Soviet A few ribbonbars...

[Guest Rick Research]

#47 I have seen before any 1958 jubilee, but I suspect this was a super de luxe EXPENSIVE private purchase style.

#46 I've seen into the 1970s and I agree these always seem to be dirty and not attractive.

#48 is in astonishing condition for such brittle ribbons. It is so PERFECT I wondered if each row was one piece, since they usyually are all chipped and broken.

That clothe one dates 1970 (Lenin Jubilee) to 1975 (no 1975 WW2 CoJubilee yet) and for an officer still on active duty probably.

[Christophe]

Plastic bar with cloth ribbon. I find personaly this one very ugly. The only interesting thing are the 2 Red banners.

Bryan,

Nice ribbon bars!!!

Ch.

PS : BTW, 2 Red Stars...

[Christophe]

Ahhhhh. I that one in #47 with the little strips between each color as if the paint was cloisonn? enamel! That is my favorite of all the "Solid D Profile" painted types.

Question about the very interesting 8 bar in #48--

is EACH ribbon applied SEPARATELY, or are they painted in one long strip of 4 ribbons in one piece for each row? That's quite an interesting combination-- suggests MVD/police to me rather than regular armed forces, with the Badge of Honor. It is VERY hard to find that "Thin Painted Plastic Sheet" style in such fine condition, beacuse they usually crack and break-- either from age or because the thin sheets of painted 'ribbon" don't take rough handling very well.

Look at this BATTERED mixture of cloth and thin painted plastic sheet ribbons, non-regulation precedence, but worn by some ancient but proud old General, a veteran of 1918 still around in the 1960s:

Rick,

This bar is very interesting , with a Kutuzov 1st Class, a Suvororv 2nd Class, a Khmelnitski 2nd Class, 2 Lenin, 4 red Banners, etc...

Have you been able to trace this General ?

Ch.

[Bryan]

PS : BTW, 2 Red Stars...

Christophe, it might looked like something else because of the light of my scanner, but when I look, the lines are red-white-red. So I presumed 2 Red Banners. However you might be right. The red is not the good red for Red Banner. Maybe I should try to photograph them.

Edited January 5, 2007 by Soviet

[Christophe]

Christophe, it might looked like something else because of the light of my scanner, but when I look, the lines are red-white-red. So I presumed 2 Red Banners. However you might be right. The red is not the good red for Red Banner. Maybe I should try to photograph them.

Bryan,

Sorry to disappoint you, but the width of the red and white stripes are not of the same proportions in the two orders. And for the Red Banners, you should find a very thin white line at each border of the ribbon...

Ch.

[Christophe]

I have to admit I have a soft spot for the painted ribbon bars myself. Here are two from my own collection.

Bryan,

Have a look at Paul's bar on the right where you have both of them...

Ch.

[Bryan]

I guess you are 100% right about this, but I'm not disapointed at all. I do not find that ribbon bar very attractive even with 2 Red banners or 2 Red stars. The design is rather ugly.

Edited January 5, 2007 by Soviet

[Christophe]

Bryan,

I agree with you . I have also some of these bars : they weem very old fashioned and "used".

Ch.

[Gerd Becker]

A few other ribbon bars to had to this thread.

#1 Cloth ribbon bar

Bryan, did you notice, that this one is identically to mine in post #4? Exactly the same combination

Edited April 17, 2007 by Gerd Becker

[Bryan]

Interesting, no I didn't notice it.

It seems the combinations from these "fruit salads" ribbon bars can be identically found somewhere else.

For example, I found exactly the same 3 ribbon bars for sale than the one I posted in post #32.

[Gerd Becker]

mmmhh... not sure, if we should be worried, but i got it from a good source, so i guess, its okay. If we see another one of these, we probably should start to worry.

Here is another one, which i haven?t posted yet. An 8 place bar with a Medal for Valiant Labor in first place and both Victory Medals, the Medal for Victory over Germany and the Medal for Valiant Labor in GPW

[Bryan]

mmmhh... not sure, if we should be worried, but i got it from a good source, so i guess, its okay. If we see another one of these, we probably should start to worry.

I got my cloth ribbon bar from the same source as yours I guess.

[Guest Rick Research]

I don't think there is any reason to have doubts about common combinations.

There is also always the possibility that one person's group has been dispersed. I've had several sets for the same person, updated as each new junk jubilee award came along. And I have three "identical" sets to a Border Guards general with the only difference being improvized Cuban ribbons as he had less and less ribbon for each set on different tunics.

[Gerd Becker]

I don't think there is any reason to have doubts about common combinations.

There is also always the possibility that one person's group has been dispersed. I've had several sets for the same person, updated as each new junk jubilee award came along. And I have three "identical" sets to a Border Guards general with the only difference being improvized Cuban ribbons as he had less and less ribbon for each set on different tunics.

