$10 WWII Jump Wing w/ Combat Star

[shocktrooper15]

Got this at a flea market today for $10! Im very excited

Its a pin back, marked GEMSCO

[doyler]

Well done

 

maker marked or Sterling only??

 

Star soldered on or drilled and pushed through??

 

Nice find for sure.

 

RD

[shocktrooper15]

Well done

 

maker marked or Sterling only??

 

Star soldered on or drilled and pushed through??

 

Nice find for sure.

 

RD

 

Thanks Doyler! Its marked both GEMSCO and STERLING. The wings have been drilled and the star has been pushed through. It also looks like there has been some soldering to seal the hole from the back.

[KurtA]

$10 at a flea market - Without provenance, the ONLY way you can buy one of these without running the huge risk it was a recent put-together.

Nice badge.

Kurt

[turmanator]

This is the kind of thing I say to myself.. "Hell, I spend that much on lunch. What the hell"

Even if it's not real, big deal, don't eat lunch one day. most of us could stand to miss a lunch or two, anyways!

[sgtdorango]

Thats one heck of a score!!!......mike :thumbsup:

[1canpara]

Well done

 

maker marked or Sterling only??

 

Star soldered on or drilled and pushed through??

 

Nice find for sure.

 

RD

 

 

Hey RD, does the soldered combat star vs. 'drilled and pushed through' star make a difference to authenticity or value...? I have one that is drilled and pushed through and I always wondered what the difference would mean...?

 

...and btw, nice grab Shocktrooper!

 

Rick

[Brian Dentino]

Now that is one of the best deals I have seen on here in a long time. Very nice, did you ask if there were any more military items available? With that little beauty for 10 bones who knows what you may have been able to steal......er, I mean purchase!

[doyler]

Hey RD, does the soldered combat star vs. 'drilled and pushed through' star make a difference to authenticity or value...? I have one that is drilled and pushed through and I always wondered what the difference would mean...?

 

...and btw, nice grab Shocktrooper!

 

Rick

 

 

In my opinion it really doesnt.I have seen them done both ways.I have a small group to an 82 Abn/508th PIR surgeon and ther are both styles in the group.One set has rather large stars on the wings and apear to have been done in england.The stars look english made also.

 

I also have a set of wings from a Korea war vet(later served in Viet Nam and former WW2 Ranger).He did two jumps in Korea and his wings he wore in later years had the holes with attached stars.I have another set from a Korea war Ranger and his wings look japanese made and the stars are soldered on.

 

The drilled style are easier to reproduce/make up.With out knowing where they came from can make any of them suspect to many.

 

This said Shocktroopers wings just have that great untouched look to them.Very nice. :thumbsup:

[Longbranch]

In my opinion it really doesnt.I have seen them done both ways.I have a small group to an 82 Abn/508th PIR surgeon and ther are both styles in the group.One set has rather large stars on the wings and apear to have been done in england.The stars look english made also.

 

I also have a set of wings from a Korea war vet(later served in Viet Nam and former WW2 Ranger).He did two jumps in Korea and his wings he wore in later years had the holes with attached stars.I have another set from a Korea war Ranger and his wings look japanese made and the stars are soldered on.

 

The drilled style are easier to reproduce/make up.With out knowing where they came from can make any of them suspect to many.

 

This said Shocktroopers wings just have that great untouched look to them.Very nice. :thumbsup:

 

So, in 20-30 years when these types of wings are primarily available only through collectors and dealers (as for the most part they'll likely trickle out of flea markets, garage sales, estate sales, etc. by then), how are we ever going to know which ones are real and which ones are fake, considering the concern for authenticity now? I mean, yes, when one finds an object like this at a flea market, it's easy to assume it is genuine. But what about the person these wings are sold to a decade from now? How are they going to know? Because someone told them they were purchased at a flea market for $10? These are the kinds of stories we are telling each other to NOT believe... "base the item on the evidence at hand... not the story..."

