The dark blue didn't arrive until 1950 in the form of the B-15C. Lasted until 1953 when the sage green B-15D took over. Both of these models had the fur collar dyed to match the color of the nylon. Earlier jackets always had different shades of brown for the collar.
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Lost Worlds jackets.
- Thread starter Robert C
- Start date
BellyTank
I'll Lock Up
- Messages
- 7,061
And the L-2s..?
B
T
B
T
BellyTank
I'll Lock Up
- Messages
- 7,061
Aha!
OK, that's good to know- I had a good flock of Rickson jackets but can't remember the history.
B
T
OK, that's good to know- I had a good flock of Rickson jackets but can't remember the history.
B
T
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
*******rainguy said:
I am a 52R or XXL at the best of times!
- Messages
- 6,099
- Location
- Acton, Massachusetts
.
This jacket has a bit of that Leonard DiCaprio as Howard Hughes look to it, from the scene where he flies the H-1.
Those are great jackets for spring and summer.
This jacket has a bit of that Leonard DiCaprio as Howard Hughes look to it, from the scene where he flies the H-1.
Those are great jackets for spring and summer.
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Himel Bros. - The Ross Mk. 1 Leather Jacket Classic D-pocket motorcycle/aviator style jacket.
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- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
**********Dixon Cannon said:
from Flight Suits
-dixon cannon
Well Done!
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
Sporty's Cotton A2
I just ordered one of these but without any embroidery. They have 2 listings for this but the other that i got has the olive color and I wanted to show the tan.
http://www.sportys.com/acb/showdetl.cfm?&did=19&product_id=10553
It isn't 100% authentic / accurate but does capture the JIST of a cloth A2 and seems pretty well made for the $$.
I just ordered one of these but without any embroidery. They have 2 listings for this but the other that i got has the olive color and I wanted to show the tan.
http://www.sportys.com/acb/showdetl.cfm?&did=19&product_id=10553
It isn't 100% authentic / accurate but does capture the JIST of a cloth A2 and seems pretty well made for the $$.
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
Sporty's A2 in Cloth
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
Sporty's A2 Cloth the Back (Bi-swing)
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
Sporty's Lable info
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
Sporty's Inner zip pocket and 2nd velcro (cellphone?) pocket
Mojave Jack
One Too Many
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- 1,785
- Location
- Yucca Valley, California
John, I have that jacket that you have posted, and I like it a lot. There are two things I'm not crazy about, though, The elastic is cotton wrapped, which is good, since it will never pill, but it is tight. If the jacket rides up at all, it stays there! The leather collar is very stiff, too, probably so that it can be washed. It doesn't lay down the way I'd like, though that will probably improve over time. All in all, though, it's a great casual, lightweight jacket.
Fletch
I'll Lock Up
- Messages
- 8,865
- Location
- Iowa - The Land That Stuff Forgot
I own an Orvis A-2 in a heavy rainproofed poplin they call "expedition cloth" (or something like that). I like that it's tan all over and has no leather trim. It has hand and inner pockets and is cut full, but authenticity in a cloth A-2 is moot anyway.
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
************Mojave Jack said:
I also wind up pulling it down occasionally, but any elastic bottom type jacket does the same for me anyway. It just seemed a great balance of quality and value at about $100 including shipping. I am sure it will take a little breaking in to be right.
Best regards!
Mojave Jack
One Too Many
- Messages
- 1,785
- Location
- Yucca Valley, California
I wholeheartedly agree! Best of all, the sleeves are long enough for my gangly arms. I was looking for somehting similar to Colin Firth's jacket in The English Patient, that would go well with shorts when it starts cooling down at night out here. This jacket works perfectly, I think.John in Covina said:
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
At bit of a chill in the air.
That is a neat style jacket.
For many out in the FL it may sound strange but, out West in the desert communities and the boonies. it is posible to have a 30 plus degree change from day to night. If it is over a 100 or 110 during the day it can drop down to the 60's or 70's at night. Such a drop actually seems chilly after the heat of the day especially if coupled with a breeze of any sort. So a light jacket is appropriate for a summer evening.
