The other jacket I bought smelled of smoke and was small for a 44. This one is marked 46, and should fit me better. It looks like a two pocket 70s jacket made in USA. Any thoughts on this one? Thanks a million for all your help.
It certainly wasn't made pre-1970. After 1970, the "LeVI'S" tab, on jackets, has the lower case "e." It looks like an early 1970's jacket to me. At that point in time, in type III jacket looked exactly the same to me as it did in the late 1960s done to the label below the collar.
I may be wrong, but I think the label below the collar always stated "Made in the USA" for as long as they were made in the USA (Jackets made in Canada's collar label stated "Made in Canada"). And, what's your issue with the fact that this jackets label is marked "Made in the USA?" Where you are going with that?
Also, as time went by, those button holes were stitched with orange thread.
- Ian
The made in USA on back tag is that I have seen many that are 70s era that did not have that on the back tag. My wife has one she bought back in the 70s that does not have made in USA on the back tag. I have seen others that have it. From what I can find on other sites it seems this is a 70s era jacket. The orange thread is on many jackets from the 70s I have seen. From all I can find this looks like its a 70s era not a reissue post 80s.
So that is for later jackets, but on early 70s jackets was it still made in USA on the back tag? I know it was on late jackets that were still made in the USA but I am not sure if it was on early jackets. Thanks.I decided to look on ebay at some later type III Levi's jackets. Two things that I forgot are that the even later jackets had larger, almost square shaped, tags and that (at some point) the size (on both types/size tags) was no longer a number size but was small, medium, large, etc. In saying that, the same tags still note "Made in the USA." See three examples below:
- Ian
Earlier jackets have "Made in the USA" on the tag. I have a late 1960s type III Levi jacket (and I have owned several)...the same type as the last one you presented with the exception of the e's on the Levi's pocket tabs. It notes "Made in the USA" on the label. The jacket you showed earlier is a 1970s jacket (it's lower-case "e") and it says "Made in the USA."
From everything I have seen, Levi's always stated on those paper patch tags "Made in the USA" if this was the case whether it be jackets or jeans. The only exception that I am aware of are 1990's examples (on jeans) where that patch tag did not state "Made in the USA" and the inner jeans tag stated "Made in the USA." This may have also been the case for Levi's jackets made during the same time period. I'm speaking of men's jeans and jackets that Levi's manufactured. I cannot speak to Levi's women's apparel.
I do not think that you have a rare variant Levi's jacket. I truly believe that this is just a typical early 1970s Levi's type III jacket. I also believe that it's an early 1970's jacket (certainly 1970s) due to the fact that it's sized 44 and not Large. I've seen many jackets that were manufactured right after Levi's went to the lower case "e" and the last jacket you showed looks just like those. That was 1971.
- Ian
Great info. Thanks. I bought this one and am glad to have just a nice 70s example of a levis jacket.