darksidesw Posted November 26, 2011 Share #1 Posted November 26, 2011 I'd like an opinion on these wings! Neither are marked. Real or repro? Thanks-Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksidesw Posted November 26, 2011 Author Share #2 Posted November 26, 2011 wings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksidesw Posted November 27, 2011 Author Share #3 Posted November 27, 2011 No opinions?? Are the pics not clear enough to tell maybe? Let me know. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tinman Posted November 27, 2011 Share #4 Posted November 27, 2011 Hi Jeff – In my very humble opinion, the two wings are very inexpensive repros. No WW2 U.S. maker that I know of made hollow back stamped wings. I’ve seen similar wings on Ebay for $9.99 (Buy It Now). Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeK Posted November 27, 2011 Share #5 Posted November 27, 2011 Hi Jeff, While I agree that these examples aren't original wings (the peacock coloured heat halo is a give-away for me and I've read this type were available as "souvenirs" from air force bases and/or air shows) I have acquired (and I've read others have acquired directly from WW2 veterans estates) some surprisingly heavy and solid feeling (also heavily age patinaed - not fake patina) but stamped wings with what appear to be WW2 period correct clutchposts and flat-faced keepers. The type has been discussed here in the past and I am sure those with more experience will chime in with better info. Regards Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksidesw Posted November 27, 2011 Author Share #6 Posted November 27, 2011 Thank you for the responses! I collect helmets not wings so I just wanted to make sure. I got 4 together in a riker mount at an auction and 2 were obvious even to me as repro...just wanted to check on these! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted November 27, 2011 Share #7 Posted November 27, 2011 Thank you for the responses! I collect helmets not wings so I just wanted to make sure. I got 4 together in a riker mount at an auction and 2 were obvious even to me as repro...just wanted to check on these! Actually, I think these are good wings.--dont be so quick to toss them out. Better photos in better light would be nice, but they look like perfectly legit WWII/Korean war vintage issue (also known as graduation) wings to me. Not very rare, and not worth a great deal, but they are what they are. Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack's Son Posted November 27, 2011 Share #8 Posted November 27, 2011 Paul, I agree, but didn't want to jump in over my head and be a stationary target. I believe that we have had a past thread about these kind of wings. I think they are good unmarked inexpensive wings. (Paul, Now that I've come out.....I'm hiding behind you!!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksidesw Posted November 27, 2011 Author Share #9 Posted November 27, 2011 Gee....and I wonder why I don't collect wings! hehe Well since we are discussing these...here are the other 2 that were in the riker mount that I didn't like...but????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksidesw Posted November 27, 2011 Author Share #10 Posted November 27, 2011 back... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted November 27, 2011 Share #11 Posted November 27, 2011 Paul,I agree, but didn't want to jump in over my head and be a stationary target. I believe that we have had a past thread about these kind of wings. I think they are good unmarked inexpensive wings. (Paul, Now that I've come out.....I'm hiding behind you!!) Patrick.... They call me Patrick. The Pauls are the other two guys. heh Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted November 27, 2011 Share #12 Posted November 27, 2011 back... You are correct on these two, they are not WWII vintage. Not so much fakes as copies made for sale in surplus stores and air shows. They tend to get folded into some collections as fillers or such. Although the weren't intended to fool collectors, sometimes they get tossed into the mix as vintage wings by less than honest dealers. The other two wings (from what I can see) are classic WWII vintage issue wings. They ought to be a bit more substantial the the latter two. As for the gunner wing, about 75-90% of them seem to be clutch back. Most (but not all) are marked sterling somewhere. A few are pinback. As for the backs, some have this "cliche" style, some have an almost cast look to them, and some are a bit better finished with a smooth back. A lot of the wings also have a flat black finish to them. I suspect that this was a general pattern contracted by the US Government and a number of different companies made them. They never have a hallmark, other than a STERLING mark. I have found them in groupings of WWII gunners and even in the effects of a KW veteran who two young to enlist in WWII. Off all the USAAF wings, these are pretty much one of the most common. Rarely, I have seen fakes of this wing, usually cheap sand casting. However, with a small amount of patience, these wings can be found relatively easily (and no one should pay more than about 50$ for them unless they are part of a grouping), it can't be cost effective to fake them out. The same can pretty much be said for the aircrew wing. Here is one of my wings. PATRICK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack's Son Posted November 27, 2011 Share #13 Posted November 27, 2011 Patrick.... They call me Patrick. The Pauls are the other two guys. hehPatrick GEZZ............. :blushing: :blushing: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mshaw Posted November 28, 2011 Share #14 Posted November 28, 2011 I picked this pinback aircrew wing up last years with a group of wings and have assumed that it is a repro. The eagle is a separate disc that is riveted to the wing. The feathering is reminds me of English patterns but the pin is not right for that. Patrick or others, am I correct that this is a repro? Front: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mshaw Posted November 28, 2011 Share #15 Posted November 28, 2011 And the back: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeK Posted November 28, 2011 Share #16 Posted November 28, 2011 I picked this pinback aircrew wing up last years with a group of wings and have assumed that it is a repro. The eagle is a separate disc that is riveted to the wing. The feathering is reminds me of English patterns but the pin is not right for that. Patrick or others, am I correct that this is a repro? Front: That type was discussed here; http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/ind...howtopic=121328 Regards Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted November 28, 2011 Share #17 Posted November 28, 2011 That type was discussed here; http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/ind...howtopic=121328 Regards Mike Howdy, I don't think this is a reproduction, but that is just my opinion. I believe that these are wings that were made post war (maybe into the 60's or 70's). I had a very similar pilot wing with the same pattern and pin set up that (IIRC) came off of a USAF uniform dated from the late 60's. Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mshaw Posted November 28, 2011 Share #18 Posted November 28, 2011 Howdy, I don't think this is a reproduction, but that is just my opinion. I believe that these are wings that were made post war (maybe into the 60's or 70's). I had a very similar pilot wing with the same pattern and pin set up that (IIRC) came off of a USAF uniform dated from the late 60's. Patrick Thanks Patrick. That makes sense. I picked these wings up in a group of wings at an estate auction of a deceased wing collector and I don't think any of the other wings in the sale were repros so it didn't make sense that these would be repros but they just didn't look right to me. That said, they definitely do not look like WW II era wings, especially with the gray metal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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