That is a neat style jacket.
For many out in the FL it may sound strange but, out West in the desert communities and the boonies. it is posible to have a 30 plus degree change from day to night. If it is over a 100 or 110 during the day it can drop down to the 60's or 70's at night. Such a drop actually seems chilly after the heat of the day especially if coupled with a breeze of any sort. So a light jacket is appropriate for a summer evening.
Mojave Jack
One Too Many
- Messages
- 1,785
- Location
- Yucca Valley, California
Absolutely true! I've been known to wear my bush jacket with shorts, but sometimes it is not enough, in that it is too light, and sometimes it is too much, in that it goes a bit too far...even after the wife gave the go-ahead, assuring me I didn't look too much like a dork. My cotton A-2 knockoff is a nice compromise, and as Dixon demonstrates so well, it looks great with a fedora!John in Covina said:
- Messages
- 11,579
- Location
- Covina, Califonia 91722
the other order section
http://www.sportys.com/acb/showdetl.cfm?DID=19&Product_ID=10150&CATID=115
http://www.sportys.com/acb/showdetl.cfm?DID=19&Product_ID=10150&CATID=115
John in Covina said:
Fletch
I'll Lock Up
- Messages
- 8,865
- Location
- Iowa - The Land That Stuff Forgot
Review: Lost Worlds' Dubow A-2, Horsehide
(Click to enlarge these photos)
I acquired my Lost Worlds Dubow (reproducing contract AC-27798 of 1942) from an eBay seller last month for $350. Current retail is $850 for the standard, simple collar model in russet horsehide - as above - or seal brown goatskin. The 27798 is the only A-2 contract Lost Worlds makes, but it is available with a stand-up collar or in black horsehide for $25 extra. A black cowhide model is $725.
(Note: Stuart at LW may not appreciate my pointing anyone to his highly inconspicuous closeout page, but it contains a few A-2s made in military cottons that look to be copies of the 27798 and have the same replica label. These are priced in the $125-250 range. There are also a few one-off leather A-2s here.)
Jacket Measurements, size 42
Front pit-pit 25 3/8" + rear pit-pit 21 7/8" = 47 1/4"
(Note: The front panel is 3 1/2" wider than the back. However, the chest effectively "wraps around" to ±23 1/2" on each side. Armhole position is not unusually far back.)
Back from collar seam 22" + 3 1/8" knit = 25 1/8"
Zip flap 23 3/8"
Shoulder 19 5/8"
Epaulet 6 5/8" back edge, 7" front edge (lies a bit forward on shoulder)
Sleeve 23 3/4" + 2 1/2" cuff = 26 1/4"
Sleeve cross section 9 3/4" @ armhole, 5 1/2" @ cuff seam
Armhole 11 1/8"
Fit and Cut
(For reference, your reviewer is 5'10 1/2", 185lb, takes a size 42R suit jacket and a 35" shirtsleeve. I have relatively narrow shoulders and long thin arms for my size and build.)
This is without a doubt the best-fitting A-2 I own, with a very convincing period military look and feel. I have no binding or tightness issues moving my arms forward or even crossing them, altho the sleeves ride up ±1 1/2" when the arms bend. The epaulets lie nicely flat due to the large cross-boxes and relative stiffness of the hide.
(Click to enlarge these photos)
The closest point of fit is at the armholes. There is room for a normally cut shirt and a thin sweater, but heavy woolens or oversize clothing wad up uncomfortably. As did airmen of old, you'll want to choose your layers for maximum warmth and minimum bulk if the 27798 is your choice on a cool day.
The wide epaulet and extended point pocket flap are the most visible Dubow hallmarks. Note that the extra-long-point collar found on other Dubow replicas is missing here.
Materials and Construction
LW takes pride in the quality of their horsehide, which is 3 to 3 1/2 ounces, chrome-tanned, and feels very strong and a tad stiff (my jacket is not yet fully broken in). The color is a shade darker than "classic" Army russet, more a rich milk-chocolate, with knitting matching the hide perfectly and thread slightly lighter. The liner is closer in color to the thread, a shade LW calls "tobacco."
