Kriegsmarine U-Boat Badge

[MR T]

Hello,

I was hoping for some opinions on this one.

I think Meybauer, Zinc, Original ??

Any help appreciated.

Thanks

Front:

[MR T]

And the back.

These are the only pictures available to me.

Thanks

Paul

[MR T]

I change my mind on the Meybauer. I am unsure of the Maker.

The Retaining clip seems to face opposite all of the examples of badges I have seen,

Is this unique, a counterfeit?

Thanks Again.

[MR T]

And here is another badge from a dealer site, that looks the same.

[Erik Krogh]

Paul,

Your badge looks very similar to a vertical pin FO (Orth), but the plate on the catch is very uncharacteristic of FO. Gordon has a similar badge to yours pictured on page 193 of "Torpedo los!", but the catch plate is slightly different.

I would give it a tentative "thumbs up", but hope that others will offer opinions.

Best Regards,

Erik

Edited November 18, 2010 by Erik Krogh

[Norm F]

Hi Paul,

I think you can rule out the vertical pin Orth, and also it's definitely not Meybauer. I also don't think it's the same badge as the one you posted from Weitze despite the similarity in reverse hardware.

To me your badge is most like the unknown maker with the "Deschler-like" pin (but not Deschler). A characteristic of these badges is the soft outlines that are different from badge to badge due to an abundance of hand trimming and filing, something you don't see from other makers. Look at the cutout under the sub on the reverse of the top example in this collage and compare to the one you posted.The pin on yours is also more characteristic of the so-called "unknown flatback" maker, who seems to have produced a wide range of combat awards, and it's possible that all these U-boats represent the output of the unknown flatback maker. He's still surrounded in mystery - wartime vs. early post-war vs. late post-war -- but many examples look very convincing for wartime manufacture.

Best regards,

---Norm

Edited November 18, 2010 by Norm F

[Norm F]

Here's a collage of the unknown flatback maker's minesweepers, showing the typical reverse setup for these badges. You can see the same principle of smooth outlines that vary from example to example. It wasn't uncommon for makers of badges with needle pin setups to then use a wide pin of some sort for their U-boat badge, so for me it's not a stretch that the U-boats may be from the same maker, and that yours is a variant using the needle-pin (despite the fact that the catch plate is also different).

[Norm F]

And finally, Paul, here's a comparison of your badge and an example of the unknown wide pin variety. You can see the close correlation in the obverse die characteristics.

Best regards,

---Norm

[Gordon Williamson]

I'd agree with Norm on the attribution of this one to the unknown manufacturer of the range of badges known as "flat-backs". It would appear that, whoever they were, they made virtually the whole range of KM War Badges. I'd also agree with Eric in that these appear to be genuine period pieces, though I suspect that there will always be some who hold these in some suspicion. For now, unless any evidence turns up to show them to be bad, I tend to believe in them.

[MR T]

Thank you for all the feedback.

Its part of a Grouping I would like to buy.

The group Looks good to me, the u-boat badge was awarded in mid 1942 to the sailor.

Not to say the badge could not have been added or swapped to the group.

Thanks for the comparison photos, and I also looked in Torpedo Los per Erik.

The Retaining ring, and square base plate was confusing me.

Paul

[Norm F]

Here's another unusual example of this type of U-boat with variable smooth outlines and the same obverse design but with a totally different setup. This badge was recently posted on a German forum and summarily dismissed as a copy by a junior member, but to me they are still a mystery.

[Norm F]

reverse

[Norm F]

pin up

[Norm F]

hinge

[Norm F]

broken catch