[Chrisr]

Hi Martin,

I too am still learning about badges and I have been collecting for nearly 50 years, albeit from a vast distance from the sources of my principal area of interest. Much of what I have learned regarding original badges (what I mean by original is the badge being struck and used when the unit was in existence - others use the term genuine) has come from the members of this and another forum and their advice has been invaluable. What I have deduced from the various comments is that there are no hard and fast rules in judging a badge to be original, only indicators and then they are not applicable to every badge. Secondly, unless there are clear indications of it not being original, we cannot be sure. There are, however, stronger indicators of badge being a re-strike, although some of these are getting harder to distinguish. Sometimes I think we grasp at straws in judging a badge as being not original, when in fact we don't really know and in many cases will never know. In the end, if you are happy with the badge that is all that counts.

From what I have read on this and another forum some indicators that a badge could be genuine include patina, the crispness of detail on the badge when viewed form the rear, the gauge of the metal the badge has been struck from, sweat holes for earlier badges (although there are claims that some manufacturers did away with sweat holes during the Great War - much earlier than the generally accepted time of the late 1920's early 1930's), crimp lines on sliders (although this does not apply to all genuine badges), tapered slider (although, as far I know, this does not apply to all original badges), the braising material used to secure sliders and lugs and the badge has been shaped to follow the curvature of the cap (although this is rare and would have been done by the wearer). Some place a high value on the "feel" of the badge; to me feel is probably the least objective indicator of all. These are not hard and fast for every badge and, as I have said, are simply indicators.

There are also useful indicators that a badge is a re-strike. These include thin metal gauge for the early re-strikes that were easy to bend (although some members say that even this is not hard and fast proof for some badges), the lack of crispness in the strike when viewed from the rear (although we hear that the quality the Lambourne and other mass produced badges during wartime varied), an old style badge being shiny and having no patina (clearing demonstrating a recent production), alternatively a badge that has been deliberately aged and has a particularly black rear that cannot be removed with cleaning agents (they also have traces of black on the front of the badge), cast rather than die- struck (although some genuine badges were cast), flaws in the design (although this may be due to maker's variations), lugs on designs of badges that were approved after sliders were introduced, the braising agent to attach lugs and sliders and "JRGAUNT London" stamped in small print on the slider. Some say badges with brasso on the rear are suspect yet I have old badges that I polished years ago, before I knew better, and the brasso has not blackened.

I think if we get down to the only discriminator being its "feel" then the judgement is purely speculative. I tried to get the feel for two badges based on weight, one felt ever so slightly heavier than the other: I weighed them on an electronic set of weighing scales and they were exactly the same weight!

As an example of using the indicators described above I have posted another two DCLI badges, one I am sure is a re-strike and the other I believe is original.

The one on the left is a lugged badge which from the front seems to be original but I have marked it as a re-strike for the following reasons: it is not clearly struck behind the CORNWALL, the lugs look new, being bright coppery on the inside of the loops and the badge itself is too bright for it to be a lugged badge (pre 1904 -05), not enough patina on it. The last two indicators are the prime reasons for rejecting it

The right hand badge I believe to be original for the following reasons: it was acquired in 1963 from a gentleman who collected badges from troops during WW2, it is crisply struck, it appears to be the correct gauge metal as I cannot bend it easily, it has a tapered slider and although the photo doesn't show it, there is a slight crimp line on the top of the slider.
By themselves the indicators are not proof but having each of them on the one badge gives me enough confidence to judge it as original. Others may judge it differently, but I am happy with it.

My suggestion is consider all the comments provided and the indicators on the badge itself and make your own judgement. To date I haven't seen anything that clearly disputes its authenticity and the fact that it is slightly curved indicates a level of authenticity to me. Jibba Jabba may be correct but the evidence against it not being original is not compelling at the moment.

BTW The Lambourne and the tapered slider versions of the DCLI badges I have posted each weigh 12g; the lugged badge weighs 8g which is accounted for by being lugged rather than having a heavier slider.

I hope this is some help as you get more involved in the hobby.

Cheers
Chris