1930s flying jacket.?

[Sean Robinson]

1930s flying Jacket.. an ebay purchase I made about 5 years ago.. I love wearing it the leather is very dry now though and needs a feed, what do you recommend.? All the zips buttons and buckles are there, no tears other than the hanging loop on the neck but as it lives on a hanger when not being worn that's not an issue.
Again any information on this jacket would be greatly appreciated
Regards Sean

 

[Silver Surfer]

nifty jacket ya have there, Sean. and yes, it appears to be all original. the talon zipper would date the jacket to the earlier 1940s,, and it appears to be made with capeskin,, or lambskin. an application of vaseline [yes, that stuff] applied sparingly with your fingers, will add some needed life to the hides. the hides will darken with the vaseline application,, and than as the vaseline is absorbed into the hides, they will will return to the original color. that ya wear it is great, but do be careful, after all its some 80 years old.

 

[Sean Robinson]

nifty jacket ya have there, Sean. and yes, it appears to be all original. the talon zipper would date the jacket to the earlier 1940s,, and it appears to be made with capeskin,, or lambskin. an application of vaseline [yes, that stuff] applied sparingly with your fingers, will add some needed life to the hides. the hides will darken with the vaseline application,, and than as the vaseline is absorbed into the hides, they will will return to the original color. that ya wear it is great, but do be careful, after all its some 80 years old.

Thank you I think there's a tub of vaseline tucked away at the back of the bathroom cabinet.. I only wear it occasionally it is so comfortable and fits me really well. Cost me just over £100 about 5 years ago, my wife thinks I'm mad spending that much on an old Jacket.

 

[Skyhawk]

I would recommend something that is designed to condition leather like Renapur Balm. It is beeswax based with other natural oils that absorb into the leather to replenish lost moisture. This is a rare jacket. It deserves more than a slathering from a jar in the back of the medicine cabinet. Renapur is available all over, including at Amazon.

The zipper box dates the jacket from the mid 1930's to the early 1940's. The zipper pull narrows it down to as early as the mid 1930's. I believe this is an early Moto jacket but the early Moto jackets were often used as flight jackets as well.

 

[mulceber]

I'm with Silver Surfer - vaseline is the way to go. The advantage of it is that it's Ph-neutral. I've used it with my vintage jackets very successfully. The trick is to be VERY sparing, as you really want the leather to absorb it quickly.

my wife thinks I'm mad spending that much on an old Jacket.

Just have her spend an hour or so on this board, and...well she'll probably forbid you from ever coming here again, but she won't complain about the £100 anymore!

 

[Silver Surfer]

........and than, after a while, it will just be eye rolling, and "another one?"

 

[Dumpster D]

I would not treat this jacket with any oil...it will darken the leather and you'll lose all the beautiful time-worn patina it has...shame.

 

[mulceber]

Whatever you do about treating the leather, I'd stop hanging it on a coat hanger. Having all the weight of the jacket being put on the shoulders makes it more likely either that the leather in that area will crack or that the stitching will give out. If you have a shelf you can rest it on, that would be much better.

 

[Micawber]

That's a nice example of a bona-fide old jacket. There are already pages of recommendations made over the years regarding leather treatments [I have also contributed to the topic], so rather than rehash it all again I would recommend using the search function while supping your favourite beverage or tipple. Above all make sure you test on a discrete area first and leave it for a day or five before appraisal. Do NOT be tempted to use Neatsfoot oil.

 

[Skyhawk]

I would not treat this jacket with any oil...it will darken the leather and you'll lose all the beautiful time-worn patina it has...shame.

Oil no, conditioner yes. It will darken the jacket and bring it closer to it's original color; but if the right conditioner is used, it is not staining the jacket. It is just putting moisture back in.

What would be more of a shame is to have the jacket crack and be damaged due to the very dry condition that it is in.

 

[mulceber]

Do NOT be tempted to use Neatsfoot oil.

...or saddle soap. It's good stuff, but it dries out leather, so it's really only useful for newer leather, and even then only if you plan to condition that leather right afterward.

 

[Sean Robinson]

Thank you for your replies I will use the search option as suggested and see what's best recommended for this jacket. I'd hate to lose the colour of it as its taken 80 odd years to look and feel this good.

 

[Skyhawk]

Thank you for your replies I will use the search option as suggested and see what's best recommended for this jacket. I'd hate to lose the colour of it as its taken 80 odd years to look and feel this good.

You won't loose color, but gain back some of the original color. The color will lighten up again as the conditioner wears in. As far as the feel, it should soften up more after conditioning. Anything you use, just apply a very thin coat. You can always add a little more in areas that need it later on.

 

[Micawber]

Primary rule is test on a small hidden patch first!

 

[Sean Robinson]

You won't loose color, but gain back some of the original color. The color will lighten up again as the conditioner wears in. As far as the feel, it should soften up more after conditioning. Anything you use, just apply a very thin coat. You can always add a little more in areas that need it later on.

Thank you for your help. There's plenty more years in this old jacket yet.. any idea how I'd go about finding out about the brand and history of it.

 

[mulceber]

Thank you for your help. There's plenty more years in this old jacket yet.. any idea how I'd go about finding out about the brand and history of it.

Windward shouldn’t be hard to find - that was the house brand of Montgomery Ward. The more difficult question is “who made it for Montgomery Ward.”

 

[Sean Robinson]

Windward shouldn’t be hard to find - that was the house brand of Montgomery Ward.

Thanks again I'll try a spot under the collar maybe.

 

[Chandler]

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Although, that's probably not the first item of outerwear I'd grab for a Little America excursion.

 

[Sean Robinson]

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Although, that's probably not the first item of outerwear I'd grab for a Little America excursion.

Lol me neither but they were a sturdier breed of human back then.. probably just had a vest on underneath and some long johns

 

[B-Man2]

Beautiful vintage jacket . Great find !
Tell the wife the jackets now worth about twice what you paid for it. Try not to gloat to much as you say it!