I showed this jacket at the fedoralounge, but for those that don't go there, I thought you'd enjoy seeing pics of this jacket. The front has an Indy jacket appearance. I was in Seattle a week ago and picked this jacket up at an antique store on the waterfront. The dealer said a man in his 90s had just brought it in that morning and told him he wore it when he was young. Young is relative when your in your 90s, so it's hard to say exactly how old it is. I'm guessing maybe it's from the 50s or late 40s. The label is unreadable, but it is in excellent condition and has some awesome graining on it. No missing buttons, zips all work and no holes in the pockets.
fedoralover
Last edited by fedoralover on Sat Aug 15, 2009 8:35 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Very interesting jacket. My guess is it is late '40s post WW2, or '50s. The hide is probably either Horse or Goat by the look of how it has grained and wrinkled.
I have to agree with RC on the hide. That is one sweet jacket. It looks like something one of us might create for a custom job; part civilian A-2, part Indy, part Magnoli Open Road.
There's no pebbly appearance to the hide anywhere, just a lot of graining, so I doubt it's goat. So it's a toss up between horse or cow. Either way, I really like it. I'm glad I lost enough weight to be able to wear it. It's probably a size 40 or so.
fedoralover wrote:There's no pebbly appearance to the hide anywhere, just a lot of graining, so I doubt it's goat. So it's a toss up between horse or cow. Either way, I really like it. I'm glad I lost enough weight to be able to wear it. It's probably a size 40 or so.
fedoralover
Goat doesn't always show the pebbly appearance, I've seen it look exactly like that.
More than likely it is Horse, I've seen few older jackets from the '50s that were labeled as Horse. It was still a fairly common hide then. Some were sold under teh Sears and JC Penny Brands.
Are there any labels or label tabs inside the pockets?
No other labels anywhere. The zipppers read Conmar, Made in USA. The buttons on the cuffs are for appearance and look to be original. Thanks for the input.
Sorry I didn't say this earlier, but that's a great jacket. Nice work! I need to start visiting antique stores! What, with brothers finding stuff like this, and that Webley that Antilles found...
I used to spend a lot of time in thrift stores and used clothing stores, but everytime I found something that I liked it was like a size 38 or 40 and I'm a 46. After a while I just got so disappointed I ran up the white flag.
Great looking jacket. Your lucky you found it. I've been going to a local antique clothing for 28 years and I've gotten some great stuff over the years. The problem I usually have is People were just so much smaller years ago and trying to find clothes that fit the modern frame is very difficult. If you can get something in your size GRAB IT.
Hey thanks alot for that link, I had not seen those pics. That one looks sooo close to mine. Mine just doesn't have the side cinch buckles. That really helps me to date it a little more closely.
It's a pretty standard (and lovely) half-belt of which there were many makers and many thousands of versions over 3 decades. I'd date that one from around the 1950's. There were in fact still a few leather stores down here that made them up to the mid 1980's, based on a classic and many would say timeless design. The flap/cargo pockets are less common than the standard slash pockets with zips on them. Also known as a utility jacket. Looks like goat to me but HH was more common. But you can't really pick a leather from a photo as _ will tell you.
Doesn't Aero make a jacket like that called the roadster? It's a sweet jacket and my vote is early 60's.....but then again could be 50's or late 40's...
We could if _ were a mod or admin, which he is not. Besides, having met _ in person and seeing how big he is, I'm afraid I'd have to go with him as the ultimate victor.
I went over to a friends house who has a black light. When we shined it on the label we could read it fairly well. It reads Hercules, genuine horsehide, Sears and Roebuck clothing Co. So I finally know the maker and what kind of leather it is.
[quote="fedoralover"]I went over to a friends house who has a black light. When we shined it on the label we could read it fairly well. It reads Hercules, genuine horsehide, Sears and Roebuck clothing Co. So I finally know the maker and what kind of leather it is.
fedoralover[quote]
One of the all time classic American jacket brands. Well done.
binkmeisterRick wrote:We could if _ were a mod or admin, which he is not. Besides, having met _ in person and seeing how big he is, I'm afraid I'd have to go with him as the ultimate victor.
fedoralover wrote:I went over to a friends house who has a black light. When we shined it on the label we could read it fairly well. It reads Hercules, genuine horsehide, Sears and Roebuck clothing Co. So I finally know the maker and what kind of leather it is.
fedoralover
Thank you. I'm glad you were able to see all that.
It's nice to be 'confirmed'
'Hercules' was one of the Sears Brands
RCSignals wrote:More than likely it is Horse, I've seen a few older jackets from the '50s that were labeled as Horse. It was still a fairly common hide then. Some were sold under teh Sears and JC Penny Brands.
Are there any labels or label tabs inside the pockets?
That's an interesting idea. You would have to find one from the 40s. I'm not sure where you could pick one up, unless there are people who collect them and they log on here.