Leather Peaks

[Aldo]

Here are my two leather peak visors. An early SS cap devoid of any markings and an early Political Ortsgruppe visor. The contrast in colors is amazing. Feel free to post your leather peaks.

NSDAP Ortsgruppe Form II Visor

Another Early SS Visor

[Tim030]

Very nice pair. Most impressive.

Tim

[Rich Moran]

I've had this for years. Out of Dr Julian Milestone collection via Bill Shea. The felt band is not overlayed of the whole cap material as is sometimes seen, the felt was applied since new.

[NSDAP Sammler]

Very nice visor, Rich! The eagle is really very beautiful! What I always notice about the early visors is that they often don't comply with the regulations. Same in your case. Since your visor has a velvet cap band, it is the pattern after 1935 and should therefore have the larger pattern 35 eagle and not the pattern 33. Al's visor is the earlier pattern without the medium brown velvet cap band, this one can have the pattern 33 eagle or - as it is now the case - the pattern 1934 eagle. Another interesting thing about Rich's visor is that it was most likely worn by an Ortsgruppenleiter, as the cap cord is gold-colored. Unfortunately, my research with the name "Karl Grambs" did not yield any results, nor could I find out whether Grambs was an NSDAP Ortsgruppenleiter in Hardisleben (Thuringia) at the time.

[Aldo]

WoW Rich, that is a stunning cap!

[Rich Moran]

Very nice visor, Rich! The eagle is really very beautiful! What I always notice about the early visors is that they often don't comply with the regulations. Same in your case. Since your visor has a velvet cap band, it is the pattern after 1935 and should therefore have the larger pattern 35 eagle and not the pattern 33. Al's visor is the earlier pattern without the medium brown velvet cap band, this one can have the pattern 33 eagle or - as it is now the case - the pattern 1934 eagle. Another interesting thing about Rich's visor is that it was most likely worn by an Ortsgruppenleiter, as the cap cord is gold-colored. Unfortunately, my research with the name "Karl Grambs" did not yield any results, nor could I find out whether Grambs was an NSDAP Ortsgruppenleiter in Hardisleben (Thuringia) at the time.

Sammler, I've not changed anything since owning this visor. I've had it now for 25+ years. When I saw it I fell in love with it as leather billed visors in the condition this one is in, now although fragile, was stunning as Aldo pointed out.

Regarding the eagle, perhaps Grambs was a older NSDAP member and wanted to display the early eagle or the maker yet had the earlier style eagle and wanted to use up inventory. We will never know on that one.

I've tried researching for a Karl Grambs as well and was advised by a gentleman who lives close to the area stated " it is a very small town so trying to find any history from the town from the 30's is near impossible to do as no records exist."

Karl Grambs worked as the Ortsgruppenleiter in Hardisleben but may have allso held another position besides his Orts position which I think was more or less a part time job. There is so much unknow from that time period in lesser territories of who did what and then along the way some may have been removed from party records for criminal activity as we have seen before.

This makes me wonder if Karl Grambs entered the SS as many of these leaders did. I will have to check the member list to see if his name is there.

As an interesting side note, Dr Julian Millestone was a prominent collector from LA Area if memory serves me correct. One day he came home from work to find his wife tied up and his home and collection ransacked as the thieves made off with a large part of his collection of which they specifically targeted. I am not sure about how Bill Shea got the visor but I think it may have been one the thieves left behind or missed. Law Enforcement never found who committed the theft.

There are older reference books on the subject where images of his collection were used in illustration. The collection of daggers & visors he had as I understand it was second to none.

Just read Milestone had his own notoriety but won't go into that here.