From a guy mostly in the wing world…Agreed. It was always thought that “HH bought Imperial in 1942”. In more recent years, the train of thought has shifted more to Imperial being some of part of HH the entire time. My HH wings are either marked just HH or additionally have Imperial, Oroid or Bronze. However, one way to assist in dating insignia with Imperial mark, it is that once the alpha numeric system was adopted, you never see Imperial only HH. Additionally, I have a pre 1942 pattern Aviator wing marked HH Imperial. Personally, I do think that Imperial is more of a WWII era mark, but as for trying to nail down an actual date…good luck. It was around before the 1942 Aviator wing design change in 1942 and not after the adoption of the alpha numeric system in the late 1950’s. John  

Hello,   Retired Army, retired LEO, avid firearm collector.  Among other titles.  I have a few Military weapons too.  Hope to contribute, and will be learning a lot.   Carl    

Hello,  This was recently acquired . WWII vintage? Thoughts welcome.  Thank you,  Dominique 

I’ve seen a similar patch posted previously with the owner speculating it was German made but didn’t seem to get much response. Any ideas out there on its origin? It’s on a 6/44 dated Ike jacket

Wow! Great find! Thank you AxolotlHelmet. This article puts him in the first 120 members. Thanks again!

Never seen a navy championship belt before either. Id imagine they are rare to find. However im also not a navy collector so maybe its not as rare as I'm thinking. It be worth more if you're friend can prove his uncle won them. Usually thats how it goes with military items if you can connect a person to it. If it is truly a rare item I don't think it would be as hard to sell as you're thinking it would.

There could be a link to an Air Force squadron... 510 FS.

I always enjoy seeing tank related stuff! Very nice addition!   Frank

I haven't kept up with the market in a long time, but they are key emblems that wouldn't pop up everyday. Not rare but they are great examples

Here’s an “alphabet buckle” (all letters, no design) for the “West Texas Military Academy”. Founded in 1893, it consolidated with the San Antonio Academy in 1926 to become the Texas Military Institute (now TMI Episcopal). So this buckle is pre-1926: