Millsbomb

Hi Greatly enjoying reading these posts. I'm intrigued that you use a Caterpillar badge as your avatar (I'm yet to work out how to do this but I have a favourite that I use on a couple of other sites..). Do you know if it is possible to locate members of the Caterpillar Club? I have one that I would love to track down but I'm told that Irwin are not that happy to pass on info. Any ideas?

A really nice grouping! Not exactly military but a really important part of the "support services" in WW1, I have a badge for the SWH or Scottish Womens' Hospital that has its original tartan bow still attached. With it came a medal for the same unit with the same tartan ribbon. Also, somewhere in the archives is a Silver War Badge with a backing of tartan ribbon. I'd have to refresh my memory and see if the owner was with a Scottish regiment or if this was just a way of "flossying" it up...

My primary school headmaster here in New Zealand was a POW of the Japanese. Knowing what I know now, I could look into his service history. A very nice man, Felix CRANDLE if I recall. Just done a quick search! Never believe what you are told third hand. He was in Stalag 8A, Gorlitz... Probably captured in Greece or Crete like many NZers.

Just wondered if the colours on this ribbon have any meaning to the R.E. My RFC one is the colours for them but, to my knowledge, has no link to any medal ribbon. The Australian Flying Corps (AFC) do use these same colours.

I took the "C" to be for Canada and the BIRKS mark lends weight to this. The badge came from a Canadian dealer way back! Hi I have found a silver mark for M.J & Co in Birmigham with the dates !918-1920 attributed to it. No name but there is an earlier mark for Michael Joseph, without the "Co"

Hi Here are the pins I mentioned. I noticed the "BIRKS" mark to the reverse so that settles that question. The other one has always puzzled me as it's not really a proper ribbon for a medal but it is the RFC colours. Cheers Ray

Hi John Sure, I'll dig out the QSA with the "C" and also the RFC bar. I seem to recall once seeing a miniature MC that was suspended from a small "white/purple/white" enamel brooch. Cheers Ray I'm guessing that it is for Wiltshire Regiment as my one that has the RFC ribbon under glass has "RFC" in that little clear panel. I'd assumed that it came from some military outfitter's and was part of their sample display. Sometimes called "the toffee wrapper" because of the colour. I'm told that the ribbon came out before the medal was issued. I once knew an old WW2 Navy man who was given the ribbon to sew on a good deal before the medal... Really nice quality and a very early miniature. I once saw a listing for a group that had miniatures including Ghuznee, Punjaub and other early awards, all with enamel ribbons. Big thing about enamel is that it is FRAGILE, easily damaged and virtually impossible to fix.

Hi This ribbon bar appears to be made in the UK, judging by the fittings and the mark looks like: M J & Co. The "BM" is probably for Birmingham. The other one that also uses the 14-15 Star colours is possibly Canadian, again based on the fittings as it matches badges that I have that are made by, say, Scully. As someone who has done some hobby vitreous enameling, I can comment that the work is of very good quality as the red will frequently turn brownish over some metals. These colours are transparents. The British War Medal ribbon bar uses a combination of a transparent orange and then opaque blue, white and black. I would also suggest that these items have been struck in a die so probably existed in some numbers but clearly have not survived well. I have a small bar in QSA colours that has a large "C" applied to it. Lord Strathcona's Horse? Canadian Scouts? Sorry, correction: my previous post said "opaque blue" and I see that it is actually transparent, as is the orange. Hi, I've got one that is identical and has a ribbon in RFC colours and with "R.F.C." in letters in the little "window" to the reverse!