5thwingmarty Posted September 12, 2014 Share #1 Posted September 12, 2014 I have been able to add several new (to me) Bombardier wings to my Bell collection. The top wing is a coin silver one, made by modifying a Pilot wing. The bottom point of the shield was taken off and the top edge taken down to a round profile. The face of the shield was flattened and then the bomb applied. The three fins on the bomb were added to the bomb, not stamped as part of it. The raised arcs for the target circles are also attached individual pieces. The bottom 2" wing is I believe a later variant. It is a hollow back wing, much thinner, and flatter in edge profile than the other wing. The target and bomb are completely different designs between the two 2" wings. The bottom inner-most feathers are also much shorter on the bottom wing, stopping well away from the bomb. The left and bottom sweetheart wings are both two-piece wings with the observer wing background. The one on the left might have been made from a regular Observer wing. The bottom one had the bomb mounted slightly off center at an angle, and you can clearly see (at least in person) that there is a cut-out in in the face of the wing where the bomb was supposed to sit. Marty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattsmilitary Posted September 12, 2014 Share #2 Posted September 12, 2014 Great wings!! Nice additions!! Congrats!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skypilot6670 Posted September 12, 2014 Share #3 Posted September 12, 2014 Really nice display the top wing is very nice any ideas who did the work? Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5thwingmarty Posted September 12, 2014 Author Share #4 Posted September 12, 2014 No idea who really made the wing. Being coin silver and in the Bell family (at least a cousin if not a true Bell) it is possible a craftsman in Mexico made it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patchcollector Posted September 13, 2014 Share #5 Posted September 13, 2014 Sharp assortment!I like that top example with the big "fins".It has a nice "3D" effect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 14, 2014 Share #6 Posted September 14, 2014 Beautiful Bombardier badge Marty! The silver bomb and target applied to that pair of Bell Pilot wings appears to be the same as the "Navajo" pattern which Cliff recently identified. It stands to reason, since both patterns originate from the New Mexico area and might have closer ties than we originally thought! Here's a "Navajo" pattern example for comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffP Posted September 14, 2014 Share #7 Posted September 14, 2014 Beautiful Bombardier badge Marty! The silver bomb and target applied to that pair of Bell Pilot wings appears to be the same as the "Navajo" pattern which Cliff recently identified. It stands to reason, since both patterns originate from the New Mexico area and might have closer ties than we originally thought! Here's a "Navajo" pattern example for comparison. Russ Russ, I've always enjoyed experimenting with photos of various hand made wings by trying to match them with similar looking examples but I won't say if anything important was ever really discovered by doing it other than to satisfy some old man's insatiable curiosity. Never the less - when you compared the bomb on Marty's (is it really a Bell pattern) badge with the one on your "Navajo" Bombardier pattern badge it triggered my interest so I decided to try and compare them with the bomb on my "Navajo" example as well. For whatever may be learned by this little experiment (not much) it does show that since each bomb had to be hand crafted there are a number of minor differences between the three. Cliff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5thwingmarty Posted September 14, 2014 Author Share #8 Posted September 14, 2014 Sorry my photography is not as good as your, but here is a photo from an angle similar to yours. The bomb on mine appears more rounded, both at the tip and in cross section but they do have quite a few similarities. The three fins and incised grooves to represent the bomb shackles are very similar details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 15, 2014 Share #9 Posted September 15, 2014 Thank you Cliff and Marty for the additional comparison images. There are a few more differences in the bomb than I originally thought. Seeing that pronounced middle stabilizer fin on the Bombardier badge is such a rare sight. It certainly gives the center piece a great deal of dimension! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5thwingmarty Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share #10 Posted September 16, 2014 Russ and Cliff, Do either of you have a 3" Beverlycraft bombardier wing? One sold from flyingtigerantiques.com (its still on the site way down amongst the sold wings) and it also has a three-fin bomb and incised shackle lines. I have a Beverlycraft sweetheart bombardier and it just has two fins. Marty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 16, 2014 Share #11 Posted September 16, 2014 Russ and Cliff, Do either of you have a 3" Beverlycraft bombardier wing? One sold from flyingtigerantiques.com (its still on the site way down amongst the sold wings) and it also has a three-fin bomb and incised shackle lines. I have a Beverlycraft sweetheart bombardier and it just has two fins. Marty Marty, I do have a Beverlycraft-made Bombardier badge, but it doesn't have a center stabilizer fin protruding outward. Beverlycraft may have produced Bombardier badges with at least three different styles of bombs applied. The example illustrated on Bob's website (www.ww2.wings) has a much different bomb than the one in my collection, but neither has a visible center fin like the one you describe. It's possible Beverlycraft used whatever bombs were available at the time to fill the order. The same is