Para beret from ebay

**airwarrior** · 09-04-2011, 06:27 PM

Hi won this from ebay the other day im sure its a Kangol ww2 but no dates anywhere doesnt seem post war.I see the guys details inside sure put on after as he wouldnt wear this in combat with all this info on.What do you guys think please?

**Adrian Stevenson** · 09-05-2011, 07:56 PM

Sorry but I am not liking the label at all.

It is not a WW2 era beret going from those pics. I cannot see any tie tapes and also what is that patch to the front? Please show a pic of the air vents inside.

Try wetting the beret liner with a misting spray of water: this will make any printed makers details show up.

Cheers, Ade.

**airwarrior** · 09-05-2011, 09:15 PM

Hi Ade the label looks clean in the photos but really is browning with age the vents are covered as the lining has been re stiched by the looks of things will get a photo of the ties.The patch is sewn into the beret i have never seen a real one in the flesh and took a stab at this apparently it came with a 44 denison and beret that the guy sold.He has his own website and said he sold the rest on there.

**airwarrior** · 09-05-2011, 09:32 PM

Here you go some closer pics and found a hole in the liner to show the back of the vents.

**Adrian Stevenson** · 09-06-2011, 09:50 AM

I would return this for a refund. At very best, the exterior of the beret might be WW2 pattern. But having said that it could equally be late 40's or 50's too. But with the lining being removed it is a relic at best.

Here is a link to the sale as some of the pics are better to see the details:

WW2 SAS Airborne Parachute red beret named | eBay

I know the seller.

Cheers, Ade.

**jimpy** · 09-06-2011, 10:06 AM

Giveaway for me is the service number. As far as I am aware, 8 digit service numbers did not come into use until well after the end of WWII.
Also, again, as far as I am aware, there has NEVER been the rank of "PARATROOPER" in the SAS, it has always been "TROOPER" or "PRIVATE"

As always, I am willing to stand corrected by others more knowledgeable than me.

Regards etc
Ian D
AKA: Jimpy

**airwarrior** · 09-06-2011, 03:40 PM

cheers guys

**airwarrior** · 09-06-2011, 03:43 PM

Think i will have to put my hand in my pocket and stop being tight! anyone know where i could buy a good genuine beret from please?

**skypilot** · 09-07-2011, 04:54 PM

The 8 digit service numbers were in use during WW2 and allocated in blocks to various regiments. The numbering system was overhauled in 1947 into the more familar system which does not give away unit details by number alone.

The number on the beret above indicates the chap originally enlisted in the General Service Corps. He may have transferred but I suspect not. A request to the airborne forces museum may well confirm a parachute course date and number if indeed he was ever para trained.

The maroon beret was ony used by the SAS for a very short period of time and a genuine, verified one would be a real find for a collector. I have never heard of SAS companies being numbered in the way mentioned, and certainly not "22 Company". The regular unit of the SAS is 22nd Special Air Service Regt and I suspect that this is where our "manufacturer" has crossed his wires. Bear in mind, "22" were not formed until post war, after the maroon airborne beret was in service.

To label up a beret in such a manner is simply ludicrous and not for one moment do I believe it would be done by a genuine trooper (NOT "paratrooper") of the period as it contavenes just about every personal security guide going. Besides, if "Bradley" was indeed "OC 22 Company" he would have been a major or possibly a captain, but certainly commissioned. As the SAS technically has affiliations with the Army Air Corps historically (hence the sky blue piping on No1 dress and insignia), the rank of "Air Trooper/Trooper" has remained the equivalent rank of private for some time. Paratrooper is not a term I have ever heard used in the context of a rank, merely as a generic reference for those airborne qualified or members of the Parachute Regiment.

I would also question how a beret that has been worn so much that the markings have worn away (apparently) retains a complete, clean and unsmudged label. In my experience, naming in berets smudges and gets faded within days of first wearing it!

To my mind the beret is a very poor attempt to deceive, made by whom I do not know but I would suggest a wide berth/refund etc.

**airwarrior** · 09-07-2011, 07:34 PM

Skypilot i dont know much at all about airborne equipment im more of an Raf collector who has a couple of para helmets and a dennison jacket i know 100% these are correct.The beret i should of done my home work it looked old enough at the last minute i did think about the label but thought could of been done by the owner after service and tucked away as a memento but you obviously know your s;;t.I have been done up like a kipper thats the problem with buying from ebay on a last minute excitement.I have told the seller who has not got back to me as yet he is a dealer with a website who i would think is honourable but lets see.Andy