Head Band Neck Band Switcheroo

Big Red Says:

Listen up Buttercup! Here's the rest of the story

So, TAKE FIVE!

Interesting fact about the Riddell Rayon Neck Band,

In the early 1990s, stashes of New Old Stock (NOS) Riddell Rayon Snap in Head Bands, still tied together in the original bundles, began to pop up for sale. Many of these were badly damaged from storage and did not have much collector value beyond the novelty of having remained bundled.

However, an enterprising militaria seller realized that by borrowing his wife's pinking shears they could cut away the rotted portions of the Head Bands and sell the remaining sections as Neck Bands.

Here are a few tips for the new collector to look for.

If you have a liner in hand you can feel the weight of the Head Band fabric between your thumb and forefinger then compare the feel to that of the Neck Band. Neck Bands were made from a much lighter weave, which is quickly discernible from Head Bands.

These cut down Head Bands never have a size stamp on them but may at times display the arbitrary maker marks found on the Head Bands they were cut from. Surviving examples indicate that these marks never existed on actual production Neck Band.

Many of these bands retain the memory of how they were folded and tied together in their bundle.

These bands were sold both individually and snapped into liners missing this part however, because they were cut from NOS they contrast significantly against the aged and dirty webbing of the Neck Band Support.

Big Red Says!

FIVE'S OVER  -  MOVE OUT!