Craig, The �mounts� that I was referring to were not just on the scabbard as a replacement, but the entire hilt as well as the scabbard. My mistake, and I apologize. By way of explanation I was on my way out, and thought the reference to the split in the grip would be sufficient. To yours and Rob NL�s credit you could have destroyed that bit of the paper trail and did not.
This next part is a lot longer than I would like. But at the moment I can�t think of how to truncate it and adequately get the point across:
Compression splits: I am going to use another type of Third Reich blade to illustrate my point and go from there. I have seen a number of rationales from dealers and collectors trying to explain why their (especially SS daggers) have fractures, edge chips missing, splits etc. in the wood grip. The usual explanation is age/shrinkage. When wood ages it generally losses moisture and shrinks. Meaning that with age a grip will eventually be smaller and will decrease the amount of pressure against a contact surface. No stress, no breakage. HOWEVER, if a dagger is taken apart. And is over tightened upon reassembly it causes stress in line with the wood grain causing the wood to fracture, chip away, split (etc.) This is especially noticeable with replacement fittings from another dagger and the individual is trying to get the best/tightest fit possible - which causes the damage. How much pressure is needed to cause permanent damage? For SS grips generally a wrench is used, and anything over �finger tight� (light pressure) can be too much.
For Luftwaffe sword pommels they also should be �finger tight�. Taking it around another 180 (more or less) degrees to get it to line up properly can cause damage to the wood and to the leather covering. Without physically examining a sword�s handle and internals an analysis at a distance is not necessarily a given. However, the general appearance of the lower portion of the sword grip posted including the split suggests that a possible replacement pommel from another sword was not properly lining up. And in the course of it being over tightened there was damage.
The blade: By itself I haven�t as yet seen anything that would cause me to doubt it. And there does seem to be a fair amount of evidence that such as blade was made in the 1942 time frame. Although to be upfront about it - I had considerable doubts from the beginning about the blade�s mountings (ie: hilt and scabbard). Time has not changed that perception, and I think some others had reservations as well.
Richard (Dick) Deeter passed away unexpectedly a long time ago (but well after 1968). Prior to his passing we had some very amicable dealings back and forth. There are a couple of folks that I am still occasionally in touch with who knew him better (and earlier) than I did. I will try and find out what they might remember regarding this sword. Regards, FP
