I'd take a cap for an admin made by Holters before a Pz Gren or some such other modish branch of a more standard make. One, because such designations of mode are, in large part, arbitrary sentiments established by the incantatory mouth words of two bit e-hustlers and folks who have seen too many movies. Two, because something old of superb quality top to bottom is more a thing to behold than a simple dye job, at least in my opinion. Yes, it's true that in raw total Panzer caps are more scarce than infantry. And scarcity makes a collectible object appealing. But it's all relative to me. There are many certain examples of infantry caps which by their quality make them more scarce than most Pz. Bottom line for me is it's about the quality.
The obsessive-compulsive mania of the branch checklist is lost on me personally, but certainly there is room for any kind of collector with any kind of whim. After all, this hobby is one with an inherent mania and absurdity attendant to it, I think. To imagine what these men would think if they saw the pyrotechnic dealer websites, the cutesy conjured nicknames for their regalia, the spats, the suffering, et cetera. That and something about the collecting of old hats is just kind of inherently silly. Come one, come all..
The obsessive-compulsive mania of the branch checklist is lost on me personally, but certainly there is room for any kind of collector with any kind of whim. After all, this hobby is one with an inherent mania and absurdity attendant to it, I think. To imagine what these men would think if they saw the pyrotechnic dealer websites, the cutesy conjured nicknames for their regalia, the spats, the suffering, et cetera. That and something about the collecting of old hats is just kind of inherently silly. Come one, come all..[/QUOTE]
Very well said. Much of the on line circus about all of this is somehow absurd, and imagine how much time I have wasted and how many otherwise profitable hours lost in inquiries about Trikot versus Tuch. All the same, for me, at least, the silly thing is an alternative to yet more bizarre and repugnant features of today's world, of gun violence, political collapse, economic dislocation from which piping and vulcan fiber offer me a welcome distraction. But a skeptical eye is warranted.
Curiously, my favorite farbe is carmine, a most attractive piping colour, but have never owned one of these hats.
I did handle a carmine piped, leather peaked Paul Kaps many years ago and like a fool, never bought it as the price was too much for me at the time. I'd buy it in a heartbeat if I had the chance again and to hell with the overdraft!
Even more curious is the fact that I'm very interested in the history of the Kriegsmarine, obsessed with the story of the Bismarck and have watched Das Boot a million times yet never had the urge to buy a KM schirmmuetze because the style and shape does nothing for me in aesthetic terms. To be brutally honest, I think they are rather ugly, especially the peaks with the chunky edge trim.
I suppose that given my product design training and experience restoring these things, I naturally gravitate towards the well made hats that have style and unique function like the HPC Frischluft caps which are IMO, works of art.
In response to the question as to whether we are all mad? grown men obsessed with old hats etc I couldn't agree with FB more. Why not loose ourselves in the study and collection of these items?
Life these days is full of frustrations and annoyances revolving around the hectic and superficial techno nonsense that rules everything we do, people glued to their cell phones and obsessed with facebook, CCTV, McDonalds, call centres in India, online Bingo and pay day loans charging 1000% interest.
I truly wish I had been born in a different era.
Dear Ben, when I dump the two general staff caps of mine, I will sell them to you. One is a Mueller of Dachauerstrasse and the other is a Lettel of Hannover, both with leather peaks.
I was born in a different age, grew up in it, and cannot adjust to the present. My life was shaped by people from the late 19th and early 20th century.
I am grateful to have these on line contacts, but such is no replacement for life lived in human terms without the techno bamboozling ala Thomas Friedman and other mountebanks.
But hats are silly and also very human, very decorative, interesting and invested of art and the creative. That's what we all miss, surely, as well as elegance, which is as dead as a do do.
Happy hats, friends.
PS I owned a wonderful KM officer's cap. The real ones are quite nice. I sold it to Shea for too little money, in fact. It is the only one I ever owned, but it was very nice cap.
The Panzer beret is also very floppy and ungainly, like the KM peaked cap, when compared to the saddle shaped caps with all the structure, gauze, wadding, wire and rigging of all kinds.
I had three of those and ditched them to Shea, too......he got the better deal by far.
I would take the artillery.
Good choice as it is a Paul Kaps and one of the most beautiful hats I've ever owned.
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