Help: Tschapka authenticity question

[eccles]

Greetings gents,
Might I ask for some opinions on this piece with regards to authenticity and red flags?
thanks!
James

 

[Sergei1877]

I don't like it. I think it's not original.

 

[eccles]

thanks sir...
are you willing to give any insights into particular red flags?

 

[Lars13]

Hi James,
I'm not an expert on Tschapkas, but for me the following things stand out:

• The liner looks ill-fitting and very uncomfortable, with folds in the leather that would lead to pressure points, and in addition it looks like it is dirty all over, imo it is an artificially-aged reproduction.
• The shell is missing the typical elegance seen in officer Tschapkas, and the surface seems to be heavily reworked; there might be an original shell underneath but imo it is not in anything like original condition.
• The peak is normally folded over rather than sewn on with visible stitching, and it looks like there is stitching visible here.
• The Rabatt looks very crude, imo a reproduction.

Regards,
Lars

 

[eccles]

thank you so much for that Lars!
I really appreciate your thoughts on this!

 

[pickelhauben]

The chinstrap has the double-tongued scales throughout.
It should alternate 2 tongues then 3 and so on.

 

[eccles]

there's a lot to learn here hey... I naïvely thought Imperial era things might not be as much as a minefield as WWII items - which I am far more familliar with... but the learning is all part of the fun!
thankyou for sharing your expertise guys! you've helped me avoid a costly mistake!

 

[eccles]

btw are there any good youtube channels that focus on Imperial era things? I learned so much by watching Tom Wittmann's videos - just the fact you can see closeup details of authentic items is incredibly instructive... is there anything like that for Kaiser era stuff?

 

[eccles]

as I'm new here I thought I'd post a few of my modest pieces... enjoy the lovely tones of the mess bell

 

[eccles]

oh darn... the video attachment wouldn't go through... so you don't get to hear its dulcit tones...

 

[KAGGR#1]

Hi James,
I'm not an expert on Tschapkas, but for me the following things stand out:

• The liner looks ill-fitting and very uncomfortable, with folds in the leather that would lead to pressure points, and in addition it looks like it is dirty all over, imo it is an artificially-aged reproduction.
• The shell is missing the typical elegance seen in officer Tschapkas, and the surface seems to be heavily reworked; there might be an original shell underneath but imo it is not in anything like original condition.
• The peak is normally folded over rather than sewn on with visible stitching, and it looks like there is stitching visible here.
• The Rabatt looks very crude, imo a reproduction.

Regards,
Lars

• The Rabatt looks very crude, imo a reproduction. I think no question on the Rabatt. Not close .Steve

 

[KAGGR#1]

as I'm new here I thought I'd post a few of my modest pieces... enjoy the lovely tones of the mess bell

View attachment 52558

That is a neat little piece
What book is it shown in?
Thanks
Steve

 

[eccles]

That is a neat little piece
What book is it shown in?
Thanks
Steve

Hi Steve,
the book is "German War Booty" by Thomas Johnson... it's filled with photos of things that most of us collectors could only dream of owning!
very nice things...
in the case of this piece, it's the actual one in the book - I bought it from Johnson two or three years ago.
It has a beautiful sound (you turn the spike and it rings the bell)

 

[eccles]

the rest of my modest imperial collection...

 

[eccles]

not German, but another piece I love...

 

[KAGGR#1]

Hi Steve,
the book is "German War Booty" by Thomas Johnson... it's filled with photos of things that most of us collectors could only dream of owning!
very nice things...
in the case of this piece, it's the actual one in the book - I bought it from Johnson two or three years ago.
It has a beautiful sound (you turn the spike and it rings the bell)

Thanks
Steve