Sub $500 A2 jackets suggestions?

[irow]

I have decided to get an A2, I like the classic style.

First off, I have read this page, gives a good sumary I think. (Is the writer a member of fedora lounge? )

http://www.acmedepot.com/a2jacket/index.shtml

So to start I am looking for:

brown goatskin leather (cause i don't have a goatskin jacket, are the a2 jackets made from goat skin good quality? i read that there are some low quality goatskin which bogs down the quality and horsehide standards are higher however good quality goatskin can still be found on a2s, buyers beware?)


2 front, 1 back, 2x 2 piece sleeve

epaulets center/not slanted forward

1 piece collar top, 2 can be at the bottom
collar points depends on maker

shapes of pockets varies by maker, can be different between jackets of the same maker

pockets are not suppose to be close together
no hand warmers
no inside pockets


just a brief summary of what i got after skimming the page.

1) what makers do you recommend, I browsed the forum, there is gibson and barnes, flight jacket.com/us authentic, alpha, etc, any more suggestions?

2) for these "lower priced" brand do the leather fade and age like the jackets i see in the photos on this website? is the leather the higher quality full grain leather whihc will develop a patina?

3) is there a slim fit? i read that in the past they made the jackets trimmer and nowadays they make them fuller. i don't want that, im 6' 2" and slim built and sometimes it is difficult to get the lengths correct when the widths fit right. i am concerned because i read gibson and barnes run large. when measuring sleeve lengths is cuff ribbing included? i assume not, can anyone confirm?

4) 100% reproduction is not nessesry, so long it has the 1 peice back/2piece front, 2x2 piece sleeve that is ok for the most part, i dont want the company to be cutting corners by using many small peices of leather that is all. hand warmer pockets are not needed. not too concerned about stitching (unless i should be?)

5) i see an alpha a2 on ebay for $280 new, and a g&b is new on thier website for about $380, and so is the us auth a2, are they both worth the 100$ price premium? are they all made in the same factory and then rebranded differently and sold. the brand doesn't matter to me, looking for a quality jacket.

6) i am sure other questions will come up, i will update as needed. thanks all.

 

[Aerojoe]

1 - I think flightjacket.com A2 is a good starting point under $500. Stay away from Alpha. I saw this jacket and I thought it was pretty horrible.

2 - I don't think so but I have seen some aged flightjacket.com A2 here on the forum and they looked good.

3 - The only maker doing a regular slim fit is ELC. It's not cheap and they have only two sizes. You could try to custom order from any other maker. Not a cheap option either.

5 - Stay away from Alpha, 2.0

6 - You can't ask too much for $500. These days, you'll end up in the realms of the made in China.

 

[Flash]

1) For this low price I can recommend you the "Wild" Bill Kelso. They have their "no contract" jacket for about $420. For me the best "lowcost" jacket. I have one their jacket and yesterday I have ordered another.
2) I have their Rough Wear 27752 contract for more a year and the patina is starting to be visible. I have the horsehide but they make a goatskin too.
3) BK offer standard size, but when you ask they can customize. I have ordered a Dubow 1755 contract for my brother yesterday in size 44 vith longer sleeves and back. I have also problem with sizes I am 6´3" and 42 1/2 chest and 33 waist.
4) 100% repro for that price is only a dream The BK jacket is 1 piece back, 2 front and 2x2 sleeves. But it has forwarded epauletes. But look at their website. I think it looks very good If you don´t need exact WW2 contract.
5) Sory I don´t know G&B jackets, but Alpha A-2 and US authentic A-2 are realy not my cup of tea.
6) The best will be to forward questions to makers of jakets. I have contacted some of them and they were always very patiente and their advices were helpful.

 

[Doctor Strange]

I'm also going to recommend US Authentic (flightjacket.com) - their goatskin model is in your price range, has a tall/narrow fit, and is reasonably accurate in the ways that matter most (construction details like the number of panels, proper cotton lining and wool knits, etc.) US Authentic jackets are also QUITE hand-made in a very small shop - I visited when I got mine - and they have a very different character from the similar modern-spec jackets coming out of one or two factories that have many different brandnames slapped on (US Wings, Schott, Legendary USA, Alpha, etc.)

I like my G&B jackets too, but US A jackets have a more unique, rough-hewn feel. None of these are up at the Good Wear level, but US A gets you a surprising amount of the way there for the low price...

 

[SuinBruin]

Stay away from G&B if you're tall and slender, especially if you have long arms. Their jackets are made short and wide, even in tall sizes. I'm 6'1" and wear an off-the-rack 40L, and both of the 40L G&B jackets I've had were too short in the arms by an inch and too broad in the body and shoulders. A G&B 38L would have been ludicrously short in the body and sleeves; a 42L would have been way too wide. Check out the size chart on their web site and you'll see what I mean.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Stay away from G&B if you're tall and slender, especially if you have long arms. Their jackets are made short and wide, even in tall sizes. I'm 6'1" and wear an off-the-rack 40L, and both of the 40L G&B jackets I've had were too short in the arms by an inch and too broad in the body and shoulders. A G&B 38L would have been ludicrously short in the body and sleeves; a 42L would have been way too wide. Check out the size chart on their web site and you'll see what I mean.

