Thoughts on reproduction slings (and other accessories)

[Slater]

Bought a couple of the below commercial reproduction slings to use with my No 4 rifles. At an upcoming gunshow I may look for genuine examples, although the repros do the job perfectly well and they seem well executed.

A friend of mine frowns on this type of commercial copy. He mentioned that the fake (as he terms it) with it's markings could be pedalled as a genuine sling to an unsuspecting buyer.

I never gave it much thought, as I'm sure that the repro market caters to the reinactor crowd in a major way. Is there much heartburn over the "copy vs genuine item" angle?

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[browningautorifle]

I just think these particular copies aren't a shade of originals. Not near as well made. I'd rather a worn unmarked original than one of these copies. Side by side comparrison, you'll see.

[kenwest516]

I personally don't have a problem with reproductions as long as someone isn't trying to pass it off as original. I have several reproduction things and plan on getting more. As long as my gun is real I'm happy and it looks good with all the accesories that I don't have a fortune in.

[Beerhunter]

A friend of mine frowns on this type of commercial copy. He mentioned that the fake (as he terms it) with it's markings could be pedalled as a genuine sling to an unsuspecting buyer.

I go along with your friend here. As far as I am concerned, a "reproduction" that is marked with a maker's name that was NOT the maker and a year in which it was NOT manufactured it ceases to be a reproduction and becomes a fake.

Why mark it thus if not to deceive? It would be a perfectly acceptable reproduction if left unmarked.

[gsimmons]

They aren't necessarily marked to deceive. Re-enactors and living historians like to have stuff that is made and marked like the originals for theyre impression. Right or wrong that's the thinking, not to deceive.

[Slater]

In the US, the military surplus firearms arena has a significant fake/forgery problem. Some fakers will sand gunstocks and re-stamp them to indicate a different manufacturer and/or date. This sometimes extends to the guns themselves, and primarily concerns the M1 Garand, M1 carbine, M1911 pistol, and various military shotguns.

Mosin-Nagant M91/30 sniper rifles are rather commonly faked with reproduction scopes and mounts, and rifles that are out of the manufacturing period for snipers or with spurious markings.

Sorry for the divergence. We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread

[Mk VII]

Slings are still cheap enough to be not worth faking - here, at any rate.

[ActionYobbo]

I have a problem with them.
the metal parts seem to be thiner and they are not folded as well.
I did buy one from an online sale not knowing that it was a fake. Infact it was advertised as NOS.
I dont have a problem with the sellers that have repro in the tite and description to alert buyers that it is not the genuine article.
But I still think they need the "hecho en china" on them somewhere

[Slater]

I have a problem with them.
the metal parts seem to be thiner and they are not folded as well.
I did buy one from an online sale not knowing that it was a fake. Infact it was advertised as NOS.
I dont have a problem with the sellers that have repro in the tite and description to alert buyers that it is not the genuine article.
But I still think they need the "hecho en china" on them somewhere

Well, the pack did come with a little "Made In India" label

[Longshaor]

As a reenactor (Cold War & WWII British) in the States, part of the problem is that originals on this side of the pond are hard to come by. Take P37 braces. MECO actually had a special type of mill so that the brace was sewn as one piece, including the changes in size for the shoulder 'pad'. Even though Aussie and Canadian ones were made of several pieces, don't try arguing that with the judges. P37 Browning Hi-Power magazine pouches - I've never even SEEN originals! I could go on, but you get the picture. Also, some reenacting events here in the States include tactical demonstrations. If you've got a rare piece of webbing, do you really want to beat the hell out of it?

I've never had any issues with other reenactors nit-picking over what's original versus what's repro. Having just been to Military Through the Ages in Jamestown, VA, the judges are another matter! We lost points for, among other things, the "What Price Glory" manufacturer's tag showing on a hung up BD jacket. I'm 5'-10" with a 44" chest, when was the last time anyone here in the States saw BD in that size for anything less than a king's ransom?

The Cold War stuff is even worse because no-one is reproing it. P68 trousers are the single biggest clothing problem we have as 90% of what comes up for sale is US size 32 or smaller. The equipment is also a problem. We're still looking for an IWS mount for an L1A1. And speaking of the IWS, minimum estimated price to get one here is a little over $2000 - not counting the cost of the UK export license. We've been completely unable to find an Observers Thermal Imaging Sight (OTIS), nor the parts we need to finish our L4A3 Bren gun (a barrel and breech block - both of which are illegal to import). Even P58 webbing - which is plentiful - is an arm and a leg to ship over here because of the weight. The last major shipment we had, which was a dozen Para weapons sleeves, took 6 MONTHS to arrive and cost 70 pounds to ship.

So that's my experience, sorry it turned into a bit of a rant...