Yes, i would agree, Rick. Thats indeed a very common combination and there is also a chance, that they belong together. Thanks for confirming my thoughts.

[Christophe]

I wouldn't worry, as it is a common combination.

Cheers.

Ch.

[Eric Gaumann]

Here's the first Soviet bar I've ever gotten.

I was hoping it was from the GPW era.

Very small and thin.

[Eric Gaumann]

And the reverse:

[Gerd Becker]

Hi Eric,

yes, thats the typical style of the GPW area and early post-war. This one looks okay to me, i hope, Rick will confirm.

I have a few of them too.

[Guest Rick Research]

Yup, nice one, Eric! That COULD be an Order of Glory after the Red Star, ahead of the Defense of the Polar Region rather than VOG ahead of the Defense. These seem to have been worn as individual rows.

I did a BAD way back when I was first into these and everything was cheap and plentiful. The oldest prong backs like yours are all STEEL. The tabs and ribbon mountings may LOOK like brass because many have a gilt coating (the Germans did the same) but they are all really steel. And you can NOT bend those prongies to "correct" a mistake-- they are basically half corroded, crappy Communist "quality" steel, and the prongs WILL break.

So don't... even THINK of...

I'd be QUITE happy with a Red Star/Glory 3/Polar. Pins are often (as with German ones) upside down as assembled.

The "bigger" type, I suspect, was from the late 1940s or 1950s. A LOT of these seem to be around now with completely random "parts" ribbons on them.

[Eric Gaumann]

Thanks gentlemen.

I liked this one mostly because the main metal mounting bar is *not* the blackened metal style that is most prevalent but a more plain steel finish (complete with rusty bits).

I am assuming the middle ribbon is indeed a OG3 mostly because I want this bar to be pre-5/45. I have it mounted and labeled in my GPW display in the correct order (not backward like in my first image above). And the pin and metal bar are magnetic.

The seller (a Finn) didn't have much of a story (other than 'I got it in Russia a few years back') when I asked about it. Sadly he has another one similar to this on eBay now marked as "WW2 era" but it's of the blackened bar variety, the ribbons have different colored tabs and there are obvious new scratch marks where the tabs have been folded over. Sadly mine seems to have fresh scratch marks on it as well, especially around the OG/VoG ribbon tabs.

But I like it anyway, it looks nice.

Surprisingly, considering the plethora of Soviet stuff I have, it's the *only* Soviet ribbon bar I have.

If I weren't unemployed at the moment I'd take a shot at a few 60s era bars I've found on the web.

In case you haven't noticed Soviet ribbon bars are just as addictive as Soviet ODMs.

[Guest Rick Research]

"In case you haven't noticed Soviet ribbon bars are just as addictive as Soviet ODMs."

No! You don't say!

Notice third from the bottom, Gerd's 4 with the Red Star and Caucasus is ALSO mounted correctly-- if the pin is worn upside-down/backwards.

Actually, it makes more sense to have a pin catch at the center of the chest than out at the armpit to keep from getting sprung... but I suspect these are random/personal preferences and nothing more.

I know what you mean about the all-black backings. Those were still steel long after the tabs went aluminum-- maybe leftover stock. But you're right, the earlier ones--or what I assume are the earlier ones--are generally NOT that baked on enamel black on the reverse. The 4 bar I posted is black between the ribbons on front, and LOOKS like brass on the back, but that is what was supposed to be the anti-corrosion flashing.

LATE tabbie ribbon bars-- 1980s and so on-- don't bother me for a mix and match of aluminum or brass ribbon mounts. Those apparently just came randomly out of stock. Just as randomly as the parts pieces which are showing up. All the PIECES are original, but they've been newly assembled out of unused stock by people who don't know or don't care what they are doing.

I can see a couple of scractches on yours, but nothing I would be concerned about. Like you say, those tabs are CORRODED. They've been on there "forever." You can NOT (trust me on this people, please ) bend those things off and back on again without them snapping through. The scratches are on the bar, not the tabs.

[Eric Gaumann]

Here's the latest bar in question mounted with a few of his buddies.

Do we need a "show us your XYZ display" thread or have we all been through that enough times already?

[Gerd Becker]

Lovely display, Eric. I think, i want such descriptions on mine too.

Great info, Rick. I have some doubts about some of mine. Which one would you consider questionable? All of the black ones?

[Eric Gaumann]

The black ones are indicative of only a slightly later date of use I believe.

[Guest Rick Research]

There are a number of "Soviet Ribbon bar" threads in the back pages, mostly divided up by type. There is even one on "BORING Ribbon bars."