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

[aswatland]

Hawkeye owns one. Initially he was pleased with it. It does look the part and is closer to originals than many repros. Hawkeye later discovered that the main zip was separating. For $350 they are cheap and obviously not such good quality as say an ELC Irvin.

 

[Hawk_Eye]

I've actually been through three WPG Irvins (not by through any quality issues though, I was simply picky about sizing.) Each was well made, and I never had any problems with the zips on the first two ( the second I wore for quite a while) My current jackets main zip is coming apart at the bottom however. I had heard from someone that Jerry mentioned something about his 3rd batch of Irvins having a bad run of main zips. For me, its not a problem though as I was planning on replacing all three zips with post-war British army DOTs, almost identical to early wartime zips.
Other than that, I am completely satisfied with the jacket. It fits great, and definately looks the part. And for 350 bucks you really cannot go wrong. And if you dont like it, sell it on ebay! I sold my first two and actually got more than I paid for them. Heres a couple pics of mine after a winter of everyday wear in wind, sleet, rain and snow.

 

[ethanedwards]

WPG Irvin

Great looking jacket Hawkeye - it looks very accurate, and for the money it makes me wonder why the Aero and Alc are so indifferent

 

[boyorastroboy]

I got a WPG Irvin last fall and got a ton of use out of it over an unusually long Minnesota winter. In general, I was very happy with it. The main zip definitely has an issue at the bottom, initially popping loose with annoying frequency. Once I got a feel for it, though, it never gave me any trouble. For the money, I think it's a great jacket.
There are, however, several things that bother me about it. First, all the hardware does seem cheap--lightweight metal, not very well molded, and not a very attractive finish.
Second, the leather is of varying quality. Because I ordered a size too large and had to exchange (handled very well by WPG) I was able to sample two jackets. Both clearly had much thicker leather on the tops of the arms and body and shockingly thin leather on the under portions of the arms. Despite my expectations to the contrary, the thin stuff has held up just fine, though the actual fleece on these portions of the jacket seems to have thinned prematurely as well. I feel the longevity is suspect, but has yet to be proven inordinately short.
My final and largest criticism of the jacket is that the seam "taping", as well as the belt, the belt loops, and the entire back of the collar seem to be made out of some kind of pressed leather, perhaps even some sort synthetic leather. This aspect of the jacket nearly ruins it for me. The edges are frayed and stringy in places. When other portions of the jacket have gotten scuffed or scraped a bit, the natural grain of the leather becomes more prominent and I feel the jacket looks better for it. When any portion of the seam tape or belt are scraped so as to lose their finish, an ugly dark gray fiber shows through (I'm no expert in tanning, perhaps someone out there would know what this stuff is, it's riddled with little tiny holes as well). I'm not sure what to make of it, but it is clear that the substance forming the taping and the belt is very different from the similarly colored pull tags on the zips which are clearly some sort of leather and are uniformly colored (not just on the surface). I'm really not sure what the stuff is, but I find its response to wear very unappealing.
Aside from these items, I was very impressed with the jacket's ability to withstand quite a bit of use and abuse and really keep me warm in very frigid temperatures (-30F no problem). Ive unfortunately had no opportunity to compare my WPG Irvin to a superior replica or original, so I can't offer much help there. As I mentioned, the seam taping and belt material issue drives me crazy, but I haven't encountered anyone else who's noticed it or complained about it, so I'm probably inordinately sensitive to it.

 

[Spitfire]

Thanks for a very honest review. Appreciate it!

 

[Windsock]

My favourite criticism- never seen one in the flesh but from all the photos that have been posted they appear to have not have captured the shape of the collar correctly- it has a decidedly B-3 look about it- oversized and the collar points look to be at right angles not the 105-115 degree range seen on originals.

Looks clumsy and reduces it's credibility imo.

 

[Spitfire]

Thanks Windsock - I guesse you nailed it perfectly.

 

[boyorastroboy]

Eastman Black Sheep Irvin!?

Would that the exchange rate weren't so horrendous! Not in the cards for me, but maybe someone here would be interested in what appears to be an ELC experimental prototype like the (Canadian?) one Andrew got a while back.


http://www.shopcreator.com/mall/eastmanleather/products/product-3591748.stm

 

[aswatland]

Would that the exchange rate weren't so horrendous! Not in the cards for me, but maybe someone here would be interested in what appears to be an ELC experimental prototype like the (Canadian?) one Andrew got a while back.


http://www.shopcreator.com/mall/eastmanleather/products/product-3591748.stm

I have bought the size 44 and will post pics when it arrives.

 

[Smithy]

I had no idea ELC had another Irvin pattern in the pipeline.

I'll be very interested to see the photos Andrew.

 

[PADDY]

Please stay focused chaps!

I've moved most of the debris regarding 'good reads' on the RAF into its' own thread on the WWII room (link below).

