The A2 Hall of Fame

[george kaplan]

Hey folks, I'm new here. Read alot of your posts and thought this would be a nice thread for all of us to refer to now and in the future.

Tell us what you think to be the best A2 make and model out there available today. Your choice for the Hall could be a jacket made by a number of companies like Eastman, Real McCoy's, Aero, Flightsuits, Lost World and on and on.

This should be interesting. Some swear by specific repros by Aero while others say that RMNZ has hit on all cylinders - then there's the Eastman bunch who will go to war with you.

Give us specifics boys and tell us why, in your opinion, this or that jacket is a cut above the rest. Okay, you can list more than one if you have to.

George

 

[MudInYerEye]

Aero Real Deal. Russet hide with rust knits. Just looks right.

 

[shamus]

I'm partial to Aero. But real mccoy I've heard is very nice too.

 

[MudInYerEye]

I've only owned one McCoy's, a McCoy's Sportswear model from the late 90's. I wasn't crazy about the thinnish hide and quickly sold it, but the details (United Carr snaps etc.) were outstanding. I've seen many other McCoy's with different hides and I've been very impressed, their Monarch model in particular. The jackets they made for their "Few" line are incredible. I'll be in Japan come November, and I'm looking foward to handling a "Few" jacket or two in person.
My Eastman RoughWear 1401P is also a great jacket. The light OD thread against the beautiful reddish russet hide draws many compliment from well-dressed detail-minded ladies. I'm not as crazy about my Eastman Star which actually requires wearing a sweater underneath to fill the blousy fit. I also have an Aero Indian Russet Goatskin which is a surprisingly nice albeit less accurate jacket, and an Aero 1756 in a very grainy dark seal, also a nice jacket tho a very stingy fit.

 

[JWG]

I have a 1756 and a Real Deal Aero (15142). I will agree with you regarding the 1756---it's awsome, but frankly the cut does require going up one size for many. I'm one of them. The upside is that my 1756 is a size up from the 15142 and is a more comfortable fit, yet is trimmer than the 15142 in a smaller size.

 

[Harry Marlowe]

Why hasn't anyone mentioned Cooper A2s? Got mine last Christmas.

http://www.neilcooperusa.com/

 

[MudInYerEye]

Cooper makes a decent jacket for knocking about in. They had a small contract during WWII making A-2s for the USAAF, but the modern USAF and civilian A-2s they've produced are quite different from the wartime A-2s of the 30's and 40's in pattern and spec quality.
For an excellent reproduction of an original A-2 your main manufacturers would be McCoy's/Few, Aero Leather, Eastman Leather, or Buzz Rickson's. Each one of these companies make several different A-2 jackets representing various original contracts
There is also Lost Worlds, but they are definitely a rung below the other companies in the charm department.
Check out acmedepot.com for an excellent primer.

 

[Harry Marlowe]

Yeah, you're right,kid. Cooper does make a good jacket for knocking about in. The problem I have with the Real McCoy is that it's made in Christchurch, New Zealand. I got nothing against New Zealand. Great people, wonderful country. But,they never had a contract with the USAF back in the WWII.
.
For me, I like the fact that I'm wearing a jacket that has a history of being made in the USA, for USA flyboys and a manufactor that can still say that they don't import anything, including the goatskin. When's the last time you read on the back of any clothing "Made in the USA"??....right down to the zipper.

Sorry, kid, for me there's more that goes into buying a leather flight jacket than looking good. Not only does my NeilCooper look good it's a real USA McCoy.

 

[Doctor Strange]

It's worth remembering that Flight Suits and US Authentic also make some pretty nice A-2s. They're not up in the same league as premium repros like McCoy's and Eastman, but they're closer to the originals than the current-spec Coopers, and they *are* made in the USA.

 

[Harry Marlowe]

You're right. They should be considered too.

 

[jake431]

Yeah, you're right,kid. Cooper does make a good jacket for knocking about in. The problem I have with the Real McCoy is that it's made in Christchurch, New Zealand. I got nothing against New Zealand. Great people, wonderful country. But,they never had a contract with the USAF back in the WWII.
.
For me, I like the fact that I'm wearing a jacket that has a history of being made in the USA, for USA flyboys and a manufactor that can still say that they don't import anything, including the goatskin. When's the last time you read on the back of any clothing "Made in the USA"??....right down to the zipper.

Sorry, kid, for me there's more that goes into buying a leather flight jacket than looking good. Not only does my NeilCooper look good it's a real USA McCoy.

If having your A-2 made in America is really that important to you, I would also suggest checking out Lost Worlds - their owner is totally insane, but his jackets are good (even better than the originals, so says Stu). His A-2 is practically bullet proof and better than US Authentic and (maybe) Flightsuits.

-Jake

 

[PADDY]

By only buying North American...

