Question about Willis & Geiger A2

[tnjyoung]

So this past week, I bid on and won an ebay auction for a Willis and Geiger A2. It has a Scovill "gripper zipper", but I cannot get past the extremely light feel and the fact that the hang-loop and the tag is off-center. It "smells old" so it appears to be old. Why would someone fake a jacket from the 1980s that is/was not that expensive? I am not sure of the leather (or if it is truly leather for that matter), but I wanted to know your experiences and opinions. Is there a lightweight leather from the 1980s that would have a coating or otherwise appear similar to bonded leather? Could it be bonded leather? Could it be a fake?

Here is the link to the jacket. Thoughts and comments are welcome.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Willis-amp...%2F9XgCoeoH%2FkNUJDGQ%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

 

[Brettafett]

I had a W& G A-2, will try and find the review of it later... The leather was thin and in some places I was worried it would rub through. I think its just the leather they used at the time. Cheap.

 

[aswatland]

The W&G A-2 is an entry level jacket and the OP bought it for a fair price. I used to own one and yes it is made of leather, but not the quality used by high end makers today.

 

[Flightengineer]

This is leather. I bought a recently similar in used condition.
I do not know what is it exactly, goat or no, but thin, I agree with Brett.
I liked the look with patina on mine, although I clearly understood that this is not an exact reproduction, and I still could not resist and bought it cheaply)))

 

[aswatland]

They were made of horse or cow, not goatskin as the leather does not have the pebbly finish seen on goatskin jackets.

 

[thor]

This is an old W&G catalog from 1999. They show both HH and goatskin A-2's available. I think the choice of leather varied from year to year and unfortunately they did not always keep up the high quality standards of older W&G clothing. I have a HH variant from W&G that is truly top notch, one which I'd rate above The Cockpit A-2's and about on par with Gibson & Barnes (Flight Suits Ltd).

If you read the catalog description you'll find lots of flights of whimsy in terms of W&G being an original WWII manufacturer, etc. Such are the ways of overzealous marketing executives.

 

[Flightengineer]

Thor, thanks for sharing!
Very funny some marketing phrases.
As far as I know at this stage in 80s, they tried to assert that they were contractors of A2 in WW2, which is not true and was repeatedly discussed in various forums.
Mine jacket looks like HH.

 

[kowalski]

hI
I have A2 W&G , it true it is very thin and light leather
Of course the jacket has nothing to do with historical correctness A2 ww2 imho

 

[tnjyoung]

Wow! Thank you for all of your responses. I thought I had subscribed to this thread, so with no emails, I assumed there were no responses.

Where to start...
1. I am glad it is leather.
2. I am glad there is no suspicion in the group that it is fake.
3. I am glad you guys (at least one of you) think I got it for a decent price.
4. It does not in any way, shape, form, or fashion, come close to my Aero. That is a big LOL!
5. I think I will enjoy occasionally wearing it when I just want a lightweight jacket and the look of the A2 bomber.
6. I will try to post a fit pic after while.
7. Thank you again!

 

[ButteMT61]

Most of us have a favorite beater or two of "lesser" quality, and most of us love those as much for different reasons.
I can get as much joy from a beat up old Levis sherpa denim jacket as I can a Good Wear or Aero, depending on what I'm doing.
Enjoy it.

 

[NABodie]

Mine is a pretty substantial jacket weighing in at 4 Lbs of thick leather. Not an Aero or an Eastern by any means, but works well for me.

 

[thor]

The W&G A-2's are great jackets that are usually well made and offer reasonable accuracy for low cost. The quality seems to vary quite a bit; the W&G brand was owned by different parent companies (VF Corp, Laura Ashley, the Japanese firm D'URBAN, Land's End). During the years of ownership changeover, the quality and workmanship of their A-2 jackets went from high quality to fairly good to just mediocre.

One of the main components that I've seen change from Jacket to jacket was the zipper. The light russet brown goatskin (?) jackets tend to have the large Scovill "gripper zipper". The dark seal brown (cowhide ?) A-2's that I've come across have a YKK with a traditional bell-shaped puller. One horsehide A-2 that I've found has a brass YKK with a long rectangular puller. Of course zippers are not a sure fire way to tell the year of manufacture or which version of the A-2 it may be (goatskin, cowhide, HH), just some interesting esoterica.

 

[Flightengineer]

I want to notice despite the big difference from the original WWII zippers this large Scovill "gripper zipper" is very convenient for use and looks huge only on pictures but not in reality IMHO.

 

[Brettafett]

They may not be historically accurate, but still great jackets. I really liked mine, best collar profile (reminiscent of a Monarch) and colour of any jacket I have owned... Pity mine wore through in some spots... Someone should start a W&G thread.

 

[kowalski]

my A2 W&G
skin quality on a scale 10 it 4
practical sense it 3 (very shallow pockets)

 

[Flightengineer]

I agree about bit small pockets, nevertheless I really like mine. It has bit relaxed fit compared to other my jackets, I can wear a sweater under it. And mine W&G has nice vintage look and patina. I will keep it)

 

[Flightengineer]

Today was a little time, took a few pics of my W&G. I love this jacket )))

 

[Flightengineer]

This "russet" W&G A2 was used me for the back art project.

This handpainted art was inspired by back art of A-2 flight jacket belonged the crew member Douglas C-47A Skytrain "Sky Delivery" with the serial number 42-92071.
Plane took part in the D-day in Normandy in 1944 and droped 101st Airborne Division paratroopers .

DС-3 / С-47 is my favorite plane

 

[WillisandGeigerFan]

Resurrecting this old thread to share my steal of a Poshmark purchase for $70 a few months ago. This W&G jacket had no wear whatsoever visible on it, including no damage or moth holes to the cuffs and waistband. These photos are from the listing and you’ll see two small paint specks - one on the back toward the bottom of the jacket and one on the sleeve. These came right off with a damp facecloth and fingernail. Yes, it’s not the most authentic A-2 out there, but for this price, I couldn’t resist, and in my garment bag or on my body I don’t see any of these funky wrinkles so I think it was a product of how it was hung for display here.

 

[WillisandGeigerFan]

They may not be historically accurate, but still great jackets. I really liked mine, best collar profile (reminiscent of a Monarch) and colour of any jacket I have owned... Pity mine wore through in some spots... Someone should start a W&G thread.

FYI There’s a new Willis & Geiger Appreciation Society Group on FB, and I will start a thread here.