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AN-J-4 vs Irvin RAF Flying Jacket ???

rob20uk

Well-Known Member
Hi Guys,

I am looking at two winter jackets from Aero and just have a few questions to help me decide on one. It would be fantastic if I could get some opinions from some owners.

The first jacket is the ANJ-4, I would be looking at getting it in Seal Brown with Oil Pull Trim (Short version).

The second jacket I am looking at is the Irvin RAF Flying Jacket (Battle of Britain Model).

Honestly I love both jackets but I am leaning a bit mote to the ANJ-4 as it seems like it will be a better fit and it looks like it will be a bit more practical.

So my first questions is how practical are thick Shearling jackets for someone living in the North of England? Realistically I would want 2 to 3 months worth of use a year for me to feel like I had value for money.

My second question compared to FQHH do the selves on the Shearling jackets bunch up as much? From looking at the pictures of other jackets it looks like the creasing on the arms is a lot less of an issue. I am asking this mainly so I know what sleeve lengths to order.

My third question is how practical are the collars?

I really appreciate any advice you guys can give also if any of you can post any pics that would be awesome.
 

MikeyB-17

Well-Known Member
I've owned both, as far as whether a sheepskin will get any use in the North of England, Hell yeah! I live in Cornwall, and my B-3 has had plenty of use this Winter. Which you go for is entirely personal choice, the AN-J is more luxurious, with all those leather facings, which possibly might make it a bit more hard-wearing, and more importantly it has pockets, which many don't realise the Irvin doesn't. Personally I prefer the Irvin out of the two, I've never liked the collar on the AN-J, but that's just me.
 

Smithy

Well-Known Member
I might be able to add a little here which may help in some small way.

I have an Eastman 1940 Pattern Irvin which I bought new from them in 2007. In terms of my personal experience, yes the arms crease and develop creasing but they don't experience the same shortening of arm length that FQHH does (I have an Aero Barnstormer in FQHH). Saying that I've only found FQHH to shorten maybe 1/2'' or thereabouts.

The collar on an Irvin is fairly practical if the wind is up and you want to keep it off your ears, although often if the weather warrants an Irvin then you quite often have some form of headwear on to keep the old noggin warm.

Are they practical? If we're talking purely in terms of function compared to modern alternatives not nearly so but they look a damn sight better and there's a real charm and enjoyment from wearing them. How reasonable is it for the north of England? That probably depends on how hot you run body-wise and what you want to use it for. There's some that would argue that a D-1 or a B-6 would be a better bet for that climate but it really is a personal thing.

I live inside the Arctic Circle of Norway (although I'm not from here so perhaps I feel the cold a tad more than the natives) and I get a fair amount of use out of my Irvin.

Bear in mind also that Irvins and ANJ-4s are fairly bulky jackets because of the heft of fleece.

I love my Irvin but I'd struggle to wear it outside of this climate terribly much.
 

rob20uk

Well-Known Member
Thanks for your advice guys.

I decided to pull the trigger on an ANJ-4 that they had one on the sales page. The measurements seem rights so I am going to get it and see how it fits. You can ask as many questions as you want but without putting it on you are never going to know if it feels right or looks right on you.

As its a stock product I will not feel as bad sending it back if it's just not right for me.

If the ANJ-4 feels like overkill then I might get the Irvin as I have head with a thinner fleece they are likely to be more practical.

Thanks again.
 
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CBI

Well-Known Member
Consider a Price Glory Irvin. Great price! There are a number of details missing vs. the high end repros however after recently receiving an original Irvin, I was surprised how close the FEEL /weight of the WPG jacket is to the original............for a fraction of the price. Five feet away, the WPG Irvin LOOKS the part really well and its easy to wear!!!!!
 

rob20uk

Well-Known Member
Thanks. I will stick with the Aero one as I have seen that up at the factory and was really impressed with it.
 

rob20uk

Well-Known Member
Hey Guys,

Just want to update the post. I got the jacket I originally came to the forum asking about. I absolutely love it and can’t wait for the weather to start to get colder so I can use it more.

A big thanks to those on the forum and a big thanks to the guys at Aero for helping me get a jacket that fits so well.

I guess this post would be useless without a pic

ChPPI94.jpg
 
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