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    Canadian brass...well some of it is.


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    • 1 month later...

    Hi Laurence,

    The Canadian's have some very nice cap badges, I see some close affiliation to alot of ours (Brits)

    Thats one smart Royal Canadian Army Medical cap badge, with mine I wore a cloth cherry backing, which we had to cut to shape and size and sew on the beret (or not, as it looked better not sewed so you could reshape your beret how you wanted it, other than for parades), on the No. 1 peaked hat of course the band was cherry.

    The reason of course for the cherry backing (and I like the Canadian thought and style on this) which you all are probably aware of, is out of the three bars to the VC the RAMC has two.

    I don't remember the RCAMC cap badge being like this back in 1999 though, I had a Canadian (I keep going to write Canuck LOL) medic attached to me in Pristina. Is it new new, or been on issue for a while ? I like it alot.

    Kr

    Marcus

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    Guest Rick Research

    I only have two to chip in, found here in Southern Canada, where many disaffected residents of the polar regions THINK they are getting away from their winters.

    This has got to be one of the BEST designs, any time, any place:

    [attachmentid=16007]

    8th Infantry Battalion "Winnipeg Rifles" aka the "Black Devils."

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    Guest Rick Research

    Back

    [attachmentid=16008]

    It is now impossible to buy supermarket winter vegetables here which are not completely labelled in French. Is there something going on Up There we should know about, eh?

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    Guest Rick Research

    Not a cap badge-- a lone collar badge for 116th Overseas Battalion:

    [attachmentid=16009]

    What is with all those "thermometer" slide bottoms on your badges, Laurence? I've never seen those before!

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    Guest Rick Research

    This is it for me!

    [attachmentid=16010]

    I have always had a weakness for the chocolate colored badges more than the brass ones. I had one years ago which I've regreted selling ever since-- I thought it was Princess Pat's as I remember it-- but it had a DAISY as the central part of the design?

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    I only have two to chip in, found here in Southern Canada, where many disaffected residents of the polar regions THINK they are getting away from their winters.

    This has got to be one of the BEST designs, any time, any place:

    [attachmentid=16007]

    8th Infantry Battalion "Winnipeg Rifles" aka the "Black Devils."

    Rick, What you have there is a collar dog from the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, the little black devils!

    The best cap badge shown by Laurence is the Princess Patricia cap badge...he knows why!!

    Cheers,

    James

    Edited by JamesM
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    I have always had a weakness for the chocolate colored badges more than the brass ones. I had one years ago which I've regreted selling ever since-- I thought it was Princess Pat's as I remember it-- but it had a DAISY as the central part of the design?

    That was the first pattern PPCLI badge. Technically it's a "marguerite", not a "daisy".

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    That was the first pattern PPCLI badge. Technically it's a "marguerite", not a "daisy".

    The original PPCLI cap badge was the marguerite flower chosen after Gault's wife's name, "marguerite". But there should have been little doubt if it were a PPCLI badge as it has complete name on it!

    Cheers,

    James

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    • 4 months later...

    Thanks James for that info on the Patricia hat badge.

    Well it's been a day or two since I have been here, I now have somwe time off due to "Spring breakup" which brings the oil drilling industry out here to a screeching halt, considering I have worked 75 out of the 1st 90 days this year I need the break, also gives me time to be online, work turns into a blur of 12hr shifts, sleeping, and not much time for anything else.

    Cap tally for HMCS St Laurent, cosidering my given name this one was a must have

    Edited by Laurence Strong
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    The first one was originaly launched as HMS Cygnet

    River-class Destroyer - Original; 'C' Class

    1,375 tons - 100.3 x 10.0 x 3.0 meters (329 x 33 x 10 feet)

    Crew: 171 - Propulsion: 31 knots

    Armament: 4 4.7" single, 2 2 Pdr guns, 8 21" TT

    HMCS St. Laurent, T-83 *

    Edited by Laurence Strong
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    The second one, and the one this talley would have come from was the Lead ship of the "St Laurent" class of DDE's

    These ships were the first major warships designed and built in Canada. They were some of the very first new designs to appear after the Second World War, and were among the most sophisticated. Known as 'Cadillacs', they had relatively luxurious crew accomodations. They were similar to the RN's contemporary WHITBY (Type 12) frigates, but relied more on American equipment than British.

