Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Share #1 Posted November 20, 2011 Check out this pic. These coloured leather ball-caps rarely show up on the collectors' market...yet my research indicates they were very widely worn back in the 50s > 60s. Where have they all gone? If you've got one...please post it here! Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #2 Posted November 20, 2011 SAC crew circa '66. Possibly red caps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #3 Posted November 20, 2011 SAC Major, from the same sequence. Was each squadron allocated a particular colour? Was it just within SAC? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #4 Posted November 20, 2011 Also available in white! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manayunkman Posted November 20, 2011 Share #5 Posted November 20, 2011 Well I have never seen one of those in all my years of collecting. But I will say that they are ugly !! Please post one somebody Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #6 Posted November 20, 2011 Well I have never seen one of those in all my years of collecting. But I will say that they are ugly !! Please post one somebody There have been one or two posted in the past year or so...but no more than that. I recall a red / white one and a pale blue one. Rare birds! Ian :think: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #7 Posted November 20, 2011 Another slightly "mature" crewman wearing his leather cap! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #8 Posted November 20, 2011 Two-tone, embellished. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #9 Posted November 20, 2011 De-code this one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwb123 Posted November 20, 2011 Share #10 Posted November 20, 2011 Not disagreeing with your basic point, post 3 looks more like it is cloth rather than leather. It just does not have that leather shine to it. I am not sure about the ones in post 2... some look leather, and some look cloth. But getting back to your point, I don't think I have ever seen any of these in person. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen them in a museum either. I'm not sure what the attraction was in the old days, other than the fact they might have kept the head warmer than a cloth cap. But I tend to think that after a few months of wear they probably turned nasty... sweat, hair oil, etc. That on top of the dirt, oil and fuel from being around aircraft. I'm not trying to be graphic, but unless they were in relatively clean condition, I'm not sure they would be something someone would have kept around. At least a cloth cap you can clean somewhat. They also would have little use as civilian wear after the airman left the service. Flight jackets on the other hand always looked cool. But even with that, you'd still think they would pop up more often. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #11 Posted November 20, 2011 Valid points Gil. Some examples worn were certainly regular cloth ball-caps...for example the ones below appear to be just that (B-36 crew, 1950s) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #12 Posted November 20, 2011 But I'm pretty sure these are leather. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #13 Posted November 20, 2011 And so it goes..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryM3 Posted November 20, 2011 Share #14 Posted November 20, 2011 Afraid I cannot shed any light on these. I was in the USAF 1968 to 1972 and a lot of that time was assigned to a combined TAC & SAC base however I never saw any of these leather caps. The ball caps were very popular but all the ones I recall were the usual cloth type. Larry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #15 Posted November 20, 2011 Thanks Larry. The latest date on the photo captions is '66. Also most, if not all of them, feature SAC units, so maybe the colour-coded cap thing was SAC practice at the time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #16 Posted November 20, 2011 Another SAC crew, c.1958. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Third Herd Posted November 20, 2011 Share #17 Posted November 20, 2011 With the colors of those caps I wonder if they aren't naugahyde or vinyl. The first time I saw a photo of the caps I remembered a vinyl cap I wore in the early 1960's, as a kid, it had fold down ear flaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #18 Posted November 20, 2011 Good point...I suppose they could be synthetic which, in pics, has a leather like appearance. One or two examples have been posted in the past by forum members. I'm hoping they'll see this thread and add their pics. That said, leather or vinyl, they're still very scarce out there in collector-land for whatever reason?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattS Posted November 20, 2011 Share #19 Posted November 20, 2011 I don't even recall seeing many of these at the National Museum of the USAF when I was there last month. I remember seeing plenty of Vietnam-era party hats though. They've got to be around though... :think: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #20 Posted November 20, 2011 Note the leather-like sheen on the peaked cap on the left in this colour shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DutchInfid3l Posted November 20, 2011 Share #21 Posted November 20, 2011 Belonged to Colonel Leslie W. Brockwell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #22 Posted November 20, 2011 Excellent...thank you Sarah!! :thumbsup: So is it leather or vinyl? Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DutchInfid3l Posted November 20, 2011 Share #23 Posted November 20, 2011 My Grandfather(standing, right) 99th Bomb Wing, B-52 Crew. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share #24 Posted November 20, 2011 Amazing! I don't suppose you have his old cap too....?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DutchInfid3l Posted November 20, 2011 Share #25 Posted November 20, 2011 Excellent...thank you Sarah!! :thumbsup: So is it leather or vinyl? Ian It's vinyl... here's the interior... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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