Original German WWII Luftwaffe M43 Einheitsmütze Field Cap with RBNr. Marking – size 58 1/2 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice service worn example of a Luftwaffe M43 Einheitsmütze Wool field cap, with a great well broken in look. The cap is constructed of  Luftwaffe blue/grey Fliegerblau wool, and has the correct “fold down” skirt for colder weather. It features a single pebbled aluminum button to the front, securing the skirt, and is a version without securing loops on the underside.

The peak of the cap has a very nice cap eagle with cockade underneath, both machine embroidered and hand sewn on. The interior of cap is a light blue/bray rayon material, which is standard for this type of cap. It has sweat and oil stains on most of the interior, however the crown still has the original issue markings visible:

RB. – Nr. 0/0501/0015
58 1/2

German RBN Numbers, or Reichsbetriebsnummer, also known as the National Business Number, were an alternative to the 3 letter codes in use late in the war. The first number 0 is the prefix for “industry”, while 0501 is the location code, and manufacturer 0015 in is a specific maker. The records of these are very incomplete, so we have not been able to locate this specific manufacturer. We have however had several examples from this maker before.

The condition of the cap is good, but it definitely does show staining and wear from service. There is discoloration around the lower edged from dirt and sweat, and the interior is stained as well. The visor is still in good condition, though it does have a fold in it, and rippers as well. The stiffener in these caps is made from pressed paper, so they easily deform with use and especially moisture.

Real service used caps such as these have a nice “salty” look that is impossible to duplicate, and means that it was “really there”, and not sitting in a depot during the war. Ready to add to your collection!

The M43 Einheitsmütze (Unit Cap) is a variety of “Ski Cap” and was based on the Bergmütze (Mountain Hat) used by Austrian and German Gebirgsjäger (Mountain Troops) during WWI. Germany had adopted it in 1915, and after the war it spread throughout the military.

The skirt that surrounds the cap is made in the same wool as the cap, and can be folded down over the ears, though this was rarely done outside of the Mountain troops, which had a double-thickness skirt. The skirt has a small dip in the front quarter with a divide secured by one aluminum button which is covered by an embroidered cockade. The small section in the front quarter was built shorter to show the insignia, and cover the wearer’s chin or mouth, without disturbing breathing by covering the nose. There were also later M43 caps, such as those used by the DAK, that omitted the skirt entirely, as it had little use in the desert heat.