Gildwiller1918

Here is a WW1 M1915 German belt buckle, for Prussian troops. This is the buckle that would go with the belt listed above. These are later period types as early war ones were brass colored. I got this from a vendor some time ago, in which the buckles were still in the paper wraps. As stated before there were many types of buckles for the various German states and for various organizations. This type is for enlisted men and NCO's.

This is a M1909 standard issue belt for German troops in WW1. This belt allows for the addition of a belt buckle to be added, which was dependent on the state in Germany where the troops were from. This particular belt is stamped with "I.R. 11" which I believe is for Infantry Regiment number 11. Also it is dated 1915.

Here is another German ammunition pouch, this one dated 1917. There are no apparent ink stamps inside the pouch on this one. These pouches were designed to be worn with the standard issue belt which went through the two loops on the rear of the pouch. The "D" rings could be used to attach the the horsehair packs, bread bag straps, suspenders, etc.

Here is a nice WW1 M1909 German ammunition pouch used with the 98 Mauser rifle. These pouches held the rifle ammunition on stripper clips and could be pulled out when needed to reload. This one is dated 1916, there is also a stamp inside the pouch compartment. Although these are the pouches most are familiar with, due to wartime shortages, it was not uncommon to use older or captured ammunition pouches as well.

No problem Fritz, already done.

Here is a nice WW1 German Gas Mask and carrying tin. The mask is leather which replaced rubber in the summer of 1917.

Items moved to new forum topic

Here is Tyne Cot cemetery outside of Ypres. Quite a difference in presentation than the German sites. But I felt it important to visit as many sites as I could. The great war affected everyone, and as such, I wanted to see for myself the cost endured.

Here are some pictures of Langemark German war cemetery, which I visited in 2015. I went to several other sites as well. It is hard not to notice the difference between the German sites and the Allied ones. This site was interesting in the fact it was located very close to the place where the use of poison gas was released on the western front for the time. In the last picture you see a pole with a white flag, these poles were where the gas was released.

Hello Fritz, I do not have the brow plate yet, still looking. There are a lot of fakes out there right now. I had to special order the webbing materials, and yes the iron rivets would be better, but I didn't have the tools for them. So I went with copper for display purposes. I might in the future swap them out with the correct type. I am working on a WW1 French Daigre armor set now. I have the original plate along with new fabric and parts, should turn out really nice when done. I dont know of anyone who has a intact one.

Here is another one of my favorite pieces, WW1 German Armor. There are 2 types, one for machine gunners and static positions, and the the second type used for assault troops. This is the one used for assault troops as it has the shoulder stock ridge on the upper right side (users right). When I got this all the plates were disassembled, inside the duffle bag. Also included were the felt pads. All the plates are stamped with lot numbers, and I re-assembled the plates using a another set of armor as a guide. I used the correct type of webbing straps and black waxed rope to secure the plates together and used copper rivets for the shoulder pieces. Turned out nice I think. The duffle bag has LT. A.G. Cherry, 301st engineers, which was part of the US 76th Division. They arrived in france in July of 1918 and were for the most part, piecemealed out to other units. Typically engineers and other specialist units were kept together and forwarded to units in need. Note the sticker on the inside with Cherry's name as well.

Here is another M1917 marked "ZB 55". Has the liner intact, but missing the chinstrap.

Here is another US M1917, marked "ZC 180". It has the liner intact, however the felt pad has deteriorated away. Additionally there is a painted emblem on the side, that of the US 28th Infantry Division.

Here is another US M1917 marked "ZA 54" complete with liner, no chinstrap.

Here is a US M1917 marked "ZB 15", also a close up of the sawdust used to reduce glare when mixed with paint.