Hi Joe,

First off, the UV test is inaccurate, as there are plenty of cloth items from the WW2 era and much earlier that glow. There are tabs that do indeed glow under a black light.

Example- Period tabs in pink will glow with an orange hue. Also, there are period threads I have seen that glow white.

Other things I look for are:

1. texture of the badge cloth
2. manner in which the outer piping is attached to the tab
3. method used in embroidering the gulls(several different methods I find acceptable)
4. material the buckram is made of(there are MANY acceptable variations I have seen, including a hand towel!).