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    Jacket for a Ride in a B-17?

    I'm scheduled to take a ride in "Aluminum Overcast", the flying B-17 owned by EAA, in early October. I'll post pix for sure. Apparently there will be at least one actual WW2 ETO veteran there answering questions. My question is one of respect: if I wear a milspec A2 (I have two Coopers and a...
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    Indiana Jones' origins: An interview with costume designer Deborah Landis

    Tom Selleck tried to beat the hex of having walked away from Raiders a couple of years later, by doing a very similar adventure film in which he played, yup, a leather jacketed unshaven, neer-do-well with a big heart who rescues a winsome heroine. The film n was called High Road to China, and...
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    "Park V" Jacket

    Just acquired an obviously US-made, low-volume production G1 derivative in what looks like chrome finished chocolate horsehide, from a maker called "Park V." Heavy hide, Talons throughout, US ring snaps. Based on what little I can find on the web, they made a lot of bike jackets and apparel--...
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    cooper A2 how good

    Just to clarify a point: Cooper had one small contract during WWII, so your orange-label is not a repro of a B-17 driver's jacket. But in 1988 and for a decade or so, your Cooper A2 (with a white label and some velcro spots) was official-- albeit non-flight use-- Air Force issue. So walk tall...
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    my new jacket reeks of linseed oil.

    Your jacket seems like a prime candidate for washing. I documented a process that works for me, with lotsa pix, a few months ago: http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?71541-One-man-s-system-machine-washing-and-conditioning-vintage-jackets&highlight=one+man%27s
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    An interesting A-2 from movie Twelve O'Clock High

    My late father worked on early heat seeking missiles at Muroc in the early Fifties. He said they damaged or destroyed dozens of B-17s in tests, because they had the characteristics needed for acting as targets in missile testing: stable flying characteristics that allowed them to be remote...
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    How much can a jacket really be shrunk?

    Thanks for sleeve shortening insights, Azog. My problem is the reverse: I have gorilla arms with a 37 inch sleeve. But I've had great luck lengthening sleeves by putting 2-3 filled 20 ounce soda bottles in each sleeve, and as necessary zip-tying the wrist area to hold therm in. As the jacket air...
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    How much can a jacket really be shrunk?

    I did an experiment over the weekend in an effort to determine just how much a leather jacket could be shrunk. The piece in question has a spectacular heavy goatskin hide, but it's a 50 long, and I am a 44. So the goal was to see just how much I could shrink the jacket. In my experience goat is...
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    An interesting A-2 from movie Twelve O'Clock High

    Another reference to custom made A2s, this time for the TV series of Twelve o'Clock High: http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/918archbury/message/993
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    Seeking Help on Choosing a Civil Version A-2

    Tailoring a civilian A2 I had one of my LLB jackets tailored in the body and especially the arms, and it completely transformed it. Amazing how much difference slender sleeves make in A2 fit.
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    Removing nametag

    Needle holes are less conspicuous after washing or wetting I too removed a Harley logo from the kidney area of a moto jacket. Noticed when I washed it that the holes became less conspicuous because the leather swelled up a bit.
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    Seeking Help on Choosing a Civil Version A-2

    LL Bean Observations, and another value Civilian A2 LL Bean indeed has some respectable not-quite-military A2 jackets in its past. At one time Golden Bear made them in the US from a very heavy goatskin, in both one-piece back and three-piece configurations. My only beef with the Beans is their...
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    What is an offset collar on an A2?

    Both jackets match my description of "offset"-- in that both jackets rotate the collar fastening position in order to look centered when fastened, despite the asymmetrical windstop. Notice in the close-up I annotated how the right collar points goes forward to meet the zipper line, while the...
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    Seeking Help on Choosing a Civil Version A-2

    As many have noted, G&B jackets tend to run a tad large-- less like a military trim fit. That said, I own one and they are very well made jackets, every inch the equal of most limited-edition jackets in all areas except authenticity of historic details. On another note, I find the phrase "for...
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    What is an offset collar on an A2?

    Normal Tailoring meaning of "Offset Collar" We may be overlooking the obvious explanation here. In normal tailoring parlance, an offset collar is is one that is positioned to achieve visual symmetry despite the presence of a chest design that is not symmetrical. Since all A2s have windflaps...
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    How to Antique Shiny Brass?

    Birchwood Casey Antique Brass This stuff can be used to antique or to blacken brass. Get it at a gunshop: http://www.birchwoodcasey.com/Finishing/FinishingDetails.aspx?ProductID=d66c82b1-292e-4753-84d7-290d6728fd8f
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    Highwayman Owners...what's the consenus on the Storm Cuffs

    Oddly enough, I find I agree with all of the negative posts here,. but none of the positives. The storm cuffs in my Highwayman are MUCH tighter than some A2 knits, and therefore bind uncomfortably. They are too snug if I'm wearing a dive type or other chunky watch. And they ride up-- a half hour...
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    The Real, real Indy Jacket: Not What You Think

    Reading the newest entries in the 12-page thread on Indy Jackets, I can't resist the chance to tell the story of the real Indiana Jones jacket, and the "first version" of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Obsessive film buffs will tell you that Raiders is actually a remake of a 1954 adventure serial...
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    Altering jacket size.

    Shoulder width can't be altered in any practical way. Waists and chest can be, but you need someone with what's called a running foot sewing machine that can sew leather, plus some tailoring experience. Some tack shops have this, some motorcycle shops, and a handful of specialists. I use Dena...
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    Barbour wax on leather??

    I've rewaxed a Barbour a couple of times. The stuff Barbour sells for their traditional waxed cotton coats (as opposed to the new polymer coated ones) is a wax/Lamp oil mixture that needs to be heated. While it seems to have a lot of ingredients in common with Obenauf's, it definitely wasn't...

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