5th Royal Irish Lancers cap badge, knowledge needed!!

[Watchdog]

Good afternoon gents,

Going through the cavalry cap badges in my collection I have come back to one that has puzzled me for a long time. Not this particular example but the badge in general;

I have for some years held an example in my collection which I regard as a "gap filler" repro because whilst it has apparent age, applied white metal lower halves of the guidons, applied white metal '5' and a tool mark on the slider (which looks suspicious under magnification) it has a flat back which I have always believed is not correct in a genuine badge.

Looking over several sources and dealers lists I have seen wide variation in physical characteristics and price (low double figures to low three figures). I have even seen a very new looking item purporting to be an officers badge all in white metal, very flat back and a very modern looking "STERLING SILVER" stamp for the same price as a the most common WWI brass economy badges. OK, that's an extreme example but you get the idea.

Most British cap badges can fairly easily be sorted between genuine / fake-repro once you know what to look for but this badge in general has always been a bit of a mystery to me as I can't seem to find a consensus on variations of genuine pieces.

I can think of a couple of members here who I expect will know the answers straight away so hopefully I shall not be disappointed

Apologies for the poor pictures but the light was dreadful here when I took these.

I would hope to complie a visual reference as to real versus fake across the variations (including officers badges) to help anyone else with the same question.

Regards

Mark

[Jerry B]

There are a few badges that I would like to buy, but never see examples I am willing to part with money for, I just cannot tell the wheat from the chaff with some badges.

As you say, most badges are obviously good or bad, but a few for me are not.....Denbigh, some versions of the pembroke yeo etc.

It took me ages to find an example of the glamorgan yeo that I liked and bought it.