Spurious QO Buffs badge or trial pattern?
 

Hi. What do you think about this one? Purchased off eBay more as a curiosity than a serious addition to my Home Counties Brigade / Queens collection. It shouldn’t really exist as the regiment only consisted of one regular battalion that wore the Home Counties Brigade badge. The Kent territorial infantry stayed as Buffs and Royal West Kent battalions until the formation of the Queens in 1966.So is this badge a fantasy item or did Gaunt actually produce this badge as a trial piece in the period the regiment was formed and before the Home Counties badge was issued? Interested to hear peoples thoughts on this one.
Regards, Andrew.

It looks a genuine badge to me.

regards

The regiment was formed in 1961, within the Home Counties Brigade, are you thinking of TA rather than regular wear?

QO Buffs
 

No I wasn’t thinking of TA use as there never was a territorial battalion of the Queens Own Buffs. Oddly they remained Buffs and RWK.

The Brigade badge would have been in wear by the time the QOB were formed?
At the end of 1972 I was interviewed at St George's Barracks, Sutton Coldfield by an officer (a major I think) who was wearing what I took to be a silver QORWK badge in his SD cap. I wondered why he was wearing the badge of a regiment no longer in existence.

1961 would have been pushing the envelope for the Gaunt Bham mark.

Also any new design would have been made in a/a by that date. All of the Bde system badges and the newly raised TA units with a new design (such as Cambs & Suffolks) were made in 1958 in a/a.

Agreed...... it would have been the large J.R.GAUNT LONDON mark.

Thats a real badge, i have two one in white metal and one with the scrolls in guilt, the badge was first spoke about as early as 1957 witha choice of script the one you see and VERTERI FRONDESCIT HONORE being the other choice it was rejected ! i have a letter in my possession from the Regimental association dated 13 march 2002 written to a fried of mine former member of both the QORWKR and the QOBs explaining all the above.the silver seahorse type you sometimes see with loops on the rear were made on behalf of a lady member of the QOBs regtl ass in either the bromley or london branch,and was cast for her !