5th AF bullion patch

[capt71]

Gotta share this patch with you all!!
I just received this 2-1/2 inch WW2 5th Air Force bullion shoulder patch from the widow of a 380th BG B-24 pilot stationed in Australia with my father. She said she was going through some of her husband's things and found several patches he had saved from the 380th. It looks brand new in the photo (mainly because of the lighting), but it actually dates from 1943 or '44. The "5" is gold metallic thread, while the stars and comet/tail are silver metallic thread (heavily tarnished, as you can see). When I opened the envelope all I could say was "WOW!!" It doesn't have any thread holes in it, so I'm pretty sure it was never worn.

Just out of curiosity, has anyone here ever tried to remove tarnish from silver bullion thread? Don't worry, I will NEVER, NEVER, NEVER try it on this patch--just curious.
Bill

 

[Andrew]

Wow, that's fantastic and it couldn't have gone to a better home. or more appropriate person, and i'm sure she's happy with that decision too. I love that comet symbol.

WRT getting tarnish off the silver, I suspect that Silvo might do it however it would almost certainly bleed into the fabric and might it also possibly remove some of the silver coating? Don't know but i'll be you'll be getting that framed.

 

[horseback leader]

There is a way to remove tarnish from bullion patches. It was a tip from the curator of the NY State military museum in 1994 and quite honestly, I was very skeptical, but have used it many many many times over the years and it works, usually very well. Sometimes things are too far gone, or have a plastic 'protective' covering that prevents proper cleaning with this method.

Go to the market and buy yourself a nice sized bottle of cream of tartar (the spice). Get yourself a very soft, cheap toothbrush. Get the toothbrush wet and then sprinkle the cream of tartar on the item to be cleaned.. Sprinkle it heavily.. cover the tarnished area fully, pretty thickly. Then, gently, and with the 'grain' of the bullion wire, move the toothbrush back and forth over the tarnish area. Ideally, you'd want to get the powder to be a paste, kind of the consistency of bathroom grout that's being applied to tile. Go through it patiently. Take your time. If you're working on a patch, rinse it under the faucet and evaluate your work, and keep at it. Remember, the bullion wire is held in place by thread, so be gentle. The cream of tartar tends to get absorbed into patches very well, and you should rinse from both front AND back when you've achieved the effect you seek. Then blot it in paper towels or a terry cloth towel (again, both sides) then let it dry in the open air, not in a dryer or direct sunlight. The results are astonishing. Whatever you do, do NOT use brasso, silver polish, tarnex, ANYTHING like that. If you should need to clean bullion that's attached to a uniform, fear not, the powder comes off completely in dry cleaning. So it'd be possible to clean the uniform, bring the powdery 'mess' to a dry cleaner and what you'll get back will look fabulous after cleaning.

Trust me, this is the way to clean bullion. Shown below are 'before' and 'after' photos of the same prewar Navy Cap device.

Dan

 

[atkins]

Thanks for the great macro shot Bill. Sorry, can't help you with the answer. I wonder, was bullion patches hand sewn/embroidered ?

 

[capt71]

Dan, thanks for the great advice on cleaning the thread. I know that cream of tartar cleans silver, but never thought of it for cleaning silver thread. I may give it a try since the patch seems to be in great shape--I'll have to think about it (I may want to leave it as is). If I decide to do it, I'll post a photo of the results. If you don't hear back from me, it'll be because I failed miserably, damaged the patch, and shot myself!

Atkins, from the back it looks like this one was machine sewn, but, not being an embroidery expert, I don't know for sure.

Bill

 

[Silver Dollar]

When you can find one of those, it's a reason to celebrate. Out of all the patch styles, the bullion patch is my favorite. I'd put that beauty in a frame either with something else or by itself.

 

[dujardin]

splennnnnnnnnnnndid one.

Dan thanks for the ''how to clean'' a bullion patch.

byeeeee marcel

 

[horseback leader]

Bill

You're welcome. I've seen a number of patches like that, where the patch itself appears to be machine sewn, and then the bullion work was added over it by a local artisan. I've seen them on 7th AF patches and 14th most often. Not that you'd take yours apart, of course, but if you did I'd bet that under the bullion is a regular 5th AF patch. If you decide to clean yours, be extra careful around the silk thread to avoid fraying it with the movement of the toothbrush.Good luck!

Dan

 

[capt71]

Dan,
Here's a photo of the back of the patch. Now that I look closer it does look like it could have been hand-embroidered (again, I don't know). I've adjusted the contrast so the threads show up more clearly.

Anyway, after looking at the metallic threads more closely under magnification, and taking its age into consideration, I've decided to leave it alone. I just don't want to take a chance on damaging anything. Thanks again for your excellent information.
Bill