Gordon Caldecott Posted 28 December , 2005 Share Posted 28 December , 2005 Hi, Can anyone tell me what the term re strike means, in regards to cap badges? e.g The Cheshire (Earl of Chester's) Yeomanry (Circa WW1) Cap Badge. A top quality re-strike in bi-metal in excellent condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Stewart Posted 28 December , 2005 Share Posted 28 December , 2005 Gordon, Re-strike cap badges- using original manufacturers dies to make an item that has been obsolete and unworn for umpty-dumpty years and then sell on. OK if you're not looking for the genuine article and only want an example and the seller is quite clear that he is selling re-strikes, usually for about a £1 or so at militaria fairs. Sadly unscrupulous dealers do all sorts to these re-strikes and then sell them on to unsuspecting collectors at a vast profit. Graham. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Caldecott Posted 28 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 28 December , 2005 Cheers Graham, you`ve been of great help. But how does a beginner tell the difference? Looks like another chance for people who enjoy the hobby, to get ripped off AGAIN!!! Oh it makes me cross, but anyway thats me off my soap box. G. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarryBettsMCDCM Posted 28 December , 2005 Share Posted 28 December , 2005 But how does a beginner tell the difference? Looks like another chance for people who enjoy the hobby, to get ripped off AGAIN!! Graham, there is nothing New in restrikes they have been around since the 19th Century when a Company named Fox Re~Struck 1800s Glengarry Badges,The next glut of them came in the 1970s,when many Dies where purchased & previously Rare to obtain badges appeared @ Flea Markets Stalls & Antique Fairs by the Card Load,however now virtually every badge worn by the HM Forces appears to have been Re~struck & there are thousands of them around,obviously the unwary could be easily duped by unscrupulous sellers,but like everything else you have to know your subject,a good reference library is essential,Military Badge Collecting by John Gaylor @ the very least;or ideally a Kipling & King Headress Badges of The British Army[2 Vol]The only way to really be sure,or @ least as sure as you can be is to handle as many badges as you possibly can,regardless of Regiment or Corps,to get a feel for "whats right" & "whats not";the more you handle the easier it becomes,Genuine badges ,with experience have a certain "feel" about them,which again with experience the fakes dont,remember that the chances of finding rare Irish,Cavalry,Kitchener,Yeomanry,TF; Badges is as unlikely as ever,due to the original numbers issued,so any sudden glut of them appearing onto the market is bound to set alarm bells ringing.these Badges were already Rare in the 1950s,so it stands to reason they should be no more plentiful now! Whilst some might be content with a restrike as a gap filler @ restrike price,until a better version turns up,you dont want to be paying Mona Lisa Prices for one! That said there are still thousands of Good badges out there,buy from accredited sources who will offer a refund if your purchase turns out to be a Dud,or from private sellers who are getting rid of old accumulations[getting harder,but they do appear]but most of all learn your subject,knowledge;as ever;is power! Good Luck & Happy Hunting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Stewart Posted 28 December , 2005 Share Posted 28 December , 2005 Harry, Sorry old mate but Gaylors is certainly no guide to buying badges and although Kipling and King are still regarded as the bible the guarantee that a badge is 100% genuine went out of the window years ago. I've probably handled more badges than you can shake a big stick at and these days it's even harder to tell. I reckon if you're going to collect specialise in a particular regiment and collect across the board caps, collars, shoulder titles, belt buckles and so on. Join a militaria collectors club if one exists in your area, from them and other sources you usually get to know what the latest repro stuff is coming on the market. Sure thousands and thousands of badges were made, but thousands and thousands were returned to Supply Depots and subsequently destroyed. How do I know this, through an old military illustrator friend of mine who regularly used to visit an MOD Supply Depot, who watched in horror as badges that you'd pay an arm and a leg for were crushed to sold on as scrap. The same friend used to take photo's of cavalry helmets, complete with plates, that were later guillotined to prevent theft and sale. Your printed cloth badges, look at the prices they fetch, can you imagine watching rolls of them being burnt. This was well before the MOD cottoned onto the fact that this stuff could earn them money, but by then it was too late. Can't deny that good badges are still out, but sadly not in their thousands and thousands as they once were, even your anodised badges are now being repro'd. The new young collectors I'm afraid have missed the zenith of good badge collecting, which died with the 1970's repro's. Graham. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graeme Fisher Posted 29 December , 2005 Share Posted 29 December , 2005 Harry Betts' and Graham's words cover the subject comprehensively. It's a minefield, and years of collecting is no guarantee of the ability to spot a fake. If a badge has lived in a tin with buttons, old pennies and francs and grandad's medals for tyhe last seventy years, then maybe it's an original badge. If it came fronm a car boot sale or indeed, a militaria fair in the last five years, then watch out. I have stuff in my collection that I've looked at ten years on and said " oh, ******...." because I've missed the obvious clues... If you want genuine stuff, then do some serious research and make friends with some good dealers. there are people out there who sell genuine kit at reasonable prices, but I could count them on two hands...... Happy hunting Graeme Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtrpltpara Posted 29 December , 2005 Share Posted 29 December , 2005 Good to read the advice, my copy of Badges of the British Army by F. Wilkinson mentions the hope that a chap called Laurie Archer would assemble and publish his notes on restrikes. Does anyone know if this happened? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Caldecott Posted 29 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 29 December , 2005 Cheers guys!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
max7474 Posted 29 December , 2005 Share Posted 29 December , 2005 Hi, Can anyone tell me what the term re strike means, in regards to cap badges? e.g The Cheshire (Earl of Chester's) Yeomanry (Circa WW1) Cap Badge. A top quality re-strike in bi-metal in excellent condition. For what its woth this is an obvious fake as the feathers are the wrong type. They are of a pattern worn only by the Royal Hussars 1968-91 in a/a only. This badge comes from a seller on ebay who has boxes of them. Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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