HJ Dagger offered need original verification

[Larry C]

I understand that better pieces are out there, but with original pieces getting fewer.

Fortunately in the case of collecting the HJ knife at this time...there is an over abundance of these original knives offered,,,and in circulation. The ratio of these knives compared to 1 SA or 1 SS dagger...is near 3-1. I base this number,,( as an average ) on the amount of children in one family household who have entered the DJ or HJ..compared to 1 male parent joining the SA or SS. Eventually those HJ members moved up the ranks when old enough to the SA or SS. But for those HJ members who never made it that far as the war ended while they were still young ,,,still paves the way for the amount of HJ daggers left over. These daggers were mass produced more so for the intent that the Nazis knew according to doctrine that many youth would join or be forced to join.
BUT..Easterneagle....if you are set on buying this example shown,,then it is your decision. The advice offered above is very true,, and the value will not increase at all once the HJ knife is altered.
I am not a fan of parts daggers which is a pet peeve of mine,,as the parts would not be original to each other,, being assembled as one together.
You may obtain a diamond or what ever you wish to enhance this knife,,...If your happy with it then go for it,, but at the end of the day..it will be you,, and the discerning eyes of the collecting community that will know the truth in its authenticity. Best regards Larry

[easterneagle]

My reply to Larry C.
Your comments, and those who have posted, are well taken. As a collector I too don't want a "put together" piece. I am upfront with everything I do. If I don't know it is real/original, then I say so. Pure-ists are just that, those who seek nothing but the best. Almost to the point of being snobs. Which is OK, because it leaves the crumbs to the rest of us. I understand your "advice" is just looking out for our best interests. There are those who would cobble a item together and claim it is a "whole". The reason for the original post was, A friend of mine, mentioned he was looking for an HJ dagger. He is not a TR collector. I saw this piece and before any purchase was made, wanted to confirm the base of it was the real deal. That has been accomplished. Beginning collectors are not looking at the Capitalistic side of collecting. Do they really care that in 10 - 20 years they are going to double/triple their money. No, they want their foot in the door and to get a start. Military collecting has gone the same way as baseball cards, WHAT IS IT WORTH. Book says it is worth X, but that is not the same as what you're actually going to get for it. Will this go down in price, no. It still is an original. For the beginning collector, this realitive low $ purchase is a whole lot easier to swallow than the $225 to $XXX orginals I've seen. It can even be parlayed into a better piece later. Yes, it is my (or their) ultimate decision whether to buy or not to buy. These daggers were low end items when I was a kid 40 years ago and for under $15 you could have gotten them. That is not the case today. Worth is in the eye of the beholder. By purchasing it and not altering it, it could be said that you're actually perserving the field from a trumped up piece and saving an unsuspecting collector from fraud. It is only money after all.

[gerrit]

Its what you seek in a collection.
I know collectors who dont like mint pieces, they want those heavily used " been there" relics.
Others only collect what they dig up at battlefields.
Others prefer only mints....
I Always prefered a mix of mint pieces ( to have some stuff that could easily be traded if a piece comes along that i wanted) and battlefield dig ups.
I have the luck to be in 4 -5 hours at the Verdun battelfields, the Bastogne or Hurtgen Woods......

so its what you seek thats important.
The advice given here are as you say also based on value, reason is that a lot of money gets involved, and if you need money for personal reasons or need to trade for a wanted piece, only the mint or very good ones will do the trick.

Knives like the above one will not bring any value into a trade, so if your happy with that then buy the knife!

Cheers,
Ger