I belong to multiple associations, and most of them require a distinctive patch. I have always bought shirts for each association so I would not have to worry about swapping the patches, but I am cutting back on my schedule and can no longer justify the expense of seperate shirts, so I am looking for a way to swap patches.

I found Aleen's Tack-It Over & Over in the Honig's catalog. Have any of you tried this product? Does it work as advertised? Does it harm the garment? Appearances are very important in my games. Does this hold the patch securely and look professional? One of my associations uses no patch. Will I be able to remove the patch entirely and not still see the remnant of the Tack-It? How about on jackets and plate coats?

They also advertised velcro strips. I have no doubt velcro will work in holding the patches in place, but how does it look?

Does anyone have another idea for swapping patches?

I have never used the Tack-It.
I have used the Velcro strips. They work great when you are wearing the patch you need. The problem is when you have no patch on the shirt, the Velcro looks like crap. If there is no patch attached to the velcro, it picks up lint, etc. If you can come up with something to put over the velcro when you are not required to wear a patch ( like a US flag ), the velcro may work. I have even tried to put just a blue patch over the Velcro ( or whatever color matches the shirt you are wearing ), but it is still clearly visible.
Unfotunately, I have found no effective way of swapping patches.

I currently use the Tack-It product that Honig's sells. It does not work to bad, you just need to make sure to follow the instructions on the bottle to a "T."

The biggest thing is not putting the patch on a garment until the Tack-It dries completely. If you due, when you remove the patch, you will leave a spot where the patch was applied.

Also, when storing the patches....store them stuck together as it will help each patch hold its tackiness and you will not have to keep reapplying the Tack-It glue.

Hope this helps.

Two sided carpet tape works fine with no residue. You have to re-apply the tape to the patch after a couple of uses. I use wax paper to wrap around the patch between uses then store in a Ziplock bag.

I have also used two-sided carpet tape. If you do, use the fiberglass tape, NOT the plastic. Leaves no residue on the shirt, and holds the patch for the game. Easy to replace. I stick unused patches on the Rubbermaid container I keep my bubblegum in.

Velcro, I use velcro here in Indiana because the state patch changes every year. Take the smallest patch and make the biggest piece ov velcro square that will fit under all your patches and then rest will take care of itself.

I have used the Tack-it and it works fine. As mentioned you have to follow the instructions exactly and don't leave it on the shirt after the game. If you do it will leave a mark which will come out but if it's a day to wear no patch you may not have time to make the fix.

w_sohl,

What is their reasoning behind changing them every year? Seems like a big pain to all the officials. Luckly, here in IL, they just have one patch!

I would agree that changing state patches every year seems silly. We have had the same patch for as long as I've been doing HS, although it is the ugliest patch I have ever seen. That is one reason I know that Tack-it works because none in our assoc wear them until we go to states. I keep extra at the house and set them up just for that purpose.

They change the color to match the previous years state football champs HS colors, not sure how they pick the class they go with, and they change the year so that they can see that you are licensed for that particular school year. I officiated in Illinois before I got here and I like Illinois way of doing it better.

Me too, one patch for all sports not changed every year. It's the way to go! Worked with a couple guys from Terre Haute this year, good friends of mine, and it was funny watching them go through their gear bag trying to find the right shirt. I'll bet they had 6 shirts each.

And in Wisconsin, we have NONE.

Yeah that would be nice too I guess. But, I like the idea of a patch, looks more 'official'. :)

You mean like the college officials that wear none, except in the NCAA tourney? I have one basketball shirt with an Illinois patch for the dozen or so games I wear in the state. Would be nice if I could just wear the same shirts without the "patch issue."

No I'm not saying that because if you are working a NCAA game you've got credibility. As to working a high school game, no patch, where'd they get this guy type of thing.