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This first page is a general discussion of wing collecting strategy and basics. Page 2 illustrates a number of fake wings. that have recently been making the rounds.

Perhaps the most frequent questions I get asked by other wing collectors is "how do I know if this wing is fake?". I always hedge, because I am well aware of how much I don't know. Basically, you are asking me for my opinion and opinions are like a**holes--everybody has one. However, I can share my 10 BASIC RULES FOR NOVICE COLLECTORS. These are rules that I try to follow, and as you can see, I have put together a nice collection of wings on a VERY modest budget (It would KILL you to learn what I paid for some of my stuff). I won't brag and say I have not made mistakes, but I do think I haven't made A LOT of mistakes. Try THE RULES for a bit and see what you think--then let me know.

Before we start, I use the term fakes, restrikes and reproductions interchangably. In a nut shell, I believe a fake, restrike, or reproduction is any wing or patch that is sold under false pretext as a legitimate, vintage item, when it is not. To me, the 1970's restriking of N.S. Meyer's wings using the original dies, a "CBI-theater-made" sand cast wing constructed in some guy's garage last week, or a collector's copy of a WWI wing made by a jeweler are all equally horrid when sold as "the real deal". Yet, I see vast sums of money being spent on EBay and at gun shows for wings that I believe are nothing but crap.

When I started collecting as a graduate student at UCLA, I was on a very strict budget, so I had to make every purchase count. To avoid costly mistakes, I developed the following rules that I tried to follow during the hunt. I believe these rules will help both novice and more advanced collectors.

MY 10 RULES OF COLLECTING:

1A)  Use all the resources available to you.  DO YOUR HOMEWORK!   Know your wings!
The "Silver Wings, Pinks and Greens" books are fantastic sources to see quality wings!!!

A good rule of thumb as a novice collector is to assume if it isn't in "Silver Wings, Pinks and Greens", you should be careful about buying the wing. OF COURSE THIS IS NOT A 100% FOOL-PROOF STRATEGY, but I have found that those two books cover just about every WW2 USAAF wing that I have seen (and the average collector is going to run into). As a novice, if you want to be sure, then in my opinion, matching your wing with a wing in "Pinks and Greens" will let you avoid many fakes (of course you may miss really rare wings NOT shown in the books, but that is the chance you take).

1B) Handle LOTS of wings. The more wings you look at, feel, touch, rub, heft, fondle, study, and are familiar with, the less chance of betting burned by a fake.

1C) Buy a good loop. Get a good quality jeweler's loop and spend some time looking at wings. Try to tell the difference between normal wear and tear and cast wings. Not always easy--trust me!

2)  Ask lots of questions.
Sure, everyone is an "expert", and most don't know their head from a hole in the ground, but you might as well ask them for advice. Heck, your reading my opinion, aren't you?

3)  Take nothing at face value.
Remember, someone is trying to sell you something.  They will tell you what you want to hear!!

4)  THINK.  If it doesn't ring true, then it most likely isn't.
Are they just telling you something that you want to hear?

5)  Buy only die stamped wings!  Learn to tell the difference between cast and die struck wings.

The vast majority (but not all) fake wings are cast.  If it looks like it could have been made in your garage, then it was probably made in somebody else's garage.  You can believe that it is a POW or CBI theater made wing if you want, but......(see items 3 and 4).

Click here to see an example of a common type of "fake" cast wing.  Notice the small black pits and uneven surface (arrows).  Also, the sterling mark is added, and appears uneven.

6)  Match wing pattern with hallmark.
I have recently seen hallmarks (usually AECo and AMICO) on fake wings.  Somebody (or somebodies) has "made" a stamp that they have been using to add maker marks to these fake wings, thus fooling the unaware (and some of the aware)!  If you are familiar with the original marks then you should be able to avoid these fakes.  Here is an example of a fake A.E.Co service pilot wing!
Point 1. Notice the "fake" patina used to give the wing an aged look.  This is done with chemicals and has an uneven and blotchy appearance.

Point 2.    Note the use of an A.E.Co stamp incised into the wing.  This was NEVER used by A.E.Co and is fake.  The hallmark of A.E.Co is ALWAYS raised (excised) off the wing.  Click here to see A.E.Co hallmark

Point 3.    The wing pattern is NOT an A.E.Co pattern, but rather is a N.S. Meyers restrike pattern that is often faked.  A.E.Co never used this pattern (sometimes called the "pelican beak" for the pattern in the shoulder).  Click here to see an A.E.Co pattern wing (middle wing)

Point 4.    The wing is most likely cast, notice the small pits and uneven "sterling" mark.

