Chip

Yes, I have a thought....they're not Jäger!  If I am seeing the underlay color correctly, it is feldgrau, which was used by some officer's. It's non-official, but not rare to see. It definitely is not Jäger green.

Chip

A very interesting unit. Nice catch!

Chip

Yep. As I mentioned at the beginning, the squarish ones are most likely, WWI vintage.

Chip

As far as I know, the squared top Saxon shoulder straps were discontinued with the new M1907 field uniform. I have seen a few examples, but all have appeared to be private purchase pieces.

Chip

Well, with a lower officer rank like this, it is somewhat less likely that he was a prewar officer and it is especially less so since we have not been able to find him in the Ranglisten. Nur meine Meinungen.  

The rank is "OLt.d.R.", so would he be in a normal Rangliste? I thought Reserve officers were not included.

Chip

Abs. Infanterist Martin Seiler, Sturmtrupp

Mikko,

If you only have to have one, that would be a great one (especially for a Finnish collector). 

Chip

​ Jeff,

Wiki says that Tagal is another name for Manila hemp, which was used to make straw hats (and evidently cord too).

Chip

Jeff,

I'm unfamiliar with Tagal hat lace. I can see what it is, but what was it's normal use?

Chip

Just a small note. "Mar.Ob.Stabsarzt" translates more like "navy senior staff doctor". The army equivalent rank is major.

Chip

Chris,

Definitely a dilemma if you have had the thought. Some would not even have this idea cross their mind. If you are agonizing, it probably means you want to do it.

Say you had a document group and it included two identical award documents. Would you consider one redundant and pass it along for another collector to enjoy.....or would you say, it's part of the historical package and after all, easy to store.

How similar are the tunics? Same rank? If they are different in some meaningful way, that would be a concern. How much money do you have tied up in the tunics? That could make a difference. Storage for larger items is also a factor.

Groups often have duplicate items, but they are usually smaller things and not worth a whole lot.

In the end, if you can afford to buy the group, then you can probably afford to keep it together. Whether you will or not is an individual choice. I'm glad I don't have to make it.

Chip

Charles,

I have a nearly untouched Mütze that has a sew-on enlisted national cockade and an prong-backed state cockade. I don't believe that it ever had a sew-on state cockade. I'm just saying that you don't have to convince yourself of anything.

Most Saxon sew-on cockades that I have seen in period photos are the smaller size (same size as a prong-backed example). I don't recall having seen one like you have shown.

Chip

Charles,

I will be a hell of a lot easier than finding a pair of M1907 enlisted shoulder straps from a specific regiment!

Hello,

Could I get some advice from the experts here? I have a couple of officer school badges that I have had for many years (Konstantin Artillery School & Nicholas Cavalry School). I assume that these are fairly common badges, as officer's badges go, but I would appreciate a value estimate for a badge in good condition. I'm pretty sure these are wartime examples.

Chip

Charles,

Since your tunic has the rank of Unteroffizier, the prong-backed cockades would not be incorrect. If they came on the cap and it already has the holes for them, I would just leave them on. That also solves the thread problem.

Chip

Charles,

Given the condition of the tunic and the probability that the larger disks have not been on there for a long time, I would think there would be no problem with a "shadow" of the larger disks. Regardless, the larger disks are not correct. Here is what the size difference is between the Gefreiter and Sergeant disks (2,5 cm vs 2,9cm).

Chip

Chris,

I don't see any relationship between the "LG" and the "11" as far a Garde troops go. I've seen a number of Landes Gerndarmerie helmets and tunics marked this way. Take a look at this.....

http://www.military-antiques.cz/headgear-helmets-before-ww1/2210003-german-m1871-landgendarme-pickelhaube-spike-helmet-landes-gendarmerie.html

I don't have any reference that I can find on the Prussian Landes Gendarmerie, but I do think they wore Garde style helmets.

Chip

Brian,

Thanks for the extra photos. That's a nice battery box!

If we get any sun tomorrow (it's rained every day for except for one the past week), I'll try to get some photos of some of my telephone equipment. Just for starters, here is a photo of my Aufspuler and specialty buckle.

Charles,

I don't see any evidence of NCO collar lace. I don't even think there is enough room between the Litzen and the bottom of the collar to fit any in. Besides, I think when a tunic of this branch had NCO lace, the Litzen was reduced from two bars to a single bar.

Chip

Brian,

My mistake. I did not have this model in my reference material and when you look a Siegel's site, he only has photos of one of the two patterns (a.A.). Could we see the connection configuration on the end of the box? Is the compartment on the left just for cord storage or is there something else in there?

Thanks,

Chip

​Looking forward to that. Hope your move goes well.

Chip

Charles,

I forgot to mention that the tunic is all correct, except for the collar disks, which should be Bavarian, not Prussian. The website makes some comment about the tunic being transferred, which I see no evidence of other than the (obviously) replaced NCO disks. They are also obviously not Gefreiter disks, but rather Sergeant disks, which further proves that they were replaced. A Sergeant would also have NCO lace. These would be fairly easy to replace with correct ones.

Chip

Total junk.