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Opinions on 2 patches please - Marine and Para


MikeK
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Hi,

 

I've been reading through this section with a lot of interest and attempting to research prior to purchasing. Sometimes pics from sellers aren't the best though.

 

The two attached patches were both, of course, sold as WW2 originals however I think they both show the synthetic ?binding I've read about in the pinned fake/repro thread (the edges have a "bristly" feeling when you rub a finger along them) and are therefore not WW2 vintage. They do not fluoresce on either the obverse or reverse sides as such, however the edges do appear to glow white.

 

Could you please confirm my suspicions that the are not WW2 vintage. If not, are they classified as post-war "originals" (ie 50s/60s manufacture) or are they simily reproductions meant to fool?

 

5 pics to follow. Please don't pay too much to the colours (eg the red is more blood red on both in real life).

 

Regards,

Mike

post-11042-1273740309.jpg

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The 1st MAW is an original fully-embroidered on felt, 100% original.

The second (11th Airborne) looks good as well, not too up on para ovals but looks to be late 40's early 50's?

 

Every rule has an exception, and with these style patches, i.e. fully embroidered on felt or wool, and partially-embroidered on twill, there will often be a gauze backing or stabilizer used.

 

As long as they don't glow under a blacklight or use polyester material they are probably good, both of these are. :thumbsup:

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Proud Kraut

I concur with Jim on the Airborne oval, looks like a postwar/cold war era piece to me.

 

All I can say about the 1st MAW is, it looks not like the WW II ones I have in my collection. IMHO the vertical stiching rows, the red edge (WW II made patches should have a khaki or OD edge) and the mesh backing you see on the back of the edge are some "alarm signals".

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BILL THE PATCH
edge scan closeup

 

 

THE MARINE PATCH LOOKS JAPANESE MADE, ( THEATER MADE) WORTH MORE THAN AN US MADE VERSION, IT HAS THE TYPICAL OPEN WEAVE OF SOME Japanese MADE PATCH. I HAVE ONE IN MY COLLECTION ALSO. :thumbsup: THANKS BILL

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vintageproductions

The 1st Marine Air Wing is standard US machine embroidered. Like Teamski said it is considered one of the variants.

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vintageproductions

One thing that everyone needs to remember when collecting Marine Corps patches of WWII, every manufacturer did them slightly different. I can't explain why, or if the standards weren't the same as the Army shoulder sleeves, but this is the way it is. A prime example is the standard 2nd Marine Division patch. There are countless variants of these. Same thing can be said with the MAW's. There are some with red eyes, some with black eyes, some show longitude and latitude, and the variants can keep going on and on.

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I just want to say thanks to all who replied.

 

The pointers and additional info are much appreciated.

 

Regards

Mike

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I was referring to post # 163, 164, 165 and 166 of this thread:

 

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/ind...3812&st=160

 

Obviously I misinterpreted "red medium" in post # 166. I thought it was the red basic material. Can somebody enlighten me with that?

 

Thanks!

 

The red medium in the FMF-PAC patches in the other topic was red twill with a mesh stabilizer used. That just wasn't commonly done with fully embroidered on twill patches, neither the color (normally khaki or OD green) nor the mesh. Fully embroidered on felt or thin wool period made patches did use a mesh stabilizer, presumably to help them hold their shape better after laundering.

 

The same is true of partially embroidered on twill patches that use the colored twill as part of the patch's design, like the 11th airborne oval. That was a period manufacturing technique used.

I hope this helps. :)

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  • 3 years later...

This is interesting info. I have a couple of 2nd Mar Div patches that I assumed were post-war mostly because they have a similar mesh base (no cotton twill backing) with that same bristly feel at the edges. In this case, though, the base is red, not white:

post-124367-0-01562900-1395613497.jpgpost-124367-0-43277800-1395613507.jpg

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Yup, those look like good fully embroidered on felt WWII variations.

Also keep in mind the Marines stopped wearing unit SSI ending in 1947.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

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Yup, those look like good fully embroidered on felt WWII variations.

Also keep in mind the Marines stopped wearing unit SSI ending in 1947.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

 

Thanks, that's good to know. I knew that they only wore them from '43-'47, but I guess I assumed these were later repro or "for collectors" produced items. Glad to find out I was wrong!

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