Looking For US Made United States Flags

[hellosailor]

Jim-
Remember that a USN officer is in theory "an officer and a gentleman" and if they are discourteous to you and do not return an ensign dip? You can always send a note to the Secretary of the Navy, asking to have a reprimand put in the file of whoever was in charge of that vessel at the time. (G)

[onavegador]

Yes, my vote is also for Anin flags. I'm not american but was very satisfied of the durability of my Anin made Vanuatu flags.

[earlgray]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

Hi, Everybody,

We have just taken delivery of what was sold as 3 US flags, and they were made in China. The proportions are not the same as the US flags we've had before, and the fabric turns out to be fragile (lasts about 1.5 months in our use, compared with 12 months).

Therefore, I would like to find some US source for US made flags, and I would like to know how you fly yours.

Our use is that since it is lit at night, we leave ours up 24/7, along with our Australian courtesy flag, which is up on a similar schedule, also Chinese made, by the way, but lasts roughly 6 months.

I am looking for quality and durability here, and I guess I'll have to pay for it, too, but I am also very tired of 3 flags every 3 months or so. By the way, the fabric on the Chinese flags stays sort of crisp, but it breaks along the stitching lines. They are sewn, not printed, and the fabric breaks long before fading occurs. Most of the damage starts at the upper outboard corner, and works its way down the stripes. I had tried reinforcing the stitch seams with ptfe thread, and while it supports the fabric seam, the fabric still blows out between the seams.

Rant over. Thanks very much for your suggestions.

Ann

Does not matter country of orign.US, Australia, UK, Germany or Martians. I will give you address in Croatia that will made you flag better than you will ever find in US. flag will be hand-sewn by seamstresses and made from wool or silk and stars would be embroidered and they will even ship it to you to Australia.
So how much you are eager to pay for it.

[JPA Cate]

That's a generous offer, earlgray, but I think I'll keep it to an American maker, in any event.

Thank you for responding with an "outside the box" response, and, indeed, for any response.

I think that with the help already received here, I have the situation under control.

Ann

[SailRedemption]

I got a bulldog cotton 3x5' American flag from Americanflags.com and it's very nice to hold and fly. I believe it is made in the US as well. I'll have to get my hands on an Annin flag to see if it is same/better quality. The cotton stitches and embroidered stars are very nice on our flag and the colors are rich and deep. It is probably not as durable as the polyester flags but we don't leave this one flying all the time.


https://www.americanflags.com/3x5cottonflag.html

[El Pinguino]

I am more than a little amazed at the poor lifespan of some people's flags....

I'm on my 3rd Red Ensign in 24 years.... they go up when I join the ship and stay up until I leave ... say 6 months of the year.... except when I am on a long sea passage or if serious wind is in prospect and I am in danger of losing the flagstaff.

Current one is 8 years old ... was a gift... bought in UK as were the previous two..... no nothing known of its origin apart from that. Previous one ( in the pic) was faded and offended the cook.....

Courtesy ensign stays up year round ( that's a new one in the pic ) in all weather... bought locally... usually good for 2 years..

They change the one on Cerro Bandera once a year..

[ArmyDaveNY]

Originally Posted by Tayana42

Jim, we fly our US flag on a flag halyard from the starboard spreader. When we were about even with the Boxer’s bridge we lowered our flag about 1/4 of the height of the spreader and then without delay raised it again. We did this twice to be sure they had a chance to see us. I’m not at all sure we followed proper etiquette but they responded nicely.

I did a quick look and came up with these two items. The first quote is on a U.S. Coast Guard forum:
"This time honored tradition is a way for ships to salute each other at sea. The National Ensign of one ship is dipped to approximately half-staff and held until the other ship dips then two-blocks the Ensign. The initiating ship then follows the two-blocking of the Ensign to complete the salute. During this process all personnel topside man the rail to the passing side and salute the passing vessel until the flag is again two-blocked (carry on)."
In case anyone is unfamiliar with the phrase Two-block, it means to raise to the top of the mast.

