shrapneldude Posted April 17, 2011 Share #26 Posted April 17, 2011 I still think there's some merit to the idea that these were more commonly worn this way. There's just too many of them popping up like this for it to be a one-off or a large-scale campaign of deception by fakers. The only thing that might change my mind is if there were any evidence that suggested Bannerman's sold these hats with the silver EGAs on them out of their catalog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alec Posted April 17, 2011 Share #27 Posted April 17, 2011 The museum curators need help. That is a 1904 pattern cap. They state it is 1896 to 1908? Ridiculous...... If they can't even get the cap ID correct why would you think the EGA is correct! Saw this today at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Quantico.Nickel EGA on a blue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teufelhunde.ret Posted April 17, 2011 Share #28 Posted April 17, 2011 At one point a few years ago, I told myself I would never comment of these again... With that said, folks should review this ref. sec thread; http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/ind...?showtopic=9168 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usmcaviator Posted April 17, 2011 Share #29 Posted April 17, 2011 I see the metal defect on the bottom fluke...commonly attributed to modern striked on original die pieces... haven't been to that museum, but I know the Parris Island has a few restrikes/modern strikes in place of originals. Wouldn't surprise me for the Quantico one to be doing it as well... Brig, That is a totally false statement. I have plenty of originals with this same "defect". I had responded to a thread over a year ago on my thoughts to the origins of the nickel EGAs. The known repos are extremely bright, flimsy, and the prongs are flimsy with new looking solder. You are being led astray by chalking these extremely abundant nickel EGAs as fakes. I am telling you, they are old. I don't know how old, but old enough for the solder to look 80-100 years old and be brittle. I had about 20 of these, having purchased someone's old stock, and dissected a couple. Under close scrutiny, even unissued, they show consistent age wear and corrosion that I see on mint unissued service and dress pieces of the turn-of-the-century. Why so many were made.. I do not know. I think that many of the prong backed found their way on many hats for movie makers and costume shops during the teens and twenties (which I think is the case here on a blue hat). I do think that nickel EGAs were worn by some Marines on their caps. Screw post backed versions do exist in nickel (they are a much heavier version) and I attribute those to members of the band. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brig Posted April 18, 2011 Share #30 Posted April 18, 2011 when I see a good comparrison of the old vs new, side by side, I may warm up to the idea. Artificial aging is easy the screwbacks, I am comfortable with, and the band assessment seems about right Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrapneldude Posted April 18, 2011 Share #31 Posted April 18, 2011 I'm not trying to upset anyone here, but when I see these NICKEL EGAs come up all the time, and the same handful of people say they're fake, despite evidence to the contrary it grates on me a bit. The shiny ones may be repro and fake, but the older ones definitely look older, and it's not a half-a**ed artificial aging job. At any rate, the discussion on the nickel EGAs themselves is probably best left on one of the other threads about this style. The focus of this thread is the appearance of nickel EGAs on Blue covers. Whether or not the USMC museum got the wording correct doesn't really matter here. What matters is, we have yet another example of a blue hat with a nickel EGA on it, and a handful of collectors saying this was NEVER done. Either it was, and the hats that are floating around out there with them on are original, or it wasn't done and there is a central source where a bunch of blue hats and a bunch of nickel EGAs were paired and released into the wild. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brig Posted April 18, 2011 Share #32 Posted April 18, 2011 no one said they're all fake...the older, original ones usually lack the extra strand on the lower fluke. maybe not always it's a lack of evidence that I refer to. these are going to continue to be highly debated emblems and originality is in the eyes of the beholder. What grates on me is the HIGH, HIGH number of aluminum ones that aren't aged, that get pawned off as original for high bucks. Bidders bidding them up on eBay is one thing, that's the buyers doing, but dealer sites when the solder is obviously still fresh...that's another Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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