Club Obi Wan

I caught on of my non-Indy jackets on a door handle while holding it for a young lady. :evil:

It was the long rectangular type of grooved metal handle that you see in the gas stations. Anyways, I ripped the back panel seam and the other one is not looking healthy either. I had my back against the door and kind of slid down the handle. I never realized it caught until I heard it rip. The leather is fine, it was just the old thread that ripped away.

I was getting ready to bite the bullet and get a new lining, new zippers and a good cleaning as well, but I have been unable to find anyone who works with leather. At least enough that I trust them with my jacket.

I wrote to Flight Suits/Gibson & Barnes and received no answer. I wrote to US Wings who stated that they do not do the type of repair I wanted. The jacket is over 70 years old and otherwise in great condition.

Any references or general direction is appreciated...

Thanks in advance.

I just happened to come across these people...

http://www.withoutatrace.com/leather-jacket-repair.html

I know absolutely nothing more than what you can read there.

It might help.

Rick:

You can also ask Aero Leather in Scotland. I know that its far away,
but they do all the repairs on any type of vintage flight and leather
jackets, and their work is EXCELLENT!

They can replace liners, cuffs, and they can even do some leather
replacement because they collect old vintage jackets that are beyond
repair, and use the leather to repair other jackets in order to match both
the colors, leather types, and grain patterns.

When they stitch the jacket back together, they will use the original
stitch holes!! Its amazing what they can do!!

I had them fix a B-6 jacket that I had, that the original maker, Real
McCoys, refused to fix for me. McCoys said it could not be fixed, but
I sent an e-mail off to Aero, and they said to send them the jacket, and
they would take a look at it.

They said "No problem!" We can do what you want!!

The jacket was returned to me, and you could never tell it was touched
by anyone, and they did every fix I needed!!

It cost me about 100 bucks to send them the jacket, have it fixed, and
have it returned to me. Thats not bad! And it only took two weeks from
the time I sent the jacket out of the post office, to the time I had the
jacket back in my hands.

They are great people.

Here is there website: http://www.aeroleatherclothing.com/weba ... ?page=home

Flathead

That does not sound too bad!

And if I send it to them, I may have to spend a few more dollars and get me a brown horsehide Highwayman. That has always been my second favorite jacket.

Thanks Flathead!

Hey Flathead,
I know you belong to a leather jacket forum. Do you happen to know what the difference is between this Highwayman jacket or the 1950's Halfbeltby Aero Leather, and the Ryder by Lost Worlds?

The Aeros are currently $443.77 from Scotland as opposed to the $800.00 jacket from NY. The chest pocket is a bit different, but I cannot see much else. I bought a brand new Ryder on ebay for $200.00 but it is a bit tight. I could justify $450 as Aero's cost includes shipping as well! But $800 jacket with a $22.50 minimum shipping charge is ridiculous.

Thanks!

Those Aero Leather jackets are very nice I'm procrastinating over the 1930's Cossack

Rick:

The Aero jacket and the Lost Worlds jacket are very similar in both
design and horsehide leather.

The only differences I have seen is that Lost Worlds uses a buckle on the
side adjusters, where Aero uses sliders, and Lost Worlds charges almost
twice as much for their jacket. Thats not a little thing...

That said, the main difference is in the actual company, and who runs
it.

Aero is run by very nice people, who will work with you, and you can
actually get different mods done to your jacket if you want them. For
example, you could get a bi-swing back added to the Highwayman, or
you can substitue different leather types if you choose.

And in doing this, you still can send the jacket back for a full refund if
you are not 100 percent satisfied! No questions asked.

Lost Worlds however is run by a guy named Stuart, and if he does not
like you for some reason, he will not sell you a jacket, or worse yet,
call you very bad names, and he will even insult both your intellegence
or gender. Thats not a very nice person. You can read this for yourself
on the Vintage leather flight jacket forum.

Also, Lost Worlds will not do any special mods like Aero will, nor will they
take the jacket back if you just don't like it. You will be stuck with it.

That, and the fact that the same jacket will cost you twice as much as
the Aero jacket is enough for me to stay away from Lost Worlds.

There have been too many horror stories about Stuart and his actions
to even suggest a recommendation.

Go with the Aero! If you go to this site: http://www.picturetrail.com/aeroleatherusa
That is Mark Moyes site. He is the United States rep for Aero jackets, and
he has all kinds of customers jackets pictures on his site!

I especially like the Highwayman in the oil pull horsehide. It has a
real vintage look to it, and its one tough leather!!

My Californian is basically the same as a Highwayman, but it does not
have the chest pocket, and it has adjusters with sliders on the end of
the sleeves. Mine is made of buffalo hide, which is a VERY heavy hide!

Check out Marks site, and see all the great jackets, with all kinds of
mods that people have done to the basic jackets!!

Flathead

Thanks! I knew I was asking the right guy! I appreciate the help. I was leaning toward Aero, even though there is a clearance Ryder jacket for less on Lost Worlds. The Ryder is a really nice tough jacket, but I like the Highwayman better. I just couldn't pass it up for $200 This may happen soon, or at least right after Christmas...

Rick:

Check Aero's "Used Aero" and "Aero Sale Items" pages. They have
tons of jackets on sale all the time, in all hides and sizes.

They have a really nice Highwayman that has a mouton collar on it, in
a nice russet color, but its not my size unfortunately. I would buy that
baby in a heart beat if it was a size 46!

Flathead

Man, they have some beautiful jackets! The Trail Rider is an extremely cool jacket. If I had $700 I'd order one in a heart beat.

Rick, as you're in NH I thought I'd mention I've used John's Custom Tailoring in Dover, NH for alterations to several leather jackets. John's an all-around tailor, not a leather specialist per se, but he's done a good job on everything I've given him (including some pretty heavy leathers and even shearling). Still, as this is an older jacket, you might want to rely on the real leather pros at Aero.

BTW, I think you misconverted the price of those Aeros: an easy mistake to make as the converter Aero links to uses Euros as the default currency, though Aero's prices are given in pounds. I too was excited at how relatively reasonable the prices were until I figured out my error. The jackets you mention list for 380 GBP, which is $653. Still more affordable than Lost Worlds, but not by as much as you initially thought.

-Dave

@#$%! You are absolutely correct

Thanks for the tip. The last tailor I had was from Lowell and I used him because he spoke English. I want to make sure there are no language barriers like the time I brought my Noel Howard shirt to the tailor who spoke little English. I wanted it tapered, and I am glad I asked how he was going to do it, because he said he was going to add a back seam so it will come out the best. I still do not know what that meant, but it scared me when it comes to leather repair.

Dover is not too far. Maybe an hour away. Maybe I will give him a try. I found a small shop in Haverhill MA that still makes jackets, and I will try him first. I am going to let him look at it since I work in that city. Unfortunately.