Belaruski

Thanks Rick. The pictures on ebay weren't great, but at 99cents it was worth the risk!

A nice badge this! It has the Red banner ribbons on the left, and officers shoulder boards at the top.

I know someone else has posted a picture of one somewhere, but can't find it!

This arrived in the post today a bargain for 99 cents? or is it a copy?

Beautiful deep blue enamel, and a nice design.

No it's an Army 'Excellent soldier' type badge.

Another 'look a like' piece from Belarus. Nice quality, and quite heavy.

********** Sorry, I meant 'Vidatnik' although they're practically the same thing!*********************************

Presumably everyone in the city got to wear it for a day

Ed,

It's not brilliant, but best offer...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Russian-Soviet-Order-R...7QQcmdZViewItem

Badge #8 is a Kirov military academy badge, but I think it may be a copy.

I have an almost identical one for the Stalin academy which is a fake, and the back of the diamond is identical. It also lacks a fixing for the academy name plate, I think genuine ones have a 'stud' on the back where the second part passes through the diamond.

He also appears to have air force wings on some patches but not on others. The 'coloured' photo looks very much like a border guard cap! Also the furazhka insignia would be wrong for VVS. Perhaps he was some type of political troubleshooter?

Very nice, and scarce badge Bruno

I think it's certainly Albanian, for some kind of Activist in the something of Socialism..

Nice quality piece too.

They look Soviet to me. Do you have a 'profile' shot? Are they domed etc?

Nice stamp!

Most of my Soviet collection has a big black hammer and sickle stamp, with no dates, or manufacturers code.

Otherwise the Red Army wouldn't be sure if they were wearing the right belts..

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ALBANIA-ORDER-MASTER...ksid=p1638.m122

Not cheap though....

A similar offering from modern Belarus.

This is nice as it's issued!

Not that anyone else is interested, but I have to show these off somewhere..

A Belarusian KGB collar patch insignia.

I think in regard t this Christian, so long as you're happy that you didn't pay too much for it, it's ok!

I remember someone here who found out that their Nevsky sat in a locked safe was a fake, which must be painful.

These badges are very nice, I used to have quite a set of them, but I was always happy with my high quality copy of the Submariner badge, because I could never afford a real ne, and even then it may turn out to be not so real after all.

I know that Russian and Soviet Geat coats were all cut a certain distance from the ground, but skirts? that seems wrong..and yet right..

Thanks Marc,I thought it may be something like that.

The CCCP on the back is certainly odd!

Size comparison, the medal and badge aren't connected!

The screwplate is a big Order of the Red Star/OPW type.

Presumably a border guard set? Border guards were still part of the KGB in the 80's weren't they?

Mixed army and state security awards usually are border troops.

I've had this badge a while, and presume it to be a 'home made' type badge.

Has anyone seen one before?

What about the V and VI badges?

(ПИОНЕРСКАЯ ОРГАНИЗАЦИЯ = Pioneer organisation.)

see here! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_movement

The red piped black patch, is actually raspberry red and black, an infantry one like Mefferts' but I adjusted the exposure.

Some are srewback, some with prongs, and the set on the border guard corporal's with the short bayonet's are brass. The others may be coppered steel, I'm not sure!