Praising the Indy Jacket

[Mississippi Jones]

I just wanted to start a new thread that has nothing to do with arguments on screen accuracy and the "right" jacket for each film.

I wanted to start a thread that gives us a chance to talk about the Indy jacket. It is a GREAT jacket, isn't it?!! It has it's own unique look...but it can blend in with a crowd...yet it stands out! This is cool!

I remember when I first saw Raiders. I actually noticed how unique Indy's jacket was before i noticed the fedora and whip. I just think it's a really cool jacket. And for each film, the design is the same. Yes, there are a few differences (fit, size of pockets, the colllar, etc.)...but for the most part the design doesn't change.

This jacket can be used as an "out-on-the-town" jacket, and a work jacket! No matter what film pattern you get, the Indy jacket stands alone! I LOVE this jacket!!!!

So whether you're fighting Nazis to protect a sacred artifact, going out with your best girl, building a fence on the farm, riding your horses (which fits my description), or just going to work with a t-shirt and jeans, the Indy jacket is suitable for all occasions!!

Am I wrong? Tell me what you think of the Indy jacket! No arguments on SA, please. Let's just say good positive things about this jacket!

What's your favorite look with the jacket? And I don't mean with full Indy gear on...but just a casual look.

[Holt]

what!?

a thread we cant argue on SA??? are you kidding me??



now thats gotto be the best thread ever.

[Mississippi Jones]

what!?

a thread we cant argue on SA??? are you kidding me??



now thats gotto be the best thread ever...

Ain't that the truth!!!!

[Holt]

oh...

and I love the Indy jacket and I wear it all the time. best design, best looking jacket I have ever had.

[crismans]

I know that many were first attracted to the hat first (and I can understand this) or perhaps the whip (also understandable) but for me it was always the jacket first. Even before I understood any of the specifics, I just loved the overall look of the jacket.

[theinterchange]

I like the fact that it looks different from most leather jackets out there. Has a "go anywhere" feel as stated before. Leather jackets are classicly cool, just a timeless piece of clothing.

Though I briefly owned a Lamb Wested, the leather didn't suit me. I've going for goat I think.

Was this what you're after in this thread?

Randy

[CM]

I like the jacket but not the rest of the costume. I like leather jackets period. Mr Nowak, I understand, has just made a cool looking half-belt for Bruce Willis' latest film. I like the look of this even more than the Indy. For me, part of the fun of the Indy is that you can't get it easily and it is not a mall jacket. Certainly in 1981 when I first tried to get one there was nothing like it around. I think the main weakness with the Indy is the back with it's pleats and straps. Looks cool but doesn't really work and besides, they get caught on things and even grabbed in a fight (from personal experience) I think the half-belt design is slightly tighter.

Just my opinion -

[Tibor]

One of the great things about the jacket is its inherently comfortable design. Those pleats really help (well, when done correctly). Also, for adventuring, it's perfect because it has no wool knits for the moths to nibble on.

Always loved the jacket. At first, the only thing you could find were some pre-aged A-2 style jackets. (Anyone remember the Camel cigarette offers where you could order one?) Then Avirex (The Cockpit) came on strong with a lot of pre-aged things, similar to design of G&B's Raiders jacket (not the Expedition).

But now we have lots of real choices, and it's just great. There is no jacket that looks better with your hands in your pockets, rumpled up, and casually slid back on your shoulders.

[Baldwyn]

The Indy jacket is mostly cool to me because of the film. The design isn't the greatest. The pleats and straps are not the most functional configuration. The jacket moves ok, but there are so many jackets that work better. And the jacket just doesn't work (in appearance, or literally) zipped up all the way. The features are not really thought out for "real-world" use. Not active real-world use. Just my opinion! I keep wanting to tinker with the design, but then I'd lose the appeal of the jacket!

But it does look cooler than the ubiquitous A2. It's style suits many occasion.

That Bruce Willis jacket looks much more functional, and still looks cool. (I wish I didn't write this because now I'm thinking I should get a TN BW jacket, not a TN Raiders!)

[jacksparrow900]

I like the fact about wearing an indy jacket is that it's not a common style you can just go to the store and buy most are custom made. I wear my raiders jacket everywhere I go It's the first leather jacket I owned and its great. Also the fact that most leather jackets are cowhide I love the feeling of lambskin it's not stiff and you can move freely.

[Michaelson]

Well, in my many years of experience with leather jackets, when an Indy jacket 'fits', it's perfect....but when it doesn't fit, it's just awful. There is no grey area.

