IRVIN NUTS?...the ULTIMATE thread for those who love 'em!

[kools]

Thanks Smithy. I have bought three in the last month on Ebay

Well done. I'm impressed with your ebaying skills.

I wore my WPG Irvin last night for the first time. It's giving me what I want...looks good & keeps me warm in 12 F temps.

 

[Spitfire]

Kools. What more can a man ask for

 

[fishmeok]

Yep- 5 degrees F here in Minnesota, wore my 4 year old WPG all day- it does the job...
I'm still going to paint it to match one of the originals though, I want a slightly more realistic look to the leather.
Cheers
Mark

 

[aswatland]

It's been Irvin weather here in the UK.Could do without the rain though!

 

[Smithy]

Still Irvin weather here and I imagine it will be for, oh, the next 4 or 5 months!

 

[Spitfire]

I knew there was a reason for leaving sunny NZ for the cold, dark north.
lol lol lol

 

[boyorastroboy]

I'm still going to paint it to match one of the originals though, I want a slightly more realistic look to the leather.
Cheers
Mark

Like actual paintbrush and acrylic or something? I'm curious to hear more about this.

 

[SamMarlowPI]

been Irvin weather here for the last couple months or so...sadly no Irvin :eusa_doh: :cry:

but i do have a B-3...

 

[PADDY]

Both me and Mister Ford wish we'd had Irvins...!

Both Mr Ford and I were just saying how much we wished we hadn't left our Irvins at home, as they would have been 'sure fire' pieces of kit when it came to dealing with the snow and icey breezes of Maine!!

 

[aswatland]

Great shot Paddy. When do you return to the UK and to your Irvin?

 

[Spitfire]

Yep- 5 degrees F here in Minnesota, wore my 4 year old WPG all day- it does the job...
I'm still going to paint it to match one of the originals though, I want a slightly more realistic look to the leather.
Cheers
Mark

PAINT IT???? !!!!
How? Why?
I know of some of the very early AL's - talking about 78 - 80's - were rather thin fleace and they were "painted" or "lacquered" dark brown on the outside.
My very first Irvin was one like that. I cracked everywhere and ended up looking really bad.

So I am just curious...

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Andrew: PM Quota exceeded.

bk

 

[aswatland]

Andrew: PM Quota exceeded.

bk

Try again now.

 

[Smithy]

Paddy, I must say when I was looking at the snowy pictures of the eastern coast of the USA in your travel thread, I was thinking where's Paddy's Irvin when he needs it?

Hope you're getting some proper Irvin weather now you are back home my friend!

 

[fishmeok]

Like actual paintbrush and acrylic or something? I'm curious to hear more about this.

I've had good results in the past removing some unfortunate artwork from the back of an aero using techniques picked up from Jerome on the VLJ

http://cornellsurgery.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1227

I want my Irvin to be a little darker and have a bit more of a reddish undertone, more like the new WPG Irvins (even if it's not very accurate, historically). I would also like a bit more of the finshed look the lacquer gives. I will probably use airbrush acrylic paint and wash it in with a rag, which I think gives good natural looking results- the stuff I used for my Aero (since sold to pay for a Goodwear) sets with heat, does not flake or scratch off, and can be mixed to the color I want.
Project number 3 of 95 or so....
Cheers
Mark

 

[Alan Eardley]

FF Zips

We now have definitive proof (it was suspected) that the late war jacket zips with the pear-shaped puller with the AM/Crown markings and 'FF' or 'Swift' on them were made by the Flash Fastener Company.

A wax-sealed Ministry pattern sample has turned up, complete with its specification and stock card.

Just one more thing we know for sure about 'Irvins'.

BTW there is a rush on trousers on a certain UK auction site...

Alan

 

[aswatland]

We now have definitive proof (it was suspected) that the late war jacket zips with the pear-shaped puller with the AM/Crown markings and 'FF' or 'Swift' on them were made by the Flash Fastener Company.

A wax-sealed Ministry pattern sample has turned up, complete with its specification and stock card.

Just one more thing we know for sure about 'Irvins'.

BTW there is a rush on trousers on a certain UK auction site...

Alan

Yes, I know Alan! I bought it on ebay for a few quid! It will not be going on a jacket, but will be kept as it is. It does help to date multi-panel jackets when they have this type of sleeve zip. All must be late 1943, or more likely 1944-5.

 

[Alan Eardley]

Well done, Andrew. I didn't see any point in us bidding against each other for it.

Alan

 

[aswatland]

Well done, Andrew. I didn't see any point in us bidding against each other for it.

Alan

Agreed! Thanks Alan.

 

[Aviakid]

Re: Irvin jacket Zips

Thanks to Andrew for posting his Irvin jacket zip pullers, very interesting. Below is a Lightning puller on my late war multi panelled Irvin (originally bought from the Lewis shop in 1947 -unfortunately I've mislaid the receipt that came with it).
The puller is identical to the Hookless used on Lee jeans in the late 20s and I understand that Mr B.F. Goodrich perfected the zip and designed a lot of the pullers for Lightning and subsequently licensed the puller designs to other companies he worked with such as Talon, which explains the similarity of some of the UK & USA zips pullers in the past.
I don't know if this one predates the Hookless version or not but the same puller appears in a 1929 advert which can currently be seen on ebay (type-in: 'lightning zipp fasteners' for a look).
The other pullers on the jacket are Kings Crown AM zip and the common Lightning zip with the curved puller.
Looking forward to seeing more zips from other owners!