true with Beverlycraft Aerial Gunner badges. I've seen at least two different styles of winged projectiles on that rating as well. One other thing...the back of the bomb on my example has a Beverlycraft palm tree motif similar to a starburst pattern. I don't know if the other variations have that same hallmark identifier? Russ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted September 16, 2014 Share #12 Posted September 16, 2014 Here is my Beverly Craft bombardier wing. No center wing, but it does share some similarities with the other wings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5thwingmarty Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share #13 Posted September 16, 2014 I seem to have morphed my own thread into a discussion on Beverlycraft wings, so I thought I would add a couple photos of that other one that sold for more comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffP Posted September 16, 2014 Share #14 Posted September 16, 2014 I love that Beverlycraft Bombardier badge with the three stabilizers. Thank you for posting. Cliff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted September 16, 2014 Share #15 Posted September 16, 2014 I'm not sure that there is as strong a connection with the Bell and Jurez-made wings as there is with the Beverly Craft made wings. I think Tod did a pretty good job chasing down the Southern California connection with Beverly Craft and how they were manufacturing their wings and insignia in an earlier post (I'm not inclined to look it up, but you all can find it pretty easy). IIRC, they (Beverly Craft) had a fellow that was using an industrial press to stamp out the wings, one at a time. I suspect they may have had a few other craftsmen doing the final finishing. The connection with the South West and Indian craftsmen associated with the Bell and Juarez wings seem a bit stronger to me, with (IIRC) one of the Paul's (C or S) finding a reference to Bell and Navajo silver smiths. The unknown maker bombardier wing shares many similar aspects to the Bell and Juarez wings (findings, quality of workmanship, etc) that have always made me think that these three patterns were related some how. I do think in an earlier thread, I was able to prove that (at least for the 1 inch wings) that Bell and Walter Lampl hallmarked examples exist for the same wing patterns, indicating a manufacturing link between the two. Finally, Cliff's stunning Navajo bombardier wing kind of ties them all together as the ultimate form of wing making arts. Here is a nice photo of the Beverly Craft bombardier being worn by a good looking young fellow. I'll try to get a better scan later in the week of the wing, but trust me it is clearly a Beverly Craft wing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 16, 2014 Share #16 Posted September 16, 2014 This Beverlycraft-made Bombardier badge is a combination of three separately struck pieces. The bomb is soldered to a two-ring target which is soldered to an Observer style wing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 16, 2014 Share #17 Posted September 16, 2014 The back... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 16, 2014 Share #18 Posted September 16, 2014 You can see some of the palm tree design on the nose of the bomb... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 16, 2014 Share #19 Posted September 16, 2014 Back of the bomb fins with more of the Beverlycraft logo...and depicting all three pieces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 16, 2014 Share #20 Posted September 16, 2014 Marty, while we're jumping around on the topic a bit, let me share this one as well... A two inch Blackinton hallmarked Bombardier with a custom made bomb that looks like Flash Gordon's spaceship... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted September 16, 2014 Share #21 Posted September 16, 2014 Left and right angles... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted September 16, 2014 Share #22 Posted September 16, 2014 One question that arises is how many of these wings were "factory" made and which ones were jeweler-altered after the fact? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffP Posted September 17, 2014 Share #23 Posted September 17, 2014 One question that arises is how many of these wings were "factory" made and which ones were jeweler-altered after the fact? An excellent question Patrick which brings to mind something that happened to a very good friend back in the late 1970s early 1980s. He walked into a jewelry store in Columbia, SC to see if they had any wings from WWII. The manager said no but they did have a box of sterling silver emblems for bombardiers, senior pilots, command pilots and few others that could be added to various wings and would he be interested in buying them? My friend turned him down. . . and still regrets making that decision. We've all had similar experiences in the past that only backed up the old cliche, "Hindsight is always 20/20." cp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patchcollector Posted September 17, 2014 Share #24 Posted September 17, 2014 Great thread and such nice examples everyone!The Beverlycraft variations are awesome,and the palm tree design on the back of the "bomb" is cool.The 2 inch Blackinton appears to have a "Blockbuster " bomb attached to it That "Navajo" Wing in post # 6 is amazing.I love the handcrafted look of the feathers.Like to see what the back of it looks like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bschwartz Posted September 17, 2014 Share #25 Posted September 17, 2014 That "Navajo" Wing in post # 6 is amazing.I love the handcrafted look of the feathers.Like to see what the back of it looks like. Then have a look here: http://www.ww2wings.com/wings/usaaf/bombardier/presleynavajobombardier.shtml Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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