Luftwaffe Signals EM/NCO visor cap by eReL.

[Adrian]

Posting this one that has recently arrived in my small collection of visor caps.

As the title says, an EM/NCO visor in Luftwaffe Signals brown from Robert Lubstein of Berlin. An early cap dated 1938.

It has a nice shape and is in reasonably good condition bar a moth hole in the rear. I'm not sure if the eagle is original to the cap, but I can't see any separate holes where another one might've been.

Inside the sweat band it is stamped with the date and marked for 'Luftnachrichten-Abteilung 15'.

I have stuffed some acid free paper in the front to support the peak in the front because there is no stiffener. Without it the front is unsupported and the eagle's swastika hangs down over the cockade. If anyone has any suggestions for a better fix to keep the front up I would appreciate it.

Any thoughts or comments would be welcome.

[Bob Lyons]

Attractive cap

[TWS]

Nice addition Adrian.

[ErWeSa]

Another nice cap. Is there really no stiffener inside or has it just broken? As you are now a restoration specialist you could try to replace/support the broken stiffener. As far as I can see there is this fabric protuding which envelopes/ed the stiffener (red arrow).



The easiest thing to do would be cut a strip of plastic (not very authentic), better use a stainless metal spring which corresponds in length and width to the original stiffener and insert it behind (for a more authentic restoration you would have to open the "hull" of the old stiffener, insert the replacement and then close the hull with a few tight stitches) the original stiffener and secure it with a few tight stiches to the original hull. I am not sure if my English is sufficient to explain this well enough but I am convinced you get the idea of what I propose.

Here is Hempe's instruction for the stiffener:

[Adrian]

I've has a feel to see if I could find anything in there that might be a stiffener or remains of one but couldn't feel anything, I'll have a better look tomorrow. I get exactly what you mean, open up the area where it would be and then insert a replacement and close afterwards.

Below is a photo of the front of the cap with no support so you can see how low it sits. I prefer the cap material to be where it's supposed to be rather than add or maintain unnecessary folding in the material.

[stonemint]

Adrian, what about just having it swept back a la Erich Hartmann?:

[Adrian]

I'd rather it swept back and looking good than flat and misshapen! I'll have a look and see what I can do with a stiffener in there.