SMGL-2465 Heer Dagger By Rich Herder *SOLD

These nickel plated Herders are pretty awesome. As you may see in the market, many Heer daggers are in poor condition due to the poor base metals and poor long term life span of the silver finish. These nickel plated Herders are very desirable because the finish last so long. Often, as the case with this one, they look down right gorgeous compared to other daggers of the same period. Though I wouldn’t call this dagger rare, they don’t come up nearly as often as other types of heer daggers. This is also an easy dagger to spot when parts have been swapped, as the nickel has a slightly different appearance when compared to other silver plated or washed daggers. This example is one of the best ones I’ve seen, having a nearly perfect scabbard which is so nice it almost seems too good to be true. The blade is your standard factory polish with fine cross grain visible. The blade is nearly flawless except for some small water marks where the internal runners sat and transferred moisture to the contact points on the blade. Still, as blades go, VERY attractive. The Herder logo is crisp and clean with some minor signs of oxidation. The cross guard shows more excellence, with the heavy nickel plating nearly perfect with just a few blemishes here and there. The grip is the solid celluloid type and shows some color variation due to the manor in which this dagger was displayed. The grip is darker on one side from sun exposure and the areas where the portepee was tied are slightly lighter as well. A common occurrence with daggers that come from those who early on did not know the effects of sun on celluloid. The dagger does break down for maintenance so you can switch the grip around and add a portepee to suite your display. The grip does have some wiggle, a estimate to the wear of the leather bumper mostly. This dagger was clearly expertly hand fit, so you will notice on assembly the alignment must be perfect for the dagger grip to appear centered. If the wiggle bothers you, you may want to source a new leather bumper, but as many have learned the hard way, do not over tighten the pommel or you will have a shattered grip on your hands. On to the pommel with see the typical herder style, as they are easy to notice since they really didn’t seem to put much care into the pommel seems as other makers. The leaves are well defined however and ofocrse we have the perfect matching nickel finish.

Overall, I think this is an outstanding addition to any collection and it will surely stand out from your other army daggers. If you can deal with a little bit of grip wiggle, you are going to love this bad boy!