Good Harrington or Barracuda Jacket..

[KentH]

Hi.. anyone have any recommendations on a good quality Harrington jacket..?? I have seen ads for Orvis on Amazon and I believe Marcus has one.. The Orvis one is over $150 and the Marcus one runs around $70.. Anybody have any experience with them and how the sizes run.. Are many other good manufacturers out there..??

Thanks.. Kent

 

[Edward]

The Baracuta G9 is the original. Very nice, though far from cheap. I wouldn't personally pay full retail for one, though if ever I got a sale bargain at a price too low to refuse, I'd be all over it. I've had a few Harrington types over the years. A couple have been real bargains, around the twenty quid mark, though at the bottom end of the market, price-wise, it can be hit and miss as to whether you get a great one. I have found that for me spending a little more can get a great jacket for somewhere between GBP60 - around USD 73 currently, with the pound so historically low. I have a couple from Merc of London - https://www.merc.com/collections/mens-outerwear/products/harrington-jacket?variant=16219768946790 - these are more expensive than they were (I bought mine a dozen years ago when they were 60 rather than 100), but a fraction of the price of the Baracuta. I have my eye on a new one now, looking at Jump the Gun in Brighton - https://jumpthegun.co.uk/category/harringtons-and-jackets/raglan-sleeve-harringtons/ There's another brand that has been recommended to me, UK Originals. Their site is down currently - https://ukoriginals.co.uk/pages/contact-us - but if it comes back up I might try one of theirs. Like the other two, made in England (for whatever that may or may not be worth), usually priced around the same as the Jump The Gun, though when the website was last up they had a 50% off sale.

On thing to bear in mind.... More affordable versions of this style have a yoke on the back which is sewn down rather than vented as on the Baracuta original. Personally, I prefer them sewn down, but if you're a stickler for that detail, you're into the big money league - Baracuta, Grenfell, et al - in my experience.

 

[El Marro]

I have a couple Baracuta G9 Harringtons that I picked up on sale. If you hunt around online you can probably find somebody selling them for a discount, although it might not be your first choice when it comes to color.
Orvis is running a sale right now so their version is only $129.00
https://www.orvis.com/weatherbreaker-jacket/1Z5B.html
I would guess that their Harrington is sized with a bit of room considering that their target market includes a lot of men who are carrying a gut. I haven’t handled one in person but I have been very happy with the quality and construction of other Orvis products I own.

 

[Tom71]

I’ve got the G9 in navy. The price is what is is. If you stay in shape, you can wear it for a very long time. It hasn’t gotten out of fashion for the last 60 years, so it should stay that way for some time more.

 

[Pandemic]

Barracuda are good but over-priced. Their claim to being ‘the original’ is dubious.

Merc are good, but lack the raglan sleeves. Jump the Gun were a bit flimsy but I’ve heard they are better now. Lambretta are still a bit too thin and have a poor zip. Ben Sherman use a house tartan for the lining, but are well made.

If you are in North America, I would look at Spier and McKay.

 

[Edward]

I very briefly had a Ben Sherman about a decade ago. As memory serves, it was an ebay purchase; I was offered it after waiting a long time for a particular Merc thry couldn't get back in stock after a long time. Can't remember whether I sent it back for a refund or sold it on, tbh: too baggy and just looked somehow too "modern" for me. Nothing qualitatively wrong with it, though. Just looked a bit.... eh..... Liam Gallagher rather than Macqueen/Presley/Sinatra for what I was going for.

 

[Kfz]

Hi.. anyone have any recommendations on a good quality Harrington jacket..?? I have seen ads for Orvis on Amazon and I believe Marcus has one.. The Orvis one is over $150 and the Marcus one runs around $70.. Anybody have any experience with them and how the sizes run.. Are many other good manufacturers out there..??

Thanks.. Kent

 

[Kfz]

I have a Orvis navy blue in 9/10 condition in size M. If your are interested in buying? $75 includes shipping in the US. I m 6” 175lb fits perfectly

 

[handymike]

I remember having one made by Pacific Trail when I was a kid. They are reasonable on ebay. Here is a 42 & 42L
https://www.ebay.com/itm/202853763622

https://www.ebay.com/itm/125278887157

 

[KentH]

I have a Orvis navy blue in 9/10 condition in size M. If your are interested in buying? $75 includes shipping in the US. I m 6” 175lb fits perfectly

Thanks Kfz.. I would be looking at an XL plus I had assumed there were plenty of new ones out there for fair prices...

Kent

 

[Doctor Damage]

Ben Nevis is another modestly priced jacket with traditional details:

LINK

Here's comments on Ben Nevis and Jump The Gun from a friend in the UK who teaches fashion in a uni and is into the style:

Yeah I have a Ben Nevis in British racing green and they're decent. Kinda cheapish heavy polycotton material, but I think that suits the style of jacket. Has the right details in terms of raglan sleeves, angled collar etc. Fit kinda big. Jump the Gun do a decent slimmer-fitting one too. They're pretty much the same. Slantier collar on Ben Nevis, slimmer fit on JTG.

