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Bill Kelso - Aero 16160 Chennault

Aeroga

Well-Known Member
Recently I came across with an eBay listing of a BK aero 16160 in victory HH and was fortunate to win it :)

The victory HH is something I have wanted for a while but the higher price point and the discontinuation have made it a desire unfulfilled. Right out of the packaging there is a strong victory HH scent as advertised in BK website. The HH is less grainy compared to my shinki jackets when new. There's a depth of color when seen in sunlight, which looks like a result of a light seal overdye on a russet. All in all, now seeing the real thing, the victory HH is tremendously different than shinki (with the 2009 and 2019 batches I have from GW). Of course, to me each one is a winner of its own. I posted a photo for your own comparison and judgement.

I have worn the jacket for a day now and the leather, which is more supple than any shinki HH I own, has broken in a tad. To my surprise the jacket wears larger than I expected especially around the waist and sleeves, may be the characteristics of this contract? I'd love to see how this jacket wears. This is also the first A-2 jacket I own with a blousy fit, probably something I'd need getting used to. I may consider a HWT after a month or two to try to shrink the sleeves and torso a bit.

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Aeroga

Well-Known Member
Thanks for the review.

The grain on the right jacket looks fantastic - so that is shinki via GW?
Yes that's GW shinki, although not a fair comparison when the jacket is almost ten years old. My description above refers to the comparison between the two hides when new, but just lazy to take out the new GW from the wardrobe for photo.
 

mulceber

Moderator
Gorgeous jacket. That leather already looks great, and I think it’s going to get even better. I can’t speak to the sleeves, but my impression is that the more relaxed fit in the body is characteristic of Aeros.
 

B-Man2

Well-Known Member
Great looking jacket just the way it fits. I wouldn’t do a thing for a year until it breaks in and forms to your frame . What size is that?
Cheers
 

Smithy

Well-Known Member
Very nice, fit is good so don't mess with HWT.

Listen to this man. You would be f@£€ing nuts to do anything to this jacket than to just wear it a lot and wear it hard.

There's all this esoteric bullshit you see about wear and patina on dedicated leather jacket sites like this, most of it is absolute nonsense. You want your A-2 to look like those guys in WWII? Just wear the damn thing. Wear it in the rain, wear it when you're doing chores around the yard/garden, wear it to a football match, do some work on the car wearing it, get drunk and fall asleep on the couch in it, eat pizza/a kebab wearing it. Don't be afraid one second or think "should I do this in my jacket?". Live your life in the thing. That's what the fellas back in WWII did in theirs and they looked the best because of it.
 

mulceber

Moderator
Listen to this man. You would be f@£€ing nuts to do anything to this jacket than to just wear it a lot and wear it hard.

There's all this esoteric bullshit you see about wear and patina on dedicated leather jacket sites like this, most of it is absolute nonsense. You want your A-2 to look like those guys in WWII? Just wear the damn thing. Wear it in the rain, wear it when you're doing chores around the yard/garden, wear it to a football match, do some work on the car wearing it, get drunk and fall asleep on the couch in it, eat pizza/a kebab wearing it. Don't be afraid one second or think "should I do this in my jacket?". Live your life in the thing. That's what the fellas back in WWII did in theirs and they looked the best because of it.

I can't second Smithy's advice enough. Wear the crap out of it - you won't regret it.
 

jeremiah

Well-Known Member
While I see no need to “HWT” your jacket and it wouldn’t do much if you did, I am a bit of a contrarian. HWT won’t hurt your jacket at all. That is if you don’t use boiling water.
John Chapman used to pre age hides by throwing them in the washing machine. Leather is more durable than most would believe.
That said. Don’t HWT this jacket.
 
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