Wartime Naval Infantry Belt Buckle

[Kilroy Was Here]

Hi, here is what I believe to be a wartime Soviet Naval Infantry belt buckle. These seem fairly hard to find in any condition. I have looked for quite a while for one, sort of a holy grail for me, as I find the Soviet Naval Infantrymen to be some of the most heroic fighters of WW2......a very tough bunch of fellows.

The buckle looks almost like another that has been shown here, but the backside of that buckle is not shown:
https://www.warrelics.eu/forum/rkkf-...-buckle-12093/

The condition is not the greatest, but I feel this buckle has seen the war years. Do any other members have their examples to show?

Regards, Steve

[Fliegerfaust]

This one is found from Estonia.

[Kilroy Was Here]

This one is found from Estonia.

That is a very nice buckle you have, and have shown.

It looks like the one I have in above post. Can you show the back side also?

What is the size of this buckle in mm?

[vvadim]

Hi, here is what I believe to be a wartime Soviet Naval Infantry belt buckle.

This is regular Navy buckle. No special Naval infantry buckle ever existed. It's perhaps WW2 or may be few years latter.

[Dimas]

This is usual navy buckles guys. The original Naval infantry buckles is steel made and must be painted black, but sometimes is just not painted metal. Normally 50% of the Soviet Red Fleet take part in the battles as a naval infantry, due of big ship losses in the first period of the war and they wore they own normal navy uniform

[Kilroy Was Here]

This is regular Navy buckle. No special Naval infantry buckle ever existed. It's perhaps WW2 or may be few years latter.

Hi Vadim, OK, thanks. I have heard them called Naval infantry buckle here before so this is why I said it was infantry buckle.
Thanks again for info.

[Kilroy Was Here]

This is usual navy buckles guys. The original Naval infantry buckles is steel made and must be painted black, but sometimes is just not painted metal. Normally 50% of the Soviet Red Fleet take part in the battles as a naval infantry, due of big ship losses in the first period of the war and they wore they own normal navy uniform

Hello Dimas, very good, thanks for the detailed info about Soviet fleet and buckles.

So do you think my buckle I showed in the first post could possibly be a GPW era regular Navy buckle?

[Patgore]

Hello Dimas, very good, thanks for the detailed info about Soviet fleet and buckles.

So do you think my buckle I showed in the first post could possibly be a GPW era regular Navy buckle?

Nice old Soviet Navy buckle.

Navy buckles were attached to right end of belt until circa 1957 (by which time most wartime stocks were depleted).

Without provenance it's hard to be certain, but there's a good chance it's wartime.

Pat

[Kilroy Was Here]

Nice old Soviet Navy buckle.

Navy buckles were attached to right end of belt until circa 1957 (by which time most wartime stocks were depleted).

Without provenance it's hard to be certain, but there's a good chance it's wartime.

Pat

Hi Pat, OK, thanks for opinion and info. My buckle was found by a friend in Latvia. I have noticed that my buckle would be attached to belt at the right side end. Although a few here have said different dates like 1950 or 52 for when they switched to attach to left end of the belt?
Then also Dimas has shown in the past a belt buckle he said was wartime and a dug battle relic, and it attached to left side of belt? but this was a buckle with just Star and H&S, not a Navy buckle. There is much confusion about belt buckles it seems.

[RichieC]

Here I show two examples that I believe to be wartime made and used - one in steel, the other in brass: