Rehabilitation for Camp Patches

Foreward - Fluorescent Whitening Agents

I have studied optical brighteners as a result of reading the article below. Bob Sherman's conclusions did not appear to take into account the UV fluorescence findings of Chris Spain at crewpatches.com, and could possibly affect the collector value of vintage patches. This would correlate strongly with the collector coin market, where cleaned coins bring significantly lower prices than uncleaned counterparts. So I will first discuss Optical Brighteners (OBAs), referred to from now on as Fluorescent Whitening Agents (FWAs).

Fluorescent Whitening Agents (FWAs)

and can be added to your laundry to make your whites sparkle. They work by using UV fluorescence, it’s the same type of technology that gives highlighters that glowing color. The brighteners absorb yellow light and then emit blue light when exposed to near-ultraviolet radiation (UVA or long-wave UV light). This doesn’t just make fabric look whiter but actually brighter!

Classified as a chemical contaminant, FWA accumulation on fibers due to sequential washings can also influence the optical characteristics of the fiber and fiber dyes. Although the fibers are not visually distinguishable after sequential washings, the exposure of textile fibers to laundering cycles can change the fluorescent properties of the fiber and dye.

Top-selling commercially available detergents (such as All, Cheer, Tide liquid, Tide powder, Wisk, and Purex) contain the FWA disodium diaminostilbene disulfonate, while varieties of OxiClean that include optical brighteners use the FWA Tinopal CBS. The researchers at Florida State University found that FWAs most significantly affect cotton and nylon fabrics, but not acrylic fabrics. The twill background fabric and the embroidery thread used to manufacture older patches were nearly always made of cotton. Therefore I definitely advise that if a garment with patches sewn on them is washed (or patches are washed alone as described below), do not use any detergents that contain whitening agents.

Bleaches

Detergents like Clorox contain chlorine bleach (sodium hypochlorite) which is great for whitening natural fibers like cotton, but it doesn’t mix well with petroleum-derived synthetic fibers like polyester and nylon. It actually breaks the fibers down and makes them turn yellow faster. I would not use them on patches, because they can easily discolor the original dyes in the thread fibers.

Oxygen bleach (sodium percarbonate) is basically a mixture of baking soda and hydrogen peroxide. OxiClean is a highly marketed brand of oxygen cleaner which, in its original formula, does not contain any FWAs. Because there are no harsh or caustic chemical ingredients in OxiClean, and because it breaks down into oxygen and water, it is considered a very environmentally friendly product. However, since the pH of the water is raised significantly with the potential for fiber damage, it is important to use oxygen cleaners correctly. Remember that oxygen cleaners work on organic stains, but have little effect on grease or petrochemical stains.

With that introduction, and without having conducted any scientific tests myself, it might be safe to use OxiClean as described below to restore the appearance of older twill-type patches. However, I maintain the position that keeping the original patina intact is the safest bet for maintaining the value your collection and for its posterity. If a patch has significant discoloration or stains that prevent a vintage patch from being enjoyed by its owner, then a gentle application of cold water would be the first remedy, followed by other gentle methods of cleaning delicate garments until the least intrusive method obtains the most minimally satisfactory result. Preservation should be the first priority over aesthetic appearance.

Rehabilitating Camp Patches, by Bob Sherman

The term “box-soil” has been used in our hobby for many years. It refers to the dinginess and discoloration that sometimes occurs to older twill-type patches, usu-ally with white or light-colored backgrounds. Older camp and other types of patches are susceptible to this condition, whether or not they ever saw the inside of a box. I am sure it is primarily caused by excessive handling, exposure to contaminants in the air, age and, I suppose, soiled boxes.

I have an effective treatment for this condition that I would like to share with my loyal readers. A while ago, I saw a box of OxiClean stain-removing powder on my wife’s laundry shelf. I did an experiment with an old box-soiled camporee patch as I did not know what would happen and I did not want to risk ruining a valuable patch. To make a long story short, the patch came out almost like new so I tried it with a few more and it worked like magic.

My regimen is to use a designated plastic container (the stuff can be toxic to ingest so I recommend not using a container that will be used for food in the future), half-fill it with hot water from the tap, add a half scoop of OxiClean to the water – stir it up with a plastic utensil (also not to be reused for food), add the soiled patches, watch it foam up, stir occasionally with the plastic utensil (my wife calls the contents of this plastic container “patch stew”) and after an hour, discard the dirty water, rinse patches in cold water a few times, lay the patches on a flat hard surface, cover with a clean white towel and put weights on top to press them flat (I found that my wife’s math textbooks worked very well).

When the patches are dry, they are almost like new. Here are a few before and after examples from my most recent batch of patch stew. I caution everyone to treat OxiClean carefully and respectfully – I wear eye protection and rubber gloves when I work with it as it could be irritating to the eyes or skin. To date, I have not tried it on felt patches or camp patches with metallic thread as they caution against using it on some materials. As a disclaimer, I have no financial interest in OxiClean.

BEFORE AND AFTER REHABILITATION