and have gone after all of them at one time or another so dont start with that "follow the leader" BS because it doesnt fit here. What stinks is that the thread is carried on by two nameless people who can cite no reason..one even states he has never had any dealings with Martin. "gew"98 I suggest if you cant stand the "human waste" in the hobby then go away.
Tell us how much you know about SS uniforms and visor caps and earn the respect before you spout off in here. If Martin would send me the uniform I will go over it and photograph anything pertinent and list all faults or defects IF there are any. Someone else will have to pay postage.

Im no Nazi in fact I am a "Liberal" so my ideology isnt remotely TR ish.

[Gary Wood]

Boy do i hate threads like these!

If you have questions about any items start a thread about the items, and its best not to mention who is selling them

[Bob Curuthers]

Hi Bob,

I'm still keen to understand if the four helmet covers are duds in your opinion - or whether it is the Demelhuber tunic that you believe glistens falsely.

cheers

Tom

My opinion would probably not matter to you Mr "H" , but it sounds to me like maybe you are the owner of one of them, as long as your happy that is all that matters.

I will state this though in all my years of collecting I have never seen so many helmet covers available from one source in such a short time, I have also been informed that there were other's as well that did not make the site so that would be a greater total, if that is so then it certainly is a lot of covers but of course that means nothing either way but I bet you would be hard pushed to find as many for sale world-wide!

Am I sceptical ? you bet I am as is my right and as is prudent in today's collecting market, but it seems that Mr stiles has the trust of many so maybe he is lucky.

And i do agree with the general consensus that the items should be discussed and not the seller, if only it was that easy, I have noticed a great silence when items are put up for discussion that are offered on certain dealers sites, so I can only summarise than pm messages and e-mail's are sent out behind the scene's, then of course I have seen items discussed without divulging who or where they were offered from, then everyone wanting to know where/who was offering them for sale.

Then the likes of this thread where many have jumped in to say what a good guy this dealer is and I am not saying he is not but why are those that are saying he is a good guy not wanting to comment on HIS items brought up within the thread (other than Mr Hritz/Mr Wood/Mr JPIC), just he is a good guy and you all have had pleasant experiences with him, and anyone who has questioned him is lambasted with the usual "who are you" or "what do you know" ect, reminds me of a panzer wrap thread in the past.

I doubt that if a separate thread was started as has been suggested within this thread that many who had posted here would comment on the other thread, so why not just comment on the items within this thread why the silence!

One thing I do agree with that has been mentioned within this thread is that price is not an indicator of originality, different dealers charge different prices from country to country and the same dealers can charge different prices to different clients, I also get tiered of hearing well if it was real it would be X amount on so and so's site and would be snapped up, Sorry this has no relevance what so ever on the items originality or not, again that is only my opinion and no doubt some will disagree but again that is ok as well each to there own

Best of luck

Bob
PS Are you the Tom that used to buy from Mr "B" who had a little drum shop?

[phild]

The most interesting aspect of this thread is how this topic has revealed the mentality of collecting in general.

The addage of "buy the item and not the story" is over used IMO. Most of the people that I hear throwing this advice out at every turn are the very ones that rarely follow it themselves! By this I mean if someone is selling 5 SS camo smocks that are identical (for example) and suggestion is that they were found in some discovered stockpile then there is a cry of "no way"! This is in effect looking at the story and not the item! I don't care if a dealer has 1000 un-issued SS smocks for sale, do the smocks stand on their merits each or is the "story" that there are too many of them cancell that out? Time to put your money where your mouth is in terms of letting the item speak for itself!

There are collectors out there that have accumulated for instance dozens of FJ helmets....some with over 100 that I have known.... if this collection came on the market from one dealer would it be rejected out of hand?

One thing that I have long noticed in this hobby and most other similar ones is that if you are known to pay good high amount hard cash on the spot for a certain type of item....no BS or games, then those type items will come to you.

[John Pic]

Bob you know me im not one to throw honey at dealers and Im never silent when any item from any dealer is posted that I have any knowledge about. Especially if it is messed with and I have any doubts. I have skeptical momemts..think about it if everything Wolfe has was on a website what would people be saying? Martin has the resources to buy good things and turns up some nice items.

[Bob Curuthers]

Bob you know me im not one to throw honey at dealers and Im never silent when any item from any dealer is posted that I have any knowledge about.

John,
I know you say it how you see it and that is refreshing and there should be more like you who are not beholden to any secret handshake club or afraid of commenting on dealers items even if you buy from there.