(Click to enlarge)
The knit and liner (all wool and all cotton respectively) are both finely woven and appear as high-quality as the hide, altho one cuff shows a modest hole from the previous owner.
The horse has a crisp, "hard" drape and nice variation in grain, despite still being at the "creaky" stage. It's especially grainy on the front and upper back panels. (I've cranked up the contrast on this shot to bring out the grain.)
(Click to enlarge)
Note also the use of edgestitching (1/8" from the edges, as opposed to the typical 1/4" or further, properly called topstitching). It caught my eye immediately on receiving the LW, and really adds to the quality and vintage effects, especially as most repro jackets are topstitched. It bespeaks craftsmanship too: the seams are rock solid, with no give at all when you pull. This appears to be a garment made to take it and laugh—with a rustle and a creak!
Period Details
Not being a collector of original A-2s (yet!), I defer to Marc of Acme Depot, who evaluated the LW Dubow several years back. His review is posted here.
(Note: There are no links to this article at Acme Depot. Marc wrote it for a now defunct web-based newsgroup on flight jackets, but refused to link to it because he'd had a falling out with LW and didn't want to publicize them.)
Marc's standards are that "authenticity" is a matter of 100% or nothing, and he doesn't give this jacket 100%. Too many small points are off, eg: the snaps* (mine are "Rau" brand ring type instead of the original nipple type), the neck hooks (a little too big), the latter-day Talon zipper**, and the use of a hangtag for the size number (originals had a one-piece tag, as does Real McCoy's 27798 repro).
(Click to enlarge these photos)
Still, Marc admits that the LW is "suitably consistent" with original Dubows, and that its overall quality is "unquestionably and uniformly excellent." Whether or not it matters to you that Stuart of LW says "real men almost worship" his jackets, I would think anyone with a taste for quality and style should be very well pleased with this A-2.
*(9/17/07) Our cheaterome informs me downthread that the ring snaps on my LW mean it is of pre-1996 make, and that more recent LWs in fact do have nipple snaps. The jacket reviewed by Marc in 2000 shows nipple snaps, as does the jacket on LW's present page.
**LW now advertises a brass Talon zipper, whereas mine is nickel. (The one in the LW picture is a customer-supplied Conmar.)
Fun Fact: Before and after WW2, Chicago's J.A. Dubow (accent on the "bow," rhymes with "cow," not horse...sometimes spelled "DuBow" to make it easier to say) was a maker of quality sporting goods, including golf clubs and baseball gloves endorsed by many a big leaguer.
(Click to enlarge)
(Click to enlarge these photos)
I acquired my Lost Worlds Dubow (reproducing contract AC-27798 of 1942) from an eBay seller last month for $350. Current retail is $850 for the standard, simple collar model in russet horsehide - as above - or seal brown goatskin. The 27798 is the only A-2 contract Lost Worlds makes, but it is available with a stand-up collar or in black horsehide for $25 extra. A black cowhide model is $725.
(Note: Stuart at LW may not appreciate my pointing anyone to his highly inconspicuous closeout page, but it contains a few A-2s made in military cottons that look to be copies of the 27798 and have the same replica label. These are priced in the $125-250 range. There are also a few one-off leather A-2s here.)
Jacket Measurements, size 42
Front pit-pit 25 3/8" + rear pit-pit 21 7/8" = 47 1/4"
(Note: The front panel is 3 1/2" wider than the back. However, the chest effectively "wraps around" to ±23 1/2" on each side. Armhole position is not unusually far back.)
Back from collar seam 22" + 3 1/8" knit = 25 1/8"
Zip flap 23 3/8"
Shoulder 19 5/8"
Epaulet 6 5/8" back edge, 7" front edge (lies a bit forward on shoulder)
Sleeve 23 3/4" + 2 1/2" cuff = 26 1/4"
Sleeve cross section 9 3/4" @ armhole, 5 1/2" @ cuff seam
Armhole 11 1/8"
Fit and Cut
(For reference, your reviewer is 5'10 1/2", 185lb, takes a size 42R suit jacket and a 35" shirtsleeve. I have relatively narrow shoulders and long thin arms for my size and build.)
