Designed for wear with either the standard or clip-on Coast Guard blue necktie, this tie tack or tie clasp features the Senior Chief Petty Officer (E-8) insignia consisting of a fouled anchor, Coast Guard shield, and a single star with one ray pointing upward. Tie tacks / clasps are worn with male Guardsmen with the Full Dress and Service Dress (“A” and “B”) uniforms and by both men and women wearing Winter Dress Blue uniforms, and are positioned so they are aligned with the middle of the shirt pocket.
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As highly respected as they are, Senior Chief Petty Officers (E-8) in the Coast Guard still fall into the “middle child” category, underneath the pinnacle of enlisted achievement that is the E-9 Master Chief Petty Officer rate and just above E-7 Chief Petty Offices and their rich history of tradition. It doesn’t help that it can be slightly difficult to distinguish the SCPO’s single star when it is oriented with one ray pointing down, which was the design chosen by the Navy and originally adopted by the Coast Guard.
But at some point around the turning of the millennium (1999 – 2000), the Coast Guard uniform board, with guidance from the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard, took a small step to make SCPOs—or least their insignias—more immediately recognizable: They flipped the star vertically so one ray pointed upward, not down. Presumably, the move made the insignia easier to identify.
Discussions were later held about reversing the move, but nothing has come of them…which explains why you occasionally see some Coast Guard SCPO collar devices with the star pointing down as well as pointing up.
More Items for E-8 Senior Chief Petty Officers
Metal Collar Insignia
Combination Cap
Combination/Garrison Cap Device
Embroidered Collar Insignia
Service Stripes
Sleeve Device
Belt Buckle
Cuff Links