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  #1  
Old 24-06-20, 12:08 AM
LtDan LtDan is offline
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Default RFC Collection

Hello,
I recently acquired this RFC collection and would be interested in any observations/opinions. I purchased it from a person in the UK who was selling his father's collection of military items. These were his RFC items. I was told his father collected these in the 1960-70 period. The cloth items had been glued in a frame at one time. I have not seen RFC wings of this style before.

There are two cloth items:
Royal Flying Corp Shoulder patch
RFC Wings

Other items are:
Cap badge - unmarked
Collar badge - Firmin/London
Button - J.R.Gaunt & Son Ltd. London Engd

Any comments/evaluations of these items would be helpful and appreciated.

Thanks,
Dan
Attached Images
File Type: jpg DSC_7046.jpg (69.0 KB, 63 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7047.jpg (69.3 KB, 63 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7049.jpg (112.5 KB, 70 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7062 rs.jpg (69.5 KB, 32 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7050.jpg (66.9 KB, 32 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7052.jpg (89.6 KB, 23 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7057.jpg (86.9 KB, 40 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7058.jpg (74.1 KB, 44 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7053.jpg (69.7 KB, 10 views)
File Type: jpg DSC_7055.jpg (75.9 KB, 14 views)
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  #2  
Old 24-06-20, 12:24 AM
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dragon166 dragon166 is offline
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Personally I don't like the RFC shoulder title and definately the Pilots wing which is a total fake. The collar badge being silvered is also concerning. Although it may be a genuine item it may have been silvered for a sweetheart badge.
Dave
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  #3  
Old 24-06-20, 07:17 AM
arrestingu arrestingu is offline
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Hi
Totally agree on Dave's observations .
Regards
Steve
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  #4  
Old 24-06-20, 01:28 PM
LtDan LtDan is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dragon166 View Post
Personally I don't like the RFC shoulder title and definately the Pilots wing which is a total fake. The collar badge being silvered is also concerning. Although it may be a genuine item it may have been silvered for a sweetheart badge.
Dave
Dave,
Thank you and Steve for your comments. I certainly had doubts about the "style" of the wings, although they certainly appear old. What pointers could you provide on the shoulder title.....what should I look for in an original shoulder title?
Also, does the "Firmin" backmark appear original on the collar badge? If it's an original item that was made into a sweetheart badge, I'd still keep it in my collection.
Thank you again for your observations. At least I didn't spend a lot for this grouping. If the button & cap badge are correct, I may have broken even.

Dan
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  #5  
Old 24-06-20, 04:29 PM
arrestingu arrestingu is offline
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Hi
Cap badge and collar are correct , though I suspect collar was silver washed as a sweetheart badge for a partner.
Not all genuine badges are rear marked.
Best
Steve
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  #6  
Old 24-06-20, 04:30 PM
arrestingu arrestingu is offline
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..you need to study the rear materials used in patches of WW1 and look at the weave originals ..eventually it becomes easier to spot the good from the bad !!
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  #7  
Old 24-06-20, 05:46 PM
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dragon166 dragon166 is offline
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Here are some examples of genuine items. The main bad feature of yours is the backing material which is obviously covering a mess of embroidery. I agree with Steve that the cap, collar and button are genuine.
Dave
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File Type: jpg RFC titles 1.jpg (72.7 KB, 37 views)
File Type: jpg RFC titles 2.jpg (33.5 KB, 44 views)
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  #8  
Old 25-06-20, 01:58 AM
LtDan LtDan is offline
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Dave & Steve,
Thank you both for your comments and for the photos of original shoulder titles.
I very much appreciate your evaluations and assistance.

Dan
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  #9  
Old 28-06-20, 06:04 PM
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Frank Kelley Frank Kelley is offline
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Firmin made a great many die cast cap and collar badges for RFC officers to wear upon SD, but, their plate is a rather unusual thing to see on the reverse of a collar badge.


Quote:
Originally Posted by LtDan View Post
Dave,
Thank you and Steve for your comments. I certainly had doubts about the "style" of the wings, although they certainly appear old. What pointers could you provide on the shoulder title.....what should I look for in an original shoulder title?
Also, does the "Firmin" backmark appear original on the collar badge? If it's an original item that was made into a sweetheart badge, I'd still keep it in my collection.
Thank you again for your observations. At least I didn't spend a lot for this grouping. If the button & cap badge are correct, I may have broken even.

Dan
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  #10  
Old 28-06-20, 07:25 PM
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Home Guard Home Guard is offline
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Dan, Another thing to keep in mind is that real RFC titles were always serif lettering. There were some sans-serif ones made by Hollywood, who did it for one of the early 30's movies - Dawn Patrol. You can just get a quick glimpse in this trailer at 47 seconds in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U409HIwikoQ


I had a pair in my collection and you can see them on the bottom left here.



I was also able to find one still that might let you see it better. The on ins this picture is cut half-moon shaped, but I recall others being more traditionally cut. Since he movie centers around he pilots, and only the ORs wore the titles there are not a lot of scenes with them.



There are quite a few real German and French planes in the movie too. The main one seen is a Pfalz D.XII. Dawn Patrol is my all time favorite WWI flying movie.

Terry
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