7)  Most WWI era, balloon, airship, TO and WASP wings are fakes. Unless some collector is getting rid of an old collection, the vast majority of these wings have been faked and/or restruck from the original dies.  They are usually not legit period wings.  SPEND LOTS OF TIME DOUBLE-CHECKING BEFORE  YOU BUY ANY OF THESE WINGS!!!  They are rare for a reason.

"Advanced" collectors see lots of these fakes over time, and we are always amazed at the number of "novice" collectors that end up buying them (usually from sleazy advanced collectors who once made a mistake and bought them and now want to get rid of them).

8)  Avoid N.S. Meyers wings until you have more experience.
I frequently get asked how to tell a new Meyer's from an old Meyer's wing? N.S. Meyers wings have been restruck from the original dies over the years (first time in the 1960's as rumor has it, so some of these wings have been around for 20-30 years, and have a pretty nice patina!).  People will give you tips about the pins or the shield logo, but...... Why bother, just stay away from them until you really know what you are doing (if you insist on buying a N.S. Meyer wing, see TIPS below). One last thing, if you try to sell a Meyer's, they always seem to get about 20-50% less than another wing because of this issue.

9) Know who you buy from. I don't want to IMPLY anything about anybody, but many folks are out there to take away your money! Now, with EBay and other online auctions, you can buy and sell stuff like a drunken sailor and if you are not carefull, can get badly screwed. Try to get money back agreements in writing, ask other dealers and collectors for recommendations, and basically be smart. I hear horror stories about dealers with long and well established histories of fraud, larceny and bad behavior--usually well earned--yet they continue to screw over the novice collectors.

10) ONLY SPEND WHAT YOU ARE WILLING TO LOSE!!!!!! If you can't afford it, or you aren't sure it is worth it, or you aren't sure it is real, then simply don't buy it. As a novice collector, I always worried that I would never get another shot at a good wing if I didn't buy NOW. That has not been the case. I frequently get another shot at a similar wing (and more often that not, at a better price). Be patient and don't panic buy.

TIPS:

A.  If you insist on buying a N.S. Meyer wing, look at the later USAF versions (navigator, aircrew).  These wings will be marked with a 9M or 22M in a shield, depending on vintage.  To my knowledge, no one is restriking those wings.  Compare those wings to the suspected WWII vintage wings to get a better idea of what to look out for.

B.  Learn if the sterling and maker marks on a legit wing are raised up off the back or inscised into the back of the wing.  A raised mark is always original to the wing as it can not be added later.

C.  Look at the front of the wing, just opposite of the stamped mark, for a small dimple or smooshed place.  When a wing is stamped later, the force of the strike will sometimes leave a mark on the front of the wing. This doesn't always invalidate a wing (when silver prices peaked, many dealers tried to cheat by adding sterling marks to vintage wings). However, it does hurt the value and it should make you leary.

D.  Many people will tell you to look at the pin on the back of a N.S. Meyer wing.  Vintage wings should have a pin that opens up to ~70-80o.  I have my doubts--many wings were modified over time (pins broke or wore out, etc). Also, since EVERYBODY knows that about Meyer wings, ALL the new fakes have appropriate pins.

EBay TIPs:

A. Use Ebay to look at and study reproduction and fake wings.  Try doing a search for wings that are sold as fakes or reproductions (such as most N.S. Meyer's tech observer, balloon, or airship pilot wings).  THEN, compare these fakes to wings being sold as the "real deal".  If they are the same, the smart money would be to assume it is a fake.

For some reason people want the N.S. Meyer airship wing that the JUST bought off of EBay for 100$ to be the one jewel in the vast mob of restrikes. Yet, other than a small "squigle" in the sterling mark, or a bend in the pin, or a "feel to the heft", the wing is IDENTICLE to every other Meyer Airship wing. It may be legit, but....really now, you are just fooling yourself.

B. Another EBay tip: If a dealer is selling WASP or balloon pilot wings (frequently without any return policy) EVERY DAMN WEEK, then most likely they are selling fakes. Think long and hard about bidding, my friends.

C. Yet anther EBay tip: If a dealer is selling the SAME wing over and over again (frequently with some sort of vague description of what it is), chances are that it is being bought, looked at, and returned.

D. Final EBay tip: Check feedbacks and past auctions. EBay makes it hard now to really look into a seller's history (hidden emails, changed feedbacks) and seem to spend more time protecting 'power sellers' with questionable ethics (shill bidding, scams/shams, etc) than stopping fraud, but be creative. Do a search for past auctions and the bidding on items (see tips A-C above). Check feedback, email and ask questions. Save the emails until AFTER the transaction is done. Know the rules and follow them closely.

The next page illustrates EXACTLY many of the points that I am trying to make concerning fakes.