I'm 6ft 2 with long arms, 185 pounds & I
have 3 G&B's. 42L fits fine. Maybe a little roomy but I'm thin.

 

[Maj.Nick Danger]

I'll cast my vote for U.S. Authentic. I owned one for a while that I quite liked. The fit was a bit roomy in the body, longish in the sleeves, but all in all not bad. Quite comfortable even though the horsehide was thick and heavy compared to wartime A2s. I rather like the sort of bullet-proof feeling of heavier leather anyway. Also, the worsted wool knits are a huge advantage over those horrid acrylics, or acrylic blend materials which pill and look hideous in no time. Worsted wool just doesn't do that, it seems to be made to last just as long as the leather itself.

 

[fukigen]

2) I have their Rough Wear 27752 contract for more a year and the patina is starting to be visible. I have the horsehide but they make a goatskin too.

Do you have some pictures of your BK? We love pictures here.

 

[Worf]

One more vote for US Authentic/Flight Jacket.com. Even their custom work (I'm too big in the chest for "off the rack") is very reasonable with excellent turn around time. Shaul, who runs the shop, gives decent communication even if he doesn't hold your hand all day like some manufacturers. I'm VERY satisfied with both my jackets.

Worf

 

[Edward]

1) For this low price I can recommend you the "Wild" Bill Kelso. They have their "no contract" jacket for about $420. For me the best "lowcost" jacket. I have one their jacket and yesterday I have ordered another.

Are they keeping that in the line-up? I emailed with Andy a few months ago about one of those, as I'd like another A2, this time in a russet (I have an ELC horse and Aero Goat, both bought used, both in seal), but I don't want to spend the kind of cash that one of the very most authentic contract jackets fetch (halfway tempted to pick up two, one for having done up as an AVG...). Unfortunately they just didn't seem to have one available in my size - I had the impression they were moving away from the no-contract jacket, and were selling off stock?

What are BK sizings like these days? I take a 42 in a current Aero and ELC A2 (vintage cut, but listed in modern sizes), and I would expect to be a 44 in a wartime size. WAsn't quite clear on where BK fall in this....

As to the OP... if you have the patience, I would keep an eye on eBay and the classfieds here for a used jacket too. I bought both my A2s from eBay for around USD300 a pop in today's money, and I regularly see them sell for this (albeit that the price is creeping up a little on some in relation to the rises in the new price, especially ELC, in recent years).

 

[majormajor]

Worth looking on the Eastman site, and checking their guestbook - there are often A2s advertised there.

 

[thor]

The Cockpit in NYC makes a reasonably accurate russet brown horsehide and seal brown goatskin A-2, both under 500 clams. Check out their website and compare.

 

[SuinBruin]

I'm 6ft 2 with long arms, 185 pounds & I have 3 G&B's. 42L fits fine. Maybe a little roomy but I'm thin.

"Long arms" is relative. I take a dress shirt with 35" sleeves. According to G&B's size chart, their 40L has 34" sleeves (33" for a 40 + 1" for a tall size), leaving me an inch short. (Even their 42L is only 1/2" longer in the sleeve. I'm 6'1", 185 lbs. and would be swimming in a G&B size 42, which would still leave me too short in the sleeves.) Pretty much every other off-the-rack 40L I've purchased has had long enough arms.

You can go custom with G&B, but that bumps the price up significantly and makes the jacket nonreturnable.

G&B size chart

 

[Fanch]

"Long arms" is relative. I take a dress shirt with 35" sleeves. According to G&B's size chart, their 40L has 34" sleeves (33" for a 40 + 1" for a tall size), leaving me an inch short. (Even their 42L is only 1/2" longer in the sleeve. I'm 6'1", 185 lbs. and would be swimming in a G&B size 42, which would still leave me too short in the sleeves.) Pretty much every other off-the-rack 40L I've purchased has had long enough arms.

You can go custom with G&B, but that bumps the price up significantly and makes the jacket nonreturnable.

G&B size chart

I think that you will find that a G&B A-2 in their tall size will not be too short in the arms regardless of what the charts say.

 

[Seb Lucas]

"Long arms" is relative. I take a dress shirt with 35" sleeves. According to G&B's size chart, their 40L has 34" sleeves (33" for a 40 + 1" for a tall size), leaving me an inch short. (Even their 42L is only 1/2" longer in the sleeve. I'm 6'1", 185 lbs. and would be swimming in a G&B size 42, which would still leave me too short in the sleeves.) Pretty much every other off-the-rack 40L I've purchased has had long enough arms.

You can go custom with G&B, but that bumps the price up significantly and makes the jacket nonreturnable.

G&B size chart

In fairness your arms issues sounds unusual - I doubt it will apply to many others. I usually order 26 inch sleeves when I go custom. The standard G&B "T" fits fine. However, back on topic. I think the US Authentic does a more plausible A2. I'm not trying to sell G&B products.

Just measured by G&B sleeve - 27 inches long.