Tri-wing Bell pattern pilot wing

[John Cooper]

Hi All,

 

I am not sure who the maker is and thought one of you may know. This is a very well made wing as you can see in the photos. It has an interesting double row of feathers in the shoulder area and a brass pin. A similar wing is listed in the Fitzsimmons book but is not ID'd.

 

Thoughts?

 

John

 

[pfrost]

Hey John,

 

I love this pattern of wing and this Service pilot wing is one of my favorites in the collection. To me, this wing shares many similarities in make, quality of metal, finish, and hardware to the "Bell"-style wings. The pin, catch, almost mirror like finish and clean and clear strike really is similar to the Bell wings. The Bell wings are, of course, a different pattern, but if you hold the two side by side, I believe you will be struck by the similarities.

 

I have no "proof" one way or the other, but in my mind this pattern of wing and the Bell wings always strike me as being very similar to suggest some relationship of manufacturer

 

Patrick

[John Cooper]

Thanks for posting Patrick.

 

 

So I guess it is not my imagination then... I agree on all the similarities... even the pin length is exact. This specific pattern does not pop up as often so it has be wondering.

 

Have you seen this wing for any of the other wing types i.e. bombardier, navigator,..?

 

John

 

 

**BTW I fixed my posting mistake and added the back shot vs. two of the front doh **

[crazy-monsooner]

I have a "L" wing and pilot wing with coin silver marking. I will show my pic later.

[John Cooper]

Really with a COIN SILVER mark? Now this is interesting!

 

Off the top of my head only the Juarez pattern have this and maybe one other... this would be very interesting and another link in this mystery.

 

I have wondered if there is a Bell - Lampl connection in the South West area and the wings above with their similarities and the fact that Lampl (Juarez) uses some of the same fittings and now this unknown patter marked coin silver... hummm just a thought.

 

John

[pfrost]

Hi John

 

I have seen a few of the pilot-related series (pilot, service, liaison, glider) but do not recall seeing the other types, but that doesnt mean they dont exist.

 

I think I mentioned in the Juarez post that I also felt that their may be a Juarez-Bell link as well. All are different patterns, but they do share some vary obvious similarities.

1) the metal has a very high quality finish to it that is almost mirror smooth. A little polish and these wings SHINE.

2) the pin is usually a brass wire with a little loop at the end.

3) the hinge is usually made of a bit of sheet metal that has been "pinched" to hold the little loop at the end of pin.

4) the catch is similar to the hinge with a catch that seems to frequently break. classic characteristic of these wings.

5) the wings have a high deal of finish work and it isnt easy to see any of the shear-marks on the back.

6) they all seem to have a southwest US relationship. Bell (IIRC) is from New Mexico, Lampl was in Mexico during the war.

 

Not any reall proof, but interesting for discussion.

 

Here are the three pilot wings in question. I can maybe get better scans of them side by side later.

Patrick

[John Cooper]

Hey thanks for posting - the last wing you posted is just slightly different... wing tips, shield, and the pin and catch and the feathers. The basic points that have been raised do highlight the similarities and suggest a connection.

 

John

[Paul S]

Hello John,

 

Another similarity between your wing and the Bell wings is that some of them also show a wing surface treatment that, although somewhat different than that found on the Bell wings, is finely done--almost a tangle of vines vs. the parallel incisions on the Bells. However, I've found a Bell or two with different surface treatments than the parallel incisions. The pins tend to be identical to those used on the Bells...they stop about 150-degrees. Until I see something more substantive, I tend to classify these wings as a Bell prototype, or something like that. Haven't seen them on anything but pilots and alphabet pilots.

 

Paul S.

[John Cooper]

Thanks for the information Paul. If you have some photos to illustrate your point, please post them, as I know you take top quality pictures!

 

John

[Paul S]

Thanks John,

 

In the composite picture below, numbers 1,2, & 3 are Bell designs and 4 is a Liaison version of the pilot wing at the start of this thread. No. 1 is the most common version of a Bell wing; no. 2 is another common gunner but shows a surface treatment more like the tangled vines I mentioned earlier; no. 3 is an uncommon navigator wing that shows another surface treatment where beading is the outstanding feature, yet throughout the surface area it shows some hints of the tangled vines surface; and no. 4 is the version not yet attributed where the surface shows the tangled vines more clearly.

 

However, the pilot version at the start of this thread does not show the tangled vine surface, nor does a pilot wing of this design in my collection, although the pins & catches are still the same as the Bell wings. It’s more difficult to make the jump from Bell to the pilot wing, but it’s much easier to see the similarities between the Liaison wing, no. 4 and the Bells. Note that there is some beading evident on the Liaison wing, similar to the Bell navigator. Curious.

 

Paul S.

[John Cooper]

Paul,

 

Thanks for the photos they really help with the comparison and contrast of the feather details. I notice On my two AG wings that the wing with the integrated "winged bullet" has the typical BELL details while the AG with the added "winged bullet" falls in between your #1 and #2.

 

Overall the bold shield of the pilot at the top of the thread combined with the striking double row of feathers in the shoulder makes for a very nice wing.

 

John