reg on which way is up on a ribbon

[The Happy Sergeant]

Okay so i attended a C.A.C. meeting recently and a really obscure reg was brought to my attention that there is an upside down to your ribbon. supposedly there is a certain weave to most ribbons so that when you shine light on it the light creates a V pattern on the ribbon. if the V is right side up,your all fine and dandy, and vice versa. Anyone know where on earth this reg originated or if there is even a lick pf truth behind what i was told?

[a2capt]

Did they show you the regulation?

[The Happy Sergeant]

NO but my primary swears its true, but i've looked every which way and can't find it

[Fubar]

NO but my primary swears its true, but i've looked every which way and can't find it

I commend you for verifying the facts given to you by others. As you've discovered, this is no CAP regulation that governs which way the weave should go when wearing a ribbon.

By cutting off this misinformation, you've saved us the headache of you telling someone who then tells someone and then before you know it, everyone swears it's in the regulations.

[a2capt]

It's not true unless they can show it to you.
they're all online.
It's not very hard.

I can't imagine why it would not be in CAPM 39-1.

It's very simple. Most don't matter which way is "up", and the ones that do, you've got plenty of places to look at an example, such as one of the many ribbon rack builder applications, the old bookstore and CAPMart catalogs, and I might even trust the Big V's web site graphics.

Check to see if you've got two legs, I think someones pulling one.

[Huey Driver]

It's not possible to wear them upside down, as they're symmetrical in every manner (until you put devices on).

The little wave/grooves that seem to point one way or another... Just ignore them, they don't affect how you wear your ribbons.

Like Fubar said, good job checking things for yourself. I don't know if your CAC is being serious or not. I've seen people use this as a gag to newer cadets (just like the 'ole "Prop Wash" prank), so they could be trolling you. But if not, you now can properly inform them!

[MSG Mac]

The only CAP ribbons that this is relevant to is the Gill Robb Wilson Award and the Grover Loening Award which are asymmetric in their color schemes. In addition if the GRW is worn upside down it becomes the obsolete National Commanders Citation.

[a2capt]

As well as the Membership Award and AFA Ribbons. Though the AFA is is kind of obvious.

The WWII era ones with icons on them, too.

[lordmonar]

There is an UP and Down to ribbons.....as in the way that they are manufactured........but there is NO regulation that says they all have to be facing the same way.

[Майор Хаткевич]

I have seen ribbons that had the "V" (and some you can't see it on), but due to the nature of the ribbon it would have been upside down if worn as suggested. There's no reg, but when I put a rack together, I make sure all of mine match as much as possible.

[Garibaldi]

IMHO, anyone THAT pedantic that would check to see what the proper orientation of a ribbon is, has lost sight of what he or she is doing. From 3 feet away, you can't tell. In low light conditions, you can't tell. Why bother? Even though I am a self-proclaimed uniform naz...er, nag, I wouldn't consider checking that as part of any inspection or routing. And I am a guy who can tell if your CAP cutouts and grade insignia is off by more than 1/8" from ten feet.

[AlphaSigOU]

IMHO, anyone THAT pedantic that would check to see what the proper orientation of a ribbon is, has lost sight of what he or she is doing. From 3 feet away, you can't tell. In low light conditions, you can't tell. Why bother? Even though I am a self-proclaimed uniform naz...er, nag, I wouldn't consider checking that as part of any inspection or routing. And I am a guy who can tell if your CAP cutouts and grade insignia is off by more than 1/8" from ten feet.

Proof positive of DeKalb County Cadet Squadron training... PDK is the best!

[Flying Pig]

We did this as cadets back in the day also 87-93.   Not a reg....just some fun things cadets impose on themselves after they have spit shined the leather off their shoes and polished the chrome off of their belt buckles. 

[Hawk200]

NO but my primary swears its true, but i've looked every which way and can't find it

Anyone that "swears it's true" should be able to prove it. I've noticed when people are most vehement about insisting it's true, but can't show you are full of you know what. They also seem to be the ones that accept any myth as reality without even thinking about it. I'll skip commentary on the usual suspects in those cases.

The person that tells you it's true, and then shows you isn't going to be so insistent. They'll expect you to comply, and be done with it. In those cases, issues arise when they show someone the pub, and the person they prove it to doesn't comply.

[abdsp51]

Hence why I always ask someone where it is written..  Trust but verify and you will save yourself some headaches.

[Flying Pig]

When I was a cadet, we even checked to see how your laces were done in your shoes.  Bridge at the bottom, then right over left.  Yeah..... cadets have a lot of time to make up stuff. However, when I was in boot camp, we did the same thing.  So who knows.   

For our uniforms for NCC, we actually removed all the buttons from our shirts and re-sewed them to they were all stitched exactly alike.  Does it matter?  Ehhhhh, no, but we took 1st Place 3 years in a row for inspection! :clap:

[Storm Chaser]

There is no such regulation, just urban legend.

[Garibaldi]

IMHO, anyone THAT pedantic that would check to see what the proper orientation of a ribbon is, has lost sight of what he or she is doing. From 3 feet away, you can't tell. In low light conditions, you can't tell. Why bother? Even though I am a self-proclaimed uniform naz...er, nag, I wouldn't consider checking that as part of any inspection or routing. And I am a guy who can tell if your CAP cutouts and grade insignia is off by more than 1/8" from ten feet.

Proof positive of DeKalb County Cadet Squadron training... PDK is the best!

Dang right. All that training WAS good for something! Now, if I could figure out how to parlay running all over the North Georgia mountains into some kind of good paying career...

[Brad]

Leadership can be worn upside down too. I've seen it upside down plenty of times, drives me nuts as it's one of the most noticible ones. Purple goes inboard, towards the center of your body, to borrow the Navy term. Rule of thumb with military ribbons (or their derivatives -- JROTC, ROTC, CAP, etc.) USUALLY is the darker color goes inboard on asymmetrical ribbons. Note this isn't always the case, such as with the Gill Robb Wilson and the Grover Loening.

tldr; make it look like the picture.

And yes, like the others said, good on you for checking before circulating another NCSA Tall Tale around CAP. I'm still trying to figure out where the one about saluting a bare flagpole came from!