Luftwaffe Plated zinc Flak by Assmann

[J Temple-West]

At first glance you may think this to be a tombak Flak?

Not so....

[J Temple-West]

Early ?Assmann? Flak badges were produced in heavily nickel silver plated tombak. As the war progressed and high grade materials became harder to obtain, manufacturers turned to zinc in an attempt to maintain supply for the ever increasing demand for awards, medals and badges.

In the early days of the use of zinc, badges were still finished by means of plating until, again, the lack of materials forced makers to use compounds that gave the appearance of a white, or silver, finish.

This badge is a good example of the early days of transition from tombak to zinc as the obverse has been finished by means of nickel silver plating and is, from the obverse, indistinguishable from its earlier tombak counterpart.

The reverse (unplated) shows a typical setup (hinge/catch plates) for zinc badges produced by ?Assmann? and is the best way of detecting whether tombak or zinc has been used as a base metal.

[J Temple-West]

Comparison (obverse) between tombak (left) and zinc (right)

[J Temple-West]

Comparison (reverse) tombak (left) zinc (right)

[Scott]

Nice badges and a good lesson. Thanks!

Scott

[Steve K.]

These can be very trixy, but zinc will sometimes have folds or wrinkles, as seen on yours, upper left near the hinge.

[Flak88]

Gorgeous badges, absolutely top notch! I think the Tombak looks familiar to me???

Fabulous finish to the zinc - I am amazed at the variety of finishes on the flaks. More than I can believe!

Marc

[ERIC]

Awesome Flak JTW! Here's another of the same flavor. ( you know this one Marc!)

[ERIC]

The Reverse:

[Flak88]

Another familiar bird!