Manu Della Valle Posted May 17, 2016 Share Posted May 17, 2016 (edited) This one comes from Central Italy and the items coming from that part of Italy are the ones I love most because it's where my late father and his brothers joined the Allied Forces after the 8th September 1943 Armistice. It comes from a very old collection that's been dispersed a few years ago by the family of a gentlemen who started collecting as a kid immediately after the War. One of his closest friends has told me that it most likely comes from the Bologna area, where they picked up a lot of things,German,Italian and Allied. In my opinion it's a beautiful Mid-War M43 with rarely encountered,zig-zag sewn, separated insigna and separate cockade like on M36/42 sidecaps.The latter has been sewn over the former as was often the case with caps with separate eagle and cockade. The lining is made of tan rayon but no markings are visible anymore.Please note the "shadow" left by the buttons on the buttonholes.The exposed thread has turned light tan while the part under the button retains the original gray colour! It's another "salty dog" which has brilliantly stood the test of time and that it's in as-founs/as left/taken/picked up/stolen conditions,including the moth "remains"!I NEVER wash items but I put them in a vacuum bag,after a few minutes without oxygen even the most stubborn moth will kiss its miserable life good bye! I hope you enjoy Cheers Manu Edited May 17, 2016 by Manu Della Valle 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davejb Posted May 17, 2016 Share Posted May 17, 2016 Very nice Manu, would you say that the zig zag stitches are hand sewn or machined, I tend to think that an experienced sower has done this by hand as not all the stitches are uniform. And I agree, NEVER wash caps or in a lot of cases softly brush either. But I do think that a hand held mini hoover, the kind used for keyboards etc, can remove a lot of dust,grit and general debris from a caps surface and interior, without fear of harming the cloth as its just strong enough to remove dirt and dust nothing else. An old collector once told me that dirt,dust and grit can have a serious effect on cloth if allowed to build up over time as it works its way into the fibres and weakens them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Fred Karno's Army Posted May 17, 2016 Share Posted May 17, 2016 I will put up with your boring bits any day ,cracking that @Manu Della Valle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manu Della Valle Posted May 17, 2016 Author Share Posted May 17, 2016 (edited) Hi @Davejb, it's POSITIVELY,ABSOLUTELY machine stitched!An experienced worker would do a "regular" zig-zag pattern but a younger (or older hand) or a new,unexperienced worker would space the stitches unevenly...it all depends on how fast you move the cloth on the sewing machine!No point hand-sewing an insigna that way,it would be a pointless waste of time! Further...take a look at where the zig-zag starts...that's where the needle first started to stitch on the cloth! Later tonight I'll post a M38 sidecap with moth "droppings" and feneral moth-related "dirt"!I don't even remove that kind of things..I just put the item in a vacuum plastic bag overnightand let mothballs do the rest of the job! Many years ago I often used to wash tunics an d trousers in my bathtub or even putting the HBT ones in the washing machine!Knowing how to do no disasters struck but I washed away the dust of time,and in many cases that would have meant the very dirt on which the owner of that tunic or pair of trousers had fought!The reason for that was simple;many uniforms came from Florence's immense rag depots,where these garments had spent decades amongst tonnes of decaying cloths and rags! Cheers Manu Edited May 17, 2016 by Manu Della Valle 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manu Della Valle Posted May 17, 2016 Author Share Posted May 17, 2016 (edited) The longer arrow points at where the stitching had stopped! Edited May 17, 2016 by Manu Della Valle 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major General Bil4338 Posted May 19, 2016 Major General Share Posted May 19, 2016 Again, another amazing piece of headgear Manu. I really like that insignia combination too, one I've not seen on an army M.43 before, more commonly found I think, on Luftwaffe examples. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manu Della Valle Posted May 20, 2016 Author Share Posted May 20, 2016 Hi @Bil4338, so glad you liked that!You're right,this insogna combination is more often nfound on WH sidecaps and LW M43s! Cheers Manu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark K Posted May 20, 2016 Share Posted May 20, 2016 Now that is one sexy M-43 @Manu Della Valle and just the way I like my headgear with that been there done that look I am so fond of and yes I would agree that the zig-zag stitching is indeed machine done...this example just oozes character my friend ... 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manu Della Valle Posted May 20, 2016 Author Share Posted May 20, 2016 I've got many LW and WH M43s @Mark K,but the 'been-there-done-that's are the ones I like most! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikakorpsrat64 Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 I like that cap @Manu Della Valle,! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Lovely Cap....Looks Fantastic, wish I had one! Thanks for showing us at MCN......Desert Rat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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