Insanity?

[John R.]

Norm, you make a good point in that there are in balance, far more unmarked (and a few marked) KM badges that have lost favor due to the classification than badges that have gone up measurably by it.

Over on the Collector Community Forum they despair that dealer and estand listings are not called out for what they are (based on current collector research and sentiment of course).

This is not true in our little part of the collecting universe.

I think we do a great job with KM badges calling them for what they are if mistakes are made here, it is not in calling a bad badge good but a good badge bad.

So protection of the KM badge collector is a net effect of the classifications systems even if mistakes are made to the possible detriment of a seller.

John

[John R.]

Quite right, I should not have used the wording "strangely popular". It was only strange to me in the same way high fashion might be strange to someone with Asberger's.

Best regards,
---Norm

Norm, 99% of the world probably thinks the entire TR hobby is odd, strange, and bewildering.

They muse on this as they turn on the television to stare at the latest reality show, or some such rot or the fascination with the anatomy of certain high profile celebrities.

John

[John R.]

That's a good point regarding how incorrect notions pre-classification may cause over-valuing

We have always (I know a relative term) known that a Juncker AC badge was not a Schwerin badge so there was no misunderstanding in the collecting community over the last 20 years or maybe longer that the unmarked Juncker was not a Schwerin and certainly it was known as such since this forum was established.

Dealers simply called them what they wanted to get more money and refused to change the description. I know, I had contacted dealers in my early and naive collecting years pointing out mistakes on their websites. Guess what, they knew, and did not care and told me so. Lot easier in the old days to blow off a collector than today where we can post their remarks on the internet.

Harder for them to get away with it today but it still happens. Or they say, "Auxiliary Cruiser badge exhibiting characteristics of Schwerin Berlin". What, it has a wreath, a Viking ship, and a sail?

John