Yahoo! My Aero 1930s Halfbelt Slimfit/Luftwaffe clone has finally arrived. PICTURES!

[Rudie]

After placing my order in early December and numerous changes e-mailed to Amanda my new Aero has just arrived. It was ready to ship nearly three weeks ago but I was abroad.

This were my original specifications: http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?52341-Aero-1930s-Halfbelt-Slim-Fit-Luftwaffe-clone-planned&highlight=

And here is the result: TADAAAAAAAAAA!

It looks even better than I had imagined. The leather smells great and has a wonderful touch. It's brown FQHH. I never had a jacket with such quality leather before. I love it. The fit is spot on. It was made by Vicki.

Throat latch and breastpockets like a Luftwaffe jacket. Collar with a more pronounced curve than usually.

Flap pockets like a Hartmann Luftwaffe jacket

Lined with B10 cloth. Pistol pocket left side.

Sleeves additionally lined with satin

Sleeves with cuff straps instead of button closure

All pockets lined with brown curduroy

Tight fit with high armholes. Sleeves are slimmed down and made from only two parts instead of three.

The jacket is pretty short as I intend to wear it primarily with high waisted trousers.

Special thanks goes out to Jan. Without your valuable feedback this great jacket wouldn't exist now.

Rudie

 

[Gancho]

Mensch Rudie, die Joppe ist ein echter Kracher!!!!

Amazing jacket, wear it in good health!

Olli

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Hey looks great. Turned out to be a very stylish creation!
HD

 

[scotrace]

A wonderful jacket - I like to see things from Aero with modifications - now it is truly yours! Enjoy breaking it in.

 

[Dav]

Stunning Rudie, a truly one of a kind.
Enjoy.

 

[JanSolo]

Urst schau, die Joppe!!

Great jacket! I love the colour and the details. The little flap pockets look absolutely amazing and really suit the jacket well. A very stylish creation with loads of cool features. You took some stunning pictures as well. Now get out and have some decent outdoor shots taken. The best one should then be submitted to Aero's gallery.

Again, I'm surprised how well this thing turned out!

 

[Radu]

Interesting results. In my opinion the sleeves are too tight to be comfortable, but you know : De gustibus non disputandum.

 

[garzo]

Geiles Ding!

Looks fantastic.

 

[Rudie]

Thanks for the comments. I asked for the softest skins available and I'm surprised how soft it feels. Having no previous experience with FQHH I expected something much more armour-like. I'm glad the leather is much softer than I feared.

The sleeves are a tad tight, but I guess it's just because the jacket needs some breaking in. My arms aren't that bulky and I really like the fitted look. I am really pleased with the result!

 

[SpeedRcrX]

A beautiful hybrid, congratulations!

 

[garzo]

Hey Rudie,

is that the regular FQHH or the Vintage FQ?
From what I've seen of the Vintage FQ, it's heavy but much softer and more comfortable.

 

[mimesis2nemesis]

Congratulations, this looks absolutely incredible! I have a question, how much did this end up costing?

 

[zaman fu]

Rudie,
That is one sweet jacket. I ordered my halfbeltt in early January and hope to have it soon. I have a few questions if you don't mind. Were the sleeve width and/or armholes modified? I saw that your specs called for modification if the sleeves were not already slim. Also, was the length of the jacket modified other than simply making the front and back the same length? I also asked for mine to be the same length all around, and Aero indicated they will do so by making the back longer to match the front. Also, how tall are you?
Thanks.
Tom

 

[Edward]

Nice! It would be interesting to compare it directly to an ELC Hartmann. Are the sleeve straps the same as those to be found on the Route 66? (I ask because eventually I want to order a 30s Halfbelt with a few tweaks of my own, and those strapped cuffs are exactly one of the mods I had planned).

 

[Rudie]

@garzo: It's the regular FQHH.

@mimesis: £565 including shipping and the extra cost for the 2" leather facing on the inside bottom hem

@zaman: I am not sure what exactly they modified and what is default. I told them how I wanted it to fit and I specified two-piece sleeves with slimmed down upper arm (Japanese configuration). I don't know the default measurements, so I can't really answer your question.

I asked for a specific length. I gave them exact measurements for everything. Chest, hips, back width, jacket length, sleeve length, full sleeves, waist, wrists, biceps, my height and armholes. I am 186cm tall.

@Edward: It's very different from a Hartmann. Mine is very substantial, a Hartmann is more like a shirt, very soft Nappa leather. Also, I found the Hartmann flap pockets extremely unpractical, because they are so tiny. Mine can actually be used. Now that I have this wonderful jacket I am actually glad that the Eastman jackets didn't fit and they weren't up to lengthening the sleeves. Now I have a totally unique jacket that fits perfectly instead of just so-so and I like the design much better.

The straps are similar to the Route 66 but the buckle is different. I showed them a picture of a Ventura jacket. They used a similar buckle. As far as I can tell the construction of the strap is otherwise just like the Route 66's (judging from the pictures I have seen).

 

[Cooperson]

Great looking, unique Halfbelt with some very nice features. A real one of a kind, enjoy the break in!

 

[Seawolf]

Rudie,
Is that sleeve lining sateen or satin? And, is there gabardine underneath?

Your jacket looks absolutely phenomenal. I'm so glad you were able to get what you wanted. You will have and cherish this jacket for decades to come.

 

[Treetopflyer]

Nice! Thanks for posting.

 

[Seawolf]

Rudie, or anyone else that can answer,

Does that sleeve lining get hot? Does it make your arms sweat? Is it cotton? Does it breathe?

Thanks!

Seawolf

 

[JanSolo]

The sleeves are lined with heavy satin. I bet it's an overlay (satin over gabardine) but it could well be used without the gabardine. The heavy satin is made from synthetic Rayon (not Nylon). It feels very luxurious and it is also quite heavy. It's a very firm and tight weave. In really hot climates it's without doubt not as comfortable and breathing as gabardine would be. But who wears a heavy leather jacket in warm weather anyway? I never had any problems with this type of lining.
Hope that helps...