RAF Escape button compass

**Adrian Stevenson** · 11-10-2020, 09:34 AM

Part of an old collection I am selling at work on Nov 20th.

Cheers, Ade.

**RH1941** · 11-10-2020, 10:36 AM

Very cool . I would lose money working at your auction house.

**Adrian Stevenson** · 11-10-2020, 10:41 AM

Don't worry I do too

!

**Niedersachsen** · 11-10-2020, 11:40 AM

What an awesome piece of history!
Edit: the more I think of it, I would like to know where I can follow this auction. Is it possible to bid online?

Chris

**Lee** · 12-29-2020, 02:21 AM

Is there a way to tell if the button is a compass one? do they open easily?

**Grimebox** · 01-02-2021, 01:00 PM

by Lee

Is there a way to tell if the button is a compass one? do they open easily?

They weigh slightly more than a normal button and if you’re lucky you might hear a slight rattle. The screw threads are quite tight as, naturally, they were designed not to be discovered. Despite this the Germans did discover the earlier buttons with a clockwise thread. The thread was then reversed by the boffins at Mi9 so if you go around trying every button you might inadvertently be tightening it!

**Lee** · 01-02-2021, 10:06 PM

thank you for the information. looking through my collection of buttons crossing my fingers lol

**Adrian Stevenson** · 01-04-2021, 10:47 AM

I will have another one of these coming up for sale later this year at my new place of work, Bamfords Auctioneers in Derby, England.

Cheers, Ade.

**Adrian Stevenson** · 01-12-2021, 05:37 PM

Here it is! Coming up at Bamfords in March.

WW2 British RAF Escape button compass. Reverse of the button is marked "JR Guant & Son, London". The back of the button unscrews with a left hand thread to reveal an escape compass.

Superb example and it should do well.

Cheers, Ade.