J Temple-West

Original wartime issued examples of these Small Battle Units War Badges are extremely rare and have certain characteristics which this one does not have... nor does it have the typical reverse setup (hinge/catch/pin) of a 1957 issued piece.

A very nice bar and probably from a member of an early construction crew involved in the building of the 'Westwall', or a later member of a 'Flak Abteilung' after the defences were garrisoned prior to Allied Invasion. Quite a hard combination to find....congrats!

This is a fake.... Original close Combat clasps by F&BL (Funcke & Brüninghaus, Ludenscheid) has the maker mark above the clasp and is upside down.

The last two, on the top row, look to be the Spanish War campaign medal and the Order of Military Merit (red) for combatants. To be totally correct, ribbon bars for combatants should have crossed sword attachments on both....not unusual for them to be forgotten. As to the bottom bar....yes, it is the correct ribbon for the Japanese Order of the Sacred Treasure and with rosette it is most likely the 4th class....to be sure, you should post the bar in the Asia forum.

A couple of transitional Luftwaffe badges produced by the firm of F.W. Assmann & Söhne who were based in Lüdenscheid. The term ‘transitional’, when it comes to badges, is used for badges that were produced from parts, held in stock by the manufacturer, of both pre-and war time designs. When it comes to collecting, these transitional pieces are some of the hardest to find. First up is a pilot’s badge with a first pattern pre-war eagle on an early third pattern wartime wreath. Observer badge with the same period designs; a first pattern pre-war eagle on an early third pattern wartime wreath….and of all the badge makers, of the time, my favourite design of pre-war Observer eagle.

That is good to hear, Stojan.

Hi, Stojan this badge looks to be a badly executed cast copy of a Juncker 1st pattern army paratrooper badge....in other words...a fake. The overall lack of detail of eagle and wreath + points of poor casting (missing details) of the wreath are the main indicators.

Good morning, Stojan yes, anything with a maker marking other than C E Juncker should be considered as fake.... Without pictures of this type of maker marked badge, it is difficult to point out other things to look out for but suspect that what you have seen is from a series of fakes that hit the market with a '1957' style hinge and catch system.

The only other, accepted as a producer of original war time army paratrooper badges, is Friedrich Linden, Lüdenscheid.

"AS" (Adolf Scholze) has a particular reverse setup....this badge does not have it. Going on the pic's supplied, and the fact that the details look to be soft, I would go for it being a cast copy (fake). The case, IMO, has been made to give the badge/story a little more credence. Have a look at the original example of a Panzer Assault Badge by "AS" posted below.

This looks like an early 1st pattern DKiG from the maker Deschler & Sohn. The hinge plate and catch look to be somewhat different from others I've seen, but that having been said it would seem that there are slight differences in the reverse setup, on this type of cross, that are accepted as original. Let us hope that the more experienced DKiG collectors out there will be able to give a better assessment. If it turns out to be an original 1st pattern 10 rivet Deschler & Sohn then you have an extremely rare piece.

It looks to be a very nice early example by the maker Förster & Barth- Pforzheim.

very nice!

....and is the version in zinc.

The only three rivet GAB's are by the makers MUK.5 and Rudolf Karneth & Söhne, Gablonz This, I would say, is a fake.

I agree.....fake

And there we leave it... as far as this forum is concerned, misterjerry asked a question which was answered.....the badge in question is a well known fake.

Very nice, Jock Absolutely love these mini’s….

No, sorry....fake Hymmen obverse design with a close FZS reverse...sneeky fakers

...for the white tunic, white mess jacket and the tropical brown and white tunic, attributed to Friedrich Linden, Ludenscheid.

Souval post-war fake, I'm afraid

Believe me, my friend, all collectors have these early mistakes in a draw.

All members of the Heer/SS who engaged in hand-to-hand combat when unsupported by Panzer would qualify for the CCC. Bronze:15 days Silver: 30 days Gold: 50 days. Going on the criteria, your Grandpa certainly earned his bar.

Fake, IMO... all the signs of being a cast copy.

If you are considering buying this item, there are plenty of undamaged examples out there which will hold their value a lot better than this one.