AVI LTHR BRONCO A-2 Jacket Review & Pics

[pak]

I disagree Pak - it is possible to make a trim A2 pattern and do it well at an affordable price. And this has been done. One good example is the Steve McColgan A2.

Making a decent A2 is not like trying to cure cancer. Many companies do them very well in nice leather but produce a baggy modern pattern. It wouldn't take much to get a pattern right.

Gutmann's new photos look pretty good actually. I'm just not sure about the colour.

The original A2's were put together in haste by people who were often not garment makers, brought into the war production effort. The originals looked cool but were often put together badly and made of mismatched leathers. The tradition did not begin with precise artisan jacket makers. I'm sure modern production is more than able to make a decent affordable version that is close to an original in specs.

I agree that that A2 construction is not an exclusive skill limited to a gifted few. Certainly the quality of the war era production jackets varied greatly. Might I suggest that if McColgen sourced horsehide such as vicenza, shinki or warhourse and added some customization his prices would be close to Aero et al. AVI may very well be superior to US Wings, US Authentic, Cockpit USA etc. However, I seriously doubt they stand toe to toe with the afor mentioned higher end jackets. It seems today's patterns are adjusted for today's most common shape. I also discount a lot of the fit pics due to poor posture.

 

[Brettafett]

I have a Cockpit WW2 Government issue A-2 and I love it. Its made of robust horsehide that has developed fantastic patina and character, and looks very nice. Its super comfy. Cockpit jackets are very well made and solid. But Cockpit uses a generic pattern (and they run short in the body). I wear a 36long!
Same for my 'old' Steve McCoglan A-2. Lovely solid steerhide, very well made, with SMW's generic pattern and components. Certainly a great generic A-2, but for me a 40 long (was a slight custom - added length) was too baggy and the fit was off for me. Narrow square shoulders, good lengths, lovely collar profile, but very wide in the torso.

I could say much the same for my old Aerial Star, Willis & Geiger, Pike Bros and Cooper A-2s... Well made, strong, fantastic jackets, varying degrees of authenticity with generic patterns.

My AVI Bronco is also a very comfy jacket, lighter (due to the lighter, slightly thinner goatskin), but this jacket's pattern is copied directly from a sourced original WW2 Bronco, so its pretty close pattern-wise. The addition of an M-39 repro Talon zipper and Carr snaps et all, make it a pretty good option for someone wanting a bit more 'original-maker' authenticity, without spending $1000+.
The goatskin of this 'new' russet is slightly thicker than my seal version, but I really like it for this jacket. It is strong and full of grain and character... and suits the purpose.

AVI's jacket is not quite in the league of ELC, GW, BK and Aero's Aeroleather A-2s.... Mainly due to the leather and bespoke materials used, not to mention hand-made to order, and I don't think they claim nor aim to be (who knows what their plans are for down the line).
They fit in very well in the mid-tier range, I'd say... But are the ONLY mid-tiered jacket I know of that makes a jacket to original WW2 patterns and spec. If they decided to use a high quality horsehide, and NOS components, then this jacket would cost double plus.

I have compared their jacket in my reviews with those I have and have had (and Ive had from most), to be able to put it into context and it does compare very well.
I have been very excited about this development, because here is finally a classic WW2 patterned mid-range jacket, that looks great, is well made and comes in at an easy price. Sure it may need some fine tuning, but that will come as their production settles in.

If you want something as close to original as possible and are pedantic about detail and originality, and have $1000+ to spend, go right to the top for an ELC, GW, BK, Aero, or Japanese maker...
But if you want a decent WW2 patterned A-2, with very authentic components that won't hurt your wallet or get you into divorce proceedings, then AVI is a no-brainer.

Bare in mind that this jacket, being copied off an original, will no doubt size and fit as an original, 'Bronco' in this case.
As such its likely going to be trim and fit differently from the generic A-2s out there.
Original Broncos are generally trim, Aeros for example perhaps less so... and this will translate into any original maker pattern done properly by anybody.

 

[Edward]

Unfortunately to small in 46.
I‘m 6.2 and 87 kg.

What do you think?

I think it looks like a great fit, but comfort also matters. Personally, I would never buy an A2 with the intent of layer under it (I prefer them as they were originally designed, to be worn over just a shirt), but if that's hat you want to do, I think you would need a size up.

It's been suggested over on the VLJ that the jackets are being produced in Pakistan. Would explain ultra-low price point.

Seems likely. Pakistan has been a manufacturing base for fashion leathers for the European market for decades. I've seen mixed results - some cheap rubbish, others actually very decent - and all points in between. It could also be India (I've known many goat leather jackets to be Indian made).

I'd love to see one of these in person and get to try it on too. They certainly look the part. The business model reminds me somewhat of what BK were tying to do when they started out, first with the house jackets and later the contract- designs - before they decided to chase the Goodwear price band. At this price I wouldn't expect Aero / ELC / et cetera quality, though for a decent, knockabout jacket I would be happy to patch up, they are tempting. Similar vein to the Silvermans take on the G1 (though ironically I'm toying with the idea of one of those as a kick around plain jacket after I have Aero make me an AVG jacket...).

 

[Seb Lucas]

Brettafett, that's an extremely informative and well articulated response. Thanks.

