Bell Trading Post of Albuquerque, NM: examples and patterns

[5thwingmarty]

The collection has grown since I started this topic so I thought I would post a current picture. The only non-Bell wing in the display is the Navaho bombardier wing, but since it came from Albuquerque too it seemed to fit right in. All of the wings not on cards are unique, although the only difference between a couple of the sweetheart wings is one is sterling and the other is coin silver. I managed to find the sweetheart observer today at the Indianapolis Militaria Show.

 

[mghcal]

Looks like you've nearly got a complete set! Great job! Question for you...are there Liason and Service Pilot sweetheart wings by Bell? I see the Glider all the time but can't recall either of the other two letter wings.

[5thwingmarty]

I saw a sweetheart for one of those once, but it was a jeweler modified regular pilot wing with an applied letter. I have also seen a sweetheart flight surgeon wing from Bell.

 

There are a few other Bell wings that I know exist, both made by (or for) Bell directly or made by modifying Bell wings. I have only ever seen two types of AF wings with actual Bell hallmarks, a sweetheart aerial gunner and a sweetheart naval pilot. I have a couple of the gunners but have never found one of the naval wings. I do have several of the sweetheart wings with the Walter Lampl hallmark.

[rustywings]

Marty, your collection is wonderfully focused! Congratulations on putting together the best 'Bell' collection I've ever seen!

 

[5thwingmarty]

Thanks Russ. The collection would not be as complete as it is without your help. I need to add a "Cadet" wing at some point. I almost bought one over the weekend as well from the same guy but he wanted as much for it as the observer wing on the card. I can get one cheaper on ebay. I also have a pendant from Bell headed my way that I plan on attaching to the display case. It is shaped like an arrowhead and has a depiction of the later Bell hallmark on the front (bell on a sign hanging from a signpost). I didn't realize that in the latter hallmark, the post for the sign is a cactus and the crossbar for the sign is an arrow sticking through the cactus.

 

[jcastellanos4]

Very nice collection

[5thwingmarty]

Just added these to the Bell collection. The bracelets have the Bell Sterling logo stamped on the back. The cap-sized observer is the first "Bell" wing I have seen that is not marked at all on its back, it is not stamped either Sterling or Coin Silver.

 

 

[5thwingmarty]

Examples of these wings are available on many sites with a wide variety of descriptions and prices. They are often listed as 1920's-1930's Naval Aviator wings with asking prices in the hundreds of dollars. I believe the last one I found was the most expensive at about $61, but since it was hallmarked it was worth it to me.

 

The top left example has the Walter Lampl hallmark and the sterling mark with the upside down G often seen on Lampl and Bell wings.

 

The top right is my latest acquisition, and is only the second type of wing I have ever seen with this type of Bell Trading hallmark (the other being the sweetheart aerial gunner wing).

 

Middle left is probably the most common version of these wings with the incised sterling mark on the upper right edge of the wing, partially obscured by the pin attachment. It is hard to see but this sterling mark also has the upside down G.

 

Middle right is a little less common. The other three wings all have a vaulted profile when viewed on edge, but this one is completely flat. It does still have the sterling mark with upside down G, but is is in the center of the wing.

 

The bottom wing on the card (also vaulted) also has an incised sterling mark, but the letters are smaller, it is in the center of the wing and all the letters are normal.

 

All five wings are 1-5/8" wide with open C pin catches.

[5thwingmarty]

I have never seen and don't know anyone who has seen a full-sized (2-3/4 or larger) Naval Aviator from Bell. I did once see a photo of what I believe was a 2" Naval Aviator from Bell.

[5thwingmarty]

I know many forum members were watching this wing and at least one other who bid on it, but I am happy to say it has become the star piece in my Bell wings collection. I can't say whether the wing was converted by Bell or some other jeweler, but whoever did it did an excellent job. The caduceus has extremely fine scale detail on the snakes, and it is also marks with a raised Sterling mark on its rear. In comparing the caduceus on this wing with those on Bob's website, I could not find any with the exact same details. Sorry my photo washes out the fine details on the wing.

 

[5thwingmarty]

And here is the back.

 

[5thwingmarty]

The Bell collection has continued to grow and evolve and I picked up a gunner wing that was an interesting (at least to a Bell obsessed wing nut like me) variation.  I have posted before about the Aerial Gunner wings made by adding a winged-bullet device to an observer wing, most of which have the raised Sterling mark in the center.  A few of these can be found where the Observer wing does not have the raised Sterling mark in the center, but instead have an incised mark on the right wing.  This is another of those, but it is the first I have seen where the Sterling mark has the upside down and backwards G like many of the Lampl wings, a few of the 2" Pilot wings and many of the 1-3/8" sweetheart wings.  To me it is a clue that Bell and Lampl shared a common production source for all their wings, not just the sweetheart wings.

