Badges... How Many?
 

Well I decided to have an overdue tidy up as I’m intending on making a few albums and displays soon for my completed or near complete sets.

Mid reorganisation the wife walked in, gasped, then told me I ‘have a problem’. Stepping back and surveying the scene it was impossible to disagree with her. Especially considering this is maybe a little over 50% of my entire collection.

So I was wondering, how many badges do other collectors have?

Over three thousand. I know of people with far more.

Luke,
Outstanding, did she ask why you were also collecting biscuit tins?

I reckon I have in excess of 10,000 items. But that includes cap badges, collar badges, metal shoulder titles, cloth shoulder titles, slip on titles, formation signs, TRFs, regimental arm badges, trade, proficiency and qualification badges, cloth rank badges, metal rank badges, slip on rank slides, ACF and CCF badges, cloth helmet and beret badges, belt plate badges, mufti badges, sealed patterns, band badges, brassards and armbands, lanyards, hackles and plumes, sport and tracksuit badges and some buttons!

Tim

Haha yes Tim. At first I thought was she meant I had a biscuit problem lol. Oddly I’m quite choosy with my badge tins normally but today was emergency measures.

Goodness, 10k! I may have to show her that to mitigate further meltdowns. Can I ask do you have a badge room or man cave?

Phil I think I may be about the same but that’s a guesstimate. Funny how things mount up over a couple decades...

The big plus of today and sorting many tins was finding badges I thought I still needed. The highlight being a lovely BB 12th (The Rangers) Bn, London Regt with the circular reinforcing ring.

Far too many Luke. You must part with them. I will make the sacrifice and accept a batch....my contribution to your domestic bliss. I've only got roughly 1200 and still have room:)

CB

If I have a hundred that may be it.

What an amazing collection Luke. Helps explain your depth of knowledge.

And 10K!!!!

Terry

I don’t actually know for sure but quite a few! As with Luke the Wife thinks the same as his, in that I have a problem, also this thread helps raise an issue which I hope can be answered here, with so many badges she wants answers to Insurance as the Home Insurance does not cover them? She checked with them! 1st off she insists they are valued!!!! for Insurance purposes, not something you can just walk into a shop with is it! Any ideas? How do you cope with the thought of your badges oneday being destroyed by a Fire or being Burgled? It Iis always there at the back of ones mind! All the best billy

The realistic answer from me is...NOT ENOUGH!!!!
I used to keep a quite comprehensive record of my badges but with travelling for work and the internet, I now regularly buy badges while travelling so my record keeping has gone down the drain. I have about 2500-3000 badges and medals which are my core collection and probably another 2000 bit and pieces I've picked up along the way.

Thanks Luke - if my wife complains about my (modest c 450 in a box and a frame of 1914 badges) I can show her your photographs !!!!!!

You've got some work to do there Luke, you'll need that head massager on your last picture!
I've never counted, but I'm slowly whittling my collection down to family related regiments only.
I've had the same raised eye brows and slow shaking of head for 22 years from the wife, over my excitement of receiving a new badge , I've accepted she'll never understand.
Chris

Quite jealous of the fun you are going to have Luke sorting all those badges out. I have a little under 500. Most of mine are on display. I take photos of all my badges so if i want to compare different items i don't have to take them off of the display boards. With ref to insurance. I have mine under specified items. I just had to tell the insurance company what i wanted to insure them up to. As long as no one item is worth more than £1000. I then take photos of every item. Luckily i can now do it as i add each item. I also take pictures of any invoices i receive, plus my own records. All this then goes onto a separate hard drive which is kept in my fire proof safe. So if i am burgled or in case of house fire i do have some proof to back up my claim.
Regards
Chris

I do have a large collection of pre-1940 "trade" badges of course, but the few holes in the boards are prohibitively expensive to fill.

I then set out to collect one each of the cap badges and shoulder titles of every infantry regiment valid for Declaration of war 1914. I added the economy versions, although issued later, and added the ST wartime changes.

Having become satisfied as far as anyone can be that they were genuine, I digressed a bit to hunt a few selected wartime creations such as GMGR.

Apart from that, a fair amount of Foot Guards heavy metal: duty plates, valise badges etc.

And stopped.

I don't even look any more, being content. I no longer count as a collector!

I'd love to see your Guards collection Grumpy.
Andy

And I would love to know whats missing to fill the holes on your board as they must be rare beasts.

regards

Simple answer I don't Know although I do have a Dedicated room it has spilled out a bit, but I get away with it because mine are framed Four glazed and twenty others kept in architects drawers
Attachment 238206
I have another seven various frames HP' and the like, problem is as you can see some of the frames are getting a bit rammed I have recently been posting badges under regiments opinions welcome I maybe up to about 7% posted. A bigger problem is the junk I get with the good stuff.