Kriegsmarine Unmarked Minesweeper

[stewy]

Hi people,this is my only example of this award. A worn zincker. Stewy

[stewy]

Reverse.

[Martin W]

Looks like a nice Foerster & Barth Zincer Stewy.

Regards,Martin.

[Gordon Williamson]

My first thought too, but when I compared with two known F&B pieces I can see a few differences. Here are two F&B pieces, one early in Tombak and one later in Zinc.

Note the area to both badges around the eagles head is full cut out, compre the same area in Stewy's.

[Gordon Williamson]

Pin shape is very slightly different with the widest part of the hinge higher up.

[Gordon Williamson]

I can also see several differences in the outline profile shape, just a few indicated here, but there are several.

Bearing in mind the AS ball hinge type Minesweeper and the unmarked one in the same style but which shows several minor differences in die characteristic, and some think is from a different maker, I think we can certainly call this one a Foerster & Barth style but can't be 100% sure.

My own thought is that it may well be from F&B but from a different set of tooling. For a badge like the Minesweeper which was made in very large numbers its quite possible that some firms had more than one set of tooling.

The early Tombak and late Zink pieces above are identical and clearly come from the same set of tooling. This one is almost identical but I'd say not from the same tool.

[Martin W]

Hi Gordon,

this badge is courtesey of Sascha Weber.It has the same reverse features around the eagles head as Stewy's badge,i think.Looks like it has a more "typical' Foerster & Barth type pin,as seen on your examples.

As you mentioned,probably a different set of tooling used by F&B.

I have seen the style of pin on Stewy's badge used on some of their HSK badges.

Regards,Martin.

[Gordon Williamson]

Yep, this one is much nearer to Stewy's. Given the other Zinc piece ( which is from Thomas Huss) is identical to the earlier Tombak example, we'd have to assume its the earlier of the Zinc types and the type owned by Stewy is most likely a later war example from F&B using different tooling.