 

 

[B-17Guy]

Here is an interesting Bell pattern wing to add that is a bit of a break away from the AAF theme of the thread.

It is in 2" Mess Dress size, but non standard Aviator design.

A USN shield and anchor with clearly Bell pattern wings.

This is the only Bell USN wing I personally have seen.

John

[B-17Guy]

Back

[5thwingmarty]

Other than the sweetheart sized wings, this is the only Naval wing I have ever seen from Bell either.  I am still trying to find one of these for my collection.  Thanks for adding it.

 

I presume these Naval wings were a later production item along with some of the AAF shirt-sized wings.  I have found Pilot, Bombardier, Navigator and Aircrew shirt-size wings from Bell that are hollow back like these Naval Aviator wings and which also have this incised Sterling mark.  My guess has been they were saving a bit of money using thinner metal to make the wings later in the war, but there is no proof or documentation for that.  These hollow back shirt-size wings were also made with different dies as there are detail difference as well on their faces, not just different backs.

[Insigina Hunter]

Very nice collection! I believe I helped add to your collecting funds recently. Hopefully you find some more goodies!

[cwnorma]

So are all the possible permutations of Bell wings exhibited in this thread?  If so, it should be considered for pinning.  If not?  Well, what's missing?

[pfrost]

Actually, Chris, there are a number of other Bell wings that aren't covered on this thread. Bell wings were used for some of the WASP class wings, and then a few one off variations periodically show up.  I know of one Bell observer wing with the US in the center (similar to the much earlier pilot/observer wing from the 20's).  I also seem to recall some flight school related wings as well.

 

There have been a number of Walter Lampl/Bell wing threads in the past.  It is pretty clear that the Lampl company and Bell company had some sort of relationship during WWII, as there are many similarities between these two unique patterns (and a third pattern that was probably also made by Bell). This includes similar hinge, pin and catch assembly, the use of a "STERLING" hallmark with an upside down "G", and very similar finish on the planchetts.

 

In this particular thread, I was able to find both Bell and Lampl marked sweetheart wings. Although I know that a specific unmentionable individual says he has proof that Lampl made their wings in New Jersey, the evidence that I have seen suggests that Lampl contracted out to manufacturers in Mexico and the nearby SW USA during the war (thus the name "Juarez" wings).  It has always been my suspicion (and this is well explored in the below link) that Bell and Lampl may have been using the same manufacturing "jobber", or one company had subcontracted out with the other (probably Lampl from Bell) to produce their products.

 

This is why these three patterns of full size wings, the 2 inch shirt wings and the smaller sweetheart wings all are so similar in so many ways.

Some of these threads used to be pinned, but over the years, have been removed.  But a search of Lampl and/or Bell will bring up a lot of good information.

 

 

[pfrost]

Here are a few composite pictures of the Lampl/Bell/Unknown family of wings.  As I said, there is pretty good evidence that Lample and Bell had some sort of relationship in that you can find both sets of wings with the upside down G "sterling" mark (on all three size wings), and rarely with either the Bell or Lampl hallmark on the 1 inch sweetheart wings.

 

Lampl is known to have closed his shop in the NJ/NY area at the start of the war.  I have found some Lampl stuff marked "Made in Mexico" (but not wings). 

 

This is a link to an article on Walter Lamp. http://www.milkywayjewels.com/lampl_article.html

Which was further discussed in this thread:

 

At some point I ended up talking with Ms Hoover via email. She confirmed that one of Walter Lampl's sons is still alive and that they had indeed moved the company from New York to Mexico during the war to get around material and manpower shortages. According to her, the Lampl Company didn't sell retail, but rather sold wholesale to a number of companies and firms around the US, and especially in the South West, likely explaining why these wings were associated with the Juarez area. In fact, one of the flight school yearbooks from one of the Schools in Arizona or Texas has a very obvious Juarez wing design on its cover.

[pfrost]

Finally, at some point I followed up with Ms Hoover.  It is possible that there is a Mexican connection but there is also a connection with the SW manufacturing as well.  Since Lampl didn't seem to actually be a manufacturer, I suspect that they had Bell or a Bell-related "jobber" make their wings.

 

**************

I do recall our conversation.  You've been very helpful to my research.

 

I see a number of issues in this thread.  I'll do my best to help clarify things...

 

The Walter Lampl company was based out of New York.  It existed at 4 different locations

over the lifetime of the company.  Walter, Sr. died in 1945.  His widow inherited the

company and it was managed after his death by his eldest son, Walter, Jr.  Walter, Jr.

was in Europe during WW2 and had limited contact with the family business before he

assumed management as a very young man, after the war.

 

As far as Walter, Jr. and his younger brother, Burt, knew, the Lampl business never

manufactured anything.  All manufacturing was done by jobbers.  Jobbers worked in a

variety of places.  Lampl jewelry was manufactured by jobbers in Attleboro, provenance,

and Newark before the war.  Lampl imported carved stones from China before the war.  The

New York offices were wholesale offices and/or showrooms only.

