by BretMan » September 10th, 2008, 9:45 am
Very interesting....
One of the few gloves I picked up over the summer has the exact same stamping in the palm. But my glove isn't a Zett. The maker's name only appears on the cloth tag, which says mine is "A NESCO ALL STAR PRODUCT".
The documented history on the many Japanese import gloves that proliferated in the 50's, 60's and 70's is scant, but it looks like there must have been some connection between NESCO/ALL STAR- an import brand that pops-up often- and the more familiar glovemaker Zett.
Right below the "Greased Pocket" stamp, my glove says "Series Prototype" and "Test No. 9560", along with a model number of "N74". I have seen gloves like mine on eBay before and remeber one seller trying to pass one off as a "rare" prototype glove (which I don't think it really is, rather the stampings are just tyical glovemaker marketing hype).
Another weird thing about my glove- not once, not twice, but three times on my glove are stampings touting "FORMED FIBER INSERT". Talk about marketing hype! This is stamped on the palm side of the thumb and both the front and back of the pinky finger.
As imports go, this is a well-made glove, several notches better than some of the cheaply-made imports you usually see.
I'll try to post some photos later...