 

[Brettafett]

Ive also been on the lookout, but also dont want to spend a large sum.
But it must be comfy.
Any comments on which tends to have 'slightly' longer lengths, esp sleeves...?

Somehow missed Merc.
Been through few. Returned most, found some 'cheap', weird short sleeves...

Tried on a Baracuta G9 at Son of Stag the other day, world of difference... Occasionally seen one pop up on Ebay for less. Wont buy new, my money goes to flight jackets.

That said, also tried one at Sherry's that actually fit and felt rather good...A dn cheap!
www.sherryslondon.com/product-page/classic-black-harrington-jacket

Dont buy Relco

 

[Edward]

Ben Nevis is another modestly priced jacket with traditional details:

LINK

Here's comments on Ben Nevis and Jump The Gun from a friend in the UK who teaches fashion in a uni and is into the style:

Yeah I have a Ben Nevis in British racing green and they're decent. Kinda cheapish heavy polycotton material, but I think that suits the style of jacket. Has the right details in terms of raglan sleeves, angled collar etc. Fit kinda big. Jump the Gun do a decent slimmer-fitting one too. They're pretty much the same. Slantier collar on Ben Nevis, slimmer fit on JTG.

I just posted on this the other day - https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/harrington-jacket-vs-a-2.74252/page-2#post-2930587 - looks like I put it in the wrong thread, meant to put it here. Good to hear another recommendation for the Ben Nevis. I'm planning to try one of those out when the heat drops off a bit and we can dare leave the flat!

 

[Bfd70]

Ive also been on the lookout, but also dont want to spend a large sum.
But it must be comfy.
Any comments on which tends to have 'slightly' longer lengths, esp sleeves...?

Somehow missed Merc.
Been through few. Returned most, found some 'cheap', weird short sleeves...

Tried on a Baracuta G9 at Son of Stag the other day, world of difference... Occasionally seen one pop up on Ebay for less. Wont buy new, my money goes to flight jackets.

That said, also tried one at Sherry's that actually fit and felt rather good...A dn cheap!
www.sherryslondon.com/product-page/classic-black-harrington-jacket

Dont buy Relco

re sleeve length

 

[Schambach]

Yoox has some Baracutas on sale:

https://www.yoox.com/us/men/shoponline/baracuta_d#/dept=men&d=2179

 

[Justhandguns]

I have two Jump the Gun Harrington, made in the UK and pretty well made. The yoke, like Edward had said, is sewed down which means there is now vent at the back compared to the Barracuda 'original'. The JTG jacket is probably more of a slim cut compared to some originals. I think I paid something like £50 some 10years ago for the jacket, washed it a couple of times and it is still going strong.

 

[Sonero]

I recently purchased a G9 by Baracuda in Dark Navy. In the past I have owned a few lower priced options from UK budget brands. The difference with the OG is night and day in both fit and quality of materials. I found all the lower end Harringtons to have flimsy jersey knit webbing which looks horrible when stretched out at the waist. Also the zippers tend to be low quality which gives it more of a Dickies mechanic jacket look.

I say if you plan on wearing your Harrnigton with Doc Martins and piercings then the budget brands are good to go. IMO trying to pull a dapper "Grenfell" look with a cheap Harrington doesn't work. I haven't seen one budget Harrington that could pass the snob test to put it lightly.

If I were set on owning one with a limited budget I would purchase the classic Ralp Lauren golf/windbreaker. An iconic piece of RL history that usually goes for $75 and can be dressed up or down. My second choice would be one of the seasonal windbreakers from Brooksbrothers.

Both much nicer pieces than a budget Harrington IMO.

 

[Edward]

I’ve got the G9 in navy. The price is what is is. If you stay in shape, you can wear it for a very long time. It hasn’t gotten out of fashion for the last 60 years, so it should stay that way for some time more.

This reminds me of the guy, I'm sure now long retired, that always served myself and my Dad in the local, old-school gentlemen's outfitters where I used to buy clothes some twenty-five odd years ago. Always the same patter - "This is a classic, it will never be out of fashion" - never quite got the point that it was being *in* fashion I was trying to avoid.

Tried one recently from harringtonjacketstore.co.uk - I think this *may* be the business that used to go by "UK Originals". Not impressed. I've had one or two cheap gems off eBay over the years, but unless you want something for a one-of fancy dress use, I'd avoid these. Shell is probably durable enough, though notably thinner than the Mercs et al, but the real weakness is the lining, which doesn't look like it would see out more than a season. Goes to show, though, that being able to boast "Made in England" is far from any guarantee of quality. Interesting to see, nonetheless.

 

[Pandemic]

If you can live with the slight deviations from tradition, Merc is the best. If you insist on raglan sleeves and the proper back design, then Jump the Gun is probably the best these days. I don’t like the fit on Barracuda at all. I like Ben Sherman for red harrys, solely because you don’t have a red tartan flashing with your red outer shell. If you are in North America, Spier and McKay might be worth investigating but I haven’t seen these in person.

 

[Turnip]

Had a Merc Harrington and found them running quite small and the sleeves were on the short end too. So if someone from US plans to buy one you might consider that the provided sizes (M, L, XL…) have nothing but the „names“ in common with similar US sizing.