Regards! Michaelson

[Tyrloch]

Well, in my many years of experience with leather jackets, when an Indy jacket 'fits', it's perfect....but when it doesn't fit, it's just awful. There is no grey area.

Regards! Michaelson

I'll second that -- it has the potential to be the best or the worst leather jacket you've ever owned, all depending on the fit. But there is no denying the originality of it -- I never see anyone walking around in anything like it...

~Jace

[your ghost host]

Sorry to pop your bubble guys but the first piece of gear I noticed was the bag
The MKVII Gas Mask Bag
Don't get me wronge the jacket and the hat were sweet to
but the bag was the coolest
now as for wearing I am not sure because I don't have my wested lamb (yet) but for now it is the bag
not a big whip fan

[cowboy827]

I for one like the fact that, unlike most A-2 bomber jackets, the Indy jacket doesn't have knit cuffs or a knit waist. The knits get caught on things and fray, but leather just ages like good wine. Years ago I had a bomber by Wilson Leather where the waist had elastic built into it, and it constantly caught on my cell phone, which I wear on my belt. No such problems with an Indy jacket. And I just love the look.

[Michaelson]

Understood, ygh, but since this thread is specifically set up for 'praise' of the jacket and no other piece of gear......

Regards! Michaelson

[hovitos loincloth]

It's just a timeless design, although some of my knucklehead colleagues call it "that '70's jacket" *sigh* Sometimes people just deserve to be beaten to death.

[alphared6]

70's????? It's a classic 30's - 40's design. If it were from the 70's it would have a huge Elvis collar!

[Holt]

I guess we know now that Peter is a fan of Elvis... I mean it shows on the LC jacket right....

[RCSignals]

I guess we know now that Peter is a fan of Elvis... I mean it shows on the LC jacket right....

I don't see it.

[Hatch]

I think Holt's talking about the large collar on the LC jacket, but who knows ..with Holt he could be specing out one in Gold Lamee

[Holt]

If it were from the 70's it would have a huge Elvis collar!

I guess we know now that Peter is a fan of Elvis... I mean it shows on the LC jacket right....
.

the look of the LC jacket. you know the HUGE ''Elvis'' type collar....


it was a joke...


...forget about it..

[Mississippi Jones]

I thought it was a good joke, Holt

[theinterchange]

As did I.

Randy

[CM]

That 1970's comment thought wrong is understandable. Short, brown leather jackets inspired by A2s were very common back then. I remember. As were hip high jackets of no particular design. For me, if anything, the Indy jacket has an 1980's feel to it as well - hardly surprising since it was created then.

[serrecuir]

That 1970's comment thought wrong is understandable. Short, brown leather jackets inspired by A2s were very common back then. I remember. As were hip high jackets of no particular design. For me, if anything, the Indy jacket has an 1980's feel to it as well - hardly surprising since it was created then.

In my opinion, the Raiders jacket helped define the style of the 80's (excluding the whole 'glam rock' thing anyway). Don't forget the film came out in theaters in May of '81, so that means all of the pre-production and design was done in the winter of '79-80. I don't have my "Complete Making of..." book in front of me to quote the exact dates, but it's close enough. Of course, the style of "Raiders" harks back to the serials of the 40's and 50's and films like "Treasure of the Sierra Madre." We should all be grateful that the inspiration wasn't drawn from the 70's - otherwise, Indy might have been wearing that wide-lapel jacket and polyester bellbottoms, and we'd all be comparing measurements on how wide the flare on his pants was.

Kind regards,
Craig

[Texan Scott]

..so this character in a leather jacket just chased off his turncoat guide that was about to shoot him in the back with a pistol! It wasn't until he was scooping up sand to fill the cloth bag that I really noticed the jacket. The thing that I have always admired about Indy's leather jacket is that it pays homage, acknowledges the period of time in which it was used, yet it is distinctly a unique piece of him, due to the fact that it has been aged and distressed....only if that jacket could talk, the stories it could tell and the adventures it has been on??!! After that...the hunt was on!

[alphared6]

So called "flight jackets" of leather were all the rage in the 1930's as aviation was taking off (so to speak) and had captured the public imagination much as the space age had in the late 50's and early 60's. Do a web search and look at pictures of celebrities in the 30's. You'll see a lot of leather "flight jackets."

[jacksdad]

I love the look and I have always loved the A-2 look, my wife finds my Indy jacket a better fit and look for me rather than my a-2's and i have to agree, I love the look and fit and it is a keeper.

