Random idea I just thought of

[nick123]

Has anyone thought about creating an organization or charity of some sort to deliver NICE jackets from one or several of our loved makers to someone deserving of one? I'm thinking there could be a day where enthusiasts do something like a group fund, where we get a custom jacket made for someone. Not only would it make someone's day, but it could possibly turn them into an enthusiast as well, and it would give a little publicity and future business to our people, who are otherwise unknown. Imagine if it made the local news...

 

[Seb Lucas]

Who do you have in mind and what prompted this?

 

[nick123]

Who do you have in mind and what prompted this?

Drugs.

 

[nick123]

No, honestly, things like never seeing a WWII vet in a proper repro, etc. And perhaps more people could find out about our hobby. It might improve their lives to a degree.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Ok, I see where you're coming from.

 

[nick123]

Ok, I see where you're coming from.

It's always been in the back of my head. Like, just showing someone how cool these jackets are. The world seems to be in the dark about them, and probably more than a few people would be amazed by it.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Not sure we need more people getting into this stuff. I'm slowly getting out and I think for the better. And most of the manufacturers are doing very well indeed. I'm personally quite happy that most people don't know (or care) about jackets. I'm happily ignorant about many things; cars, bikes, guns, baking... but there are fanatics, fundamentalists even about all such things.

 

[nick123]

Not sure we need more people getting into this stuff. I'm slowly getting out and I think for the better. And most of the manufacturers are doing very well indeed.

I just don't know about the future though. My generation isn't into it at all.

 

[Seb Lucas]

I hear you. You can be the unusual one. Isn't that something to celebrate? I'm middle aged and I have never known anyone my age interested in leather jackets (other than a generic mall or thrift shop item).

 

[nick123]

I don't think more than 100 people would be affected by it, rest assured. But maybe a few converts would do the world some good; people who would genuinely appreciate it.

 

[nick123]

I hear you. You can be the unusual one. Isn't that something to celebrate? I'm middle aged and I have never known anyone my age interested in leather jackets (other than a generic mall or thrift shop item).

It is something to celebrate, but again, I worry about the future. If I'm 50 and there is no market for A-2s and the places have closed shop because of it, I'm going to be ticked off. So my idea's both self centered and humanitarian?

 

[Justhandguns]

Well, at least in Hong Kong, there is a group of enthusiasts having regular gatherings (probably to show off their collections!!!). I do believe there is no business incentive behind the people which is the good thing. To an extend, our little hobby (and obsession) is still largely our own choices, either we see it as a fashion statement or just purely as a collection. I seriously do not think that we need an organisation to promote it, like Seb said, the manufacturers and distributers are all pushing hard on this front already. As for the one thing that can make people happy..... for me at least, is that the jackets should be more affordable.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

I don't think more than 100 people would be affected by it, rest assured. But maybe a few converts would do the world some good; people who would genuinely appreciate it.

Any number counts. I bought my first real leather jacket because of this forum after owning a fake leather jacket that I thought looked pretty cool. I wanted the real thing and now I have it and even in SOCAL, I struggle to take it off

I know of nobody my age (personally) who is into leather jackets (I'm 23). Heck, more guys are into raw denim and boots than leather jackets by a long shot at my age, but I'm sure you convert a few for sure. I wish there were more meet ups for stuff like this.

 

[Sloan1874]

I wouldn't worry too much. The Lounge is a very small fragment of a burgeoning area.

 

[Monitor]

I support this idea hoping that somehow I could become a candidate for that free jacket.

My worry is, where would you find a person in a need of a proper leather jacket, outside of asking people on the street, which I am sure would all answer positively to a proposition? I'd imagine that not many people unable to financially support this peculiar hobby would inhabit this forum - because looking at all the cool stuff one cannot have isn't all that fun at all - and outside of here, how else would we know who is genuinely passionate about leather jackets as opposed to someone simply being opportunistic?

I think though that it would be cool if someone who's really into this rather inane obsession but without the means to afford a decent jacket, could finally have their dream come true this way. I know of a few members of this forum who had infected their friends and relatives with the jacket bug and then given or even bought them a serious jacket, out of sheer kindness. I've done that too, the result of which is that right now I'm down to a single leather jacket... And no hi-fi system, Wacom Cintiq, WW1 guns collection and basically everything else I had in my room, that I had sell to support my addiction. Money well spent indeed...

 

[HoosierDaddy]

A member on the VLJ forum took up donations to purchase a quality A2 repro for a WW2 vet several years ago. It worked out quite well and the vet was more than pleasantly happy and surprised.
However..choosing a truly needy recipient who would so appreciate a custom jacket of certain style and fit might not be so easy to accomplish by those wishing to be charitable. Considering just who has real hardship can often be a tricky thing.
HD

 

[nick123]

A member on the VLJ forum took up donations to purchase a quality A2 repro for a WW2 vet several years ago. It worked out quite well and the vet was more than pleasantly happy and surprised.
However..choosing a truly needy recipient who would so appreciate a custom jacket of certain style and fit might not be so easy to accomplish by those wishing to be charitable. Considering just who has real hardship can often be a tricky thing.
HD

True. Thanks for all the comments. I'm going to think of something up.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Just don't kid yourself than a geezer vet will really appreciate the quality of a quality repro.

My dad was in the Army Air Corps, but as a photographer, not a flyer. When I got interested in A-2s, he got all misty and said, "Boy, I always envied those leather jackets that my flyboy buddies had." Soon after, I got him what was the go-to low-end A-2 repro back in 2001, a Bradley Associates (http://www.acmedepot.com/a2jacket/eval_Bradley.shtml). It was a fairly poor replica: cowhide, synthetic lining and knits, too-big pockets and collar, modern YKK zipper...

And he pronounced it "exactly!" the same as the jackets he'd seen/handled/borrowed in WWII. That was a real lesson about how memory functions in old age!

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Well after many years your memory may not recall everything so specifically whether your an old geezer yet or not...but what matters is the joy it may bring. Also,especially,if it is a joint effort..why not provide the best to a deserving vet..??
HD

 

[Doctor Strange]

Because - if we're still talking about WWII vets here - they can't tell that it's "the best". You could get them a $150 WPG A-2 and they'll love it. For the price of a premium repro, you could give WPG A-2s to a half-dozen vets!

Okay, maybe my dad was a poor example in some senses. But he was a reasonable example of his generation. He and my mom both grew up poor in the Depression and served in the war, and their taste and judgment was set in their youth. They didn't quest for "the best" of anything. Not ever! "The best" was for rich people, not real people. They wanted "good enough for a good price" and they were thrilled to mend and repair when something broke. Nothing made them happier than passing along something used/broken if it could be reused or repurposed. Their watchword was "good utilization".

My dad would have been appalled and disgusted if presented with a $800 jacket. He insisted that the $199 Bradley was much too good for him! It took a lot of pleading to get him to accept it... and then he barely ever wore it because it was "too nice". (After he died I gave it to a friend of mine, who loves wearing it. So it's finally getting good utilization!)