    Designed to operate in harsh Canadian conditions, these ships looked remarkably different from other warships of the time. They were built to counter NBC (Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical) conditions, which led to their rounded hull, continuous maindeck, and the addition of a prewetting system to wash away fallout and other contaminants. In addition, the living spaces of the ship were part of a 'citadel' which could be sealed against contamination for the safety of the crew. Other inovations included an operations room (CCR, or CIC in USN parlance) seperate from the bridge from which the captain could command the ship while in combat, 12 seperate internal telephone systems, air conditioning, and various other systems.

    Built with the latest in radar and sonar systems, they were well-equiped to detect the presence of air, surface, and submarine targets. These sensors directed modern guns and ASW weaponry. The FMC 3"/50 Mk.33 was primarily an anti-aircraft weapon, of minimal use with surface targets. It was guided by fire control radars mounted right on the gun. The twin 3" gun mounts were open to the weather when the ships were first built, but fibreglass enclosures were later added. It remained in service with the Canadian Navy until 1998. Four ships of the class were also fitted with single 40mm Bofors mounts aft of the bridge, but these were later removed. Her ASW weapons included Y-gun launched homing torpedoes and two British triple-barrelled Mk.10 Limbo mortars, which launched projectiles forward and to the side of the ship.

    With the advent of the nuclear submarine, however, it became apparent that even more efficient detection of submarines was needed to find submarines at greater distances than possible at the time. It was decided then to modernize the ships of the ST. LAURENT class to carry helicopters and the new SQR 504 Variable Depth Sonar (VDS). As a result, in the early 1960's all seven ships of this class were converted into helicopter carrying destroyers (DDH). In June of 1963, HMCS ASSINIBOINE was recommissioned after this conversion. This involved the removal of one of the Limbo ASW mortars and the aft 3"/50 gun to make room for the hangar and landing deck, the twinning of the single funnel, and various other improvements all over the ship. Activated fin stabilizers were added to reduce the ship's roll in heavy seas, as well as the Beartrap device which allows helicopter recovery in almost any sea state. One CH 124 Sea King helicopter was carried. The transom was altered drastically in order to allow for the placement of the new Canadian designed SQS 504 VDS. The VDS was instrumental in extending the range of the ship's sonar, then limited to about 2000 yards, and was in essence a complete sonar set that could be lowered by cable to great depths behind the ship.

    In the late 1970's and early 1980's, the 6 newest members of the class underwent a refit intended to extend the service lives of the ships, called the DEstroyer Life EXtension program (DELEX). The ships were initially intended for only 25 years of operation, and it had become apparent that they would not be replaced until they were nearing 35 to 40 years of service. For the ST. LAURENT class, DELEX meant that the electronics for both radars were upgraded with solid state replacements and hull and machinery repairs were undertaken so as to allow safe operation for up to another 15 years.

    The ST. LAURENT class served as the basis for another 11 ships, in two different classes, whose design differed only slightly. All were named after Canadian rivers, though many shared names with Second World War destroyers.

    ST. LAURENT herself, however, paid off early in the 1970s during the RCN's manpower shortages. Differing slightly from her sisters in her machinery, she never returned to service or underwent the DELEX refit, and was towed away for scrap in 1980. During her tow to Texas, she passed through the tail end of a hurricane, and sank after taking on water.

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    The 1st one

    Type: Destroyer

    Class: RIVER Class British

    Displacement: 1337 tonnes

    Length: 320 ft.

    Width: 32.5 ft.

    Draught: 10 ft.

    Top Speed: 31

    # Officers: 10

    # Crew: 171

    Weapons: 4-4.7", 8-21" Torpedo Tube (2 x IV), 2-2 pdrs. Modified to 2-4.7", 1-3", 4-21" Torpedo Tubes (I x IV), 6-20mm and Hedgehog as war began.

    Pendant (Hull Number): D/I79

    Builder: John I. Thornycroft & Co. Ltd., Southampton, U.K.

    Laid Down: 27-Sep-29

    Launched: 11-Jul-30

    Commissioned: 22-May-31

    Paid Off: 30-Jul-45

    The Canadian ships HMCS Saguenay and HMCS Skeena were a slightly modified design with heavier plating around the bow so they could operate in waters where there was a risk of Ice, they were not fitted or intended to be icebreakers

    Edited by Laurence Strong
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