Steel Heer buckle original?!

[DutchDude]

Hello everyone!

I am new here

I live in the centre of the Netherlands, there's this new WW2 museum located in the south of my country and it's getting some great reviews so yesterday I went for a long drive and visited it.

The museum was indeed great, albeit a bit small, but contained some great stuff..

Anyways to make short story long: Afterwards I went to their shop and impulsively bought a steel Heer buckle. The guy said 'it was real' and looking at all the other stuff for sale there it got me convinced it is.

But, after searching the www and stumbling on this site I'm not conviced anymore.. could anyone help me confirm wether it's authentic or not? Perhaps some more details on it?

That would be much appreciated.. here are three pictures of it (from the museum's site) if you want more detailled I'll grab my own camera:

[Erno]

Welcome to the forum! Unfortunately, that's a fake one. The design and construction is unlike any original. It's a shame to hear that a museum is selling fake artifacts to the public.

[weller]

Welcome to the forum DutchDude! I have to agree with Erno that the buckle does not look good; hope you did not pay a lot for it and/or you can return it. Here are two militaria sellers in your area that I have bought an item or two from and they have nice items and were excellent to deal with:

3°Reich

https://www.militariaplaza.nl/belts-buckles-35

Jeff

[DutchDude]

Both thanks for the replies!

That's quite disappointing though.. I still have the receipt (actually they mentioned I've got warranty) and will contact the museum then. I've paid 100 Euros for it..

Are there any specific details that indicate it's fake which I can use as an argument? What would be the value of it as a replica?

And thanks for the link Jeff!

[Erno]

Both thanks for the replies!

That's quite disappointing though.. I still have the receipt (actually they mentioned I've got warranty) and will contact the museum then. I've paid 100 Euros for it..

Are there any specific details that indicate it's fake which I can use as an argument? What would be the value of it as a replica?

And thanks for the link Jeff!

It's good that you have a warranty on it! Hopefully they will honor it. I recently sold an original steel Heer buckle for about 45 euro, so if you look around you can find them at very affordable prices.

As for the characteristics that distinguish this one as a fake, there are a few actually. For one, the design of the eagle is only found on fakes. Also, the catch (where the belt hook attaches to the buckle) is unlike an original, and the prongs are a type that were only used by one company (Berg und Nolte) in this configuration, and your buckle was not made by that company. (Thanks to Ben Evans for that information.) You can find similar eagles in the 'fake Heer buckles' section of this forum for comparison.

[Ben Evans]

Hello mate and welcome to the forum In ref to your buckle as the guys have stated it is a known fake, bad box, wrong ears, bad catch, bad prongs, really bad eagles beak, just a total fake. If you are not sure about buckle have a good read of this thread, may give you good info

Buckle and Belt characteristics, originals & fakes

Cheers

- - ------- - -

Also, the catch (where the belt hook attaches to the buckle) is unlike an original, and the prongs are a type that were only used by one company (Berg und Nolte) in this configuration, and your buckle was not made by that company. (Thanks to Ben Evans for that information.) You can find similar eagles in the 'fake Heer buckles' section of this forum for comparison.

Nice to see guys learn from the threads

[DutchDude]

Thanks! I've already had e-mail contact with the museum director - he's been quick to reply. To sum it up he's apologized several times and was coöperative in finding a solution: I can sent it back to them and will get a full refund and a free ticket for the future.

In one of the email's he said he checked the pictures to other people and according to his sources "it's authentic altough the catch might have be solded on" but if it's really a fake he again apoligized for it and it was an accidental slip.

I don't know if he was or was not really aware that it's a fake, I'd like to think he was genuinely unaware, but I'm happy about the way he responded -his attitude in the e-mails was pretty customer friendly and I'll be getting my money back ofcourse

[weller]

Good for you DutchDude, glad you worked it out. For what you paid for that fake buckle, check out this link and get a good one. I would buy more from the sites in Europe but the exchange rate and shipping can run up the total price a lot:

Heer buckles: Army

Jeff

[Erno]

Nice to see guys learn from the threads

I've been studying the threads with a keen interest ever since I decided to specialize in buckles! The best information is right here, in my opinion. The books are good, but not nearly as accurate and dynamic. Thank you for all the guidance.

DutchDude, it is good to hear that you're able to get a refund. Study the threads here about whichever types of buckles (or any other sort of militaria) interest you, and you will be able to spot the real from the fake in no time, especially in cases like this one. Some fakes (especially the molded aluminum ones) take a trained eye to spot with accuracy, but most steel buckles are pretty easy to tell good from bad once you know what to look for.