ELC B3 .50cal ... what a shade !

[LBA]

Hello guys,

here I'm again still on the quest of my first ELC B3 ! Thanks to lot of you I've already solved some questions I had. But now I've another, hopefully the last one ! I'm too much curious ...

I came across a nice B3 .50cal and was impressed by the overall shade of the facings. I browse ELC website and found within the description that being a transitional model "the panel configuration is that of the pre-war design, while the outer colour and finish is a solid Seal Brown" (cit.).

Well, could it be that some differences occur sometimes ? In fact the shade of the facings of that Jacket was something in the middle between Russet and solid Seal Brown actually.

I had similar impression looking at the photos of B3 .50cal found on the web or in the forum also, some have facings that are much more close to Seal brown shade some other instead have facings that tend to the Russet shade.

Am I right or according to you, could it depend for example on the intensity of the Time Worn process, or on the different effects it has on facings with respect to the rest of the jacket, or maybe on the different batches of leather used from time to time to make the facings ?

Thanks again for your support !

 

[Dav]

Different batches of leather are bound to be slightly different but I think lighting plays a big role in how the colour comes across as well, I've looked all over the web but can't find a photo that looks remotely like the colour on the Eastman page.

 

[Corky]

The color of the jacket you see on your monitor is probably due to the way your monitor's color, brightness, and luminosity is adjusted. Monitors are notoriously imprecise and they easily drift out of adjustment.

Never expect an item selected on a website to show up in the precise shade you see.

At Disney feature animation, they have a guy come around and fine-tune each artist's monitor abut once a week.

 

[HPA Rep]

Hello guys,

here I'm again still on the quest of my first ELC B3 ! Thanks to lot of you I've already solved some questions I had. But now I've another, hopefully the last one ! I'm too much curious ...

I came across a nice B3 .50cal and was impressed by the overall shade of the facings. I browse ELC website and found within the description that being a transitional model "the panel configuration is that of the pre-war design, while the outer colour and finish is a solid Seal Brown" (cit.).

Well, could it be that some differences occur sometimes ? In fact the shade of the facings of that Jacket was something in the middle between Russet and solid Seal Brown actually.

I had similar impression looking at the photos of B3 .50cal found on the web or in the forum also, some have facings that are much more close to Seal brown shade some other instead have facings that tend to the Russet shade.

Am I right or according to you, could it depend for example on the intensity of the Time Worn process, or on the different effects it has on facings with respect to the rest of the jacket, or maybe on the different batches of leather used from time to time to make the facings ?

Thanks again for your support !

Dear LBA:

Differences in leather consignments (and leather types) will play the largest part in explaining shade differences for any jacket type, followed by, and not in any intended order, lighting environments, shutter speeds, and monitor settings. TimeWear will, actually, play a rather minimal role in this since it is now a very subtle process.

Having handled and sold thousands of ELC jackets since 1987, finding any with the finished-side sheepskin and the leather trim to be a near-perfect color match just has never happened, nor did it transpire contrary to this in the vintage items.

The transitional B-3's from late 1941- early 1942, of which the .50 Cal. reflects, can vary widely, as can those made in the wartime configuration in the first half of 1942. And, of course, the hand-dyed redskin items can be all over the place in color: caramel, oxblood, reddish, russet, to a dark that's almost purple, naming just a few of the common shades to be found on any one garment or across many of these rare pieces of flying clothing.

You will also find mixing of trim leather types, such as goatskin, cowhide, and horsehide sometimes on the same garment. The many permutations can make the attendant study of these garments quite interesting. But of the possibilities of transitional/early B-3's available from ELC, my fave is the Perry Mixed-Batch 17808, which we have in stock.

Good luck in your quest!