Aging a new ALC Irvin style jacket

[Lord Flashheart]

Hello all, last year I purchased an ALC Irvin without doing my homework on the FL website. While I am happy with the quality and fit of the jacket, it does have the teddybear appearance the ALC jackets are known for. My question is whether there is any way to accelerate the breaking down process in exposed fur at the collar, cuffs and hem of the jacket. I know I can wear the shecht out of it but I'm fairly impatient for the fur to tamp down.

Many thanks

Flashy

 

[Sloan1874]

If I remember correctly, a guy called Sorren, who's no longer on the FL, dunked his Irvin in the bath with a view to killing the teddy bear look and ageing the hide. If you search his name, it should come up.

 

[Dr H]

That's Soren, still active on VLJF.

 

[aswatland]

Hello all, last year I purchased an ALC Irvin without doing my homework on the FL website. While I am happy with the quality and fit of the jacket, it does have the teddybear appearance the ALC jackets are known for. My question is whether there is any way to accelerate the breaking down process in exposed fur at the collar, cuffs and hem of the jacket. I know I can wear the shecht out of it but I'm fairly impatient for the fur to tamp down.

Many thanks

Flashy

I believe Soren used hot water treatment on his Aero Irvin. He had a lighter weight ALC Irvin which did not have the teddy bear appearance as normal thickness ALC jackets. You might try washing your jacket and lightly tumbling it. Alternatively you could consider selling it and buying a more authentic Irvin. ELC and Aces High make the most accurate repro Irvins.

 

[majormajor]

Alternatively you could consider selling it and buying a more authentic Irvin. ELC and Aces High make the most accurate repro Irvins.

And Aero have just revamped theirs to make it far more accurate

http://www.aeroleatherclothing.com/product-detail.php?id=1391

 

[Sloan1874]

A trade-in would be cheaper alternative than re-buying.

 

[Lord Flashheart]

Thanks for the responses guys. I will PM Soren and see if he can give me some pointers and answer a few questions about how the jacket turns out. My main issues are the fluffiness of the fur and the bulk of the jacket. I assume the there would be less bulk when the fur tamps down?

Sloan - would either Eastman or Aces High entertain a part exchange?

regards

Garry

Ps How do ALC jackets sell on Ebay, do they fetch a fair price?

 

[Sloan1874]

I'm not sure either would trade in on a jacket that wasn't their own, but Aero will give you a price for their own - it says so on their site. I recommend DM-ing wdw he's traded a jacket or two. I will confess, I have put an order in the new paneled Irvin myself. I've tried it on, and it's very different from the original in shape and fleece, have wanted one for ages, so took the plunge. The one Aero Irvin I found on eBay went for £335.99. Not sure how old it was, though the seller said it had some cracking on the hide.

 

[rocketeer]

Ps How do ALC jackets sell on Ebay, do they fetch a fair price?

Get the right buyer and yes they do fetch a good price here in the UK. But I see you are in a nice hot country so time may be limited to wearing(Me dreaming of a warmer climate after our hard winter, just finished last week) and those in colder climes may take your postage into consideration.
Log on to eBay, just put in Irvin jacket or Irvin flying jacket. Lots of rubbish comes up of course, any sheepskin flying jacket is either a B3 or an Irvin so just look for one like yours. Average british selling price is around £250-350(iv'e just had a look)

 

[Plumbline]

I sold my early ALC Irvin on ebay 3 months ago for £350 ..... I also traded an ANJ4 44" againsts a ANJ 42" with Aero and the price quoted by Holly was slightly lower than the Ebay number but almost on a par ( give or take £20 )once ebay fees were considered.

The Aero trade was the better deal IMHO as I didn't have any of the usual ebay concerns and the ALC swap was painless and easy ... I sent mine up, Holly sent the new one down .. simple.

