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Reproductions
by Robert Woerpel

This article comes about as a consequence of my earlier piece on OD bordered patches that appeared in the Summer (July/August) issue of The Trading Post. I stated in that article that well made reproductions of some of the OD bordered patches are being manufactured on the east coast. To my surprise, 14 of the 17 letters I have received to date concerning this article have registered anxiety concerning the difficulties involved in identifying contemporary reproductions of the old designs. All 14 correspondents sought more information on "how, when, where, why" and by whom reproductions of OD bordered patches are manufactured. I hope to not only alert collectors to the dangers of reproductions, but also to initiate the process of developing a "data bank" of information on known reproductions. After all, collectors need to know what to look for in discerning the telltale signs of reproductions. Let me point out that I am not an expert on reproductions. I am a long time member of ASMIC that has been fooled a few times by "repros." I hope, however, that this and similar articles in the future will arouse sufficient interest for the society to make the documentation of reproductions a permanent feature of The Trading Post. I also wish to state that it is not my intention to "point an accusatory finger" at manufacturers or retailers who deal in reproductions. In fact, reproductions, when identified as such, often make good "fillers" in collections or displays. For many collectors, "they will do until the real thing comes along." I am also aware that some patches are so rare or hard to find, that one's best hope of possessing examples of them is through the purchase of facsimiles or reproductions. Now, let me point out a few things that may prove helpful in spotting reproductions. For example, if you were looking for a 1st Special Service Force (1st SSF) patch, it would help to know when this unit was activated and for how long it existed. Knowing that the 1st SSF was active from 1942 to 1945 tells the collectors that the patch should be fully embroidered with cotton thread and bobbin to a khaki cotton twill backing. The thread you actually check is the bobbin thread. The bobbin thread is what holds the colored thread to the backing material.

This is only partial text from the original article. The original article, which contains much more detailed information than here, and additional graphics, is contained in the Jul-Sept 2001 issue of The Trading Post.