20 Years Ago

In '89 few collectors had computers and almost none of us were on the internet. Info about our hobby and what was going on was much harder to come by than it is today. Here's an example of what was happening back then. Unfortunately, things haven't changed that much. Of course the collar tabs on the right are total junk.

As usual the fake Nazi relics business is booming, so this month I've decided to share some tid-bits of information with you. Maybe it will help some of you keep from getting stung with a fake and for the rest provide some interesting reading or something to discuss with your collector friends.

WAR BADGES

Rumor has it that our old friend in Kentucky is getting even better with his repro war badges. Collectors are advised to be especially careful when buying any Luftwaffe clasps or numbered assault badges. Excellent repros are currently being made. Our sources say that a close study of the pin construction is your best bet.

MORE OF THE SAME

Another repro maker is operating in the Maryland area and again he favors numbered assault badges and other scarcer war badges. Use a glass and look for casting marks on the badges. Also we're told that the B&ML logo is being used on a lot of the retros, but that it's slightly tilted or set off center so the faker will be able to later recognize his own work (are they that good?). We don't have any further info on this at present. Don't panic if you own a badge marked B&ML, as many are original, however one being offered for sale should be closely examined before purchase.

VISOR CAPS

l'm told that lately there are some excellent late style Political Leader's visor caps floating around that look very new and right. There is no hard evidence yet, but because of the number in circulation and the particular people selling them, our informant advises a close look before any purchase.

SCULPTURE

One of our reader's, who wants to remain anonymous, wrote asking for information on a white porcelain figure of a labor corps man working with a pick. He says he has seen several of these at shows lately and wonders if they are genuine period pieces. I don't know anything about them, so if any of you have any info about these pieces, please, let us know.

NAZI BEER STEINS

A couple of months ago there was something in the LETTERS column mentioning repro beer steins. I recently saw a large offering of fakes, mostly without lids and with lots of fancy gold lettering and neat (to the uninformed) inscriptions. No need to worry much about them, they were so ugly that no real collector would want one and no self-respecting Nazi would have owned such junk!

COLLAR TABS

It's long overdue, but was bound to happen. Looks like the price of late style Political Leader's collar tabs has gotten high enough to make it worth the faker's trouble to turn them out in a nice quality repro. I recently saw some mint Reich level with eagles and one oakleaf that were very nice. The edges of the devices were a little rough, the finish was somewhat different from what I usually expect and the RZM tag was an odd color. At first I attributed them to being late war
production leftover stock, then when I found out where they were coming from, the numbers
available and how much they were being "wholesaled" for... I became very suspicious.

NO MORE SHOWS

There is some justice after all. It seems that two boys who pulled that huge multi-thousand
dollar rip-off with the fake uniform a while back have been permanently barred from
several prominent eastern militaria shows. This is long overdue, however I can think of
some more would-be con-men whose absence from the shows would be welcome.

FAKE CLOTH

There is a large amount of repro Nazi cloth insignia currently coming into the country
from the far east. Some of our U.S. "collectors" are primarily responsible for this, especially
one in California. They are sending examples of original pieces overseas to use as patterns and the Third World insignia makers are churning out the copies. Fortunately, most of it is not good enough to fool even the moderately experienced collector, but if you're new at this and have doubts, get some advise before you buy. Especially avoid bullion eagles which have heads that look like a cross between a buzzard and Daffy Duck. Some of the machine embroidered SS cufftitles and high ranking SS collar tabs don't look too bad and there are some SS officers sleeve eagles that are a real knockout! We will be following up on this in upcoming issues.

Know something about fakes and frauds that would interest your fellow collectors? Let's hear from you. Your contribution will be kept confidential. Also, differing opinions from responsible collectors are welcome, please address your comments to the LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.

Bob Treend, "Off The Record", Der Gauleiter, 1989