Why All The Third Reich Fakes? Is There a Story Here?

[Robert666]

In the very short time I have been on this forum I have learned a lot. There are seamingly more fakes -- and some good quality fakes at that -- than there are real pieces from the Third Reich Era.

I have been told that anything Third Reich has gone up in value in the last 20 years. I get that. But still -- the prices are fairly modest on most medals, knives, helmets, etc. It is not as if a collector is tryng to buy a Rembrandt.

So what is in it for the forgers? Certainly they are not getting rich off of the few pieces they are forging. And we all know that it is a limited market that will buy these pieces which the general public finds offensive.

Is there a story here? Is there a certain location/group of forgers who are knocking these pieces out? Are these fakes relatively old, or are they being manufactured today?

[CBH]

Supply and Demand , no more supply , lots of demand . It's a lot easier to punch out or cast a fake combat badge or SS Skull , then paint a Rembrandt .
Fakes have been made since 1945 , so why would they stop now , demand has never been higher along with prices .
Cheers

[KMMorris]

The fakers make a good copy for a cheap price> they label it as an original> mark it the same value> cheat some body but receive the value of an original for a fake> have thousands more fakes> repeat the process. People have been making fakes from probably the 60s onward. In the end it is just a plus product return plan to make large amounts of money for seemingly low input.
Morris

[Danmark]

The art of 'weathering' or 'aging' a piece is the scariest aspect of modern faking in my opinion. As a new generation of collectors emerge ( and us oldies start to fade away ) the fakers are learning that "70 yr old" pieces have to look it. The effort that goes in sometimes to these creations would, in a strong economy, scarcely be worth the time and effort - BUT, to a person otherwise only able to earn a minimum wage in their country, time and effort costs nothing and some vicious "traps for young players" are emerging that look the part - BUT, still show the telltale signs of a reproduction - the job is to learn those signs.

Robert, your comments and observations show you are 'on the ball' but ALWAYS be wary and show here before you shell out those hard earned clams!!!
Cheers, Dan

[Sir Payne]

Fakers care more about money then they do of people. Therein lies the problem.

[Neil Hever]

If you want to insure the Third Reich item you purchase is unequivocally authentic then look for something that is next to impossible to fake. For example, original field phones are fairly easy to locate and NEVER reproduced. Perhaps a part like a handle may be reproduced but the main item is not - at least at this time. All bets are off on medals, cloth and leather. NH

[Sir Payne]

I understand where you are coming from NH, but I respectively disagree. I don't think a collector should limit himself to collecting only things that are impossible to fake. If somebody educates themselves, or uses the forum correctly, then they can know 100% that their items are unequivocally authentic.

[BOB COLEMAN]

When the cost of aquisition exceeds the cost of reproduction, you will have fakes.

[Walkwolf]

I got out of Third Reich material for quite a while in the early eighties.
There was a heavy increase in fake items due to demand and rising
prices for original pieces even at that time. There was a lot more
'good stuff' available - and the quality of original items was so
much better. Like back then, I still cannot afford or justify
spending $1500 for a genuine Luftwaffe Pilot badge, but
the fakers keep pumping all this stuff out, making
good money off the foolish or unwary.

I've also noticed that places like Ebay have large amounts of fake
TR items, yet I see bids placed on the most terrible 'copies'.
Who is buying this crap ? - I believe it is the young,
who like me years before, still cannot afford
the 'real deal' today.........

[M18922]

They also made fakes during the third Reich.

Cheers, Pat