WW2 Coastal Command flight jacket.

[Bax Biron]

Hi all
Brand new here.
I recently purchased a ww2 Coastal Command jacket from a friend, the jacket belonged to the friends great grandfather. During the war this gentleman drove tanks but his best friend was in the Coastal Command and gave him this jacket. It has been in the family ever since, hopefully soon I will have the GGF and friends name to add to the jackets history.
I do own a much later Irving but always fancied an earlier one, although this jacket is a little short in body length for me I feel obligated to do my best restoring it.
My new to me early one requires some saving so hoping some of you guys have found products/websites that can help me preserve this jacket for years to come.
The main zip has 3 teeth missing and the zip pull.
One cuff zip is missing the pull.
The leather feels very dry, not supple like my newer one.
The sheepskin lining is in remarkable condition but maybe could do with a clean.
I have not taken new pic's yet as only just got it but will add more later.
Thanks for any help received.
Brian

 

[Skyhawk]

There are folks here who know a lot about restoring shearling. I am not one of them. It appears that there is not a thick topcoat like on the USA shearlings, so a traditional conditioner like an all natural beeswax based like Renapur, might work on the outside. I have heard about using lanolin on the inside to replenish moisture. One thing for sure. I wouldn't wear it until you get some moisture back into the hide.

 

[B-Man2]

I agree with the above poster with one exception. Once it’s been brought back to life I wouldn’t wear it at all. It has some excellent provenance and several of the original owners family members are still around . If it were me I would gather as much historical information and anecdotes about the previous owner as possible and have it all documented and notarized . You have a rare jacket of which there are fewer and fewer every year. If you want to wear a jacket like this one , buy a repro.

 

[Dumpster D]

Don't 'restore' it please leave it be.

Remove it from the hanger as well, would be my best advice. It should not be worn.

You can get a very nice Reproduction to enjoy wearing for a moderate price, which is well worth it.

Please, Look after it for me, it's a very special piece.

Thank you for sharing it with us.

 

[Bax Biron]

Thanks all
Intentions was never to wear it as I do have a much newer Irvin flight jacket to wear.
Restoring it was really only preservation of the outer leather, it's quite dry as I guess it's 80 years old now. I figured if it was a bit more supple there would be less chance of cracking.
Plans were are just to get some goodness back into it and replace the missing zip pulls.
The pictures are what the previous owner sent me hanger and all as I only collected it yesterday.
Many thanks for your help. really appreciated.
Brian

 

[B-Man2]

Thanks all
Intentions was never to wear it as I do have a much newer Irvin flight jacket to wear.
Restoring it was really only preservation of the outer leather, it's quite dry as I guess it's 80 years old now. I figured if it was a bit more supple there would be less chance of cracking.
Plans were are just to get some goodness back into it and replace the missing zip pulls.
The pictures are what the previous owner sent me hanger and all as I only collected it yesterday.
Many thanks for your help. really appreciated.
Brian

Once you get it sorted out we’d love to see how it turns out .

 

[Dumpster D]

Restoring it was really only preservation of the outer leather, it's quite dry as I guess it's 80 years old now. I figured if it was a bit more supple there would be less chance of cracking.

Anything you do to alter the Ph balance of the leather may or may not have positive or negative consequences in the long term. I'm not an expert, but have had some experiences, good and bad.

Generally it's ok to treat your jacket, but be advised.

Areas that may be showing invisible signs of dry rot will instantly become like tissue paper when oiled, and other areas may darken as far as the wonderfully aged patina of the finish. Someone else has also suggested some leather treatments can eventually cause issues with the stitching as well over time, that may be true in some cases if the stitching is that old.

Again, I'm no expert, but in my experiences it's simply a safe bet to leave things be, and do nothing, resisting all urges unless maybe it's *absolutely* necessary.

Treating the Jacket willy nilly could have some other issues depending how much or what type of treatment you are planning on feeding the leather.

It would be wise to do a lot more research about treating the leather, before going ahead and making a big decision, and it's a big decision because the Jacket is a rare and important piece of history worth preserving.

That said, these jackets weren't meant to lasts forever.

Sometimes a stiff leather is ok. I've seen some really thick sheepskin Irvin Jackets, and others that are very pliable and on the thin side.

You really only want to oil a jacket to wear it, like a baseball glove, if it's being used, then it's gonna need some oil to soften it up.

It's more important the Jacket is stored properly in a stable environment.

What type of product, how much of that product and so on, will give you the best results, should you decide to go that route, if at all.

Maybe just a light once over might be good, and not go too deep.

Always good to test things out first, with oils.

Sometimes Jackets do need some treatment, as others here have done and it's turned out rather well, on the other hand.

I just want you to consider things before you do go down that road.

Some of my Jackets reacted well to some oil, others did not, and should have been left alone.

I'm more into the originality factor, that includes the dust and dirt and wear that got on the Jacket, that stuff is now vintage too!

Guys love to replace their zippers and stuff, Just leave the originals on IMHO. Leave it original.

 

[Micawber]

Nice artifact especially with provenance. There is plenty of information and advice regarding suitable hide treatments posted on this forum over the years, some of it contradictory, in fact it has been one of the main topics of discussion. The search facility should give you hours of reading lol.
The advice to preserve rather than restore is valid, more so as the years pass and original gear is becoming more fragile.

 

[Dumpster D]

Another thing about 'short of body length' That is how the style was meant to be. Practically an inch above the naval area in some cases. Others here may lend some more reasoning behind that, and elaborate on this.

You're probably just used to 'low rise' Jeans is all.

