Auxiliary Cruiser Badge questions

[Rich G]

Just for reference here's a zinc version which I believe (though not proven, to be an f.o. badge)

Regards

Rich

[rhudspith]

Ron,

As yet I have not seen an unmarked example which matches a marked Schwerin. In my opinion those that I have seen are not made by Schwerin for the reasons previously stated.

One must realise that Schwerin badges perhaps like luftwaffe juncker carry a premium on price and therefore it is in dealers interests to call these unmarked Schwerin. The better dealers sometime refer to these as Schwerin Type or Like which is a bit nearer the mark

The fixings on original badges are the same as all the other Schwerin badges (U-boat awards excepted) in that the Tombak ones have the hinge laid on its side with the catch directly attached to the badge. Zinc version have the hinge fixed verticaly (turned through 90 degrees) and the catch fixed to a small circular base plate. The catches are also rectangular in cross section not like round wire.

In my opinion if you definately wanted a Schwerin piece then you have to get a marked one. Unfortunately these are actually one of the rarest of the Schwerin set of badges.

I am not able to post photos but if you email me i can send some good shots of original and copy badges.

Regards

Rob.

[George Stimson]

another one

Here's another unmarked example for comparison purposes:




Zinc. Unusually, the catch opens to the wearer's left. And check out the close haircut on that eagle!

George

[Frank Heukemes]

Dear Bob and all,

Here is the tombak Schwerin Berlin marked Hilfskreuzer badge from my collection. At least I believe it to be tombak since it is definitely not a zinker (maybe brass?). Hard to determine since the base metal does not shine through on any spot of the badge, but definitely not zinc due to condition. It is fire gilded on the wreath, ship and reverse and features a aluminum globe. Eagles wing´s tops, swastika and "wreathribbon" are polished.

Cheers, Frank

[Lorenzo Brown]

From Mike K. ...

"Who produced the unmarked tombak version pictured above? I have no idea but and friend and I speculate that maybe Rudolf Klein (RK) did as marked RK KM Minesweeper badges use a very similar hinge/pin/catch construction."

I have an early brass Juncker Coastal Artillery badge with the same hinge and pin as the Tombak Auxiliary badge. In fact, the hinge on the Juncker Coastal is almost identical to the one on the Auxiliary badge....much closer than the RK Mineweeper.

Good point , though. I'd always thought that Schwerin made the badge because it is such high quality. Now I'm thinking maybe Juncker or R.K. made it....both are high quality badge makers.


I just noticed one more thing...The rivet on the Auxiliary badge looks exactly like the rivets on Juncker Pilot badges...small domed with a flattened top!!!

[Ron Birch]

First let me apologize to Bill Stump and tball for not getting the pictures posted in a timely manner. I have tried and tried to get them in a file but can't. Mark will post them now that I have his email address.

Frank that is a nice looking badge, I like it from catch to hinge.

[Mark S.]

Ron, are these the pictures you wanted me to post?

Pictures courtesy of Detlev Niemann

[Bob Hritz]

Hello Frank,

You have the badge I have sought for years. Wonderful!

Bob Hritz

[Mark S.]

Ok..a little SNAFU..I was informed that these pictures of Bill's badge is what was meant to be posted....

[Richard]

Wanting to educate myself on these badges as this is one which I hope to acquire soon as well, I must bring up a point that was made to me a year or so ago. I was told that the longitudinal line that is to the left of Ireland, actually passes to the left of the island on original badges (though it may touch the west coast of the island), but does not pass through the island itself. Can anyone verify this? If this is true my world may be shaken as the first badge of Detlev's that is pictured in this thread appears to have the longitudinal line passing through the island. I know that no one is infallible, but if anyone is close, it has to be Detlev as he probably knows more about badges than most of us put together. This could also be due to the angle at which the scan was made. It is not easy to discern.
Richard V

[Gordon Williamson]

Richard,

Your point about the lines would be true if it were a Schwerin badge, the line here just touches Ireland and no more.
However, Detlevs badge is not Schwerin, just Schewrin-like, and this particular type just encroaches slightly into the island as do many other perfectly original pieces.

Gordon

[W. C. Stump]

WHAT HAVE I GOT IN THE BOX?

I thought I had a unmarked Schwerin in the box, but al the talk of the lines have me all mixed up. What is the general consciences about my badge in the blue box Mark posted above? Is it a Schwerin or not?

[Mike Kenny]

Hi Bill,

Bill, you have a nice badge but, in my opinion, and it seems to be the consensus, your badge was not made by Schwerin. It is one of the "Schwerin-like" examples by an as yet unknown manufacturer (Mark - sorry, I mean Lorenzo - I like your Juncker analogies - I'll check this out further when I get home as I also have a tombak Juncker Coastal). The discussion about the lines is only relevant in detecting Schwerin-MARKED repros from Schwerin-MARKED originals.

If anyone else has compared the fire-gilt finish on the unmarked example to that of a marked Schwerin example (I've seen at least 3 subtle variations of fire-gilt finish used by Schwerin depending upon the period of manufacture) you'll know that the fire-gilt finish on the unmarked badges is DIFFERENT to any of the finishes on marked badges that I am aware of.

Regards
Mike K

[Lorenzo Brown]

I have compared the hinges and pins on my unmarked tombak Auxiliary Cruiser badge with my Juncker Coastal Artillery badge:
Here is a scan of my unmarked Auxiliary:
http://photofile.homestead.com/files/auxiliary.jpg

Here is a scan of the reverse compared to the Juncker Coastal. Notice the hinge and pins:
http://photofile.homestead.com/files/auxstudy.jpg

Here are close-ups of the hinge and pin. The measurements are virtually identical for both:

Hinge height 4.85 -4.9 mm
Hinge width 8mm
Pin length 49.5 mm
Pin thickness 1.5 mm

http://photofile.homestead.com/files/auxstudy1.jpg

Also notice that the catch and rivet are very similar to the styles used on Juncker luftwaffe badges.
http://photofile.homestead.com/files/auxstudy2.jpg

IMO there is ample evidence to suggest that the Auxiliary badge was made by Juncker. Not conclusive, but good evidence.
(I started a new thread for this topic)

[Ron Birch]

Mark did those pictures come through? If so the first set of pictures are Bills marked Schwerin badge that I tried to post, could you repost them with a better picture?