J. Crew's take on a vintage style...

[theman]

Saw this J. Crew take on a Vintage and fell in love with its Indy nature...as I am more of a movie buff guy than an actual golden age aware guy.
I am pretty much a Vintage-Virgin when it comes to knowledge on real deal jackets, so I would love to get opinions from the knowledgable ones on what if anything this jacket's design is actually based on.
Found out these were going for $795 :shock: from J. Crew directly when they were available, but extremely limited to find. I love bi-swing backs, and this one goes into a half belt design as well. J. Crew site says I should be in a Large, but I took the chance on this medium (supposedly a 38-40 fit) as that was all I could find. Turns out they are oversizing them American style as this Medium fits my 44R frame just right. 19" across shoulders, 23" across chest, 26" sleeves, 25" back for the jacket dimensions.

 

[HDRnR]

Interesting, looks like it has handwarmer pockets ? Sort of an Indy/Halfbelt hybrid. What kind of zipper? Looks heavy duty.

 

[Fletch]

Not looking to compete on price, I see.

Of course, the brand name is worth something if you're a consumerist ninny.

Ah well, wait till sizes S thru XL are exhausted and it'll be half price.

 

[Jerekson]

Hate to go off-topic, but theman, has anyone ever told you that you would make a great Wolverine?

 

[Daniel Hunter]

I like the jacket personally.

I would agree that the original price is pretty steep for an off the rack leather jacket. I hope you got it substantially cheaper.

The half belt breaks up what would otherwise be a really plain back design. The two way zipper is a nice touch as well.

 

[tonypaj]

That's a jacket with the original price of a FQHH Aero, made to the specs that you want. A reasonable comparison to the jacket in pictures could be a Wested Indy jacket, they can be had for about 160 USD + shipping, custom horsehide less than 250 USD.

Apart from that, style wise it seems to me a mixture of this and that leather jacket, again a bit like the Indy jacket, no problem from me, though, I have one of the Wested Indys. Hard to say much more from the pictures.

 

[theman]

This is better build quality than any of the five Westeds I've owed, from Lamb to Goat to Cow to Horse. There's no way I'd ever pay $700+ for anything J.Crew however, even the Belstaff stuff they carry...I can get fully custom anything from Vanson for that kind of $$. I paid about Wested price for this and it feels like a fair price for sure when it's being worn.

HD - YKK zips, and they do seem heavy duty big gauge stuff.

Jerek - I think someone has mentioned something like that to me before...

 

[HighandDry]

Wow, for 800 bucks, I think you could do better [huh]. Aero for 800 and Langlitz for 900- probably around the same price after sales tax included.

On a side note, why is the wind flap only to chest height?

Just saw that you paid significantly less for the jacket. Cheers!

 

[Fletch]

Wow, for 800 bucks, I think you could do better [huh]. Aero for 800 and Langlitz for 900- probably around the same price after sales tax included.

But there are a lot of people who are, as I said earlier, consumerist ninnies out there for whom the right label is actually worth more money than something custom-made. It says "hey, not only am I deeply in tune with the buzz, but I will willingly drop big money to prove it."

The style itself either doesn't matter for more than a season, or else is a cherished memory of how savvy and au courant the consumer was.

 

[theman]

Or it could just be a cool looking jacket to most people... I came across it on a random search and thought it looked pretty neat before even finding out what was what about the jacket.

Someone said this was a USN style storm flap... not sure what the significance is of the chest height finishing.

 

[ukali1066]

Yeah I had the same flap on a genuine USN G-1 I recently sold

 

[HighandDry]

Just wondering the reasoning behind the short flap. It would seem to me that the use of a wind flap is more important up higher.

Maybe just to make it less restrictive?

 

[HDRnR]

Looks like they only offer this with knitted wrist cuffs now.

 

[Fletch]

Just wondering the reasoning behind the short flap. It would seem to me that the use of a wind flap is more important up higher.

Maybe just to make it less restrictive?

The windflap, at least in US Navy use, was meant not to get in the way when the jacket was worn with a scarf inflight, or open at the neck in milder temps.

When a windflap is full length, as on the Willis & Geiger "NA-1" cloth jacket (not a real Navy type that I know of), it tends to flap when the jacket is open at the neck, forcing one side of the collar to not lie flat and spoiling a crisp appearance.

 

[Navin323i]

That jacket looks great on you, along with the hat.

Nice to see a fellow resident of Maryland on here... I'm in G'burg myself... how about you?

Man, you seriously should be cast in the role of Wolverine in a future X-Men movie!

 

[theman]

Hey Navin! I am just outside Annapolis... and thanks for the kind words. Not sure if my acting skills go beyond a picture though.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Not sure about this one. It has an identity crisis - is it an Indy... is it a half belt... is it a mall jacket? The answer is yes to all three questions.

 

[JoeNiblick]

Seb, you are correct. But I think that's what makes this jacket so wearable. I've found a lot of true vintage items end up looking like you're wearing your grandparents' hand-me-downs (not that there's anything wrong with that). I know there are a lot of hard-core vintage people on here, but for those of us on the fringe, how do you handle the mix?

As far as the price, yes, you are paying a lot for the name brand, and it seems a custom Aero would be more bang for your buck.

Also of interest: I consider J. Crew a pretty "American" company, in terms of styling (right up there with the Gap and Banana Republic), and I'm always interested to get the opinion of our friends abroad. Thoughts, anyone?

 

[tonypaj]

Also of interest: I consider J. Crew a pretty "American" company, in terms of styling (right up there with the Gap and Banana Republic), and I'm always interested to get the opinion of our friends abroad. Thoughts, anyone?

I'm very much European, and buy most of my clothes in the US, while there, or by internet. Well, apart from leather jackets and socks. Socks I buy locally, leather jackets mostly from Aero, the rest of the stuff mainly from the US. The present "fashion" styling in Europe is quite conformist and it does not appeal to me at all. There's also the price factor, where I am, a pair of Dockers chinos go for close to USD 150, same goes for jeans...

As far as this jacket goes, I have no problem with the styling. Sure it's a mish mash, but it's a simple jacket, nothing much can go wrong there. This would be something to get at a factory store for a massive discount, never for the original price. Then you give it to your son...

 

[Navin323i]

Hey Navin! I am just outside Annapolis... and thanks for the kind words. Not sure if my acting skills go beyond a picture though.

Great to meet you! Annapolis isn't far at all from where I live. I see you're a vendor... what do you sell?

If you're ever in my area please do visit.

Navin