New Civilian A-2 from Aerial Star

[nick123]

Received this jacket yesterday, an A-2 with side-entry pockets from the new company, Aerial Star Leather. Very impressed as mentioned before, with the jacket, and more so with the service from Chris. Speaking with him, I'm confident a lot of thought and care was taken into making these jackets.

-Size 40 Civilian A-2 with two-way pockets
3 oz chrome-tanned, analine dyed (with waterproofing topcoat) russet steerhide
"Russet" colored lining
100% wool knits
Color-matched thread (not the tan pictured on the website)
No hook, collar snaps or ventilation holes
Elongated sleeves and a bit longer body length

Here it is in the sunlight:

I think it's just about the finest shade of russet I've ever seen. As you can see, laying the jacket out in the sunlight really brings the orange/gold tones out of the leather. Indoors it becomes a bit darker but is still a very lively light brown color.
The collar/label:

Note that the collar is my favorite feature of the jacket. It's very uniquely shaped and has a great look.
The cargo pockets w/handwarmer pockets:

The epaulet/stitching:

The knits:

The shapes of the knits are a bit different than those on other A-2s I have worn. Another unique feature. They're a bit tight right now (careful taking it on and off) but they should stretch over time.
The jacket, unzipped:

Fit pic #1:

As you might be able to see, the shoulders and upper arms are constructed a bit roomier so there is no binding of the arms, unlike a mil-spec A-2. Many civilian A-2s from the 1940s-50s marketed this feature. The elegant look of the collar is also illustrated here. I feel there is virtually zero break-in required to get it comfortable, but in time I predict it will develop a proper drape when it softens up.
Fit pic #2 (don't look at my off-center belt-buckle):

 

[Boyo]

Hey your jacket looks nice, the fit looks about right in the sleeves, maybe a bit boxy at the moment but it should settle down a bit with some wear... Any specific reason why you choose the mods you did? Good luck with it..

 

[Sloan1874]

Love the colour. Sort of a 42 contract feel. A bit of rough wear and I'm sure it'll start to 'belong' to you.

 

[nick123]

Hey your jacket looks nice, the fit looks about right in the sleeves, maybe a bit boxy at the moment but it should settle down a bit with some wear... Any specific reason why you choose the mods you did? Good luck with it..

Chris told me he wanted to revise the standard model a bit to not include some of the hardware and change the thread color. I told him I had no objections to my model having these changes. He told me the website model is still an option though for customers.

Love the colour. Sort of a 42 contract feel. A bit of rough wear and I'm sure it'll start to 'belong' to you.

I thought the same thing about the 42 actually. That's funny. I think the collar is very Dubow-esque.

 

[Worf]

Nice jacket, and it seems to fit. I like a looser A2 than some others. Yours looks quite nice. And their prices seem quite reasonable. They don't make em in my size so enjoy!

Worf

 

[nick123]

Nice jacket, and it seems to fit. I like a looser A2 than some others. Yours looks quite nice. And their prices seem quite reasonable. They don't make em in my size so enjoy!

Worf

Email him. Tell him Nick told you he will never buy from you again unless he makes a jacket in your size.

 

[Worf]

Email him. Tell him Nick told you he will never buy from you again unless he makes a jacket in your size.

Ha Ha!!!! That's what I like... INFLUENCE!!!! I got an in!!!! Thanks man you made my night!!!

Worf

PS, I looked at the pics again and the stitching is exquisite! Thanks for sharing!

 

[handymike]

Looking good Nick!!!!

 

[bretron]

Totally and completely bitchin!

 

[nick123]

Thankss

 

[aswatland]

I really like the design of this civi A-2, particularly the collar and the pockets. Although the sleeves tunnel at the moment they should improve through wear. You either need to wear trousers with a higher waistband or have an inch or so added to the bottom of the jacket to have the perfect fit IMO!

 

[Seb Lucas]

How much did it come to?

 

[schitzo]

Hey Nick this leather looks really lovely. This is perhaps a dumb question but how wide is the knit at the waist? Is it bigger than usual?

Also, what's the length of your jacket? I guess it's no more than 27", possibly it's 26.5", am I warm?

I have no idea how this works.. but when I dabbled with this style I found that my formula is the bare minimum I can abide length wise for the leather alone + then add on the 2.5" wide knit. Which if memory serves is a 28.5" long jacket. And even then I thought another half inch wouldn't have been a bad thing

 

[nick123]

I really like the design of this civi A-2, particularly the collar and the pockets. Although the sleeves tunnel at the moment they should improve through wear. You either need to wear trousers with a higher waistband or have an inch or so added to the bottom of the jacket to have the perfect fit IMO!

Thanks Andrew. Agreed, the sleeves might be a but long at 27.5" but we'll see what happens when they crease up.
The trousers make a huge difference. The day I received it I had higher waisted jeans on and the bottom of the knit extended nearly an inch below the belt!
I think the russet shade is very interesting. Did any wartime A-2s color resemble it?

How much did it come to?

Roughly three payments of $200 USD so $600 or so. The third payment isn't due until January 2014.

Hey Nick this leather looks really lovely. This is perhaps a dumb question but how wide is the knit at the waist? Is it bigger than usual?

Also, what's the length of your jacket? I guess it's no more than 27", possibly it's 26.5", am I warm?

I have no idea how this works.. but when I dabbled with this style I found that my formula is the bare minimum I can abide length wise for the leather alone + then add on the 2.5" wide knit. Which if memory serves is a 28.5" long jacket. And even then I thought another half inch wouldn't have been a bad thing

Schitzo, the waist knit is wider than usual. I will have to measure when I get a chance. Trust me, I've already contemplated a possible worldwide economic collapse and Chris told me he'd be happy to sell replacement knits for the future. lol
And the jacket is short-only 25.5". Completely doable anyhow IMO and I think the A-2 looks best when it is short.
However, (I will list the cons for full transparency), the jacket ended up being made shorter than the 27" I spec'd. Chris called me before the jacket was shipped to let me know that he apologized and would let me return it for a remake if I ended up not liking it.
Another thing, is you may be asking yourself why I included no back shots, (which is important). Well, I decided to hold off for now because there is an unsightly horizontal crease from the jacket being folded in the box!
It should be back to normal in a few weeks' wear so I will show it then because the crease has nothing to do with the jacket.
I emailed to let Chris know of this and he ordered some larger boxes.
Conclusion, both problems are taken care of for future customers and neither bugged me to the point of dissatisfaction.

 

[aswatland]

There was a range of different shades of russet jackets worn in the War. I have not seen an original quite this shade, but this does not mean they did not exist!

 

[BigFitz]

It is a great looking jacket. I hope they will make some jackets in the future without the knit. Something like an Aero Dustbowl at a similar price as this A2 and they'd have another customer.

 

[Aerial Star]

Nick,

Thanks very much for the review!

Here's a few photos I took of Nick's A-2:

 

[ButteMT61]

Super smart looking jacket. Color is really rich too. Nicely done.

 

[Sloan1874]

Absolutely, it's a nice spin on the A-2, and a really nice jacket - as Butte said, the colour is fantastic!

 

[Bunyip]

I really like that, very nice...