Canadian maroon beret

[Luc]

Is this a an original beret?
It seems the liner has been handstitched to the cloth sweatband in a rather sloppy manner. Did Canadian berets have a cloth sweatband at all during WW2?

[48th]

It sure looks like at least a few people thought it was real judging by the price it ended at! Wow.

I was also watching this auction and was shocked it sold for over $1000 Canadian without a cap badge even.

I think it is an original item but will let the experts weigh in on it.

[cw2311]

Hello Luc,

Thanks for posting this beret. Judging from the pictures and information posted, I do believe this beret to be legit. The hand stitching you see is not due to the liner being changed, it’s the binding that has been changed. Normally you see leather binding, however it appears someone has changed it to cloth ribbon. I have seen this alteration on other berets several times. I suspect this to be an officer’s beret due to this alteration AND if you look closely at the holes, they appear larger and round, which leads me to believe there might have been an officer’s badge with screw posts. Couple other things I like is the colour, it appears correct for Canadian production, rather than that cherry red colour often seen with British production para berets. Lastly, the grommets are magnetic (steel) which is another tick in the box towards originality.

This all being said, an in hand inspection would be the final decision maker for me.

Cheers

[windmill]

Originally Posted by cw2311

the grommets are magnetic (steel) which is another tick in the box towards originality.

Is this allways the case ? Are the grommets allways magnetic ?

Cheers

Edwin

[cw2311]

Originally Posted by windmill

Is this allways the case ? Are the grommets allways magnetic ?

Cheers

Edwin

I have inspected a considerable amount of Canadian produced para berets and standard issue by the two primary contractors and have only ever found factory originals to be with steel (magnetic) grommets.

[silverwash]

whilst Dorothea Hats of Toronto appear to have used steel ? and therefore magnetic grommets in their wartime and postwar berets, Grand Mere Knitting Company Limited did use a mixture of brass ? (like the UK counterpart) and metal grommets in their beret production. note metal, ferrous based and not brass an alloy devoid of the three main magnetic elements. I have personally handled two with brass ? grommets and an example can be found in ' CANUCK ' Clothing and Equipping the Canadian Soldier 1939 - 1945. given the rarity of these berets it is difficult to produce an accurate pie chart. funny old game isn't it .

[juno-44]

Hi,

I have a khaki beret by Dorothea Knitting Mills Limited dated 1945 with non ferrous grommets, is this possible?

Regards, juno-44