SLEEVES, Headband Assemblies, 8-inches long ZA/CAN 0592
I am not at all certain if the Type 10 Cdn Headgear pre-existed the Wireless Set No. 52 and was merely adopted for use with it By Canadian Marconi, or was developed in conjunction with the evolution of the Wireless Set No. 9 Cdn and 52-Set, and spread out from there to other, contemporary wireless sets. RCA Canada, and Philco, certainly advertised their involvement with the ones issued with the 52-Set, but I do have other similar headgear at hand that are original, with No. 2 Brown paint on the microphone with just a yellow C-Broad Arrow on the back and no sign of RCA, or Philco, stamps anywhere. Having restored two of these headgear for the 52-Set Project, I was going to consider that phase completed, but a few oddities popped up with the Type 10 Headgear that I thought might best be dealt with here as they would cover all such headgear, regardless of the wireless sets with which they are used.
The first and simplest item is the black, leather Sleeve Assemblies that cover the adjustable, spring steel headbands of the Type 10, and other headgear. These sleeves are correctly mounted on the headband when the stitched seam is running along the bottom of the headband, with the smooth loop of leather over the top of the metal to avoid chafing the back of the Operator’s neck.
Most of the ones I have on hand look like neglected work boots these days, being pretty much scuffed up. I got curious about that this morning and decided to see what a bit of cleaning might accomplish.
The first photo shows the Sleeve after several minutes of cleaning with a tin of Kiwi Neutral Shoe Polish. This is the pale waxy looking colourless shoe polish. All the dirt and grime cleans off nicely, but it does not do much at all for the scuffs, other than soften them up a bit.
The second photo shows the same Sleeve after good rub in of Kiwi Black Shoe Polish, a couple of minutes of waiting and then a good buffing with a shoe brush. The history of wear can still be seen and appreciated up close, but the overall improvement to the look and texture of the leather cannot be denied. I think I will be cleaning up all my other ones in a similar manner now.
David
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