Heritage Railway Uniforms

When your volunteering at a preserved station do you wear original uniform from the era or do you go for the reproduction stuff which can cost more than the originals I paid this week £12 for a 60's inspectors cap a re-production costs £60

I wear original 60's uniform and I do have original Edwardian uniform and Victorian to but visitors seem to tell me it should be in a museum not being worn

Also I wanted to know what is the correct cap badge for a BR inspector 60's period some staff at some railways have a totem badge and a lion / wheel badge on the same cap which is incorrect did you n0w have a cap band with the words inspector on it I have a GWR one but wore they worn in the 60's to

 

My trousers and Waistcoat are replicas from 19th Century Tailoring
Buttons on the waist coat are safety pinned on to allow Changes in era.
I have a genuine Long sleeve waistcoat and most of my overcoats are also genuine. My favorite a GWR Double breasted Greatcoat with 10 Buttons and Birmingham Snow Hill Issue label
Caps are replicas with Genuine Badges

If I can get my hands on originals I will wear it. My thinking "It was made to be worked in its not serving it purpose on a dummy in a museum"

For a Station Inspector of BR(E) in the 60s this is correct:
The Jacket is Genuine BR

 

I have this at the moment it's actually 1966 from the modernization period when they changed the uniforms the jacket is an inspectors jacket the 2 rows of gold piping around the cuff mean inspector station master had 3 rows of gold piping and railman which was the new name for porter had 1 row of piping the hat is an inspectors hat but a leter 70's one as the new 60's inspectors cap's had a gold peak but at the GCR only station masters are allowed gold braid on the peak thats what the uniform regs say

Now I have just purchased a 1960 inspectors cap original but with no badges or cap band just the hat what badges or cap band should be on a 60's / 50's inspectors cap
The cap on the right is a 40's SNCF french railways cap I use that for our wartime weekend the cap band is a GWR inspectors cap band from the 30's or earlier
What else do I add is the gold bullion badge like you have on your cap ok or should I use the lion over wheel badge

 

John hello.
Your band is a BR one.
GWR inspectors had an embroidered wreath around either Scripted GWR initials or the roundel. Station Masters having a wire wound version of the same badge.
Being from Leicester North you want as I have but Midland Maroon. That would date you as 60s. Wearing a cycling lion above your band dates you as mid 50s. For earlier you would require a single gold ribbon around the middle of the cap with a cycling lion in the middle which would have Inspector written within the wheel.

As you can see I go for authenticity. Inspectors also had gold braid on their cap and so do I.

 

There was a book by I think Frogatt "Buttons Badges and Unifirms". It was very expensive at the time and copies still costly on e-bay. City of London libaries had a copy and it was a good source of info, esp early BR

Dave

 

Hi

I curate a small village museum in Market Lavington, Wiltshire. It is not railway specific although there was once a station and the trains to the west still race through.

I need help identifying a uniform. I can't be certain it is railway but the cap appears to say porter.
We think the photo dates from around the time of World War One or maybe a bit earlier. Lavington Station was on the GWR cut off route between Patney and Westbury. It opened in 1900.
Can anyone out there help? Is this a railway uniform? If so is it GWR? Or maybe the photo has no real connection with Lavington, Wiltshire.

Thanks