Original German WWII RAD Unit-Marked Tornister 34 Pony Fur Backpack by Walter Ducksch with Shoulder Straps - Dated 1938

Original Item. Only One Available. These cowhide-covered rucksacks were known as the Tornister (Knapsack) Model 34 (developed in 1934) and this unit-marked example comes complete with the correct shoulder straps. It looks to have all of the leather components still present, showing light to moderate wear from service. As the war progressed the design was simplified for economical and practical reasons so the cowhide cover was eliminated making these packs especially scarce on today's collector market. These are often described as being covered with "pony fur", however research shows that this was just a nickname, and was never used on these. The German nickname for these packs was Affe, or ape.

This example of a pre-war rucksack is fitted with brown leather, which would be replaced in many areas by black leather as the war progressed. It comes complete with the correct shoulder straps, which are designed to attach to ammunition pouches on the belt in the front, and have side straps that attach to hooks on the bottom of the pack. It retains over 85% of the pony fur hide and the leather is in very good condition on the pack. It still has an original maker marking on the back between the straps, which is still legible:

WALTER DUCKSCH
1938
NOR.-PETERSDORF/RSGB

The interior bears a great RAD Unit-mark stamp, reading:

R.A.D.B.A.Bn.
[10 38]

One of the shoulder straps is also marked R.A.Bn. 12 38. A great research project!

The pack does show some wear from use, with a bit of staining to the canvas, but it definitely was well cared for and not abused. The leather does show some wear and cracking to the finish, but is still for the most part soft and pliable, with no tearing that we can see. It looks to have been stored flat for a long period of time. Measures approximately 13"H x 12"W x 5"D.

A lovely complete example of a hard to find backpack as used by German soldiers in WW2. Ready to display!

The basis of the RAD, Reichsarbeitsdienst, (National Labor Service), dates back, at least, to 1929 with the formation of the AAD (Anhalt Arbeitsdienst) and the FAD-B (Freiwillingen Arbeitsdienst-Bayern). Shortly after AH’s appointment as Chancellor in Jan 1933, the NSDAP consolidated all labor organizations into the NSAD (Nationalsozialist Arbeitsdienst), a national labor service, under the control of Reichsarbeitsführer Konstatin Hierl. It served as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarize the workforce and indoctrinate it with NSDAP ideology. It was the official state labor service, divided into separate sections for men and women.