 

Lampl didn't exactly move his business to Mexico during the war. Rather, he had an agent

in Mexico City who dealt with local manufacturers, shipping, customs, etc.  During the

war Lampl sold some jewelry which was obviously Mexican in style and theme.  He also sold

some jewelry which showed obvious signs of Mexican craftsmanship.  I have only seen one

pair of pins which were actually marked Walter Lampl Made in Mexico.  I just looked on

the website and in our archives for this pair of brooches and it seems to have

disappeared.  I'll have my husband look for it in the database tomorrow.  I don't believe

they sold...

 

I have seen other examples which I believe were almost certainly made in Mexico which are

not marked that way.  Here are a few examples:

http://www.milkywayjewels.com/brooches/DG134138.html

http://www.milkywayjewels.com/brooches/BC138174.html

http://www.milkywayjewels.com/hair/BK196162.html

 

I don't know whether the gold work in this ring was made in Mexico, but the cameo was

certainly carved there:

http://www.milkywayjewels.com/rings/AA195293.html

 

There are ways to get around the issue of import marks.  The most obvious is to import

parts, rather than finished items.

 

During the war American jewelry businesses were forced to find all kinds of ways to bend

the rules to get the materials and resources they needed.  When I get my book written

(which is now completely outlined and has an introduction!) I will explain a couple of

ways the Lampl company stretched these regulations.

 

I don't think there is any way to know whether the wings, specifically, were made in

Mexico or in the U.S.  Lampl continued to have some jewelry manufactured in the U.S.

during the war.  There were problems with supply and materials, however.  In April of

1943, Lampl announced in an ad that their "toolmaker's bench has been closed for the

duration" and implied that they would not be able to continue to produce new designs. 

Then, in November of 1943, he announced a "complete line of distinguished Mexican jewelry

- from our branch in Mexico City".  I have many more details about how this all worked,

and I'll be including those in the eventual book.  Some jewelry continued to be made in

the U.S., but not all.

 

If "***************" has information about the factory in Newark, I would love to know more

about it.  I know that was one of the places where Walter, Sr. had jewelry made, but it

was by no means the only place.

 

I hope this helps to clear things up a bit.  This is all ongoing research, and I would

love to hear from anyone who has information which would help to add more clarity to the

Big Picture.

 

Best wishes,

Cheri

 

 

[5thwingmarty]

I had posted about one of these some time ago when I first saw one of these oddly "specked" Bell Navigator wings.  I picked up another one and in comparing it to my "normal" Bell Navigator, I found something else different.  Where the center ring of the armillary runs over on the left side and meets the feathers, on the normal wing the inner most upper feather is very clearly defined so there are clearly 9 feather on the upper left row.  Where the center ring meets the inner feather it is also near the top edge of the feather.  On the "speckled" wing, that inner most upper feather is almost blurred out, and where the ring meets the inner feather it is closer to the bottom edge of the feather. 

 

I still suspect that there was in intentional alteration to the die for these wings, not just some debris on the die when the speckled wings were struck.  To me the slight change to the center ring and that inner feather are another indication that the die was intentionally altered.

 

[donaldnol]

i would surely like to find out what makes those specks

[jeff41st]

I've avoided those "specked" Bell wings and look for the "normal" ones to add to my collection. I don't think the "specked" ones are nearly as good looking as the normal ones with all of their fine detail. I had assumed that the specks were caused by an impurity in the silver, but you don't see the specks on the back of the wings so maybe that idea does not make sense. Interesting idea that the specks are the result of an intentional alteration to the dies. If that is the case, I'm missing a bunch of Bell wings in my collection 😟

[Bluehawk]

On 2/6/2022 at 6:09 AM, donaldnol said:

i would surely like to find out what makes those specks

The specks are imperfections in the original casting, whether of a die or a mold.

 

It is difficult to imagine any manufacturer intentionally allowing that simple fault to be reproduced again and again - but from what is being said here there are a lot of specked wings in circulation - of this kind, and other kinds?

[5thwingmarty]

The 3" Navigator wings are the only ones I have seen with the distinctive raised specks.  The specks are only present on the "feathered" parts of the wing, not on the armillary device in the center or on the shoulder areas.  The specks also appear consistent in their locations on the two that I have indicating they were part of the die when the wings were stamped, not just loose debris that got onto the die during the manufacturing. 

 

From any distance over a couple of feet, the "woodgrain" feather details on Bell wings are not easy to see.  But on the specked wings, the specks can really catch the light and almost make the wings sparkle.

 

My guess is still the specks were added to the navigator wings to represent stars since celestial navigation was part of the full navigator training.  I have no proof of that, it is just my personal best guess.