Here is a hat I picked up.I was told it is railway police.Can anyone tell me if this is correct.What does the color on the tassel above the brim indicate?Gold and Black in color.The hat itself is dark blue with red piping.Thanks

Shawn

inside

The colors on the chin strap above the brim denote pay grade.

Randal.

Is that Prussian Blue? Maybe its just the flash, but it looks gray to me.
Also, it should have a black velvet band. Maybe its just the pic. The eagle is correct, but should be gold.

Not Railway Police. Railway Police caps were grey blue in color with light grey piping and had entirely different insignia.

It is blue in color not grey.What would the red piping be for?Could it be fire not railroad?These peaked caps are all new to me.This is the first one I have had.Thanks for the help guys.

Shawn

Orpo, the visor you posted appears to be a Bahnschutz with a Postschutz wreath on it.

Dagger Addict, Red was just the traditional color of the Reichsbahn going back to the turn of the Century. If your hat has a black velvet band, it is correct, but you need a gold-colored eagle.

I have bought these over the years from veterans in all types of conditions and variations and have seen the frosty looking white metal eagles on these visors. I even asked Bill Shea at one of the SOS shows because someone else asked me and he also had seen and bought these before. I even removed the insignia to look for evidence of a gilt finish and not a trace!

quote:

Originally posted by stonemint:
Orpo, the visor you posted appears to be a Bahnschutz with a Postschutz wreath on it.

Good eye Stonemint. It does have a Postschutz wreath and eagle on it. The two wreaths are very similar but the eagles are quite different. Oddly, this is the way it came back with the vet so I left it that way. It is a Clemens Wagner

Orpo, for a visor guy like me, that is a fascinating find. Obviously, the vet could have replaced the Bahnschutz wreath with a Postschutz, but I doubt it, simply because Postschutz wreaths are so rare (most collectors don't even know what they are). Further, it matches the eagle in terms of condition and quality. This could be a combination we have yet to see a regulation for, or it was for a Postschutz member attached to the Bahnschutz on either a temporary or permanent basis. As we all know, most mail was transported via Train.

Postschutz is also one of the least-pictured and referenced organisations of the TR. Nice lid.

This is my Railway Police NCOs visor.

...and a Reichsbahn Officials cap.

and another.

Nice ones, Tristan! Some of mine...

Nice hats stonemint.

Randal

Yes, Stonemint, very nice.
What is the brown topped visor...looks like a PL cap?

Thanks, guys. Tristan, they are all DRB blue-tops of different eras. The red-top is for Station Masters.

Yes, sorry...my eyes are getting old! It kinda looked like the brown of a PL cap on my screen!

Silver colored insignia on railway hats was used by Private Railways. National railways used gold. There were many private railways in Germany.Cheers

So this Cap was used by someone that worked for a Private Railway(Silver)?

I notice that alot of caps do not have the wings with the rail wheel on them, are they supposed to have this?

Regards

Sepp GDC 0292 Gold


http://www.empiremilitaryauctions.com/detail.asp?id=322

I think the wings were a later insignia.
The 'Empire' cap is very nice, and a good price if that is your thing.
Attached is a cap with gold wings, any comments would be welcome as I have not seen this type before.

Most of the hats with the metal wings are simply zinc that has absorbed the gold finish over time, so they look silver or gray. They were all gold when new. The wings came out in 1941, and at that time, the DRB also added red piping to the crown of the visor.

Sometime in 1944 (by my estimate), they went to BeVo wings (machine-woven). The primary reason for this is that the metal wings would crack or separate below the cockade. It is hard to find M-41's with the wings intact and with all their gilding.

Here is something interesting..i know this was exactly cut off the way it was found, so..did the railways have members who acted in a police capacity, without the grey caps etc?

Great caps and informative thread,thanks for posting these items,,,,