ELC and Bill Kelso roughwear 27752 comparison

[Brettafett]

Thunderbolt, I would really appreciate some measurements on your BK 42...
(p.s. was at Biggin Hill Air fest this weekend and must say, standing a few metres from a Jug as it taxis past is quite an experience that thing literally growls... Gorgeous)

 

[mulceber]

I know its not really worth saying, but 100% agree on BK's knits being great. I 'think' Platon uses the same...
J, why not replace those on your Monarch?

I seem to recall hearing that Goodwear and Aero use the same knits as well, although I don't know if those are the same ones used by BK & Platon. But it sounds like everyone except ELC uses the same knits.

 

[jeremiah]

Brett, I plan to one day, but for now it’s not keeping me from wearing it so I have not wanted to invest in it just yet. That said, when I do I’ll be doing the work myself.

 

[P-47 thunderbolt]

Thunderbolt, I would really appreciate some measurements on your BK 42...
(p.s. was at Biggin Hill Air fest this weekend and must say, standing a few metres from a Jug as it taxis past is quite an experience that thing literally growls... Gorgeous)

Pit to pit - 22"
Shoulders -18"
Back -25"
Sleeves - 25" (outside edge, inc cuffs)

Yeah gotta say I was impressed at Duxford last month, I live not far from a ww2 base that trained on p-47s and love those planes

 

[P-47 thunderbolt]

Both look great to my eye. What you have on your ELC is hardly “patina” though.
That’s just wear. Still looks great but not patina.
Think of an old sofa covered in good leather. Or an old table polished many years. The darker areas that come from handling and repeated oils both natural and added. That’s patina.
Patina won’t be the lighter areas on leather ever.

I'm with you on the patina now! this is my wallet.......used to be kinda

suede (9 years ago)

 

[P-47 thunderbolt]

Also Jeremiah, did you put that shoulder decal on your monarch yourself? Where's best to get one?

 

[taikonaut]

ELC aim to make movie props these days. Does'nt have to be accurate, just need to look good on screen

 

[jeremiah]

Also Jeremiah, did you put that shoulder decal on your monarch yourself? Where's best to get one?

That decal I did put on myself. It was NOS. I got it on eBay. A year ago there was a seller who happened upon a box of these and sold them 2 at a time. I have yet to search for more but I had bought 4. Kept two and gave 2 away.

 

[Edward]

That decal I did put on myself. It was NOS. I got it on eBay. A year ago there was a seller who happened upon a box of these and sold them 2 at a time. I have yet to search for more but I had bought 4. Kept two and gave 2 away.

Also Jeremiah, did you put that shoulder decal on your monarch yourself? Where's best to get one?

he's still selling them... has them available on eBay currently. https://www.ebay.com/itm/ORIG-NOS-W...070678?hash=item5b554c0a56:g:o0gAAOSw-4BXZ7r8

 

[jeremiah]

It’s a good deal. I put the second one on my BK dubow I re dyed. The method I use to put these on ensures they stay on and will age well over the years. I can toss this jacket in a ball and the decal will take it and say thank you.

 

[taikonaut]

What method did you use to make the decal stays on?

 

[Thomas Koehle]

What method did you use to make the decal stays on?

would alos be interested how you apply them Jeremiah

btw: i'd go for the BK rather than for the ELC

 

[ausreenactor]

That font size looks on the smaller size when compared to the roundel.

 

[Brettafett]

My first ELC RW 27752 I bought at the old ELC Devon premises, during a personal visit.
Alan, Gary's dad applied a roundel for me. He used a warm iron, with a wood block in the sleeve and warm-pressed the decal onto the shoulder. Worked perfectly.

 

[Edward]

The decals above offered through eBay that are vintage are waterslide decals. In my personal thread I post how it’s done… I’m driving to work right now so I can’t look it up but there was a trick to put one drop of dishwashing liquid in the water. and because they are old you have to leave them in the water about 5 to 10 minutes longer Than the instructions on the back of the decal sheet suggested . The preparation fluid can be had through the Japanese company that also offers reproduction waterslide decals and then there’s an overlay fluid to help protect it... OK is from mash… Here’s the stuff that helps prep and protect the waterslide decal although technically you don’t really need it but it does help And this company has both waterslide and heat transfer versions and they look great :

-

 

[Edward]

That font size looks on the smaller size when compared to the roundel.

I actually have a collection of a variety of styles of waterslide decals that are vintage. Many companies made them and the sizes of the fonts are all over the place. Even the fonts type are slightly different from company to company. The A, R and the O are usually the ones that stand out

 

[ausreenactor]

I have both of the MASH decals for a rainy day. I had assumed that the font on those was the standard. My Aero B-3 and A-2 had the larger font. All my BR stuff has been the same size and style as the MASH and Aero decals.

 

[Edward]

I have both of the MASH decals for a rainy day. I had assumed that the font on those was the standard. My Aero B-3 and A-2 had the larger font. All my BR stuff has been the same size and style as the MASH and Aero decals.

Design Standard specifications were made but I’m sure just like the A-2 jacket contract design the companies made deviations on logos as well. If you also look at the rubber stamp HAP Arnold emblem on the wool and various leather items they also had variations. The wings were detailed differently on them. Even cap badges among everything else worn by crew had differences depending on the maker

 

[Edward]

Someone once posted in another military collection site that the rubber stamp Hap logo had only two official specification sizes to mark clothing. I don’t recall sizes exactly but when I compared and measured my stamp on the shoulder and interior of my original 1942 flight suit it didn’t match his spec size. So there was at least a third size that was acceptable and used and I would surmise there was a lot of “close enough” sizes created for use. I think during that time specifications were suggested but not always followed to exact size.

 

[jeremiah]

Method I used differs from Edward.
I found my decals came off in 3 mins tops. Warm water and no dish soap.
I take the slide and put it right on the leather. I don’t use adhesive.
I then use a paper
Towel over it gently and press it a bit. I do get the sleeve as flat as possible on a firm surface for this.
Then I get a blow dryer and gently hover over the decal. This heats up the adhesive and allows it to really sink in which is where the grain starts showing through the decal.
After that I apply a few top coats of acrylic resolene. This seals it.