You immediately restrict your options. Yes, it is ironic that the top repro WW2 american flight jackets are made outside of the USA. I'm sure there is a good reason for that too, just not sure what it is. But I do know that if you rule out the likes of Eastman; Aero; RMNZ; Buzz Rickson, then you do yourself a diservice by not keeping all those great options open. I would love to say that I only buy British and am more patriotic for that stance. But in the real world, I would be sorely restricting myself, and not neccessarily getting the best goods for my money to do the job I need the product to do. If it helps getting around the 'patriotic card,' then think of New Zealand and Great Britain as having been sound allies to the US, and they honour the US servicemen/women by replicating such fine jackets. I'll jump off my old wood wormed soap box now Good luck to all and sunder in your quest for the ultimate Holy Grail A-2!!!!

 

[Harry Marlowe]

Didn't the Brits produce a flight jacket? I may be wrong, but I think it was called a IRVIN.

By the way, I think we should all be discussing this over a few drinks at Paddy's bar.

 

[MudInYerEye]

"Yeah, you're right,kid. Cooper does make a good jacket for knocking about in. The problem I have with the Real McCoy is that it's made in Christchurch, New Zealand. I got nothing against New Zealand. Great people, wonderful country. But,they never had a contract with the USAF back in the WWII.
.
For me, I like the fact that I'm wearing a jacket that has a history of being made in the USA, for USA flyboys and a manufactor that can still say that they don't import anything, including the goatskin. When's the last time you read on the back of any clothing "Made in the USA"??....right down to the zipper.

Sorry, kid, for me there's more that goes into buying a leather flight jacket than looking good. Not only does my NeilCooper look good it's a real USA McCoy."

You use the word "kid" as if you're hurling an insult. First off, I'm not a kid, haven't been one for along time, and I don't take kindly to you calling me one.
Regarding: "Sorry, kid, for me there's more that goes into buying a leather flight jacket than looking good." Just WHAT exactly are you trying to say? What is this cryptic thing in flight jackets that you seek? It's clearly not quality. Have you ever held an Aero, Eastman, Mccoy's, or Rickson's, ever tried one on and looked in the mirror? Have you ever compared the qualtity of the leather, zipper, lining, and knits on these jackets to you Cooper? I'm confident that if you had, you wouldn't be so loud about the subject. That fact is that despite these jackets being made by horrible foreigners threatening our way of life, they are made with a loving reverence of the originals from the finest materials that American companies seem to have no time and no care for. These people from farway lands actually CARE about American history. Do you? Cooper is a large company which mass produces clothing from low-quality materials for maximum profit (by the way, the finest goatskin comes from India and both the USAAF and USN imported Indian hides during WWII). To compare a modern Cooper A-2 to a wartime Cooper A-2 is like comparing a Plymouth Prowler to a '32 Ford. Unfortunately, the golden age of great American manufacturing (and boy, was it GREAT) dried up and blew away decades ago.
If your priority is to wear an American made A-2, like Jake and Doc said there are also Flight Suits, US Authentic and Lost Worlds, or even Avirex, all better picks than Cooper, but not quite up to the level of those across the drink.
I'm as American as anyone. My family came here on the Mayflower for pete's sake, and fought in every war you can name. But I am not so deluded to believe that only American products are worth buying...for many, many reasons. That is just a ridiculous attitude.

 

[jake431]

I understand the sentiment of wanting to buy an American A-2, but the US made ones skimp on all the details that really make an A-2 an A-2 in my opinion. It's the same thing with Levi's - the US gets the worst, by far of what the company makes - the rest of the world has a larger appetite for Americana than America these days.

-Jake

 

[Alan Eardley]

WW2 A-2 manufacture

Is it worth pointing out that in WW2 some A-2 type jackets were made in countries other than the USA (e.g. Australia)?

 

[MudInYerEye]

Most emphatically yes. Excellent point!

 

[shamus]

If you want a REAL US made one, buy an original.

Personally I like to buy the best I can afford. For me that's Aero. It's American Horsehide and made In Scotland which is only a few generations away from being American if you do your generational math. Remember America is only 200+ years old.

But if you insist on American, then buy a real WWII Jacket. And you'll never regret it.

 

[airfrogusmc]

In my opinion Flight Suits/Gibson and Barnes is a much better way more authentic WWII A-2 than Copper. Yeah they made'm during WWII but the jackets they sell now have little resemblance to those they made during the war. I own Real McCoys and the comment of the hides being thin is not my experience. In fact most people complain that McCoys hides are heavier than most originals which for the most part were very thin with 3 oz being on the beefy side. I like a heavier hide and the beautiful thing about both Aero and McCoys is you can get samples and pick the hide you prefer.

 

[airfrogusmc]

Just keep in mind that most originals had nasty grainy thin hides. Thinner than most repro makers use today and much smoother than those nasty hides from the past.