 

Just something to consider. I believe most collectors today don't gather enough provenance (when available) for collectors down the road. I'm a fairly young collector in my 20s, so this is a concern for me. Many of the older collectors were able to acquire many items directly from the veteran, so the authenticity was never in question for the items they purchased. However, it seems that many overlooked being able to provide provenance at a later date. Remember... in 20-30 years, ALL of the WWII veterans will have likely passed away, making it impossible to acquire items directly from the veteran, and difficult to acquire items from the family (as they'll have either already been sold off, or are being kept within the family). So, by then one will only be able to acquire items from collectors and dealers. I know of one collector that was selling a "trench art" fighting knife made from a K98 bayonet in excellent condition that he says was acquired from and used by a WWII Airborne veteran. However, how am I supposed to know this is true and not a recently assembled knife?

[shocktrooper15]

Longbranch- It is a difficult thing. I rely heavily on research and when I'm in doubt, I usually let it pass.

 

Also, thanks guys for the nice comments. The weird thing about this was that it was attached to the collar of a vietnam era blouse which appears to be a put together. The guy selling it had no knowledge of either the wings or the blouse. So i ended up getting the blouse just for the wing!

 

My guess is that someone found it and said "Oh, something military" and just slapped it on. I mean the jump wings go above the left pocket, not the collar.

 

shocktrooper

[BigJohn#3RD]

I understand ones concern over province but lets get real and stop raining on people acquisition. You can find jump wings from WWII through the current conflicts. I have quite a few jump wings from vets directly or families, shows and one or two from the flew markets and the prices range from $50 to a couple of hundred $. I have them both soldiered and with just the hole drilled thru them and one that has the star and arrow molded into the wings. I am happy with them all. FYI many of the vets who did not make a career of the military did not have any stars on their wings and they made two or three jumps. Having talked to the vets many of the lower ranking guys who had stars on their wings put the holes in them themselves in the barracks while senior ranking individuals purchased the wings with stars on them or had a jeweler do them. Good advice about getting the province is a good idea but I like many others collect items because we like the militaria, we would all like to get our money back or make a little profit but I do not consider most of my collecting as an investment.

Regards

John

[doyler]

So, in 20-30 years when these types of wings are primarily available only through collectors and dealers (as for the most part they'll likely trickle out of flea markets, garage sales, estate sales, etc. by then), how are we ever going to know which ones are real and which ones are fake, considering the concern for authenticity now? I mean, yes, when one finds an object like this at a flea market, it's easy to assume it is genuine. But what about the person these wings are sold to a decade from now? How are they going to know? Because someone told them they were purchased at a flea market for $10? These are the kinds of stories we are telling each other to NOT believe... "base the item on the evidence at hand... not the story..."

 

Just something to consider. I believe most collectors today don't gather enough provenance (when available) for collectors down the road. I'm a fairly young collector in my 20s, so this is a concern for me. Many of the older collectors were able to acquire many items directly from the veteran, so the authenticity was never in question for the items they purchased. However, it seems that many overlooked being able to provide provenance at a later date. Remember... in 20-30 years, ALL of the WWII veterans will have likely passed away, making it impossible to acquire items directly from the veteran, and difficult to acquire items from the family (as they'll have either already been sold off, or are being kept within the family). So, by then one will only be able to acquire items from collectors and dealers. I know of one collector that was selling a "trench art" fighting knife made from a K98 bayonet in excellent condition that he says was acquired from and used by a WWII Airborne veteran. However, how am I supposed to know this is true and not a recently assembled knife?

 

In most cases you wont.

 

Not to get off topic but...

This isnt a new problem at all.I have collected and bought items for 38 years and I can tell you I do not have all the answers.One thing I do know and found out very young was not everything vets have is real either.I have litterally saw a vet bring his uniform out of a trunk and then show me german medals that were sand cast fakes.Most likely purchased out of a magazine,catalog or shop at some point.One guy here use to make a round at every gunshow and flea market selling his cigar box of medals he brought home.All fake.Its a fact of life that in reality there probably is more fake items out there than real.As far as "provenance" goes its nice but its not a deal breaker for me.I have many items in my collection that have no paper trail on them.In many cases I bought items from vets or auctions when I was younger and I always tried to get any history of the item if possible.Not to prove its origin,inhance its value or prove to someone its real.I did it brcause I was intrested in knowing the story.Many times it was a verbal story or or a small hand written note but wait...all that can be faked.Now its a different ball game.We dont have to wait 20-30 years as its here now and has been for a long time.Never really use to matter as no one was making huge amounts of money buying and selling the stuff.How many P38s and lugers have the capture paper?Most dont but are they real/original??

