New unworn dated M43/M44 shoes

[david stone]

Click here to see a picture of this sort of forge in use by Gebirgsjaegers...

http://www.rolaa.de/sehensw/radio/hi...cs/lautwag.htm

This could be mine but I know its not - my makers label is in a different place and its a different shape. This forge has a fold-out shelf facing the smith - I can see a shoe sitting on it...the one in the previous picture seems to be missing it. There is also a handy pull-out to hang tongs or hammers on, or to help hold stock It is really a well thought out forge.
Better yet, I can actually believe that mine WAS found in a barn in Belgium (at least he didn't say Normandy) but it had spent some time in either a very bad barn or in the open. Also somebody had added some stuff to make it electric power at one time. No trace of paint on it when I got it. The only color photo I have from the war shows it looking like unpainted black iron...but I guess it could be paint. Hard to tell. I painted mine black, many times, with scraping to fill rust pits...looks good now...

Dave

Wow! Great stuff! I never even bothered to ask anybody about the aprons; in the photos they seem to vary quite a bit, I wondered if they too were just bought off the civilian market. I have a split legged one I made, based on what I could see in a grainy photo. How I wish I could tell if the apron and that anvil were marked in some captivating manner!! What other goodies do you have up your sleeve???

To see what my forge looks like, click on this link:

http://www.historische-tueren.de/fun...nd0402-004.jpg
and I hope it will show it. I have a photo I copied off the Internet of a Gebirgsjaeger working this same forge - he has his head turned, listening to some sort of vehicle with speakers on top. I'll see if I can scare it up...

Dave

[BergführerKiser]

Wow! Great stuff! I never even bothered to ask anybody about the aprons; in the photos they seem to vary quite a bit, I wondered if they too were just bought off the civilian market. I have a split legged one I made, based on what I could see in a grainy photo. How I wish I could tell if the apron and that anvil were marked in some captivating manner!! What other goodies do you have up your sleeve??? Dave

Grüß Gott Dave,

Here is another photo that you may find interesting. It's from a group of PK photos of the 98th Gebirgsjäger Rgt. that I have: