B&NL Coastal Artillery Badge - Is This the Only Known Example?

[Colorado]

I posted my B&NL KA a couple days ago. Since I am not an avid KM collector, no surprise that I had never seen a B&NL KA before purchasing this. Was not aware that WAF didn't have them in the collector database until Martin informed me.

This has not been seen before until now and has been buried away since the early 80's.

The catch is pushed down a bit, so I cannot photo the B&NL straight on.

Here it is for you to enjoy and a link:

[Colorado]

2

[Colorado]

Maker Mark

[Colorado]

Maker Mark other side

[mrg]

Hmmmmmmm

[Marc Garlasco]

Never seen one before but this looks great. MM looks spot-on, though a front look would have been preferable. Still - I LIKE IT!
Marc

[Lorenzo Brown]

I've never seen a B&NL CAB before, but that one looks authentic!!

[Lorenzo Brown]

Any other opinions on this one. Quite rare if authentic.
Can you give us weight and measurements?

[John R.]

I also have not seen this one before and checking with other collectors on other forums, they have not either. That said, I think the collective opinion is that it is probably a good badge with a short manufacturing run.

Or, another possibility is that it is a good badge with a post war stamp. This speculation is caused only by the fact that it has not been encountered before but in all aspects, it looks period.

Anyway, no proof to call it a reproduction so I think it has to be considered as a rare badge by this maker. John

[Norm F]

Hi Guys,

I'm bumping up this old thread on the one-off B&NL stamped zinc Marine Artillery badge. As we know this zincer is attributed to S&L these days and only this one example has ever shown up with the B&NL stamp -- enough to get it into the reference books.

Well, I was intrigued to see this APB posted by Dzyner on War Relics Forum. It looks like a post-war cast reproduction of an S&L flatback APB with a post-war Souval setup and...a "B&NL" stamp. The stamp was applied poorly with at least three attempts I'd say.

S&L's late war zincers have enough uncertainty around them already ("o" marked S-Boats, Auxiliary cruisers with post-war globes, S&L products with spurious L12 and L56 marks), that when you see something like this you really have to wonder about a post-war B&NL mark on that S&L CA badge.

Best regards,
---Norm

[Norm F]

Difficult to compare the stamps but here's a compilation with two original Luftwaffe B&NL badges along the top.

Perhaps those more familiar with B&NL marked badges can comment on the stamps.

Best regards,
---Norm

[Thomas Durante]

Hi Norm,

Here is another B&NL-marked Antipartisan badge similar to the one you posted.

The obverse design is not S&L, it is Souval. So it makes perfect sense that the reverse hardware setup matches Souval as well, these are 100% Souval products and don't have anything to do with S&L other than the fact that both are flatbacks.

Tom

[Thomas Durante]

And for completeness, here is a comparison of the Obverses between Souval & S&L.

Skulls are the most notable difference and an easy way to quickly tell them apart when looking solely at the obverse.

Tom

[Norm F]

Thanks Tom. So presumably someone picked up a batch of post-war Souvals and stamped them B&NL.

Do you happen to have a closeup of the fake B&NL maker mark?

Best regards,
---Norm

[Thomas Durante]

Hi Norm,

Sorry, don't have a closeup of the mark. It doesn't seem very deeply struck into the badge, and the one you posted was even lighter so I agree with your thought that someone other than Souval added these marks sometime after they left the factory.

Tom