WHICH DESIGN CAP BADGE.

[steve140968]

Can anyone please tell me what design cap badge a Sgt of the 16th Middlesex regiment would have worn on the 1/7/1916 , many thanks , Steve .

[gericht 1914]

Can anyone please tell me what design cap badge a Sgt of the 16th Middlesex regiment would have worn on the 1/7/1916 , many thanks , Steve .

Just the standard Middlesex badge. Possibly, he might have had the all-brass "war economy" version. Of the Service battalions, it was only the 18th Bn who wore anything different.

Dave.

[HarryBettsMCDCM]

it was only the 18th Bn who wore anything different

& 19th {ie:1st & 2nd Public Works Battalions,both had an extra Scroll beneath"Middlesex Regiment";with the 1st or 2nd Public Works Battalion legend on it}

Below is the "normal" type of Badge your man would have worn{or as stated an "Economy" all brass version}

Edited 27 December , 2005 by HarryBettsMCDCM

[Jim Maclean]

Stand by your beds Gentlemen I shall shortly be asking questions about the different Public Works badges. I believe there were two different badges, one with a w/m supplementary scroll and one with a brass supplementary scroll. Did these denote different Bns? Back to my notes now for further questions.

[gericht 1914]

Below is the "normal" type of Badge your man would have worn{or as stated an "Economy" all brass version}

...and here's the "economy" badge.

dave.

[steve140968]

Thanks guys . Can we be sure which one of the two it would have been ? Regards , Steve .

[HarryBettsMCDCM]

Can we be sure which one of the two it would have been ?

Not really,it would depend on a number of things!

when he enlisted,if he lost a Badge & had to get a new one,after the Economy issues were introduced,etc;

but if he was serving before 1916 then it would be reasonably safe to consider that he would have worn the usual Bi metal issue.

[steve140968]

Thanks Harry , just out of curiosity is it possible to identify the ' real thing ' by a photo , eg , e-bay etc or do you really need to get your hands on the badge . Any tips would be most grateful . Many thanks , Steve .

[HarryBettsMCDCM]

Handling is always better,You can in a good JPG usually tell if it seems to be AOK but light etc does play tricks,It is not a rare badge so should be reasonably easy to accquire,look for high point polishing,through long term wear{as opposed to buffing wheel instant Antiquing};a clean Crisp striking,with a smooth [not sharp] edged slider,[Original Sliders often have a slight "Kink" in them to help grip the Cap Badge in the Cap] "Old" looking Brass,it accquires an aged appearance that Modern restrikes don't have,beware of large deposits of Metal cleaner to the rear,but rather the grease & dirt infilling the reverse as you might expect from 70 or so years of laying around in a drawer,avoid badges with excess braze on the face,they were cheap to make & standards were high poor finished badges were rejected,& above all go with Gut instinct,if it feels wrong it probably is!

Edited 28 December , 2005 by HarryBettsMCDCM

[steve140968]

Thanks Harry . There are some useful tips there , interesting you should say ' go with your gut instinct ' as several i've looked at have been advertised as 'genuine' but to me just do not look right . Regards , Steve .