Looking for a shearling jacket for winter, any advice for B3,B6,D1 or other?

[Lucas59Lars]

Yes, the product images from fivestar are really bad. Nevertheless, the company is worth recommending if you want a well-made jacket according to your own measurements and perhaps your own ideas. The search here in the forum should provide some testimonials.
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/5-shearling-mix-of-d-1-b-3-trucker.102324/#post-2735353

And some from Aero
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/aeroleathers-coastal-command-jacket.101603/

That Shearling jacket from the first link looks phenomenal! The fit is amazing! Is that the Aero?

 

[Tim Tempest]

This is a great thread..I came into some money & have been looking for a B3,A B6 or D1 & a trucker jacket & already I have experienced the old buyer's remorse..I looked at over 30 manufacturers..
I ordered the midnight trucker from Cockpit USA..the off peg fit was atrocious..way too long & blousy,arms too tight,armpits etc..most likely down to my own inexperience..I've learnt a lot on here..
So I now have three jackets that dont fit..a Levi Buffalo trucker thats too large,a Celtic co sheepskin trucker thats too long & the aforesaid Midnight..Guess I will sell them on E bay or maybe on the classifieds here or have them shortened..
I have an old B3 I swapped off someone from Cockpit,starting to show signs of rot.& I have an Eastman B3 en route size 44..
So anyway,orginally I just meant to buy two or three jackets.By the time I am done I will of bought like 6 jackets..I feel so stupid..but I guess there are worse things to spend your money on.3 to keep & 3 to sell..(plus the knackered old cockpit B3)
I have decided to get the Horsehide jean jacket/trucker from aero & a D1(as I see it says here they are shorter than the B6),,I was going to get Cockpit's Pearl Harbour but enough is enough heh..Hopefully the Eastman will fit & I'll be content with that for this incarnation..
So it just remains for me to choose what brand of D1 to get..It wont be the Aero (too thick shearling)

 

[MrProper]

That Shearling jacket from the first link looks phenomenal! The fit is amazing! Is that the Aero?

thanks. No, the first link is a made2measure from FiveStar.
Aero is the second link.

 

[ton312]

You need to be willing to put in the work with 5 Star. If you are and do the payoff is splendid.

 

[ton312]

The shearling does have thickness to it, especially at 1" length.

That last photo, on cockpitusa's website, looks like an exceptionally poor fit.
Shoulder seams off the shoulder, and the whole body looks like it has a lot of extra room inside that it shouldn't have. The model is likely slimmer than the cut of this jacket is intended for, and should have sized down. It's hard to understand why the merchant went with this photo to sell their product.

View attachment 281453

Maybe big bro went away to school and he inherited it. Couldn’t agree more. Photos like this are how you don’t sell your stuff.

 

[MrProper]

So it just remains for me to choose what brand of D1 to get..It wont be the Aero (too thick shearling)

what do you mean by too thick shearling? The aero d1 is made of lightweight shearling and I think wool that is too short does not go well with a shearling in this style.

 

[Tim Tempest]

Heh yes I think I got mixed up reading another thread..ok so I have placed a preliminary order for the Aero D1..
Kinda galling to think I could of bought an Aero D1 AND Aero horsehide trucker for the price of Cockpit USA's lame 'Midnight trucker'..
I had read that Aeros shearling was 22" vs Eastmans 15" but that may of only applied to B3's
Aero's D1 also has a nice Talon zipper yippee

 

[Harris HTM]

Photos like this are how you don’t sell your stuff.

Photos like this are how you don't sell your stuff... to TFL/VLJ members. I guess it works for the target group the brand has chosen.

 

[Guppy]

Photos like this are how you don't sell your stuff... to TFL/VLJ members. I guess it works for the target group the brand has chosen.

I guess that'd be pretty-boy models who want to wear a B-3 like a cloak over an Italian suit because it's ridiculously over-warm for weather where water is liquid, so don't need to care about fit. Kinda niche.

 

[Entropic Thunder]

I'm looking for a first shearling jacket, figured I could use something that would be warm for winters.
I've been eyeing RAF Cockpit Jacket or Schott B-3, but those jacket just seems so puffy, like making me look like I have 20 kilos extra on me.

