Real Vs Rotten Tutorial #1 Maple Leaf Shows

[Bill A]

As part of an what will be an ongoing process, I am starting a series of threads which I hope will assist collectors in sorting the good from the bad. Other Forum members are welcome to post Real Vs Rotten threads. In your posts please post images of the good and bad, and give characteristics and traits that the collector should look for.

First post in Real Vs Rotten is the CANADIAN LEGION MAPLE LEAF SHOWS. The originals of these badges are rare, and seldom seen. The repros appeared several years ago, with quite a number being sold out of the UK. They dropped off, but have reappeared in the last few months.

What to look for?

• the letter embroidery with odd serifs and stitching and odd letter shapes
• the colour of thread for the embroidery should be white not buff
• the "spaghetti" mess on the back of the title
• thickness of the title - repro is thicker
• compact lettering vs "tall" lettering on the repro
• backing material colour

The repros are typical of a batch of titles that came out of Pakistan, and all have this odd embroidery. Canadian titles known to have been copied in this style are the Canadian Film and Photo Unit, the Armoured Carrier Regiment and the First Special Service Force.
Because these were easily identified as copies by the mess on the back, many have had a backing material glued over the embroidery.