 

Look at the helmet craze.For example I know a guy who has painted over 4800 helmets.Recently he done 25 WW1 second division painted helmets all different and were sent to a dealer.The style of his art is fairly easy to tell and I have seen them sell as originals after they had changed hands a couple times.

 

Bottom line is the collector is the one who has to make the call if he is comfotable with the item or the source of the item."Provenance"is nice but in reality we as collectors are not going to always have the picture of the guy painting his helmet,sewing on his patch,pinning on his ribbons or carving those custom grips for his 45 out of Burmese ivory.Once it leaves the original source(vet,family etc) the water can get murky.In most cases the family dont know(and dont care).If you net work with other collectors,find trusted dealers,study your field (s) of intrest,have an open mind and learn from others this will go a long way.But even trusted dealers can get items that are not correct or completely original.We are now seeing not only veterans pass away at an alarming rate but also older collectors whos items are also hitting the market.Now throw in the re-enactors.All this comes out for sale sooner or later.Not to fault flea markets,shops and on line auctions but these venues are raft with such items.I see it here locally where these weekend dealers who use to buy glass and furniture now buy everything and have no clue to its value or if its real.All they know is its military and its worth a mint cuz everyone wants it and its saleable..I see them pay way to much for common stuff(and I have to admit I help them out once in a while)to not paying enough.In the same token if they see me bidding on it it must be good so they will bid and bid and unless I want it I let them have it.Also there are a lot of us who have purchased items of questionable origin or history.To me the crime is knowingly selling it.When I do sell/trade items bottom line is if the person isnt happy or has issues they can bring it back as I wouldnt really sell something I wouldnt take back into my collection or sale/trade pile.

 

To me it boils down to the old story by the item not the story.Buy what you like and study your subject.Get a feeling for the age and condition and constuction of items.Most important dont let your emotions do the buying.There are bargins but if the price seems to good on a super rare item it may be not so super.

 

 

RD

[B.A.R.gunner]

I recently purchased a pair of jump wings for $10 also, I cant make out the maker, but I'll take a closer look tomorrow. The star on mine is cast as part of it, but its above the wings, and incircled, can anyone tell me what era its from?

[doyler]

I recently purchased a pair of jump wings for $10 also, I cant make out the maker, but I'll take a closer look tomorrow. The star on mine is cast as part of it, but its above the wings, and incircled, can anyone tell me what era its from?

 

 

Post WW2.Probably Viet Nam era or newer.Post a picture of it in the wings section.This is a wing for a Master Parachutist.One who has qualified for the Master rating through a series of jumps and courses or proficiency.The master and senior(star no wreath) wings ratings did not exist in WW2.

 

Also one friend of mine told me you could still buy sterling silver wings at Ft.Benning in 1968-69 that were pin back WW2 old stock.

 

RD

[doyler]

ST

 

Hope you dont mind me adding these.Here are the wings from my surgeons group.He jumped Normandy,Holland,was at the Buldge and later Germany and occuapation.

 

[shocktrooper15]

ST

 

Hope you dont mind me adding these.Here are the wings from my surgeons group.He jumped Normandy,Holland,was at the Buldge and later Germany and occuapation.

 

 

 

Very nice! I really like the variety in the stars.

[doyler]

Very nice! I really like the variety in the stars.

 

 

Thanks ST

 

The lower right ones are english made wings with applied stars that are english made also.They are larger and have a painted finnish to them.I was amazed at the sets of wings he had.This group shows his progression of wings.He did keep one set of the english type with two stars.They were mounted on an oval made of two pieces of leather in the corresponding colors.He also mentioned sending home his originals from jump school to his mother.

 

RD

[eagle5036]

This is a great find......WWII airborne items are awesome.

[shocktrooper15]

This is a great find......WWII airborne items are awesome.

 

And progressively harder to find... I set my sights on airborne items.