Plastic Suffolk Regt cap badge

[Sonofacqms]

Today at Thetford I bought a plastic Suffolk Regt cap badge, not in the normal bronze finish but in silver/grey. K&K state it was made with the bronze finish and that is it, no other variant is mentioned.

My question is does anyone know if this variant is a manufacturers mistake or do other Regiments badges appear in finishes other than those stated in K&K.

I would be interested in finding out other badge variations.

Rob

[leigh kitchen]

Other regiment's badges appear in "wrong" colours.
eg I have Queens West Surrey's in both "gold" and "silver" and West Yorks in "copper" and "silver".

[Sonofacqms]

Leigh, would the "Gold" and "silver" finish have been painted?

My badge appears to be made in silver/grey plastic, I have a silver painted Royal Ulster Rifles which was painted I would say by the manufacturer.

Rob

[leigh kitchen]

No, the colours are of the plastic although the Q West Surrey silver one has a coat of tan coloured paint.
The grey is marked to "F&G", the copper coloured badge has no manufacturer's mark (the grey was picked up in 1988, the copper in 1983).

[Sonofacqms]

Leigh,
Many thanks for your reply, very interesting and many more variations to look for, these I don't think are mentioned in K&K, I wonder why?

Rob

[leigh kitchen]

I assume (yes, that word, I know) that some plastic economies were made in the wrong colours as a matter of expediency or simple mistake and I again assume that units that were wearing plastics didn't know that the batch of the things in a different colour were wrong or were'nt particularly bothered as a plastic badge was a plastic badge and if a bimetal badge was produced in a gold, silver or copper colour plastic one was as good or bad as the other.
K&K quote the colours as prescribed presumably, and so don't make note of the odd unofficial colour variations here and there?
This is my Q West Surrey's badge, made of grey plastic it has a thin coat of a tan coloured paint (picked up in 1982).
I'd assumed (!) that an individual squaddie was pernickity enough to want the badge to be closer to that of the correct metal but maybe the manufacturer was responsible for the paint job?