Smithy, if you want to change the HEADER, PM me with a new one and I'll get that sorted ASAP.

ROLLICKING READS OF THE RAF

Right chaps, please keep the clutter down (I KNOW-I KNOW, you're an enthusiastic bunch and that old train starts running away ) and keep this thread IRVIN COUNTRY PLEASE

 

[Windsock]

Andrew, I am sure you are correct. The skinning and tanning processes would have made a difference to the durability of the fleece. It would be nice to be able to compare the British processes with those used in the US.

Perhaps the age of the sheep was a factor as well. An older sheep may have had a thicker, tougher skin and perhaps they were used in the early Irvins when the tanneries could be more fussy. When there was more demand later in the War any fleeces would have surficed including those from younger sheep. Just a thought! BTW I have owned late war Irvins with skins of varying thicknesses, although more have been thinner. Also I suspect the early Irvins were made from veg tanned fleeces whilst the later ones were chrome tanned and this may have made a difference to durability.

I hope after Paddy's last post this one is sufficiently on topic, but recently i found this piece of data about leather strength when i was looking for a supplier of Kangaroo hide. Perhaps the mystery of the significant longevity of the Irvin fleece and the poor lifespan of the US shearlings is somehow related to this;

Grain - Corium Ratio
Most animals have two distinct layers in the cross-section of the skin – the grain and the corium. The majority of the strength comes from the corium, where the fibre bundles are much more dense. However, on certain animals, and in particular bovine substrates, a large amount of the corium is shaved off to gain a lightweight thickness, resulting in dramatically reduced strength characteristics. However, kangaroo skin has a very thin grain layer and it’s thickness can easily be reduced without detriment to the strength of the final leather, owing to the fact that the natural thickness of a kangaroo skin is mainly found to be in the range of 1.0 to 1.2 mm.

http://www.packerleather.com/leathers.html

 

[aswatland]

ELC 1944 IRVIN-ARRIVED!

Here are some pics of my ELC 1944 Irvin, which arrived earlier in the week. It is a size 44 and is the same size as original size 5s in my collection. Having handled the 1940 and 1942 ELC Irvins this one is probably the best they have made to date. It is a test jacket and the only one made with dark brown fleece in this size. I like the dull appearance of the leather and the workmanship is superb. It is a very accuarate copy of a late War multi-panelled Irvin and I hope it becomes a production model. I have replaced the ELC zip pull with an original Dot as it is more in keeping with the slider bucket. Now we need some colder weather so I can wear it!

 

[Smithy]

Beautiful jacket Andrew. ELC really have outdone themselves with this pattern. Only thing which struck me was the inclusion of the erector strap, which I had thought would have been abandoned at this time of the war that the jacket is aimed to reproduce.

Apart from that a real stunner! I could be tempted by one of these down the line as I always liked the look of the black Irvins.

 

[Speedster]

Really nice jacket. Hope they will add it to their permanent line. Could be a serious contender when, one day, my AL Irvin needs a successor

 

[aswatland]

Beautiful jacket Andrew. ELC really have outdone themselves with this pattern. Only thing which struck me was the inclusion of the erector strap, which I had thought would have been abandoned at this time of the war that the jacket is aimed to reproduce.

Apart from that a real stunner! I could be tempted by one of these down the line as I always liked the look of the black Irvins.

I did consider removing the collar securing strap and eyelets, but decided against it as a few late War jackets still had the strap fitted.

 

[Hawk_Eye]

Hey Mike1973, I know you did a great job of putting a sidcot suit collar on your BSA Irvin, but if your still interested in getting an irvin collar theres one up right now on ebay. Item no. 120269777486

 

[Hawk_Eye]

Mid-war Irvin (just arrived!!)

Heres the Irvin I won off ebay roughly a month ago. It arrived about 3 days ago and havent had time until now to properly photograph it. It came in the Eastman box that it was sent back to the last owner in after a zip repair, as well as a carboard eastman label on the inside of the jacket which was a nice touch. Im absolutely thrilled with it. It fits great, with plenty of arm length and lots of room in the chest. Having about a size 41 chest and being 6'3 tall, its tough finding an Irvin that fits. The leather is in fantastic condition, very soft and supple, and with the exception of a fairly substantial old repair on the shoulder (pictured), is intact. The interior fleece is gorgeous and very soft, softer than any other sheepskin I've had in my hands. There is the expected wear on the cuffs, and some small wear along the hem. Most of it looks old, I can't see any fresh bald patches. The zips and elastic collar strap are from Eastman. I have original zips, but I'm pretty satisfied with the repros at the moment. You can easily see the spot where the (rather large) original label used to be. It wasnt tacked on, but stitched right through the back.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Nice!

Doe the leather really have a reddish tint, or is it just my monitor?

bk

 

[Hawk_Eye]

In person it does have a slight reddish tinge, but not as much as the photos of the jacket being worn portrays.