I've bought a few ALC Irvins ( 3 ) on ebay and never been fully happy with them ... they are as always remarkably well constructed ... but never had that Irvin "feel". The best Irvin I EVER purchased was my WPG Irvin which cost me the grand sum of £348 NEW ( inc. shipping ) .... zips aside it really "felt" like an old Irvin and once I'd had the zips replaced with NOS zippers looked the part as well ( not 100% accurate but as value for money hard to beat) ... not sure if he's still doing them though .... but they were an AMAZXING bargain.

HTH

 

[Lord Flashheart]

Again, thanks for the responses guys.

Plumbline, did Aero part exchange your ALC jacket for one of their Irvins?

Flashy

 

[John Lever]

Try wetting the wool and then leave it out in the sun and rain for a few days,the longer the better. I bought one of these when I was a student 30 years ago. It NEVER broke in. Finally I removed most of the outer coating with thinners. A truly horrible jacket,it was like cardboard and fitted like a straight jacket.

 

[Lord Flashheart]

Also Plumbline, how did the weight and bulk of WPG Irvin compare with te ALC? I live in Victoria which can be pretty cold in the winter so I think I would get more use out of it if it was a little lighter in bulk and insulation. What's your opinion?

 

[Sloan1874]

John, what is the outer coat on an Irvin made from?

 

[Spitfire]

Before


Before

And after:




Hello Flashy! - just saw your post. I soaked my brand new AERO Irvin twice and water (Bathtub) and tumbled it lightly (very low temperature) afterwards.
Let it dry hanging outside - inside out - in the wind and sun for as long as possible each time.
The result was obvious! Shrinkage? A bit - but not much, although I will admit the sleeves got a bit tighter/stiff. But nothing that couldn't be softened up by usage. Good luck!
Spitfire - a.k.a Soren

 

[Plumbline]

Again, thanks for the responses guys.

Plumbline, did Aero part exchange your ALC jacket for one of their Irvins?

Flashy

sorry Flashy .. had assumed that by ALC you meant Aero Leather Clothing ....

Both my jackets .. the ebay sale and the exchage were Aero's ( haven't had an Alexanders Irvin yet ... have looked at their D-1 though and it's a fabulous jacket !)


The WPG jacket was a slightly lighter and more flexible sheepskin but the colour and "feel" was MUCH more akin to originals which I have had ( the brown was a bit more orangey but a REALLY good attempt ... the "ginger"fleece was almost spot on.) In terms of cut it was much looser ( very close to an original) as I say the major let down was the zips but this was easilly remedied for about £60 for three zips and fitting ( and they were no worse as originals than Gary's RiRi ones)

It was a REALLY nice jacket and a GREAT attempt ... not as good as the really good replica makers ( and I DON'T include Aero, Alexanders (from what I've seen) or Eastman in this grouping ... for the benefit of John L and Andrew ).. but easilly up there with the previous three. I was really impressed by it and wore it regularly for a few years

HTH

 

[John Lever]

I suppose some kind of acrylic. Mine was more like damp proof membrane !

 

[Plumbline]

My early Aero ( Big A zipper) had a very thick shiney look .. it was much better after I sanded it ( seriously ... with an electric sander and 800 grit paper)

 

[Sloan1874]

I suppose some kind of acrylic. Mine was more like damp proof membrane !

Woah, water proof but hell to break in I understand you helped with the re-design on the Aero Irvin.

 

[Smithy]

Hi Flash,

I'm in Victoria, Oz as well so might be able to add a few words of advice. To be honest the "full fleece" Irvin from ALC is just too much for here - you'll cook in it even if you're in Alpine Vic and they are seriously ungainly, that long dense fleece does not help with movement.

I have an ELC (Eastman) 1940 Pattern and it is useable on the coldest days here, and I also use it a lot of winter nights. I've been meaning to post some more pics of it now that it's nearly 6 years old as a couple of members have asked me to, so I'll try and do that over the next couple of days.

If it was me, I'd flog the big teddy bear ALC on eBay and pick up an ELC or one of John's from Aces High. In the end I reckon you'll end up doing that down the line anyway so may as well do it now!

Cheers,

Tim