Often attributed to NORSID. Could be WWII into KW period

8 hours ago, pfrost said:

Often attributed to NORSID. Could be WWII into KW period

Thank you very much. Long Nail head pins are post 45 right.

13 hours ago, Silvio said:

Thank you very much. Long Nail head pins are post 45 right.

Not necessarily.  In My opinion that’s more dealer lore than reality. There does seem to be a general correlation for the longer touchback pen on some of the wings that were made post World War II (such as Gemsco) but as a rule, that can’t be applied to all wings, I don’t believe that’s accurate.

 

And functionally speaking there is really no line drawn in the sand between 1945 and 1946 that we can say “on this specific date, they made a choice and changed up how they made the insignia “

 

Also, when the war ended (and well after the Korean War) there are lots of World War II vintage insignia still floating around.

 

id be pretty confidant that NIRSID was making wings from WWII until around the KW period with no real way to accurately date them any more generally than that

 

its a cool pattern tho

 

 

22 hours ago, pfrost said:

Not necessarily.  In My opinion that’s more dealer lore than reality. There does seem to be a general correlation for the longer touchback pen on some of the wings that were made post World War II (such as Gemsco) but as a rule, that can’t be applied to all wings, I don’t believe that’s accurate.

 

And functionally speaking there is really no line drawn in the sand between 1945 and 1946 that we can say “on this specific date, they made a choice and changed up how they made the insignia “

 

Also, when the war ended (and well after the Korean War) there are lots of World War II vintage insignia still floating around.

 

id be pretty confidant that NIRSID was making wings from WWII until around the KW period with no real way to accurately date them any more generally than that

 

its a cool pattern tho

 

 

Thank you for this explanation and different perspective.

Here’s a real odd 1! Cool but odd. 
 

 

Yes, it is an odd duck that no one can explain.

I have one just like it and they are fairly scarce.

I have seen bad ones, but this one seems like the legitimate Meyer.

John

I have no proof, but I think John is correct.  More than likely a prototype or trial piece made by NS Meyers--maybe for a civilian type purchase or airline or private pilot.  As a company selling items, one would expect some level of merchandising of new patterns to sell more product.

Maybe there is some data from Heath about these in his archives.

 

P

How do these look? I’m pretty sure the navigator ones are original, but the observers wings are really nice and I have heard that people fake this manufacturer sometimes. 

This set of Air Gunners wings are marked "sterling". If so... why do they look oxidized? 

It probably has to do with how/where they were stored. Mothballs can really do weird things to metal and plastic for example.  I would ( personally) clean these up with some silver polish and they will naturally re-tarnish. These are a fairly common pattern. 

This is the Bell pattern, and these two-piece Aerial Gunner wings are harder to find than the one-piece AG wings.  With the corrosion on the brass pin, I would agree the wing was stored somewhere that really oxidized it.

On 4/28/2026 at 8:47 PM, jeep-a-holic said:

How do these look? I’m pretty sure the navigator ones are original, but the observers wings are really nice and I have heard that people fake this manufacturer sometimes. 

 

My guess is that these are either more recent fakes because they look "too good" or perhaps post war/cold war vintage wings. I have had English made wings that dated to the 60's that were like this.  I am leaning towards someone look one of the more recent vintage wings and changed the pin to look like a WWII vintage badge.

But the thing about these English made wings, you kind of have to decide for yourself.  

On 4/29/2026 at 11:26 PM, easterneagle87 said:

This set of Air Gunners wings are marked "sterling". If so... why do they look oxidized? 

 

Got the wings today! Really pleased!  The roller for the straight pin isn't there, but I really do Appreciate the ID as being Bell two piece constructed wing. Thanks!

Picked up these early 1st pattern surgeon wings, they are Mayer made and appear to be of a two part construction. They look good to me but I’m still a wings novice, any thoughts? 

This looks like a good wing to me.  I don't see a sterling mark so maybe gold on brass.  It does look like a raised Meyer shield on the back of the caduceus.

I keep looking at it, hunting for red flags and comparing to others. You are correct, the Meyer shield on the back of the caduceus is indeed raised whilst the one on the wing itself is incised. Its certainly got some weight to it, so gold on brass is most likely. I think I came up on top with this one, super happy.  

It will probably be my only flight surgeon wing unless I hunt down a shirt sized version to match then go for the second pattern......

 

Wings are addictive.😅

I have the exact same wing, which I believe is good. It has all the signs of a good Meyer, especially regarding the pin and catch fixings.

Any thoughts on these Fireman liaison wings? They look good to go to me, but the findings are putting me off a little. 

Personally I would pass on this wing if offered. Flat open catch vs wire C catch. Very clean stamping of hallmark. Others might disagree.

I have never liked these.

Agree with above comments.

Got to say, these English made wings are a bit of a minefield. I’m certainly starting to see the traits that the bad ones exhibit. 

Should I be seeing round wire C catches across the board on these Fireman made wings in general? 

 

15 hours ago, Manky bandage said:

Should I be seeing round wire C catches across the board on these Fireman made wings in general? 

 

Based on my Flight Surgeon wing I do not think all Firmin wings need to have a wire catch. 
 

Remi

I believe Ludlow used both wire c-catches as well as cut ‘sheet’ catches so there’s no hard and fast rule as to which type of catch a maker used over the period they were producing the badges.

I’ve asked some members already but I’m 70/30 in favor of these not being good. Sterling mark is weak, pin opens to 45 degrees but seems loose when it’s there and easily falls back down. I don’t have example with the design of the front but they sure look die struck to me. Can I get some thoughts? Seems sterling from some of the discoloration I’m seeing on the back but everything else makes me skeptical of course

Catch also looks weirdly high for the pin to me. Could of course be after issue alteration but just saying I noticed it