What is a real Retired Pilots Worth?

[Jimmy]

Ok

So basically as I understand it. ANY badge ,medal etc. from the 3rd Reich that I buy today that is well liked by all the collector community could be turned upside down in a few years making my investment worthless.
The rounders were all suspicious but people kept on buying them.
The Retired Pilot of mine was not suspicious in any way when I invested in it. It is now worthless.
Know your stuff! trust the few good dealers! OK I did that. Where does that leave you when the item's condemned as a fake?
Even the ones that are thought to be good today may not hold up later? Bad investment? You tell me as I know you will. I need help.

[Larry Lipps]

To answer your question simply, yes, items deemed bad have been proven good and vice versa. As an example, all flawed S&L Knights Crosses were thought bad just over a year ago. Today, the type "A" flawed is accepted. As collectors knowledge evolves, it can turn accepted items into fakes virtually overnight. For myself, I purchase items I like and try not think of them as an investment. Still, my militaria has performed a heck of a lot better than my Lucent stock.

[Darrell]

So basically as I understand it. ANY badge ,medal etc. from the 3rd Reich that I buy today that is well liked by all the collector community could be turned upside down in a few years making my investment worthless.

Well .... that's where a GOA comes in handy. Money back guarantee ... not exactly worthless then is it? However, some laugh at the mere thought of GOA's COA's ...

Well it's not that people like me are too stupid to know an original from a fake .. it's when items are later found to be fakes is what's saves our a$$'s. I'd rather save my a$$ than be an a$$

[mmiller]

Jimmy,

Sorry that this mess turned up for you. Don't feel bad, though, we are all in this together. Look at my thread currently running about the Unmarked Glider Badge. I received both a Repro unmarked Glider Badge and a Repro Retired Pilot Badge (just like yours) both from the same guy. I don't feel too good about THAT. But it's water over the dam. Your situation is different, but it's part of the collecting game we play. Hang in there.

Regards,
Mark

[Ron Weinand]

I view all the good and bad information that I gleen from this and other sites as a tool in managing my collection. Again, none of it is the final word and all of it is a basis for opinions. Most of what I find here is good information and all of it is probably given with genuine feelings of trying to be of assistance.
Are some of the opinions here bad? Yes, I am afraid they are. Do we all learn from our experiences here? Yes we do, but everything must be weighed and measured against what we develop as our expertise.
There is a lot of information that is based on theories and experiences. As new information comes available, old theories and ideas can be proven or disproven. Our basis of ideas is constantly moving and morphing, so don't jump to the conclusion that everything is cut in stone and be prepared to change.
Ron Weinand
Weinand Militaria