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Wardaggers.com -
German dagger
reproductions are prevalent in today's collector
market and cover all branches of the German Military
during WWII. This page is dedicated to expose some
of the more blatant reproductions and the minor
details that can sometimes be used to determine a
good dagger from a reproduction. Right after the end
of the war in 1945 some enterprising Solingen
factories switched their allegiance from producing
edged weapons and related wares for the war effort,
to satisfy an increasing demand for the souvenir
hunting occupying forces.
Unfortunately for the dedicated edged weapon collectors of today, this
production of post war copies and reproductions has
continued and from Countries all over the World. |
| While this
page should give an insight into some of the
pit-falls and obvious flaws relating to original and
post war German daggers, there is no substitute for
experience, good reference material and hands on
inspections. The details shown here will of course
vary from each and every dagger, original and fake
but I hope to provide enough information for you to
feel comfortable in making an informed decision on
what can be a very costly mistake or worthwhile
purchase. |
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Page 1 (
ARMY DAGGER ) |
GERMAN ARMY DAGGER - REPRODUCTION AWARENESS |
Page 2 (
UNDER CONSTRUCTION ) |
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Shown below are what appears to be three German Army
Officers daggers however only one is authentic and
original to the WWII period. This page has been
constructed to act as an aid or reference to both
new and experienced German dagger collectors who may
be considering purchasing an original dagger and the
tell tale signs to look for in diagnosing an
original dagger from a number of reproductions that
have surfaced from numerous sources ever since the
end of the war in 1945. This side by side comparison
should make it relatively obvious that the fakers
are in fact going backwards in regards to quality
and precision although bad lighting, blurred or out
of focus pictures and modifications can hide a
multitude of flaws and the inferior quality. I have
chosen not to list every fault for obvious reasons
but enough for new collectors to be able to feel
confident in making what should be an exciting
purchase.
While this page focuses on the Holler reproductions,
other makers do exist such as Weyersberg, Clemen and
Jung, Herbertz & Muerer etc. |
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ROTATE DAGGER USING
CLICK DRAG OR MOUSE-WHEEL |
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( A )
ORIGINAL - 1937-1942 |
(B) REPRODUCTION
1946-1960's |
(C) REPRODUCTION
1970-PRESENT |
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ROTATE DAGGER USING
CLICK DRAG OR MOUSE-WHEEL |
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(A)
An original
mid-period German Army Officers dagger by Robert
Klaas. Fitted with Generic "B" hilt fittings and
a Generic scabbard and pommel. These mass
produced parts by an unknown maker ( probably
Herder or Wingen ) where used by many
manufacturers who did not produce their own
factory made dagger parts from 1937-1942. Some
of the larger firms are also known to have used
them for short periods, probably during material
or man-power shortages as the War began to bite
and in order to keep production rolling.
Firstly, the most obvious difference between this German dagger and it's
following pretenders is the detail. Notice
how small and well defined the detail is to the
pommel, crossguard, ferrule and scabbard bands.
The Trolon grip has NO evident seam or finishing
marks and is hand milled to fit the pommel,
ferrule and the interior blade tang. It is also
worth noting on this German dagger that a seam
mark is visible to the edge of the ferrule, in
most cases this will be hidden or disguised but
occasionally you will find period flaws, just
not to the extent shown on the other two. The
scabbard band rings are smaller and well sealed,
the pebbling to the scabbard shell is much
smaller and with well defined channels running
down the length. Every part of this Officers
dagger has been smoothed and lovingly perfected
by skilled craftsmen. The blade tang in 95% of
all Generic B type daggers, will be the later
shouldered variety and the interior milling of
the grip should be sized accordingly to fit.
I could go on for pages but I have chosen to stop there, giving a few
hints to the most obvious traits and differences
based on first impressions. |
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(B)
This
reproduction is one that everybody should be
aware of. Produced, so I am told in
England around the 1950's and with a variety of
trademarks, this dagger can quite easily pass as
an original Heer dagger going on pictures alone.
The general appearance, detail and faux patina
is relatively convincing and this coupled with a
blade trademark that is also very accurate does
confirm that caution should be taken no matter
how confident you are in the seller. Most post
was army dagger trademarks are poorly struck,
with incorrect location attributions, i.e Holler
bearing the Berlin location in the trademark.
This dagger being a relatively early copy has
the correct " Solingen " detail and an
impressive etched and burnished TM. The scabbard
throat has a retaining screw where most repro's
are either pressed or non-existent. The dagger
breaks down just like an original and even
includes a leather blade buffer on the underside
of the cross-guard.