 

[Brettafett]

Thanks Seb

 

[Flightengineer]

Brettafett, that's an extremely informative and well articulated response. Thanks.

I subscribe to this.

 

[Gutmann]

I subscribe to this.

Me too! ;-)


Gesendet von iPhone mit Tapatalk

 

[Edward]

Sitting in a Beijing hotel room trying to get into spending my Sunday morning writing a reading list, and instead finding myself sucked in to Googling (or, more to the point 'Bing'ing, as that's the only search engine I can use here it seems) G1 jackets. I'm still halfway tempted by the idea of a milspec 'beater' G1 type, and found myself looking at the AVI model on eBay. I see they're being sold new on the Bay by our chum Drifter Promotions. (I noticed this after I took a second look for the seller ID on spotting that they were using Aero as a reference point in the auction blurb) I did idly wonder if that made them a 'secret' low-price line from AL/SB, but I see that he's also selling a load of Eastman and Buzz product too, so maybe not.

 

[Toto1234]

Ordered mine on Monday and received it on Friday (From Denmark to the US in 3 days via DHL).

Overall it's a pretty good jacket. It's a very trim fit though. I am relatively skinny (1.93m for 84kg) an the size 48(!!) I ordered is just the right size; even though the sleeves could be a little bit longer .

 

[Toto1234]

 

[Toto1234]

 

[Flightengineer]

I also thought that the renewed russet jacket has a little long sleeves for me.
But in general it has the same fit as seal brown.

 

[GregGale]

@Flightengineer I wouldn't say those sleeves are long at all. The jacket fits you perfectly.

@Toto never mind the sleeves, they look fine too! Great fit overall.

 

[Gutmann]

Today my russet in 48!!! arrived. It fits much better imo. I am able to breath when the jacket is closed ;-)

hope u are all well!

Best,

Philipp

Gesendet von iPhone mit Tapatalk

 

[Flightengineer]

Nice, Philipp, fits better!
My eldest son took mine russet and wearing ,he likes it and looks like he's not going to return it to me.

 

[Flightengineer]

Two AVI A2

 

[Brettafett]

Dmitry, Toto1234 and Philip... As Greg says, great looking jackets and the fit looks spot on.
I would prefer slightly longer sleeves myself, but thats just my quirk
I have my jackets and hope to take some pics this weekend. I really like the updated seal goatskin, its a very comfortable jacket and easy to wear.
The leather has so much character. I also like the undertones of the colour (esp with the russet) that you can see in sunlight, hard to show with a photograph.

 

[Technonut]

Yep, definitely a russet in my future.. I just hope that the current batch of grainy-looking russet will be around when I order one..

The fit looks great on most above. I don't know why folks seem to think these should fit so tightly, with the waistband way up over the belt like many pics I've seen... I have over 1000 wartime A-2 pics, and blousing over the knit waistband is the most common look in all of them (and a good one at that IMO). The A-2 was commonly worn OVER a t-shirt, uniform shirt, AND the flight suit (coveralls) after all.

In this day and age, while still loving the vintage look, comfort is king in my book. If I can't have full range of movement (within reason) while standing and sitting, the jacket (no matter which type, material, pattern) is a 'no-go' for me.

Anyhow, it appears that AVI hasn't strayed much from the original Bronco pattern, and the above fit pics confirm it. Here's a pic I found of another original in horse:

 

[Brettafett]

Ditto to the above. Comfort and practical wearability is definitely becoming more important to me than a subjective look. That said, one can have both. Yes, these jacket compare really well with some pics of original Brocnos I have (theres so much variation with originals also...). I'm sure some more refining will take place and these jackets will only get better. I really like both my Seal jackets, classic profile, but so comfy and easy to wear.

 

[Edward]

It's definitely possible to have both. Technonut is absolutely correct in saying that there was no set, correct A2 fit during the war; wear em as tight or as loose as you want, there'll always have been some USAAF crew somewhere had 'em like that. What is also interesting, imo, is how often you see whole crews who had the same fit, so it wasn't only down to odd-shaped individuals. The QM had the final say over what size you got; seems to me that as well as differences in cut, you also plausibly had differences in how the QM viewed the right jacket size for each man, within the scope of what he could get hold of. It would be fascinating if e could put together the records of which maker jackets were sent where alongside photos of the men at those locations.

Something I noticed in my own jacket pursuits is how common it is for hose of us who get into this niche to arrive with jackets that are far too big, then insist on spending a year or two wearing them far too small ("vintage fit!"), before finding the Baby Bear fit and getting it Just Right. The 'too-tight' stage makes a lot of folks look like Luftwaffe boys - a lot of them wore their jackets crazy tight and in a way that looks too small to my eye now. That said, it may have been deliberate; I remember reading how SS uniforms were cut slightly tighter than ideal, as well as short in the sleeve and leg, by design - in order to suggest visually that these Aryan Supermen were physically bigger and more threatening than reality. It's possible that this sort of notion rubbed off on the Luftwaffe boys to some extent (even if the Nazi ideology was less popular in that branch of service). Given how tiny most pilots of that era were (not least because they were all kids barely out of their teens), you could see how that kind of psychological trickery might appeal.