Long Halfbelt - with Yoke?

[jpk_NJ]

Has anyone ever had a LHB made with a front chest yoke (no breast pocket)? Almost like a more streamlined Aero Hudson. Either a completely straight yoke across the front or slightly angled. Thoughts on how this might look? I think the old Windward label might have produced something similar.

 

[handymike]

It looks great!
I think they call them "Western" front yokes.
I love them on a longer style jacket.

 

[tropicalbob]

Funny you should ask that. When I ordered my LHB three years ago and just before the whole Mark Moye/storse kerfluffle, I had requested one. When the jacket finally arrived after almost a six-month wait I was just glad to get it, and thanks to Julie it was otherwise perfect. Just one of those things, I suppose, but I often wonder how it would have come out.

 

[handymike]

like this

 

[ProteinNerd]

I quite like the straight front yoke on the teamster and 59er but the western yoke, no thanks...makes it look like a kids cowboy costume.

 

[jpk_NJ]

Hmm, that photo rules out the western yoke and bag pockets for me. Nice design, but not versatile enough for my everyday wear. Any LHB's on the lounge with a straight chest yoke or slight angle? Along with the regular cargo pocket/handwarmer setup.

 

[nick123]

Some more "yoke" talk:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?70689-Western-Leather-Jacket

 

[Bunyip]

I quite like the straight front yoke on the teamster and 59er but the western yoke, no thanks...makes it look like a kids cowboy costume.

100%

 

[Dinerman]

Stylistically, it's not really different than the scalloped pocket flaps on an A-2, which come from the scalloped pocket flaps on military uniforms, which trace their roots to European tailoring traditions. You'll see the same "western" yoke on many German tailored garments.
That type of scalloped yoke was popular on leather jackets in the 1940s. By that point, it was a distinctly American, with many manufacturers pulling in subtle western influences, either in design or marketing (like Penney's inclusion of "made in the west" on many of their workwear labels) in the immediate post-war period.

If you look through the threads here, it's interesting how many of the distinctive details which define original jackets of the 1920s-1950s - patterned knits, pleated pockets, intricate back treatments, collar designs, are questioned and criticized for being too fussy, feminine, "cowboy costume-y", etc. without taking the time to understand their historical context, chronology or meaning, while modernized, lengthened, simplified approximations of vintage jackets made from leather of a weight which didn't exist on originals are praised for their accuracy.

 

[Dinerman]

For comparison and historical references

Scalloped back yokes


Scalloped front and back yokes


Straight front yokes

 

[nick123]

I think I prefer the scalloped yokes. A little curvature (whether it be pocket flaps or yokes) is easy on the eyes and looks good. Sometimes I see a jacket that is comprised of mostly straight lines and I think, "this one's kind of a square...."

 

[repo]

Thanks Dinerman - interesting information as ever.

 

[jpk_NJ]

Seriously, Big thanks Dinerman. Very helpful seeing the various vintage styles. Im surprised no one has an aero LHB with yokes, maybe they just won't do that mod. I think it would look really good.