The Champagne Rune Exposed
- Thread starter Hambone
- Start date
M45
Well-known member
"For this reason, the authors would like to discuss here the subject of the so-called 'Champagne Decal' which is most associated with the helmet manufacturers NS and SE." Ken N. II p.175 2016.
"Champagne runes: a term used to describe the runes decal with a slightly subdued copper-tinted background, most often associated with the 'NS' or 'SE' factory issue helmets." SS Steel updated 2010, p.302 definitions.
"NS never produced an SS helmet. It was the 'Champagne' insignia that hit this fact home to us like nothing else ever did".- Ken N.
There were basically two groups of people concerning the Sham-pain SS boondoggle, those big-wigs and their friends who were 'in-the-know' (some of these people are known to us), and the rest of us who were hoodwinked to varying degrees. I don't have the exact date of this WAF post, but it was certainly after the C-SS house of cards had fallen down.
Notice here that Ken's statement appears to place himself in the 'victim' category with the rest of us. It is as though he too was fooled as we all were, and now finally understands that NS never produced an SS helmet - 'the Champagne insignia hitting that fact home to us like nothing else ever did'.
If Ken truly believed that C-SS was authentic and was fooled like the rest of us, then why did he not sell them as Kelly and other dealers did ? What would be the problem selling C-SS if it was authentic ? Why was he not buying them for his own collection ?
The topmost Ken quote is from his second decal book which explains in detail the C-SS fake. Notice the key statement here:
the so-called 'Champagne Decal' which is most associated with the helmet manufacturers NS and SE.
This IMO was part of the false narrative that was constucted around C-SS to give it legitimacy, the attempt to convince the rest of us that C-SS was 100% authentic. Remember ET had it's ET-SS 'house decal', Quist had its Q-SS house decal, and EF had its EF-SS house decal. That leaves two helmet factories; NS and SE. Champagne-SS was supposed to be the 'house decal' of these two factories, or so we were told.
In reality, C-SS is most often associated with factory No-decal M42 helmets, not only NS and hkp ND's, but also CKL and EF. Many factory M42 ND helmets are found in un-isssued condition or nearly so and matched perfectly with the newly micro spray painted fake SS bug.
This statement is completely inaccurate, but is still being used by Ken to describe C-SS well after the house of cards has fallen.
the so-called 'Champagne Decal' which is most associated with the helmet manufacturers NS and SE.
"Champagne runes: a term used to describe the runes decal with a slightly subdued copper-tinted background, most often associated with the 'NS' or 'SE' factory issue helmets." SS Steel updated 2010, p.302 definitions.
"NS never produced an SS helmet. It was the 'Champagne' insignia that hit this fact home to us like nothing else ever did".- Ken N.
There were basically two groups of people concerning the Sham-pain SS boondoggle, those big-wigs and their friends who were 'in-the-know' (some of these people are known to us), and the rest of us who were hoodwinked to varying degrees. I don't have the exact date of this WAF post, but it was certainly after the C-SS house of cards had fallen down.
Notice here that Ken's statement appears to place himself in the 'victim' category with the rest of us. It is as though he too was fooled as we all were, and now finally understands that NS never produced an SS helmet - 'the Champagne insignia hitting that fact home to us like nothing else ever did'.
If Ken truly believed that C-SS was authentic and was fooled like the rest of us, then why did he not sell them as Kelly and other dealers did ? What would be the problem selling C-SS if it was authentic ? Why was he not buying them for his own collection ?
The topmost Ken quote is from his second decal book which explains in detail the C-SS fake. Notice the key statement here:
the so-called 'Champagne Decal' which is most associated with the helmet manufacturers NS and SE.
This IMO was part of the false narrative that was constucted around C-SS to give it legitimacy, the attempt to convince the rest of us that C-SS was 100% authentic. Remember ET had it's ET-SS 'house decal', Quist had its Q-SS house decal, and EF had its EF-SS house decal. That leaves two helmet factories; NS and SE. Champagne-SS was supposed to be the 'house decal' of these two factories, or so we were told.
In reality, C-SS is most often associated with factory No-decal M42 helmets, not only NS and hkp ND's, but also CKL and EF. Many factory M42 ND helmets are found in un-isssued condition or nearly so and matched perfectly with the newly micro spray painted fake SS bug.
This statement is completely inaccurate, but is still being used by Ken to describe C-SS well after the house of cards has fallen.
the so-called 'Champagne Decal' which is most associated with the helmet manufacturers NS and SE.
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M45
Well-known member
If Ken truly believed that C-SS was authentic and was fooled like the rest of us, then why did he not sell them as Kelly and other dealers did ? What would be the problem selling C-SS if it was authentic ? Why was he not buying them for his own collection ? - M45
If Ken knew all along that C-SS was fake, why did he not warn the collecting community in his 2009 decal book ? He left only a cryptic reference to them making collectors that much more confused. He finally came out in great detail against them in his 2015 decal book, but that book introduction had been delayed about 9 months and it was about the time Doug B. made his famous post officially condemning them as postwar template spray painted fakes.
If Ken knew all along that C-SS was fake, why did he not warn the collecting community in his 2009 decal book ? He left only a cryptic reference to them making collectors that much more confused. He finally came out in great detail against them in his 2015 decal book, but that book introduction had been delayed about 9 months and it was about the time Doug B. made his famous post officially condemning them as postwar template spray painted fakes.
