1950s British Jacket

[carlstadt]

Does anybody own or have a picture of a British Leather Jacket used in 1950s ?
Thank You

 

[rgraham]

Can you be a little more specific? Motorcycle? Military? Civilian?

 

[Dudleydoright]

Well, it won't be military - there weren't any !

Dave

 

[H.Johnson]

Apart from the Jerkin, Leather of course...

 

[Dudleydoright]

Which by definition is a JERKIN and not a jacket. Sleeves are required for it to be a jacket. And I'm not entirely sure it was still an issue item at that stage.......


Dave

 

[H.Johnson]

Fair point about the sleeves. So many of them had greatcoat sleeves added as an unofficial modification that I have often wondered why it wasn't made an offical modification. They were originally an Artillery item, of course, that was adopted by the Infantry in WW1 and even by the RAF (ground crew) in WW2 and afterwards. Whether it was still on issue or not, I have seen photos of them in use well into the 1960s.

I am amused (but I admit slightly angered) by the Orvis version of the jerkin, which they call the 'Munitions Waistcoat' (argh!) and which is, according to them, 'A style first worn and popularised by the Royal Air Force ground crew who needed a comfortable, rugged outer garment they could move in as they rearmed the Spitfires and Hurricanes that won the Battle of Britain'. Yeh, right. Here it is in all its inaccuracy:

Perplexingly, there is a review on their website by an ex-RAF a/m who adds, 'I served for 5 years (1957 to 63) on bomber and fighter squadrons in the Royal Air Force as a Radio Fitter. We wore these weskits out on the flight line in all weathers. They were worn over battledress and often over denim overalls too. The generous cut is important. The originals I remember had no pockets or zippers; they had large buttons instead'.

I'm not sure what this says about the Orvis version, but it is a perfect description of the Jerkin, Leather in RAF use in the 1950s and 60s.

As an aside, the latest provable dated photograph I have ever seen of an airman wearing an 'Irvin' jacket in service (as opposed to leisure) was 1957.

 

[Dudleydoright]

As an aside, the latest provable dated photograph I have ever seen of an airman wearing an 'Irvin' jacket in service (as opposed to leisure) was 1957.

I take it that it was used on the Shakletons ? I would imagine that any other craft of teh jet age would be a little cramped to use an Irvin ??

Dave

 

[skbellis]

Jerkins

I have seen official issue Jerkins from the 1950's that were made from PVC and labeled as such (JERKIN,PVC) in addition I have seen these for sale http://www.meanandgreen.com/army/British_Army/British_Soldier_95_Leather_Jerkin/270/186.html which might be the latest rendition of a jerkin.

---Scott

 

[H.Johnson]

Yes, that's true. After the leather version (Jerkin, Leather) came the Jerkin, PVC, of a similar pattern, which was certainly issued into the 1960s.

I'd forgotten about the Soldier '95 issue jerkin, although I have seen these in Mean & Green which, coincidentally, is one of my local surplus shops.

I have seen official issue Jerkins from the 1950's that were made from PVC and labeled as such (JERKIN,PVC) in addition I have seen these for sale http://www.meanandgreen.com/army/British_Army/British_Soldier_95_Leather_Jerkin/270/186.html which might be the latest rendition of a jerkin.

---Scott

 

[H.Johnson]

No, he was a senior officer by that time and 'flying a desk'. He was issued the jacket in 1940 as a member of 303 Squadron.

I don't have photographic evidence, but an ex-RAF friend who shared an airfield with 120 Squadron CC at Kinloss (1952-59 I think) tells me that he remembers that many of the 'Shack' crews used to wear Irvin suits - they did long Arctic patrols, of course. That would certainly go along with leather seats and Rolls-Royce engines of course...

I take it that it was used on the Shakletons ? I would imagine that any other craft of teh jet age would be a little cramped to use an Irvin ??

Dave

 

[carlstadt]

motorcycle

1950s motorcycle leather jacket.

 

[H.Johnson]

I own a few, by Mascot, Belstaff, Uniform and Radley. What do you want to know?

 

[carlstadt]

I have a motorcycle bsa b31 from 1955 (plunger) and I would like to know what kind of leather jackets were used in the 50s.

 

[H.Johnson]

I used to have a B31 myself. Excellent machine.

It depends on a mumber of things - how old you were, where you lived and how you saw motorcycling in your life.

