DDR Grenztruppen Mütze

[cricketchris1944]

DDR/NVA collecting have already entered the realms of fakes and fantasy items This field of collecting is well under way.

Regards, Lars

There is so few collector of DDR/NVA item why even do that.
chris

[Glenn66]

In 1991 I paid a tenner for a Grenztruppen Der DDR mantel with cuff title. I bet it's worth alot more than that now!

[Dukeport]

Hello all. What about this DDR Grenztruppen cap? Never seen one earlier with this "GRENZTRUPPEN" band. If it is real then it should be quite rare right? Thanks on forehand

Attachment 469622

My father took me to East Germany in February of 1990. We purchased this hat from a gent at the Gate. Table was a rag tag assortment of collected items. There was very little organization and non of the items look as though they had been doctored or changed. It was what he happened to have. We purchased about 20 hats and about 1000 (one thousand) pins, both soviet and DDR.

On the inside of the hat, it is impossible to move the emblem, as the bent pins are underneath at least two layers of material, totally sewn and sealed in. In fact you cannot even feel the bent pins inside the hat. So I would suggest the hat is totally legit. Why on earth would the tradesmen take time to alter a hat that was being sold for e few dollars. I think we paid $9.00 USD.

[KMMorris]

I can assure you this hat is not "totally ligit" my friend.

[Dukeport]

Ok, first of sorry about the sic (ligit), whoops. The main reason I bring this up is because I cannot see how to move the badge from it's location. The pins are within the hat itself. How was the badge put in place by street vendors and then have the hat totally resewn back up. Also why do this within 5 months of the wall falling?

[KMMorris]

People do things to make items look more appealing to buyers.
Firstly No DDR caps had the cockade on the peak, I can't recall any peaked cap that has this.
The pips on either side come off the shoulder boards of West German dress uniforms. And the DDR Gruppen cuff title is off the border guards uniform.

[Friedrich-Berthold]

Well done.

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I got a lot of this stuff in the DDR and the new united FRG in 1990.

It is also faked, but I am not alive to the variations there, since none of it is of the quality of what I generally collect.

[Glenn66]

If the cap is legit, surely there must be period photographs of same? It is not as if the service time of such uniforms was 70 years ago.

[Jonathan Wenberg]

Gents,

I've followed this thread for a little while. I have collected DDR for some time now and have amassed a reasonable stock of knowledge. I can tell you with absolute 100% certainty that no cap was ever created with a cuff title stuck crudely to it with what appear to be in fact silver NVA NCO pips. These were created to be visually striking for gullible tourists around the fall of the wall and after. You can still find these franken-hats in Berlin today around Checkpoint Charlie. Dukeport, as for the attachement of the cockade, someone has just shoved the pins of the cockade through the padding at the top of the hat that gives it its shape, that's why you can't feel them on the other side. A cursory glance at grenztruppen images on google will show you exactly how these visor caps are meant to look. Best to restore it as it is totally worthless in its current condition.

I hope this closes the book on this discussion of the infamous cuff title visors of the NVA.

Cheers =)