I am new here and I have been reading every thread in this sub forum in an attempt to learn what I can about these Totenkopf’s. I have been saving all the pics into real and fake folders for future reference. Some fakes are already becoming obvious as soon as I look at them , but not all. I decided in order to know real you need to know fake too so I purchased a couple of known fakes with the eagles for about 14 pounds each. They are different so I will post my observations on them.

I noticed in reading the 31 pages of threads that a lot of new people come on, want a free appraisal then never come back. On the flipside I can tell a lot of experts are weary of this which is also understandable. They give short answers like " junk , fake, trash ect. " and I often thought to myself " yeah but why ? " The standard answer is to study past threads which I have.

It’s my intent to discuss my observations for the novice collector like myself that is not just here for an easy answer. I am also open to additional input from those more in the know than myself, providing it is constructive.

The first one is a cast piece, the second is much lighter in weight and you can tell it was stamped. I hadn’t realized how small these things are, and my 47 year old eyes are no longer up to the task unaided . Reading glasses brought things more into focus , but it was when I took a photo with my good camera that things really came into focus.

My first piece of advice for someone is get good photos provided unless you are buying from a reputable person. If you see something listed on Ebay or elsewhere and the photo is a little fuzzy , ask for better photos. If they wont provide better photos walk away unless its really cheap.

I decided to look at obvious " tells " so I can start to eliminate or prove a fake if I are not sure.

The first piece from the front in hand looks promising , it has light fake aging , but the second photo shows casting marks that I could only see well in the up close photo. The backside is a lot more obvious, casting lines, globs , the RZM mark lacks detail , and those chunks of rebar for pins. They are so large you would need a pair of needle nose pliers to bend them. The pins are a little comical.

The second piece from the front looks real good in hand from the front, but on close up the mouth area lacks detail in my opinion.
From the back again way more obvious. The contract number is not a known valid one as far as I have read and the SS runes are also not known to be on any authentic pieces.

I could not see the SS mark even with reading glasses so I think I will invest in a pocket magnifying glass of some sort that I can take to antique shows or gun shows since I learned today I can no longer trust my eyes on these tiny embossing’s.

Click to enlarge the picture