This is without a doubt the best-fitting A-2 I own, with a very convincing period military look and feel. I have no binding or tightness issues moving my arms forward or even crossing them, altho the sleeves ride up ±1 1/2" when the arms bend. The epaulets lie nicely flat due to the large cross-boxes and relative stiffness of the hide.
(Click to enlarge these photos)
The closest point of fit is at the armholes. There is room for a normally cut shirt and a thin sweater, but heavy woolens or oversize clothing wad up uncomfortably. As did airmen of old, you'll want to choose your layers for maximum warmth and minimum bulk if the 27798 is your choice on a cool day.
The wide epaulet and extended point pocket flap are the most visible Dubow hallmarks. Note that the extra-long-point collar found on other Dubow replicas is missing here.
Materials and Construction
LW takes pride in the quality of their horsehide, which is 3 to 3 1/2 ounces, chrome-tanned, and feels very strong and a tad stiff (my jacket is not yet fully broken in). The color is a shade darker than "classic" Army russet, more a rich milk-chocolate, with knitting matching the hide perfectly and thread slightly lighter. The liner is closer in color to the thread, a shade LW calls "tobacco."
(Click to enlarge)
The knit and liner (all wool and all cotton respectively) are both finely woven and appear as high-quality as the hide, altho one cuff shows a modest hole from the previous owner.
The horse has a crisp, "hard" drape and nice variation in grain, despite still being at the "creaky" stage. It's especially grainy on the front and upper back panels. (I've cranked up the contrast on this shot to bring out the grain.)
(Click to enlarge)
Note also the use of edgestitching (1/8" from the edges, as opposed to the typical 1/4" or further, properly called topstitching). It caught my eye immediately on receiving the LW, and really adds to the quality and vintage effects, especially as most repro jackets are topstitched. It bespeaks craftsmanship too: the seams are rock solid, with no give at all when you pull. This appears to be a garment made to take it and laugh—with a rustle and a creak!
Period Details
Not being a collector of original A-2s (yet!), I defer to Marc of Acme Depot, who evaluated the LW Dubow several years back. His review is posted here.
(Note: There are no links to this article at Acme Depot. Marc wrote it for a now defunct web-based newsgroup on flight jackets, but refused to link to it because he'd had a falling out with LW and didn't want to publicize them.)
Marc's standards are that "authenticity" is a matter of 100% or nothing, and he doesn't give this jacket 100%. Too many small points are off, eg: the snaps* (mine are "Rau" brand ring type instead of the original nipple type), the neck hooks (a little too big), the latter-day Talon zipper**, and the use of a hangtag for the size number (originals had a one-piece tag, as does Real McCoy's 27798 repro).
(Click to enlarge these photos)
Still, Marc admits that the LW is "suitably consistent" with original Dubows, and that its overall quality is "unquestionably and uniformly excellent." Whether or not it matters to you that Stuart of LW says "real men almost worship" his jackets, I would think anyone with a taste for quality and style should be very well pleased with this A-2.
*(9/17/07) Our cheaterome informs me downthread that the ring snaps on my LW mean it is of pre-1996 make, and that more recent LWs in fact do have nipple snaps. The jacket reviewed by Marc in 2000 shows nipple snaps, as does the jacket on LW's present page.
**LW now advertises a brass Talon zipper, whereas mine is nickel. (The one in the LW picture is a customer-supplied Conmar.)
Fun Fact: Before and after WW2, Chicago's J.A. Dubow (accent on the "bow," rhymes with "cow," not horse...sometimes spelled "DuBow" to make it easier to say) was a maker of quality sporting goods, including golf clubs and baseball gloves endorsed by many a big leaguer.
(Click to enlarge)
