...must have been SWITZ (Siemens Elektrowärmer G.m.b.H., Werk Sörnewitz). I have now stumbled upon the first ever complete SWITZ Lafette known to exist so far. Up until now I have only owned a rebuilt top cradle with the same marking. The production run from this factory seems limited to the year 1939.
The only difference I can find from other Lafettes is the fact that the optic block is actually maker marked by Excelsior. You never see optic blocks with anything else than WaA-marking! My theory is that since the optic block is marked it is due to the fact that SWITZ received these from the main manufacturer of Lafettes, instead of making their own!
Lafette is allready spoken for and will most probably end up in a US collection.
Very nice find. Thanks for that info share. Looks super nice in the pics also. A US home you say. This calls for a question to be asked. Do you have any problems exporting a lafette into the US?? Or have you heard of an problems of exporting a lafette out of the US into Europe??
Love to see more data on lafette makers marks and differences between German and yugo ones. Anyone out there have a lot of info to share on these lafette's??? Or know of any locations of any data, besides
As far as I know there is not a single country in Europe that has any restrictions towards "metal stands". I myself have never - ever heard about anyone in the US having a actual problem getting one into the country. So if you actually have a valid rule against them, it is not enforced!
The data available about these is a painstaking job of collecting info when and where you find it. I might publish larger overviews of serial numbers etc when the time comes, but for the moment I am fully occupied with another baby; writing the full story of the Panzerschreck. With that done I guess I will continue with the Lafette pages on my homepage! All in due time....
Willing to forward the info that I have on my lafettes for a data base.
I have read that there was a type two lafette style that the Germans changed to. Any info on this??
Any thoughts on the differences between German and yugo??
Also just picked up my mg34 1944 lafette with the mountain legs and still need to take pics and share. Later I know.
I know that this is a little of the topic of the rarest mg34 lafette. If you and others have more interest another tread could be started. Any interest anyone??
42rocker wrote:Willing to forward the info that I have on my lafettes for a data base.
I have read that there was a type two lafette style that the Germans changed to. Any info on this??
The German Lafette production was gradually simplified during the production run from 1936 to 1945. But a 1936 dated Lafette is basically almost identical to one manufactured in early 1945. The differences are small and hard to spot. (There will be an article on this subject!). The simplified Lafette came during the last months and had a wooden trigger as the most recognizeable feature (pictured in Folkes book). If there was another style of Lafette it must have stayed on the prototype stage and never seen full production (as can be judged from surviving examples!). (And I do not consider the Lafette neuer Art (mountain leg/Gebirgs Lafette) as a "second type" of Lafette).
42rocker wrote:Any thoughts on the differences between German and yugo??
Well, the Yugos never made a Lafette 34, they only copied the Lafette 42. I have never seen a "Lafette 53" up close, but plenty of pictures are available. The distinguishing features can be found by comparing them with a MG42 Lafette. Some of the features are black optical base, wrong Überschiesstafel (or a new one affixed crudely), the markings (some beutiful examples of fake markings in my "Lafette markings article"), holes from the Yugo data plate where the German marking would have been situated. Crude metal in the Search fire, often only blued and not painted. Yugo markings present (circel with letter/number). I will write an article about the finer aspects of determing which components is which later....
42rocker wrote:Also just picked up my mg34 1944 lafette with the mountain legs and still need to take pics and share. Later I know.
MG34 Lafettes Neuer Art (with the adjustable legs) are very rare. It is pictured in the Lafette manual dated 1943, but so far it appears to have been solely manufactured for the Portuguese export contract. I would be very interested in the original color on your Lafette 34 Neuer Art!
bergflak
I bought it from Ken and I picked it up from him at knob creek. At the table next to him was Folke Myrvang. He was nice enough to look it over and review it for me. He stated that he thought that it was for the "Portuguese export contract" and had original leather pads and original paint. I'm not good enough to know on either subject. But the paint is not the same color as the color used by the Germans, he noted that also. Also In looking at some areas I'm not sure if it's original paint due to wear patterns in some areas. I stated that I need to do some photos of it and shall do a nice photo set on the tripod and pm you when I do. Something else I got from Ken at Knob Creek was a mg34 shipping crate with 3 spare barrels carriers in it (spray paint marked same number) that was thought to have been used in the "Portuguese export contract".
Also bergflak I need to email you some pics of a repo Trommelhalter that I bought for a display with my mg34 set up. Learned something new, a repo Trommelhalter with a double drum on it on a mg34 does not fit on a mg34 lafette. Thought that it would look cool for a photo, but alas does not fit.
"""Copies of the Trommelhalter have been manufactured steadily over the last decades, but never in a large scale. Sadly, I have no photo of these."""" Will send pics to you, please pm me your email.
Good Luck on your Panzerschreck work.
Well, it is just a theory, but so far it has proven right (including yours I presume). The metal items from the Portuguese contract has all been painted in a special deep green color. The barrel carriers and ammunition boxes being the most often encountered item. I have never heard of a Lafette 34 neuerer Fertigung that wasn't Porto green, but some must exist, as it is pictured in the 1943 manual.
Well my lafette seems to be a deep green. I believe that the shipping box has been repainted a greyish color over a deep green. I'll have to double check the barrel carriers at a later time, due to the box being at the bottom of a pile of stuff. Received the pm I'll send pics later.
So the Lafette 34 neuerer Fertigung that you have "complies to the rule". Please email me th pictures when you find the time, so I can include a section on it for my Lafette-articles. No need to check the transport box and barrel carriers. Those are well documented as-is, and they all confirm to the same "pattern".
