Club Obi Wan

Hey, so I just wandered into a vintage clothing store after dinner and found an older US Wings Indy Jacket hanging from a rack of crappy leather jackets. Weird thing was, though, is that the Indy Jacket was also kind of crappy! It was a russet/reddish brown and I couldn't identify the type of leather for the life of me. It felt kind of like vinyl. I really couldn't say if it was lamb or goat or cow. It was very smooth, but did not have the softness of lamb. Some of the color wasn't well matched from panel to panel either. The action pleat was very narrow, the back panel was attached to the side panels well below the strap (a la TOD), the pockets were fairly small, and the hand warmers were not cut into the body of the jacket. The strap anchors were small (no box), and the hardware was D-rings. The collar was fairly pointy, and the collar stand did not extend across the storm flap. It was a size Large, but looked more like a medium. I didn't try it on, as I was all bundled up with coat and scarf, etc. I was very curious about the jacket, but it was tagged at being $78! I know, not much for a US Wings Indy Jacket, but really, this thing didn't seem up to snuff. It made both my Wested jackets look very nice. Let me say again, it appeared to be an older US Wings, with the old style tags, probably shortly after they took over for Cooper.

Anyway, just some more perspective: I was in the mall and saw a Ralph Lauren brown lambskin jacket that appeared to be fairly mediocre, and it was tagged at $695!! My Westeds were definitely nicer, were made to measure, and cost less than half the price. We should appreciate what we have...

Ummm...if you really had an old Cooper in your hands for $78 and didn't buy it, there is a collective groan going out through this community no doubt.

Actually, your description makes me think of the kangaroohide Indy jacket Wings offered some years ago. If it's still on the rack, I think it's about to be swarmed!

Weston

Some of the older US Wings jackets also have a label that says Cooper Sportswear. Before Wings took over Cooper, Cooper made jackets for wings.

Was the back with a seam down the middle? I've seen some that do.

If you go back take your camera.

No, it was not a Cooper with the Wings tags. It was an older Wings jacket, made by Wings, after they stopped re-labeling the Cooper jackets. I've seen Cooper Indy Jackets. They are cow-hide and pretty recognizable. This was different. Yes, I thought about the Roo hide, and the leather felt weird. I'll go back and check it out tomorrow. Sorry to tease all of you like this. I didn't have a camera on me, and really I was struck by the strangeness of the jacket.

I've always wondered when I would stumble on an Indy jacket in used clothing store, and it finally happened. Once I decide once and for all not to buy it tomorrow, I suppose I can reveal the name and location of the store.

Can't wait to find out! Depending on where it is in Texas I hope to snatch it up!

Sorry Freemason, I just bought it. I was a little inebriated last night, so my assessment of it being "crappy" wasn't totally fair. Weird describes it better. And now to end the mystery...

It is Kangaroo skin. It says so on a small tag on the lower half of the lining, which is all cotton by the way. It really is a strange skin: very thin and and very tough. It is almost like lamb, but without any of the softness. It ran me $85 with tax. The jacket fits me well, although the chest is a bit big, and the arm holes are pretty large. I'll post pictures later today (I haven't posted photos before, so give me a moment to get past the learning curve.) Also, if my fiancee finds out I bought another leather jacket, especially another Indy jacket, she's probably going to commit me to a mental ward.

So, after poking around used clothing shops for the past 4 years, I finally found an Indy jacket. I just wish it was at Goodwill and not some fancy "Vintage" shop. To end the other mystery, I picked it up at New Bohemia in Austin.

If I decide not to keep it, COW will be the first to know. Pictures to come later tonight...

Okay, just took some pics and got a PhotoBucket account. I hope this works...

http://i900.photobucket.com/albums/ac20 ... ndoor1.jpg

http://i900.photobucket.com/albums/ac20 ... Front1.jpg

http://i900.photobucket.com/albums/ac20 ... tBack1.jpg

Anyway, the jacket is actually really cool, with awesome coloration. It is a bit too large for me, so I may sell it one day. It seems to be sized like a current day US Wings Medium. Pit to Pit measures 24", Shoulder to Shoulder 21", Sleeve 24", Back Length 26.5". Anyway, I guess that puts it somewhere between a 42 and 44.

The only damage to the jacket is one of the cargo pockets is starting to come off its stitching at the bottom corner of the hand warmer. Also there is a scratch on one of the pockets, but it is no big deal.

The leather is really strange. It is very thin, thinner than my Wested lamb, but really strong. It has a weird feel at first, like bad goatskin, but the more you handle it, the better it gets. I think it needed some natural oils since it probably hasn't been handled in a long time (No, I will not treat the jacket with anything). Any questions, ask away...

Nice find! Not sure it really says Indy to me that much but it's a great jacket - even more so for the money

I kind of wish I snagged one of those Kangaroo Indy jackets when it was offered, what a great buy you got!

Tony Nowak recently made a jacket for a new film out of Kangaroo. He said the leather was chosen by the costumers because they didn't want it to look like leather

Tony Nowak recently made a jacket for a new film out of Kangaroo. He said the leather was chosen by the costumers because they didn't want it to look like leather

Well, it looks like leather, but it sure doesn't feel like it.

I don't have any current jackets from US Wings. Are the hand-warmer pockets on the Indy jackets cut into the body or not? This jacket just has the patch pockets sitting on top of the front. And while the jacket is lined with cotton (nice) the pockets are lined with weird nylon (not so nice).

I like it!

I'd still consider that a great close enough jacket for someone putting together an Indy on a budget.

It's really not a bad looking Indy jacket

_ wrote:Yep - Knew it was roo from your initial post. The PROBLEM....

While roo sounds good? The USW roo was dyed black using analine pigment. The color you see is basically painted on. That pigment will wear off and you will see black underneath. Additionally, the pigment is delicate. Any mild solvent will remove it. Splash gasoline and it will come off completely before you even knew it happened.

It was a good idea, but it was not executed properly...

Similar to most bike racing leathers made of roo then? They always show black underneath if you happen to hit the road. That said most bike leathers are painted with stuff thats pretty resistant to solvents. Presumably USW sourced their hide from someone that supplies bike leather?

Duly noted. Thanks, _. I was digging around the archives in this place and saw some similar comments made years ago. I've noticed that there is a lighter shade of russet applied underneath the darker shade, to sort of give the effect of a vintage patina. The actual color of the leather is black, so that once those two top coats get worn down, you get black, which is evidenced where the leather is scratched on the cargo pocket.

I kind of dig the jacket for how light it is. It really is a much baggier fit than I am used to, which makes it very comfortable, although not terribly sharp to look at on my 38" torso. I am also warming up to the russet color- it's a shame it won't be permanent...

In its day one of the most coveted Indy jackets we had out there.

Great find, in spite of it's faults.

Regards! Michaelson

That's what I was thinking. If it want's to be a black jacket so bad, let it! I bet it would look great.

Terrific find!

Weston

Looks great. Kangaroo is almost indestructable. I have a non-Indy kanga and it wears like iron. It makes goat look like paper.

I remember having one of these back in the day and had the solvent issue within the first month of wearing it. Something splashed on the front of the jacket and I ended up with a two inch black spot on an otherwise brand new jacket. The skin might be light and tough as nails but the coloring wasn't.

I also remember US Wings offering a bulletproof Kevlar Indy at one point too.

I love the color! Shame about the dye problem, but if you're careful...

Chewbacca Jones wrote:I love the color! Shame about the dye problem, but if you're careful...

HA! Who the heck wants to be careful in an Indy jacket