Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Evaluating and Upgrading a Reproduction WWII German Field Blouse


At the time of writing (2019) reproduction WWII German field blouses have been reproduced by many manufacturers for more than 20 years. There are many options for new made uniforms and a wide variety of uniforms may be available on the secondhand market. This guide contains ideas for how to make any reproduction of a wool enlisted issue field blouse as realistic as it can be.
 
The first thing to evaluate is the insignia (if any) and how it is applied. Not all reproduction insignia are equal, and there are some terrible copies out there. Original issue-type shoulder straps were generally made out the same types of fabrics used for constructing uniforms. Pre-war straps were dark green and made out of a tightly woven, fairly smooth wool, the same stuff used for M36 tunic collars. Wartime straps were field gray. Pre-war shoulder strap piping was mostly wool, while rayon was predominant during wartime, though some wool piped wartime straps were produced. Look at photos of original straps to get an idea of what the piping should look like and how thick it should be. It was generally fairly narrow. If your shoulder straps have rope-thick piping, or are made out of a loosely knit wool/synthetic blend fabric, you should replace them.
 
Collar Litzen, in general, should be neatly machine applied. Der Erste Zug has a great guide on typical period application styles. Pay attention to the shape of the applied Litzen. See here for some wartime examples. The final pattern generic Litzen appeared in May, 1940, and are ideal for most wartime field blouses. The earlier generic Litzen from 1938, with dark green stripes, were normally factory applied on M36 and some M40 field blouses. The pre-1938 branch piped Litzen were usually only seen factory applied on M36 and earlier field blouse models.
 
Factory applied breast eagles were generally Bevo (machine woven) and were generally machine applied on wartime field blouses. Hand sewn eagles were common on pre-war uniforms, and some later field blouses did still have hand sewn eagles. Machine embroidered eagles on rayon backing appeared late in the war. Avoid eagles embroidered on wool or felt, these were a private purchase type, never applied at the factory, rarely seen on field tunics. Again, the 1940 pattern insignia (gray on field gray eagle) is ideal for most wartime field blouses. See this guide to determine what pattern of breast eagle would be most appropriate for the year in which your field blouse would have been made.
 
The next thing to look at is the buttons. The large pebbled buttons used for the front placket and pocket closures were made by many manufacturers and countless variations exist. They were made in aluminum, steel, zinc, and even Bakelite, and were painted in various shades. The size and appearance of the pebbling varied from manufacturer to manufacturer. Here are some typical worn wartime examples.
There are extremely good copies of original aluminum buttons currently being manufactured. Many reproductions being made today have pebbled buttons that are virtually perfect. But if your buttons are made of brass, or the pebbling is totally unlike that of originals, they should be replaced, either with originals or with better quality reproductions. Original buttons used on enlisted issue field blouses had a convex reverse with a shank for stitching to the uniform. Buttons with solid or flat backs should be replaced.
 
Look also at the small buttons. Here is some information about the types of small buttons originally used. Replace any colorful plastic buttons or plastic buttons molded to look like pressed paper buttons. Reproduction horn buttons are available, but small round black plastic buttons in the correct size may also be available at a local fabric store.
 
Look at the thread used to affix the buttons. Original button thread was thick stuff, here are some examples. If your buttons are sewn with thin garment thread, you need to re-stitch them with something that is more accurate and also stronger.
 
Look inside the front placket closure, behind the buttons, for size and manufacturer stamps like this.
All field blouses had these stamps when they were made. If they are absent, they can be added for extra realism. To measure your field blouse to determine the sizes with which it should be stamped, see here.
 
Some but not all field blouses had thread reinforcement stitches at the collar. These were hand done. It is easy to add this detail, if desired. Here are two different examples of these reinforcement bars, on an M40 and a M43 field blouse.

If you have an M36 or M40 field blouse, you may have to add the small hooks inside for the ends of the internal suspenders. There were two of these, one on each side, in front. See here for information on these. You may also add additional thread reinforcements on either side of the openings for the internal suspenders used with these field blouse models, you can see the reinforcement stitching in this photo.

Any field blouse, regardless of how close it is to an original, can be let down by bad insignia or buttons. And making sure that all the small details are as they should be, can help elevate even a lesser quality copy. Once you have all the details correct, the next step is just to wear it, or weather it if you prefer.

1940 pattern generic Heer Litzen (collar tabs)

This final pattern of generic Heer Litzen was introduced in May, 1940. These photos show an assortment of original examples. These were made in varying sizes, with central stripes in light gray, dark gray, tan, or blue-gray, with similar variations to the background color as well, and variation in the relative sizes of the graphic elements. These photos don't show the entire original range of variation. The many manufacturers who made these were simply not able to make them all the same, for all the millions that were made 1940-45.



Songbook "Lied der Front" (Song of the Front) 1940


"Foreword

Anyone who has ever worn the gray tunic knows the power of the soldiers’ song. He knows, what mysterious power is hidden in such a song that can, for a whole Kompanie, a Bataillon, after great exertions, lift them back up again and prepare them for new achievements. But he also knows how the soldiers’ song, powerful and yearning, funny and serious, can improve so many nice evenings in barracks or in quarters, in the field or in the training area. The whole many-sided life of... a soldier is reflected back in these songs. And then he might grab paper and sheet music and forge lyrics and melody together, that arise from soldierly experience. Many such songs have been carried over into the body of songs of the German people, and become collective property. We remember the many soldiers’ songs of the World War, when often nobody knew who wrote them or who gave them melody. They were sung and carried on from one end of the front to the other. This one or that one would add something to them, set them to one or another tone, and in this way such songs became true communal products of the front.

It is for this reason that, a few weeks after the beginning of this war, I made the decision to request soldiers to submit the songs and melodies of this war to the greater German broadcast agency, so that they wouldn’t be lost, and over the etherial waves could very quickly become communal property of all German soldiers and the homeland. This request was met with surprising success, and once again showed how much musical power is in the German people. There are again great composers, and great poets, who nevertheless understand how to sing in the spirit of the people.

The continually surprising success of this request proved me right. There were not thousands, rather tens of thousands of submissions, all of which were seen and checked by the editors and our coworkers. And the results, that were added to German song in this way, has contributed some very valuable achievements to the treasury of songs of the German people.

Volume 1 of this song book has already achieved record sales of more than a million copies. Volume 2 is not far behind, and the publishers and printers have their hands full trying to fill all the requests. Now volume 3 and others in the series will be sent out, so that the new soldiers’ songs can be carried in every bunker and trench, every airfield and patrol boat, and so that you, Kameraden, can truly take part in these songs.

On behalf of the greater German broadcast agency:

Alfred-Ingemar Berndt
Principal and Leader of the Broadcast Department of the Reich Propaganda Ministry
currently a Leutnant in a schweren Panzerjägerabteilung"

Three volumes total were produced, the link is to a PDF of all 3 volumes.

Lied der Front