17th/21st Lancers - StayBrite Cap Badge

[hagwalther]

Fellow Members,

Does anyone know if this badge was officially made and issued in black?

Regards ...

[uscob]

Fellow Members,

Does anyone know if this badge was officially made and issued in black?

Regards ...

They painted them black in the Regimental Workshops for fielwear on the Beret.
Normally they used, scratched and used ones for this purpose.
I have a lot of painted Cap Badges, from different Regiments.
Some of them with broken sliders or Attachment-Rings.
They were sewn to the Berets that they can't loose them.
Nicholas

[yellow]

Blackened badges for patrols in Northern Ireland
There should be an example on forum somewhere of a Parachute Regiment badge.

Steve.

[hagwalther]

Thanks Nicolas, Steve,



I collect British Army 'Stay Bright' cap badges having approx 300 odd. One of my tasks this Christmas break is to try and work out which Corp/Regiments/Depts etc actually commissioned the making of black or 'subdued' badges.

Taylor in his book 'Collecting Anodised Cap Badges' states that certain regiments e.g. The Royal Green Jackets, 17th/21st Lancers and many others did.

While The Royal Green Jackets certainly commissioned a black badge and I'm pretty certain that the Scots Guards did I am trying to find out if other badges were officially commissioned as opposed to being painted up in barracks or workshops. The 17th/21st Lancers is one on my list.

I suspected that the 17th/21st Lancers only ever commission the silver badge and that the black version was a refurbished silver one as Nicholas states.

Regards and Thanks ...

[MH184]

With the RGJ I think it depends which Batt they were, I served with 2 RGJ in Paderborn, Greece, Macedonia and Kosovo. The old boys that were from 3 or 1 some wore black cap badges still, disgruntled at abolishment of the 3 rd Batt.

I served in the airborne remit for over 4 years, with 23 PFA I never saw a sanctioned issue blackened Pararchute Regiment cap badge in 1, 2 or 3. The Pathfinders however wore blackened cap badges and the subdued parachute qualification badge (green and black). You could buy them though in the shop, the PRI sort of thing.....crap thing.

As for Northern Ireland, well it depended where you were urban or rural of course and helmets at one time were always worn NOT Berets.....I know this contradicts what you see on some media footage, but in the mid 90's in Belfast (Palace Bks, Hollywood) the batt didn't wear blackened cap badges for patrols at all.

Times have proabably changed, I don't know the only ones I ever remember were self painted badges and non issue types. And if you could sew on your badge you did any way, we all cut our sliders on the back to shape our berets and pull them down over our eye brows.....not condoned normaly and I was always pulled for that by other unit senior NCO's.

Kr

Marcus

Not gospel just my memories out of interest.

[hagwalther]

Thanks Marcus,



Yes, of great interest to me.

Will keep in touch.

Regards ...