At the same time, when I saw those jackets from Cockpit,

Their model pictures
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f5/20/e2/f520e2350f6b2be0ef45b9b2ea34b22c.jpg
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/31/44/79/314479d1ce720b14da0aa1f119e7e623.jpg

Their site pictures:
https://cockpitusa.com/collections/sheepskin-jackets/products/r-a-f-sheepskin-bomber-jacket

On these pictures they actually look quite good but I can't seem to wrap my head around the fact that when you check their website, the color is totally different and they just seem like it's not even the same jacket, but they did confirm it is (Or maybe the color of the sheepskin varies?). I'm looking forward to some suggestions on what to do. Are these jackets quite puffy and big in general due to the amount of material inside or is that more of a fit thing? I'm looking towards having fit like the ones on the first pictures, in this particular color. Thank you!

Do not under any circumstances buy anything from Cockpit. I bought a tanker jacket, which showed up literally 3 sizes too large, and I even ordered a size down as recommended on the site. They charged an exorbitant amount for shipping both ways and wouldn’t refund even though they clearly mislabeled the sizing on that run of jackets. The customer service person even admitted the jackets were made for some kind of big and tall catalogue or something. In the end the owner “Jacky” totally lost his mind, inexplicably, and inanely threatened to come after me with a libel case because I told him I was disappointed with their service. All I can say is the company is truly aptly named.

 

[Lucas59Lars]

Do not under any circumstances buy anything from Cockpit. I bought a tanker jacket, which showed up literally 3 sizes too large, and I even ordered a size down as recommended on the site. They charged an exorbitant amount for shipping both ways and wouldn’t refund even though they clearly mislabeled the sizing on that run of jackets. The customer service person even admitted the jackets were made for some kind of big and tall catalogue or something. In the end the owner “Jacky” totally lost his mind, inexplicably, and inanely threatened to come after me with a libel case because I told him I was disappointed with their service. All I can say is the company is truly aptly named.

Thanks for that response, I was really torn but after reading some stuff before from other threads, it did seem like the sizing of their jackets are completely off and the pictures are ridiculous which made me not want to buy anything from them but part of me was still thinking maybe I'm wrong. You definitely swayed it to "Definitely avoid" section, and saved me precious time and money. They did also say that I would have to pay shipping costs to ship it back in case the sizing is wrong which I expected to be wrong, and it would come out to be +-150$ so yeah, skipping it surely. Thanks again!

 

[Marc mndt]

Some background info. Cockpit USA is the same company as the company which used to make Avirex branded jackets. They sold the Avirex brandname for a lot of money to some Chinese company back in 2008. That's when they started the Cockpit USA brand. Jackets are basically the same as the pre-2008 Avirex jackets, just a different label.

Business wise a pretty smart move if you ask me. They hit big on it. They used the money to buy planes for their hobby which is flying.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

What do you mean by 22" shearling..?

 

[Cornelius]

What do you mean by 22" shearling..?

I wondered that as well, but then guessed he might mean 22mm shearling, which would be roughly 7/8".

[with Eastman's supposed 15mm shearling being equal to about 9/16"]

 

[Cornelius]

what do you mean by too thick shearling? The aero d1 is made of lightweight shearling and I think wool that is too short does not go well with a shearling in this style.

@MrProper, is your custom 5* shearling of their standard 10mm stock, or something thicker?

I am debating whether to commission a shearling jacket from them this winter, but would want it thick enough to deal with the truly cold winters we often have around Lake Michigan.

For us Yanks, 10mm is a bit more than 3/8" (but a hair under 7/16"), and I'm not certain that would do the job (maybe @ton312, @Bfd70, or other Chicagoans with sheepskin experience could chime in here?)

I would also want the shearling in a dark brown rather than white or natural/Ecru.

 

[MrProper]

I wanted that 10 mm because the 20 mm would have become too thick for me. And for the warmer I have the Coastal Command. But I also have to say that I thought the 10mm was a bit thicker. But perfect for the climate in which I live.

 

[JacketAddict]

This one is my favorite - moderate price - great quality - off the shelf size fits me perfect - quality throughout. Better jacket overall than my previously owned AERO B6. This is my #1 goto on those very cold winter days.

 

[Tim Tempest]

22"..just something I read on a thread here..that Aero's was thicker..
Regarding Cockpit..their sizing is terrible..at least the midnight trucker I bought in large..the body was long like a coat & massively wide around my torso) yet it was way too tight under my armpits/shoulders/back..& it cost so much to ship from the states..very disappointing..I was after then sort of trucker fit like Terry Mitchells trucker jackets..I guess those were custom jobs..
The Schott is nice
I've an old medium suedey Aviatrix B3 that fits great..Il take a pic..There was a tear..my sister said she couldnt mend it as it was beginning to 'rot'