Royal Fusiliers cap badge

[high wood]

I purchased this cap badge this morning as it had an unusual slider. I am not sure if it is a later repair or a modification so that it can be worn as a collar badge. What do you think?

[Old Owl]

I purchased this cap badge this morning as it had an unusual slider. I am not sure if it is a later repair or a modification so that it can be worn as a collar badge. What do you think?

Hi High Wood,

It would seem that there has been another blade at the opposite side of the badge ie. directly below the one affixed, as one looks at the photo, so most probably an officers bronze cap badge?

Robert

[Andrew Upton]

As Old Owl said, it would original have had the two matching blades, as per this RFC badge - a terrible design, very prone to breaking.

Interestingly, it looks like it has a dent were a central could have been afixed during manufacture, but wasn't.

http://cgi.ebay.com/WW1-ROYAL-FLYING-CORP-OFFICERS-S-D-CAP-BADGE_W0QQitemZ400173973895QQcategoryZ36078QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp4340.m263QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DSIC%26its%3DI%252BC%26itu%3DUCI%252BIA%252BUA%252BFICS%252BUFI%26otn%3D10%26pmod%3D380287798228%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D5028479728217544765

[Andrew Upton]

Thank you gentleman, I think you are right in that a lug is obviously missing. I thought I had something unusual but I obviously haven't; it will teach me to buy cap badges in the semi darkness at car boot sales. Still it was only £2.00 and I am pleased to have an original badge.

I would have thought that despite the damage £2.00 was a good investment for an otherwise excellent shape Officers badge!

[Graham Stewart]

Sadly I doubt very much that this is indeed an officers quality bronze badge at all, but a very poor re-pro. A quality offiers badge has blades that are pointed, not rounded at the end. The bladed officers badges were cap badges, whereas the collar badges are usually lugged. Some of mine also have either stamped or a tablet showing the manufacturer.

The East Surrey badge is also a problem and I would have probably gone along with a V.B. badge, but for one thing - the slider. Having had a few genuine volunteer badges in my lifetime, the whitemetal Volunteer badges, still retain their brass slider or copper lugs. The slider here seemingly dipped at the same time as the badge.

Now the only badges I have seen where you have the slider/lugs dipped and having the same finish as the rest of the badge are the chromed "Coronation" badges from the 1953 coronation. However we only have the photo to go from, but hopefully an East Surrey collector may be on hand to assist.

[jay dubaya]

Ah the 'cut and paste' of cap badges. The prong in the pic above is a slider of which the original has been removed and what appears to be two sliders soldered on at some point, there's no way these sliders would bend like the much thinner spiked prongs usually found on officers badges. The whole thing looks more blackened than bronzed, some crude patina applied to the whole thing, IMHO not an officers badge at all but still likely to be an original.

Jon