My First Erel (Luftwaffe Officers)

[Karl S.]

Hello,
This arrived yesterday from fellow member Eugenio from Spain. It was a big surprise to me as it only took 12 days to get to the U.S. Thanks Eugenio! It's somewhat worn but being it's my first EREL I'm happy with it. The thing that impresses me is the workmanship. The visor and sweatband are attached very secure. I'd like to find a replacement eagle, if anyone can give me some advice on sowing it on I'd appreciate it...thanks,
Karl

[Karl S.]

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The original owner added some newspaper for support.

[NTZ]

Karl, they used what is called pick stitching. It is pretty easy to do. Look at a bunch of photos so you know what it should look like. Practice on something and give it a try. I would try and find period thread. It is pretty easy to find just look on epay.

Nice cap

[Lignemaginot]

Nice. Many, if not most, EREL Luft officer's caps had a date stamped on the underside of the sweatband. If you can find the date on yours, you can get an idea of whether to put a first or second model eagle on the cap. If you can't find a date, go with a first model, because the edging on the visor would indicate that it's a relatively early cap.

[Karl S.]

Thanks for the advice guys. I couldn't find a date, I do have some period thread that I got from Ben VK. Thanks again Ben . All I need now is a matching eagle.