There are three major dead give-a ways with this example, all of which
will require pictures of the internal parts.
Firstly, the blade tang. As mentioned before,
the Generic B style parts should be matched with
a shouldered blade tang ( original tapered tangs
do exist ) and the tang on this dagger is
modeled on a tapered tang blade. It is hugely
over-sized and this was intentional by the
manufacturer to suit the internals of the molded
PLASTIC grip. No hand finishing or milling
required here, mass produced and to ensure a
snug universal fit, both points serve today as
recognizable signs of this style of German Army
dagger reproduction.
The third obvious mistake is the hole for the blade tang in the crossguard,
this is machine cut and exactly rectangular.
Originals are hand filed and rarely exhibit
exact proportions and dimensions.
Other points worth noting on this German dagger copy is the rough casting
evident on all the fittings when held in the
hand, you can actually feel the residue left by
casting which has not been polished or coated as
seen on original dagger parts. The holes for the
scabbard rings in the bands are countersunk and
oversized, the blade ridges are wrong, excessive
swirl pattern evident to the scabbard shell.
These German dagger reproductions are good but not THAT good, they even
tarnish over time. If you are not sure, always
insist on pictures of all parts of the dagger to
include the internals. |
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(C)
The less
said about this pile of junk, the better. If you
are unsure of the differences between this one
and an original then collecting spectacles might
be a safer bet!. I am not going to list
everything that is wrong with this dagger as it
would probably be easier to list things they
actually got right. Very poorly cast fittings,
plastic grip, no scabbard throat, no retaining
screws, piece does not break down, huge side
seam marks on ALL the parts, stamped trademark,
chrome plated blade..........enough already.
Its terrible.
Another great point and observation made by a warrelics forum member regarding
the repro's shown on this page vs original daggers is that the scabbard band oak
leaves face the opposite direction to the original. While this can serve as an
indicator it should not be used as a fool-proof method of detection, as many
original daggers can also feature right facing leaves. Wingen for example seem
to have adopted this style of scabbard band orientation as standard on their
early daggers. |
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Army Dagger Trademarks |
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( A )
ORIGINAL - 1937-1942 |
(B) REPRODUCTION
1946-1960's |
(C) REPRODUCTION
1970-PRESENT |
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(A)
Original -
Correct Solingen designation and numerous ticks
within the thermometer, crisp etched and
burnished F.W.Holler trademark. |
(B)
Reproduction - Correct Solingen designation but
with lack of ticks within the thermometer,
some minor discrepancies with the oval borders
and style of font. |
(C)
Reproduction - Looks like it was struck with a
sledge hammer. Incorrectly stamped and with the
"Berlin" designation. Just terrible. |
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Army Dagger Crossguards |
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MOUSE OVER IMAGE TO ENLARGE |
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( A )
ORIGINAL - 1937-1942 |
(B) REPRODUCTION
1946-1960's |
(C) REPRODUCTION
1970-PRESENT |
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MOUSE OVER IMAGE TO ENLARGE |
(A)
German Army Officers dagger with typical silver
plated Generic B parts. The casts for these
fittings where standardized in 1936/7 to do away
with the need for hand enhancing on earlier
designs and streamline production. This
particular cross-guard can be found in a number
of finishes from heavy silver plate to late war
silver wash and with pot metal base metals. It
was in use for approx 6 years and was utilized
by numerous companies, many of them relatively
small. The later pot metal examples do not tend
to show the detailing found on the quality
silvered example as shown above but they will
still be of a much higher quality than the
reproduction examples. Compare the ferrules and
the head of the eagles on all three which should
give you a good footing on recognizing a good
German army dagger from a bad one. |
(B)
This
reproduction German army dagger crossguard was
almost certainly cast from an original well
detailed Generic B crossguard. They used a much
heavier base metal ( probably steel ) and coated
the finished product in a substance that
resembles silver wash. On original German
daggers they coated the base metals prior to
silvering with a thin coat of nickel or copper
so that the plate would adhere, these numerous
coats resulted in a smooth quality and well
detailed finished end product. No such layering
or under coat exists on this early reproduction
and the base metal flaws are evident under the
zinc wash. |
(C)
Not even
going to waste my finger tips typing anything
about this one. It is a tenth generation copy of
a poor copy and looks more like a turkey. Simply
compare the ferrule on this one to the first
dagger. |
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Page 1 (
ARMY DAGGER ) |
GERMAN ARMY DAGGER - REPRODUCTION AWARENESS |
Page 2 (
UNDER CONSTRUCTION ) |
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