For instance, if you were over thirty, lived in the north of England and used you BSA as transport, you would probably not have worn a leather jacket!

If you were younger, from London and were making a statement you would have worn a single zip jacket with slant pockets, waist adjusters and a plain collar, usually in nappa. Often they were built down to a price. Black was common, brown less so. Typical of this style would be jackets by Mascot, Uniform and Elizabeth Radley. Lewis Leathers did more upmarket versions, sometimes with fringes.

If you were more well off and fancied yourself as being American influenced (which many lads did at the time) you could perhaps have afforded one of the jackets (e.g. a Bronx) that US designers Bud Ganz did for makers like Lewis. These jackets aren't quite like Beck and Schott jackets, but have a unique British slant on the US style.

Can I respectfully point out that if you bought a plunger frame B31 in 1955 you would almost certainly fit into the first category and be wearing a Black Prince suit or DR coat?

For a good selection of 50s-60s British leather jackets see Rin Tanaka's book.

 

[rgraham]

I have a 1952 BSA B33 stashed away in my shed. It was the bike I rode in high school. It died around 1971, and it hasn't been on the road since. Someday.....

Take a look at the Ace Cafe website. They have a few nice jackets that look the part. Make sure that you get a nice pair of tall engineer boots, and some seaman's socks to fold over the tops. Some blue jeans finish the look. Then go out and do the ton.

Here's the link to the jackets.

https://www.soulutions.de/acl/php/produkte.php5?unterkategorie=58

 

[Edward]

If you're looking for phot references to get the Ace Cafe / 59 Club / Ton-Up / Leather Boys look, I highly recommend the book the Ace sell on the histroy of the Cafe. Lots of great B&W photos in there for reference.

 

[H.Johnson]

Er...sorry, but speaking as someone who was there at the time, you wouldn't have worn engineers' boots in Britain in the middle 1950s. If you had money you bought zip-backed (or sided) motorcycle boots. There were several well-known brands.

If you didn't have much money you wore '36 pattern flying boots (really!) or firemens' boots, both available cheaply from surplus stores. You almost certainly wouldn't have worn blue jeans in 1950s Britain, either - they were very rare before the 1960s. You're right about the seaboot stockings.

I have a 1952 BSA B33 stashed away in my shed. It was the bike I rode in high school. It died around 1971, and it hasn't been on the road since. Someday.....

Take a look at the Ace Cafe website. They have a few nice jackets that look the part. Make sure that you get a nice pair of tall engineer boots, and some seaman's socks to fold over the tops. Some blue jeans finish the look. Then go out and do the ton.

Here's the link to the jackets.

https://www.soulutions.de/acl/php/produkte.php5?unterkategorie=58

 

[Edward]

HJ, I find it interesting how the view of those of us who didn't live through it of "the 50s" is so much coloured by US pop-culture representations of the decade. It seems to me that that was the point when US popular culture really began to become the dominant pop culture in the English speaking world at least. I presume that something like a pair of 36 pattern flying boots with the seaboot socks curled over the top would look substantially similar to engineer boots with the same sock-tratement? Boots like Lewis Leather's Westways etc are, of course, easily distinguished from engineering boots, I know, by the much neater fit which the zip fastening allows. When did engineer boots arrive in the UK - was that a much later thing, then?

 

[rgraham]

Er...sorry, but speaking as someone who was there at the time, you wouldn't have worn engineers' boots in Britain in the middle 1950s. If you had money you bought zip-backed (or sided) motorcycle boots. There were several well-known brands.

If you didn't have much money you wore '36 pattern flying boots (really!) or firemens' boots, both available cheaply from surplus stores. You almost certainly wouldn't have worn blue jeans in 1950s Britain, either - they were very rare before the 1960s. You're right about the seaboot stockings.

No, I in fact was not there. I beg your forgiveness at my ignorance.

Regarding the seaboot stockings, why would you pull them up and over the boot? It would seem that flying objects would have more of a chance of finding their way down inside your boot. Rocks, bugs, etc.

 

[H.Johnson]

You are right, it wasn't practical, but it was how they were worn, a fashion if you like. There was a popular film in the 1950s called 'The Sea Shall Not Have Them' about air-sea rescue crews in which the men wore black seaboots with white stockings turned down over the top. Maybe that was an influence. Sometimes RAF aircrew affected the same look.