Things to remember collecting warbadges of the Third Reich.

[Jerome]

Hello guys,

These helpful hints are intended to help the beginning collector as well as the more experienced.

- If it just doesn’t feel right, don’t buy it.

- If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.

- If you have a badge in mind that you want, do the research and know what’s right and what’s wrong.

- Never be afraid to ask what the return policy is. If it’s not 100% money back guarantee for life don’t buy.

- If a dealer tells you he doesn’t know if it’s original, it probably isn’t.

- Don’t forget, a makers mark doesn’t mean it’s original.

- Don’t be scared of whipping out a magnifying glass to look at a badge.

- If it helps, make out a check list of what to look for.

- Create you own reference book with your favorite articles, pictures, etc. Include a section on fakes.

- Evaluate the item, not the story.

- Post all new acquisitions on this forum straight away so that you can return them within the
warranty period.

- Some badges may be original but may have been also altered which would affect their desirability and resale value.

- Buy reference books and check measurements with a digital vernier.

- Get to know other collectors and handle awards in their collections.

- Remember that colour is usually a useful guide- especially gold colour.

Gr,

Jerome

[John Brandon]

Good points Jerome
might be the time to resurrect this i wrote a few years back............................

WW2 uniform, awards, armor, weapons history. War relics forum- collector's forum - John Brandon - Blogs

[colt45]

nice detail is good, but some fakes have it to... age natural , not dirt put here and there

[Adrian]

A good thread Jerome and a very good blog entry John.
One more thing worth pointing out is no matter what field you collect in, originals should be studied to enable you to pick out the fakes, not the other way around.