Aero Sneak Preview - Tweed Three-Piece Suit and Leather B-10...

[Sloan1874]

Was over visiting the Aero factory this afternoon, a chance to catch up with Ken and have a nose around some of their new items that are in the pipeline!
Some very interesting things afoot. Aero have been working on producing a 1930s-style three piece tweed suit for a while and are in the throes of finalising the final details. I tried on a sample, well, the jacket and waistcoat at least. Nice details, no vents as per the originals and leather-covered buttons:

They're using Harris and Donegal tweed, and all parts will be available as separates. It'll be roughly £700 for the full suit.

The second intriguing item is a B-10 made from green vicenza leather. This is a real trompe l'oeil jacket - from around six feet it looks like a standard cloth B-10, it's not until you get closer that you can see it's olive leather. The camera makes it look shinier than it is, and I can imagine with a bit of wear and tear it'll look even better.

Took a bit of personal resolve not to take this one for myself...

 

[Colin G]

That olive B-10 is very cool. Delete the epaulets and I'm into it.

 

[Sloan1874]

I'm sure that would not be a problem. Incidentally, they have a goodly number of lovely, Aero-made cloth B-10s

 

[torfjord]

That tweed suit looks dope!


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[Dr H]

For 30s styling I prefer Old Town.

 

[Benny Holiday]

Go Aero! Great details on the suit - the lapels look spot-on for the era as do the other features.

 

[Sloan1874]

For 30s styling I prefer Old Town.

I had an Old Town jacket but the fit was weird - tight across the shoulders and never loosened up - and the customer service is *really* poor. Sold it after one season, no urge to repeat the experience.

 

[dannyk]

Nice! Now if only they would restock their boots. I wanted a pair and saw it was sold out in my size. I emailed them and they did answer right away. Their response times are always super quick; but they said they didn’t know when they would get more in my size. So just keep checking.

 

[Edward]

I heard the suit was coming. Looks good. Very competitively priced, too.

For 30s styling I prefer Old Town.

I heard they were talking about adding something more thirties to their collection; last i saw they has nice wide trousers, but most else was much more Edwardian.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

OMG I am very surprised that you didn't leave with that jacket. It looked good on you and the fit seemed precise.

 

[Big J]

@Sloan, they both look like they were made for you, I'm surprised you didn't take them home.

I'd love to know more about the green leather B-10. There's nothing wrong with the concept, it's just that I'd never thought about green leather before, and I'd be interested to know how that idea came about.

The tweed suit is a great idea! And £700 only?!? That's going to sell out in zero time. One of the reasons I don't own an Irvin is that whilst I feel ok wearing a B-3 with jeans (it's so 'merican an image), I've always thought jeans weren't 'dressy' enough for an Irvin. Probably because I've seen so many photos of RAF pilots wearing them with shirts, neck ties and wool trousers. I think tweed pants would look great with a nice shirt and an Irvin (I'm probably channeling a memory of a photo of Sir David Lean).

 

[nick123]

With all of the leather MA-1s out there, who'd have ever envisioned a leather B-10? Not me. Brilliant. And a fitting color for it.

 

[seres]

With all of the leather MA-1s out there, who'd have ever envisioned a leather B-10? Not me. Brilliant. And a fitting color for it.

I agree! I had never seriously considered a B-10, but this one... Brilliant!

 

[Dr H]

I had an Old Town jacket but the fit was weird - tight across the shoulders and never loosened up - and the customer service is *really* poor. Sold it after one season, no urge to repeat the experience.

Old Town offers a range of patterns influenced by styles from late 19th to mid 20th centuries (e.g. the Marshalsea is more of an Edwardian cut so more narrow, slender; while Borough is more relaxed wider cut). Just like any manufacturer really, I wouldn’t bother trying a Cafe Racer as it wouldn’t suit my physique.
I’m surprised by your comment about customer service as it’s personal and second to none in my experience, very accommodating (although I had a really poor experience with Aero that put me off entirely from buying anything, so perhaps you hit a bad day).

 

[Dav]

Leather B-10, drool! Excellent looking jacket.

 

[Siggmund]

The olive leather B-10 really appeals to me, too. The durability factor in calculating value ranks pretty high with me. Plus, I love leather in general.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

I would be VERY interested in the tweed suit. It depends on the exact fabric choices, but man that looks incredible!

 

[Sloan1874]

@Big J, Ken was amazed that a leather B-10 had never been done, given that the olive hide was out there. I guess it just had to be the right weight and shade. It is uncanny, btw, as it took a second to register what I was being shown as the leather has a matt sheen similar to sateen.
Re the Irvin, it's an incredibly flexible jacket. I wear mine with jeans for heading out on a cold day or paired with cords or chinos for work. Actually, as far as I know Aero are preparing to produce an Irvin with black fleece, which will look very special.
The tweed stuff is lovely, and I'll probably go for a tweed jacket on its own (or with the waistcoat) though I'd probably drop down a size to a 36 - it was a little loose at the back for my taste.

 

[Big J]

@Sloan, well I guess your bank manager is relieved the fit wasn't good!
I'd also guess that pictures don't do the B-10 justice. Seeing it in the flesh sounds like a better experience.

As for Irvins, well, yes. And this is another reason why I don't have one; I'd have to buy two.
After reading Hastings 'Bomber Command' I'd have to agree with him that the Spitfire pilots of the Battle of Britain have captured the popular imagination whilst the huge efforts and sacrifice of Bomber Command has 'gone under the radar'. And because of this, I want both an early war AND a late war Irvin (I know, it's crazy).
I'm guessing that the RAF avoided black fleece until shortages began to bite, so a late war multi-panel Irvin would be the way to go with a black fleece jacket. That would be great.
The thing about multi-panel jackets is that normally I'd avoid them as a sign of lower quality and cost cutting, but of course Aero is replicating late-war shortages, and the production cost is probably higher due to the extra machining required.
The only thing that puts me off the Aero Irvin is the shape of the collar. I prefer the more squared off collars to the big rounded ones.

 

[Colin G]

Back for a 2nd look of the olive B-10.

**thinking**

No epaulets and a less reddish and a more brown or tan coloured mouton collar.

Sloan, I don't know how you had the will power to leave without it.