Help with an ACE grouping

[jambobbyb]

Hi guys i am looking for an aircrew europe grouping and am hoping some of you gentlemen would be kind enough to lend a hand. I havent until recently collected British items and am a lacking even the most basic knowledge on British awards so please be gentle with me.
I am looking for a boxed group or bar with the document for the ACE . I have been watching the E-stand for years and dont think i have seen one come up for sale so where could i purchase one from as a forum for german awards possibly isnt the place I have tried the E-bay route and the pictures are 95% of the time too fuzzy to make a good judgement on so could anyone suggest a good dealer who i could entrust to purchase one from or a dealer who might have one currently for sale.
Last but not least how much should i be looking at paying for this sort of setup?
Many thans for any assistance.
Cheers
James

[yellow]

Does the group have to be attributable?

Do want to go the distance and buy a log book with the group?

For this I would suggest you buy from a well recognised dealer. The Aicrew Star has so many fakes and if you buy from a well known dealer at least you know you can return it.

The man I am going to personally recommend, simply because he has time to talk to you on the phone is Steve Sewell. He will find you such a group and you can be rest assured it will be genuine. There is of course Dixons and Liverpool Medals but these companies have since become less personal with their customers and Mr Sewell is prepared to spend some time with you.

I would think you would have to pay near £450 + for such a group with a log book. I wouldnt buy a group with out a log book unless it had an offically name impressed medal with it. As a single medal the Aicrew is a £200 medal.

The last log book group I bought 'with out' the Aicrew (since the man was not entitled) to a Flight engineer cost me a little over £300 and flew on 14 missions.

If you do want some good photos of a genuine star to print off and carry around with you just tell me. You can find many photos on the internet of originals but not many that will fill a page, I can supply such photos.

Just one last tip, do not buy a modern issue Star. Although they are genuine medals they are worth less because they are less desirable to collectors. These are made from cherry red looking cooper and have a much larger ring.

[jambobbyb]

Hi Yellow many thanks for your speedy reply, i would prefer an attributed group and if possible i would like the log book i dont mind pying the extra cost but really do have problems identifying the good from the bad.
Do you have any contact details for Steve Sewell? i have dealt with liverpool medals before with very good results and am aware of Dixons but as a non British collector its hard to work out the good guys from the bad.
If you wouldnt mind supplying me with pictures of a good ACE that would be superb.
Many thanks
James

[yellow]

You can send him an email here:

http://www.sewellmedals.co.uk/contact.php

OR call him

Tel/Fax: 01449 782185
Mobile: 07739 071822

The 300 pounds group I mentioned was bought from Steve.

Ive got a job interview in an hour so I cannot post pics just yet. I will put them up them up when i get back.

[jambobbyb]

Hi Steve 1st things 1st good luck with the job interview
I will give him a ring and make sure i let him know you recomended him to me. If you could supply some images when you have a few mins free that would be superb.
Kind regards
James

[yellow]

Here are some links you should look at:

http://www.northeastmedals.co.uk/bri...arcopyfake.htm

http://www.lancs.ac.uk/staff/hartleyi/acediscussion.htm

Some stupidily large sized photos of my original:

Oh and tomorrow there is going to be a test on this.........I`m not kidding.more pics to come.

[jambobbyb]

I had best do some serious reading if there is going to be a test I have come across the fake from the article a freind of mine who collects stars showed me his repro as he sadly doesnt own the real deal, that top loop looks terrible both in pictures and in hand. Many thanks for the images that bar is an utter gem
But more importantly how did the job interview go?
Cheers
James

[yellow]

These stars are mass produced and arent always perfect. If you look closely at my example from the front paying special attention to the loop on the medal that attaches the ring, you can see where the left side has been ground by the manufacturer to remove a bur created by the drill to produce the hole.

[jambobbyb]

Yep i can see it, Its much easier when you have a good example to compare and good pictures of the item you are trying to decifer the problem really comes when 1 the sellers pictures are terrible and 2 when you have to make a decision while away from pictures.

[yellow]

Hi James,

Its time to test your new found knowledge........

Someone offered me this one for £100 pounds, nice silk period ribbon on this one? Do you think it is genuine?

The seller apologises that the picture is perhaps a little pale.

[jambobbyb]

Right im doing this from memory (and my crib sheet which i have knocked up for inside my wallet) instead of just digging pictures out as this is when i will be caught out, I believe it to be a copy. The bobble count on the middle of the crown is 5 i believe it should only be 4 these are also smaller than what i believe an original should look like, the detail to the scroll behind "air crew Europe" is very very weak and the V and W do not line up how i would expect them to on an original. I also dont see the "squash" for the top loop.
do i win a lollypop or am i dead wrong

[yellow]

You did good James! This is one of the better repros out there and 100 pounds would of been a complete rip-off. This is a 8 pound repro.

Something extra:

- The points of the star are more rounded that they should be.
- The ring is made from the wrong material. It is a gold coloured brass.

Your dead right about the number of jewels in the centre of the crown remember from bottom to top the pattern starts with half a jewel and NOT a full jewel. You can see half a jewel popping its head out on my original pic.

I think your ready to go out and buy one, good luck.

Steve.

[jambobbyb]

Hi Steve, now you have pointed out the ring and the rounded off corners i cant believe i missed them I am a big fan of a crib sheet containing small pictures of the areas of interest and your own description i have done it for many of the items i am looking for and when one pops up all you have to do is fold out the crib and take a peek. I will now step out and see if i can find a good example but just to be on the safe side i will post her up for your inspection.
Many thanks for all your help on this one Steve recognising one of these is all in the details before this i didnt know what to look for now i do. Its a damn good thread for the starter ACE colector and you have helped me out heaps.
Kind regards
James

[Old Smelly]

Excellent work, and once again goes to show how well the forum can work. I've always been tempted to get a good ACE group but have been put off by the number of copies, thanks
Lee