The second quote is from Wikipedia:
The position of honour on a ship is the quarterdeck at the stern of the ship, and thus ensigns are traditionally flown either from an ensign staff at the ship's stern, or from a gaff rigged over the stern.
The usual rule[citation needed] that no flag should be flown higher than the national flag does not apply on board a ship: a flag flown at the stern is always in a superior position to a flag flown elsewhere on the ship, even if the latter is higher up.
The priority of hoisting locations depends on the rig of the vessel. With sloops, ketches and schooners the starboard yardarm or spreader of the highest or main mast is the second most honoured position. (That is, after the ensign at the stern.) Next after the starboard spreader is the port spreader. House flags (those defining the owner) are usually flown from the mainmast truck. When a club burgee is flown, it will normally be hoisted to the truck of the most forward mast. On a sloop, then, not having a foremast, the house flag could be moved to the port spreader if the starboard spreader was in use, and a burgee was being flown. On a ketch, the house flag would be moved to the mizzen.
When in port, the ensign should always be flown from the staff at the stern. This is traditional, because in former times the gaff was then lowered along with the mizzen sail. The only ensign ever flown from the starboard spreader or yardarm is that of a nation being visited. This is known as a courtesy hoisting of a courtesy Flag.
At sea, it used to be that the ensign was flown from the mizzen gaff. When Bermudian sails came into general use, some skippers started to fly the ensign from two-thirds the way up the main-sail leech. Many consider this an affectation with the past. Others have taken to flying the ensign from a backstay. These are not good locations because the flag does not fly out well when hoisted raked forward.
The Canadian Heritage web page states:
“ whenever possible, the proper place for a vessel to display the national colours is at the stern, except that when at sea, the flag may be flown from a gaff; when in harbour the flag should be hoisted at 0800 hours and lowered at sunset. ” Another recent custom has been to fly a burgee and/or a cruising or power squadron flag from the starboard spreader. This custom has arisen because many sailboats today place a racing flag or wind indicator at the masthead.
Motor boats without masts should always fly the ensign from an ensign staff at the stern. Conventionally, courtesy flags are flown from the jackstaff at the bow. This seems to some landsmen as being a reversal of priorities. However, a boat is steered by the stern and this gives it pride of place.
Nautical etiquette requires that merchant vessels dip their ensigns in salute to passing warships, which acknowledge the salute by dipping their ensigns in return. Contrary to popular belief the United States Navy does dip the Stars and Stripes in acknowledgement of salutes rendered to it. Merchant vessels traditionally fly the ensign of the nation in whose territorial waters they are sailing at the starboard yard-arm. This is known as a courtesy flag, as for yachts.
The flying of two ensigns of two different countries, one above the other, on the same staff is a sign that the vessel concerned has been captured or has surrendered during wartime. The ensign flying in the inferior, or lower, position is that of the country the ship has been captured from: conversely, the ensign flying in the superior, or upper position, is that of the country that has captured the ship.


Interesting stuff. Thanks to all who brought this up. I was aware of some but not all of this and I always appreciate a chance to learn. Thanks again.

[bluez06girl]

This may be a stupid question, but I am a newbie

What is the correct size of flags to have on board and is there a different size for when you are underway?

us flag?

flag of country you are visiting?

Thank you much for the information

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by bluez06girl

This may be a stupid question, but I am a newbie

What is the correct size of flags to have on board and is there a different size for when you are underway?

us flag?

flag of country you are visiting?

Thank you much for the information

Not stupid. It is said that the national ensign should be 1 inch on the hoist for each foot of boat length. That turns out to be rather big on a 43' boat, so we went for 3x5 (36in hoist). Same size underway or in port. We get ours from West Marine.

Courtesy flags usually are much smaller, but buy (or make) a big enough one not to insult the locals. And for special occasions (like Aussie flag day) buy a huge flag, really huge. You can usually get a printed ones in a fabric store and put leading edge on it.

[Clamdigger]

Originally Posted by Hartleyg

I've found that the "Tough-Tex" American flags by Annin (US made) have done the best for us. They're also called "High wind" flags in some flag shops. They are sewn (not printed) of polyester of a fairly coarse weave, not nylon, and don't seem to fade. However, if we're in or around big cities or airports, we find it needs to be washed every so often. I bought our last couple from Amazon Prime.

Like you, our flag is up 24/7 while we're aboard - and it gets a beating sometimes! The "Tough-Tex" flags have generally lasted us more than a year of continuous use - and they have never failed catastrophically - eventually the leech becomes frayed - we've successfully repaired them by shortening and re-sewing, but that just postpones the inevitable .

Hartley
S/V Atsa

I agree and have only purchased flags from USA maker ANNIN FLAG since the 1960's! They make them to last and look great flying!

[Clamdigger]

Originally Posted by SailRedemption

I got a bulldog cotton 3x5' American flag from Americanflags.com and it's very nice to hold and fly. I believe it is made in the US as well. I'll have to get my hands on an Annin flag to see if it is same/better quality. The cotton stitches and embroidered stars are very nice on our flag and the colors are rich and deep. It is probably not as durable as the polyester flags but we don't leave this one flying all the time.


https://www.americanflags.com/3x5cottonflag.html

Once you buy a flag from ANNIN FLAG CO you will buy all the rest you need during your lifetime! I gift them when appropriate to those who appreciate a quality flag.

[onavegador]

on my 40 foot catamaran I flew:
national 3'x4'
courtesy 1'x1,5'
these sizes I estimated as in proportion to the size of the boat.
Frair winds
James