If the dealer is a good guy he will understand and should expect that some of his items maybe/will be put up on forums like this and others for discussion, just like in the panzer wrap thread many have jumped to praise the seller and pored scorn on doubters instead of addressing the questions about the items, maybe the thread was doomed from the start when it was known who the seller was, but there have been plenty of topics about many dealers throughout this whole forum some well known some not, for example and all site sponsors Gotleib, PVL Detlev where no punches are held back so why is this thread any different?


Would it not have been better to discuss the items to counter the doubters ?

Best
Bob

[TomH]

My opinion would probably not matter to you Mr "H" , but it sounds to me like maybe you are the owner of one of them, as long as your happy that is all that matters.

I will state this though in all my years of collecting I have never seen so many helmet covers available from one source in such a short time, I have also been informed that there were other's as well that did not make the site so that would be a greater total, if that is so then it certainly is a lot of covers but of course that means nothing either way but I bet you would be hard pushed to find as many for sale world-wide!

Am I sceptical ? you bet I am as is my right and as is prudent in today's collecting market, but it seems that Mr stiles has the trust of many so maybe he is lucky.

And i do agree with the general consensus that the items should be discussed and not the seller, if only it was that easy, I have noticed a great silence when items are put up for discussion that are offered on certain dealers sites, so I can only summarise than pm messages and e-mail's are sent out behind the scene's, then of course I have seen items discussed without divulging who or where they were offered from, then everyone wanting to know where/who was offering them for sale.

Then the likes of this thread where many have jumped in to say what a good guy this dealer is and I am not saying he is not but why are those that are saying he is a good guy not wanting to comment on HIS items brought up within the thread (other than Mr Hritz/Mr Wood/Mr JPIC), just he is a good guy and you all have had pleasant experiences with him, and anyone who has questioned him is lambasted with the usual "who are you" or "what do you know" ect, reminds me of a panzer wrap thread in the past.

I doubt that if a separate thread was started as has been suggested within this thread that many who had posted here would comment on the other thread, so why not just comment on the items within this thread why the silence!

One thing I do agree with that has been mentioned within this thread is that price is not an indicator of originality, different dealers charge different prices from country to country and the same dealers can charge different prices to different clients, I also get tiered of hearing well if it was real it would be X amount on so and so's site and would be snapped up, Sorry this has no relevance what so ever on the items originality or not, again that is only my opinion and no doubt some will disagree but again that is ok as well each to there own

Best of luck

Bob
PS Are you the Tom that used to buy from Mr "B" who had a little drum shop?

If your opinion did not matter to me Bob "C", then I would not have asked for it.

I do not own any of the helmet covers that you referred to but I am always interested in learning why something is good or bad.

If you reread my posts you wil see that I have not leapt to Martin's defence, merely asked that those (like yourself) who make sweeping generalisations should substantiate them. Instead of doubting whether people would respond to separate threads questioning specific items why don' t you try posting the ones you think are dubious and see what happens? If nothing else it will give you the pleasure of saying "I told you so".

Any trust that Martin would appear to have, has nothing to do with luck, as you imply, and more to do with his probity - referred to many times in this thread.

Finally, any search of my posts on the WAF would reveal that I, like many collectors in the UK and overseas (some of them contributors to this thread), have indeed had dealings with Mr Butler of Brighton Drum Shop infamy in our past.

Experience is a cruel mistress but produces the scepticism and prudence you refer to and value - on that at least we may agree.

Tom "H"

[Glenn McInnes]

But now I ask of your opinion and the opinion of all who had commented on my commentis and swear by this seller and his merchandise to comment on this wonderful and rare SS NCO color piped viror hat:
http://www.hannahsreich.co.uk/shop/v...ph=1631&phqu=5 , I good friend of mine and one of the top dealers of SS material had sold a color piped visor about 2 years ago for 20K USD, and it was not an issue of who to sell to, rather, it was, who will be given the opportunity to purchase (this dealer by the way in not Steve Wolfe in case you are wondering). Please let me know if you think this hat is real, and if it is, why is it still available. I would love to hear your opinion and the opinion of all the experts on this thread regarding the authenticity of this visor. There are several other rarities which I would love to inquire about, but I chose this one since It is so rare that one encounters an ORIGINAL color piped NCO SS visor. I thank everyone in advance!

OK,I will go.

Most probably from the photos a post war re-banded original Heer visor.In my opinion.



Glenn

[NTZ]

OK,I will go.

Most probably from the photos a post war re-banded original Heer visor.In my opinion.



Glenn

The odds of Glenn being right are pretty high. This is just my opinion but the chances of a “contract” color piped being good are tremendously less than a private purchase. My reasoning has been discussed many times in other threads.

With that said I don’t think any determination can be made with those photos. At least I could not make one. Martin seems to be a pretty good guy so I will give it an open mind. Damn, I can’t believe I just said open mind in the same sentence as color piped. I feel dirty now.