One reason was the Jackets were higher cut, is they were meant to be worn with Sheepskin Trousers, and even to this day, some modern military Jackets are high cut this way. CVC Tanker Jackets for example, worn with a 'bib' which is like a pair of overalls.


My grandfather passed me down some wartime humour, he was in the military during the second war, when they issued you a wool Battle dress uniform:

'Sir, I think these trousers might be too big?'

'Do they hurt you under the armpits?...Then they fit'

My most favourite example was when Donald Duck joins the army.

His wool uniform is plopped on, in a huge heap and they dump a pail of water on him and it instantly shrinks up so tight his hat goes 'pop!' ...It's 'plausible impossible' but in this case almost too accurate...

Wool.

Anyway, getting off topic.

Never overlook this Jacket!!! incredible!!! absolutely a real thing of wonderment.

If you live near an Air museum or get a chance to visit one, get up close to one of those ships and just take in the smell of that sometime. Maybe look into what kinds of aircraft were flown in the coastal command even. Just stand next to one of those big metal beasts if only for a quiet moment, until you can almost feel it's dormant life force potential come alive with your hand on the throttle control.

 

[Southoftheborder]

Byson Leather in the UK has a restoration service for Irvins and also have parts. They use Picards Antique leather dressing.

http://www.bysonleather.co.uk/BYSON LEATHER Flight Jackets.htm

 

[Bax Biron]

I don't think this jacket is as rare as you guys think, there's at least two for sale on ebay and more on other sites
The provenance although I believe my friend wholeheartedly is still only word of mouth, now if I had a signed pic of the pilot [original owner] wearing the jacket with his arm around my friends Great great grandfather that would be special!
Quite a few of the comments are don't wear it, don't hang it, don't do anything with it. I was so excited to get this jacket but I'm getting the vibe, put it in a airtight plastic container in a dark cupboard and never look at it again.
What a waste that would be

I have written to Irvin but I doubt they will respond, I was hoping to get some good advice from them regarding care and preservation.
I will check out Byson Leather, thanks for that lead, appreciated.
Cheers guys.
Brian

 

[Southoftheborder]

I don't think this jacket is as rare as you guys think, there's at least two for sale on ebay and more on other sites
The provenance although I believe my friend wholeheartedly is still only word of mouth, now if I had a signed pic of the pilot [original owner] wearing the jacket with his arm around my friends Great great grandfather that would be special!
Quite a few of the comments are don't wear it, don't hang it, don't do anything with it. I was so excited to get this jacket but I'm getting the vibe, put it in a airtight plastic container in a dark cupboard and never look at it again.
What a waste that would be

I have written to Irvin but I doubt they will respond, I was hoping to get some good advice from them regarding care and preservation.
I will check out Byson Leather, thanks for that lead, appreciated.
Cheers guys.
Brian

Someone I know contacted the modern company regarding WW2 jacket repair years ago and was recommended Byson Leather. They only have the brand name, they don't have any connection with the original Irvin Air Chute company.

 

[blackrat2]

If UK based Byson leather I would suggest..or speak to Aeroleather in Scotland and see if they are taking on vintage jackets.
Byson do have zippers etc and you can see on there site what they do to repair/restore and preserve Irvin’s
Nice Irvin though Brian and given that only you have had a chance to feel the leather, then only you know how fragile or not it is

 

[Bax Biron]

Someone I know contacted the modern company regarding WW2 jacket repair years ago and was recommended Byson Leather. They only have the brand name, they don't have any connection with the original Irvin Air Chute company.

They just got back to me and said the same really, also recommended Byson to me just now, here's their reply:

Unfortunately because the jacket has already started to go back to a suede like finish our leather wax would not be any good to use.

You could try contacting Byson leather who are experts with the earlier Irvin jackets like your 1940 one

 

[Bax Biron]

If UK based Byson leather I would suggest..or speak to Aeroleather in Scotland and see if they are taking on vintage jackets.
Byson do have zippers etc and you can see on there site what they do to repair/restore and preserve Irvin’s
Nice Irvin though Brian and given that only you have had a chance to feel the leather, then only you know how fragile or not it is

Thanks, the jacket is remarkably good well to me anyway, it's not losing any of it's fleece as others I have seen have. The shiny coating is almost complete on the front and only worn on the sleeves which I guess is to be expected for it's age, and there is some 'cracking' of the shiny coating on the rear that's not damaged the suede underneath.
My dad had horses as a kid and we always treated our leather, all the tack, straps saddles etc was regularly treated with something we called dubbin. Could have been my dads own recipe because he didn't buy much back then. Remembering this from my past the jacket just screamed out it needed a feed, I haven't got thousands to spend on it I'm afraid

 

[blackrat2]

Would probably hold off dubbin and atleast call Byson and discuss that with them

 

[Micawber]

No, not rare but at risk of stating the bleedin’ obvious, they are not producing jackets that may have seen service during the Second World War any more. Think about it.
If you want a one stop treatment answer:
Pecards is popular.

 

[bn1966]

Byson know what they are doing, have used them for several jackets, recommended

 

[Dumpster D]

They're rare enough.

..That Jacket has seen some 'seat time' so that's another thing worth considering. It's 'been there'

Again, IMHO, Just leave it as is for now, and maybe don't have to treat it at all.

 

[Skyhawk]

It's probably going to eventually start cracking if some moisture is not put back into it. I wouldn't gum it up with Picard which is basically Vaseline. It will make it shiny but it won't feed it. No matter how popular it is.
Vasiline can be used to disperse moisture. It will seal in moisture but it won't add any into the hide. It leaves residue and prevents hide from "breathing" by forming a impermeable layer on the surface. Some food for thought.