3 Blockade Runners

[rfleming32]

Here are 3 Blockade Runners in my collection; 2 cased with stickpin and 1 all by itself. They are not mint but the cased versions are extremely nice and the lone wolf is much better than I normally see for sale. Also have one award document for you to see. They do not appear to be as common as one might think. Please let me know what you think of these pieces. I am thinking about putting the single badge on the estand and would appreciate it if you could give me the going price on these. Last I heard was 250 pounds or about $400 - does that sound right? All the badges are tombak. You will see that even though they are the same badge, there are many differences. The cased Schwerin has very nice burnished highlights. Your thoughts are appreciated. Richard

[rfleming32]

Back of cased pieces

[rfleming32]

The Schwerin

[rfleming32]

The A.G. M.u.K.

[rfleming32]

The Award

[rfleming32]

A low resolution scan of the lone wolf. What is this worth these days. All badges look and feel much better in the hand than in these images. Thanks Again. Richard

[Mike Kenny]

Hi Richard,

This is probably not what you want to hear, but I have not seen a genuine AGMuK with anything other than a ball-hinge and crimped in catch, in anything other than zinc. Obverse details, hinge/pin/catch and maker mark imo do not conform with known genuine zinc examples. This one would not be for me. Others can comment on the case/mini.

Both the Schwerins look OK to me. Not sure on the price for a worn single. In the worn and darkened condition, I think your estimate would not be a bad start.

Regards
Mike

[Jeff V]

Hi Richard. I have to agree with Mike. The AGMuK is a fake, however the first cased Schwerin is extremely nice!
As far as the AGMuK goes the lettering is far too straight, it is not zinc, and the hardware is wrong. I would return that one if possible. best wishes,
jeff

[RICK S]

blockade runners

The 1st Schwerin is as mint as it gets. I say definately The AG M.u.K. I am not that familiar with, so I leave it to the experts. As for the 2nd Schwerin the noticable differences is the type of pin inserted into the hinge doesn't have the little button on it as most. As for the finish It looks like a worn piece maybe a late mfg. piece.
Regards
Rick S.

[Martin W]

Rick,i see what you mean about the "button". might be mistaken but the reverse hardware looks like that of early manufacture,maybe a close-up pic. of the hinge might help?Regards,Martin.

[rfleming32]

Here is a close-up of the maker mark on the questioned badge. A number of the periods show an indentation in the center. The letters are lighter in color as though they show wear on the top compared to the rest of the reverse. The badge is not magnetic. It shows shear marks and definately is not a cast piece. Thanks for your thoughts - good or bad. If this is not original, are there other examples of a known reproduction like this? It is rather convincing to me to be honest. If it is bad, then I guess the next step would to be to determine if all the components were bad, case and stickpin, ahich I would guess would have to be the case.

[Martin W]

RIchard,go to "Badges Fake Gallery" and look under KM Blockade Breaker/Runner.There is an example of an M.U.k.reproduction,Regards,Martin.

[rfleming32]

Thanks Martin - I checked it out. This badge is not the same on on the fakes gallery which is interesting. On the obverse, look at the waves at the prow of the ship. In many ways they are very similar but not the same badge. So is this a 2nd variation of a reproduction? Here is the comparison - front and back.

[rfleming32]

And the back

[rfleming32]

I have been comparing my own images and notice what shows up in one image may not show up in another of the same badge. Try as you may, some badges are just hard to get just right. They are not photogenic, more so with the bland badges like the CCC. P.S. - on the last set, notice the eagle's brow - definately different in that regard. Best, Richard