[Rikimaru]

Watching any of the films when I was younger, it was the jacket that stood out to me the most, even more so now. Just like others have stated, you wont find anything like this at a store. And now that I have a jacket that fits me just right, (thanks to Magnoli ) I've recieved many compliments and questions to where they could get one

[ron521]

One positive thing about the Indy design is that it is somewhat "universal", in that it isn't designed for a specific use (like a motorcycle jacket or a flight jacket), but can be pressed into service in many situations where a motorcycle jacket or flight jacket would not work as well, or even at all.
I much prefer the longer length of the Indy design as compared to a motorcycle jacket (which has good reason to be so short).
I've owned several flight jackets, and like them a lot, but do prefer the lack of knit cuffs and waistband for general use. I can't easily picture Indy trekking through the jungles of South America or the Tunisian desert with knit cuffs.

[Michaelson]

I can't easily picture Indy trekking through the jungles of South America or the Tunisian desert with knit cuffs.

SURE you can....that is, if it's a medical training film demonstrating how to get heat stroke.



Regards! Michaelson

[Mississippi Jones]

I can't easily picture Indy trekking through the jungles of South America or the Tunisian desert with knit cuffs.

SURE you can....that is, if it's a medical training film demonstrating how to get heat stroke.



Regards! Michaelson

That's the truth!

[lantzn]

Those who hate the Indy jacket should try on a Nowak so, I can BEAT the H@#$% OUT OF IT. (in heavy thick accent)

[JRabbit]

Before I discovered the Indy Jacket, I owned an A-2 style cow hide jacket that I bought in 1986. I loved this jacket but never loved a few things about it. It was a bit big in the torso, short in the sleeves, and I hated the knit cuffs and waist. Still, it was a great jacket. Last winter the zipper on it broke and although I knew I could simply have the zipper replaced (and will one day when I get around to it) I decided it was high time to look in to a new brown leather jacket.

The ultimate leather jacket for me has always been Indy's and I decided to see if there was any chance that one could be had. That lead me to this site and a whole new world.

In September I ordered a custom ROTLA in washed goat from Wested and since it's arrival I've worn it almost every day. I LOVE THIS JACKET.

As others have noted, it's truly unique in it's design. Sure, it's "bomberish" but with subtle differences that I really like. I love the way the actions pleats end at the bottom, flaring out slightly to conform to your hips. I like how the straps can be tightened to hug your waist, and how they stick out and flap around haphazardly. I love the long sleeves with NO KNIT at the cuffs to break the lines or grab your shirt sleeve or watch. The washed goat is really soft yet durable and after two Pecard's applications, is getting really grainy and supple.

With jeans and boots, or khakis and a button down, the jacket just spices it up and says "yeah that's right, I'm ready for what ever you throw at me. BRING IT".

I've gotten compliments on my A-2 before, but not nearly as many as I get with the Indy. I can honestly say that I'll own this jacket and/or other iterations of it from now on.

[hoose55]

I love this jacket! I've owned Westeds and worn them constantly. Now I have a TN and I wear it non-stop. I recieved my first when I was 28, and it's the still the jacket I've wanted since I was a kid.
J-

[Long John Tinfoil]

I like it a lot, and it was probably the "adventure-gear" piece that first got my attention when I saw Raiders (I'd already been wearing fedoras for some time even then).

My first leather jacket was cowhide, elastic waist, barrel cuffs with snaps. It was, I guess, a "Varsity" jacket with "University of Guelph" on the back. You could get your graduating year and program put on the sleeve/shoulder, but I never did. Wore it every day for years, and it still looks almost new. I may sell it, though. I dropped by the campus a few weeks back and saw that the current version sells for more than the balance on my Visa card. Of course, if I had any realistic prospect of getting it to fit around my waist I'd keep it anyway.

My next was an A2 style from LLBean. Great jacket, goat, knit waist and cuffs. Now well into its twenties and until very recently my favorite jacket. It's been up and down mountains, on fishing trips, road trips and canoe trips. Rained on, slept in and frozen. I've never minded the knits and will likely keep it until one of my daughters decides it's cool and "borrows" it.

Now I have two Indy jackets, a Todd's standard in lamb and a G & B Expedition in goat. They're both great. I'm mostly wearing the G & B since I got it, since it's a lot more robust for winter weather, but the Todd's will be the primary when it gets warm, I suspect.

Now, if one of our vendors offers one with a Thinsulate lining for cold weather I'll really be in trouble.

LJ