Over the summer I was searching for a nice jacket in leather for going out on the town in cold weather that was a step above the average flight jacket. Im a bit on the larger size and require a XL tall size which is pricey for new leather. ( I married a gal that can really cook )
I found a jacket on E Bay that was advertised as a G8 type in a very heavy cowhide and the owner claimed it was purchased years ago and mostly stored in a closet. The jacket for some reason was not attracting much attention when I kept track of it during bid time and the E bay item never sold. I was upset with myself for not placing any bid at all figuring that many people wait until the last minute for a last dash bidding war. NOPE ! Nobody bid at all and I figured I blew any chance of getting this slick jacket.
But........... low and behold, the jacket owner placed the item for sale again a week later and I nabbed this thing for 100 dollars. When the coat arrived there were no surprises. It was as pretty in hand as it was in the E Bay pictures. Man this coat is heavy ! No fur insulation and it has a G2 type leather collar.
It has a label inside has EXCELLED SHEEPSKIN & LEATHER MFG. company as the producer with a G8 flying jacket tag. Theres a military contract number 1958-G8-2 on the tag respectively. Theres another number also as MIL SPEC # 3287. ( I think the Excelled company actually had the NAVY contract at one time to produce the G1 jacket )
After doing a little research about the G8 jacket, I gather it was never actually produced in leather at all. It was originally a nylon jacket intended as an internal liner for extra warmth but many pilots wore it by itself.
I love the jacket I bought but am very curious about this one. I looked on the web to see if the excelled company still makes this jacket but no luck. The San Diego Leather Company produces a leather G8 and it does look like mine with the exception of the leather color. Theirs is a dark brown and mine is a med tan color. My jacket looks like a RAIDER jacket with side straps for a snug fit and has map pockets on both sides internally and theirs no wool waistband or cuffs. However, the zipper on this coat is way too small. I need a tailor to sew in a much larger zipper as its a bit difficult to zip up at first.
One web site said that many leather coat manufacturers often made up their own jacket designs and sewed in a military spec tag to make it look official.
Could my jacket be a version of a flying jacket from the 30s and 40s when these heavy jackets were the norm in pilots flying gear in open cockpit aircraft ?
What can the experts here tell me ?
Many thanks in advance !
I found a jacket on E Bay that was advertised as a G8 type in a very heavy cowhide and the owner claimed it was purchased years ago and mostly stored in a closet. The jacket for some reason was not attracting much attention when I kept track of it during bid time and the E bay item never sold. I was upset with myself for not placing any bid at all figuring that many people wait until the last minute for a last dash bidding war. NOPE ! Nobody bid at all and I figured I blew any chance of getting this slick jacket.
But........... low and behold, the jacket owner placed the item for sale again a week later and I nabbed this thing for 100 dollars. When the coat arrived there were no surprises. It was as pretty in hand as it was in the E Bay pictures. Man this coat is heavy ! No fur insulation and it has a G2 type leather collar.
It has a label inside has EXCELLED SHEEPSKIN & LEATHER MFG. company as the producer with a G8 flying jacket tag. Theres a military contract number 1958-G8-2 on the tag respectively. Theres another number also as MIL SPEC # 3287. ( I think the Excelled company actually had the NAVY contract at one time to produce the G1 jacket )
After doing a little research about the G8 jacket, I gather it was never actually produced in leather at all. It was originally a nylon jacket intended as an internal liner for extra warmth but many pilots wore it by itself.
I love the jacket I bought but am very curious about this one. I looked on the web to see if the excelled company still makes this jacket but no luck. The San Diego Leather Company produces a leather G8 and it does look like mine with the exception of the leather color. Theirs is a dark brown and mine is a med tan color. My jacket looks like a RAIDER jacket with side straps for a snug fit and has map pockets on both sides internally and theirs no wool waistband or cuffs. However, the zipper on this coat is way too small. I need a tailor to sew in a much larger zipper as its a bit difficult to zip up at first.
One web site said that many leather coat manufacturers often made up their own jacket designs and sewed in a military spec tag to make it look official.
Could my jacket be a version of a flying jacket from the 30s and 40s when these heavy jackets were the norm in pilots flying gear in open cockpit aircraft ?
What can the experts here tell me ?
Many thanks in advance !
