Best book for WW2 German collectable price Guide.

[UKGirlGermanLife]

OK

I am looking for an up to date price guide book. Mainly for medals, pins, miniatures.

If it has uniforms, capsand helmets then it's a bonus.

Please can you advise which books you use or find most helpful.

Thanks
Nika

[Neil Hever]

I don't know how others feel about this topic, but my opinion is that a price guide is quickly outdated. I prefer to look at dealer sites and then adjust the price for a private sale. But as always, value is a relative kind of thing. Someone might be willing to pay 80 or a 100 dollars for a 3rd class wound badge. I would not. Currently, I would say about 50 dollars. But I already have a few examples. The best you can do is determine a ballpark figure as the saying goes. If you need it for insurance purposes be careful to assign reasonable values. NH

[DrPMC]

I agree with Neil, although reference books are very important collector's sources, printed price guides have had their day. The best guide are the listed prices and selling prices on dealers internet sites and auction places. Although ebay obviously doesn't list a lot of things with swastikas on, the Militaria 321 auction site is useful for showing what things are actually selling for as opposed to being listed for.

Regards, Philip

[Neil Hever]

Record collectors can go to popsike.com for actual auction results. I don't think there is an equivalent for Third Reich militaria. NH

[Sarge]

Anyone who attempted to publish a one size fits all price guide for military reliks, and especially for WW 2 German in the U.S., would be lying thru his teeth!!!
There are at least 3 and more probably 5 different "zones" in the US for prices on WW 2 German militaria. Then you have prices in Europe which are about the same as far as value variations.
The auction sites are not a good place too look for values be cause those from the areas where the prices are higher will normally be the ones who win the auction.
Sarge

[HPL2008]

There is no "one-stop" price guide that includes medals, miniatures, uniforms and caps. If such a thing existed (it never will) it would be the kind of multi-volume work one would a wheelbarrow or two to cart around.

As for decorations specifically:

You could get "Deutsche Orden und Ehrenzeichen. Drittes Reich, DDR und Bundesrepublik" (9th edition, 2014) by Nimmergut, Feder & von der Heyde. Nimmergut's price guide is a classic and the book is an affordable, attractive presentation and good as a handy quick-reference. It (obviously) includes the Third Reich era as well as the GDR and FRG (including the 1957er decorations).

Other renowned guides are "Auszeichnungen des Dritten Reiches. Spezialkatalog 2015/2016" (2014) by Lothar Bichlmeier & Lothar Hartung and "Katalog der Auszeichnungen des Deutschen Reiches 1871 - 1945" (3rd edition, 2012) by André Hüsken. The "Deutsche Auszeichungen..." series of "Typenkompass" books by Volker A. Behr also got very favorable reviews.

However, as has been said above, printed price guides are of very limited usefulness.

If they are comprehensive, well-illustrated and -structured, they are excellent tools for identifying unknown pieces, but in terms of getting orientation on what is an acceptable price, one can pretty much forget about them.
For starters, they date all too quickly. Then, there is the fact that dealers' prices are higher than those for sales from collector to collector and that prices vary greatly between sellers anyway. Finally, what is a fair price for any given item also depends on factors such as condition, maker, provenance/documentation, on whether it is a standalone piece or part of a grouping etc. etc.; too many possible factors and combinations thereof to put down in a price guide, which can only offer a ballpark average value that is of little use in the real world.
If a price guide says that some decoration costs X Euros, the given price may be appropriate for a specimen from a common manufacturer and in average condition, but the same decoration in pristine condition, from a rare manufacturer and with documented provenance might well cost several times that and still be not overpriced.