[QUOTE=JBBOND;317722]Odd though that it is the same as the patch I linked to except upside down, so I wonder how if it was a loose patch that it can be certainly id'd as one rather than the other?=QUOTE]
The design and position of wearing of the colour patch you have borrowed the image of was an authorised patch for RAA units of 2 Aust Motor Div 1942-43 (22 Aust Fd Regt and 105 Aust A Tk Regt). They were Victorian units. The former was transferred to 3 Aust Armd Div in Queensland in April 1943, the latter remained in Victoria until August/September 1943 when it was broken up to form AA units.
1st Aust Armoured Division was located in Western Australia 1942-43. HQRAA 1 Aust Armd Div was formed by redesignation of HQRAA 4 Aust Div in March/April 1943, it was disbanded in September/October 1943.
No artillery unit of 2 Aust Motor Div was ever raised in or deployed in Western Australia.
Colour patches at this time were generally supplied by the Commonwealth Clothing Factory (located in South Melbourne I think) in bulk as manufactured to 2 Base Ordnance Depot in Victoria from whence they were distributed to other areas in response to maintenance demands.
Local manufacture was also undertaken but only for maintenance requirements for units and formations in that area. This included WA where patches were made primarily for units of 2 and 4 Aust Divs, 1 Aust Armd Div, 3 Aust Corps and WA L of C Area. These appear to have been made by one manufacturer only and thousands of them were sold at an auction of a military outfitters stocks in the early 1970s. Somewhere I have a copy of the auction flyer. Because of the material and the stitching style I can identify the patch in the image you borrowed as of being of identical manufacture to the patch on the puggaree, they are just photographed in different lighting conditions.
In summary the patch you have on that puggaree was locally manufactured in WA for a unit in WA. It was not made for one of the Victorian units of 2 Aust Motor Division. Also note that 2 Aust Motor Div was identified as 2 Aust Armd Div in the authority for the colour patch designs. No such formation as 2 Aust Armd Div ever existed.
Keith
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