Found A-2 while vintage shopping NYC

[gruvi]

Hello Gents,

Today I went to NYC with family and a friend and in unexpected fashion, I discovered a vintage shop that had some really nice leather jackets from the 30s to the 60s. Some great jackets and I will strive to become a regular there.
When I first walked in I spied mouton collars on the rack and upon close inspection, I saw they were civilian types from JC Penney's and such stores.
I was flipping through all the hanging jackets, avoiding dwelling on everyone with handwarmers, just looking for those with cargo pockets only.
Then I saw and ended up buying this -

The seller said he was told by two very knowledgeable collectors this is a cowhide jacket. I wasnt aware there was a way to tell the difference from horse and wasnt aware that the genuine rough wears came in cow or steer for the 1401-P.
Now I just need to decide what to do with it. Would you get the lining that is falling apart, partially replaced, or switch out the whole lining altogether? I didnt buy this for displaying, as I have no museum here, and no one that visits asks to see my jacket collection. What should I do? And in the meantime would it be wise to Pecard the thing? Back panel looks and feels sandy (looks like it has sparkles in the leather) but I dont want to ruin it for the next person that may be interested to have it after me. Any advice is greatly waited for!
Thank you, Gerard

 

[rrackleyadams]

YIKES...wow. That is SOME find. Did you pay a premium price for it or were they aware of what they were selling?

There are many people here with extensive knowledge of original A-2s so I'll spare you my thoughts. Try to connect with Andrew...his knowledge is impressive to say the least.

RA

 

[deand]

:shock: :mrgreen: What a find! Congradulations!







dean

 

[gruvi]

Thanks for the nice words. I never had this type of jacket before, so I really need advice on what to do as far as, to retore or not restore, and to condition or leave alone etc. ?

 

[Stony]

I would advise against doing anything with it if you're going to sell it. IMO it's worth more untouched.

 

[Andrew]

Stony's right, leave it in it's untouched condition. Some will want to wear it, sme will want to preserve it and some will want to display it, so you will reduce the market if you decide to fiddle with it- especially if you're not sure what to do. lucky for you finding it and having that thrill, it wasn't in Cheap Jacks by any chance? Years ago when I was there they had tons of "brown leather jackets" but I didn't persist.

 

[gruvi]

Stony's right, leave it in it's untouched condition. Some will want to wear it, sme will want to preserve it and some will want to display it, so you will reduce the market if you decide to fiddle with it- especially if you're not sure what to do. lucky for you finding it and having that thrill, it wasn't in Cheap Jacks by any chance? Years ago when I was there they had tons of "brown leather jackets" but I didn't persist.

I am leaning toward keeping it for this year at least. So with this in mind, I really want to be sure it is properly clean and conditioned at the least.
And does anyone think this is likely steer or cowhide, and not horse? And what makes those sparkly bits I see, especially evident on back panel? Thanks for helping.

 

[atkins]

Congratulation Gerard.

 

[dujardin]

wowwwwww

congrats

imo... stay away from changing something to this jacket
keep her as she is

 

[ausreenactor]

What a great get!! There will be a few here insanely jealous of your find. Or more..

Couchy

 

[TankBuster]

It's horsehide. A very nice jacket as well. As said by others, I would leave it as is. If you want to clean it up a little, just use a cloth rag and some water. Pecards is fine, but there are guys that will not consider buying a jacket that has had it applied. As for the lining, it doesn't look too bad to me. Leave it to the next guy to fix.

 

[gruvi]

It's horsehide. A very nice jacket as well. As said by others, I would leave it as is. If you want to clean it up a little, just use a cloth rag and some water. Pecards is fine, but there are guys that will not consider buying a jacket that has had it applied. As for the lining, it doesn't look too bad to me. Leave it to the next guy to fix.

Thanks for affirmation of what you say the hide is Jeff. I was told it was said to be steer by two gentlemen whom handled this jacket before me, but even I had doubts it was cow.
As of now, I have decided I am keeping it and will focus on restoring as close to original specs as is able to have done to it. For what I put down, for it, I rather just enjoy it myself for some time. My concern leaving the lining as is, would be losing or rubbing out the spec tag. If I can get the liner in same material and close color, thats when I decide to have it tackled.

 

[Andrew]

Replacing the original lining would simply devalue the jacket. It's fine and if you are concerned about damaging it then don't try to wear it. Replacement would be the ultimate damage.

Im a bit confused, you asked the forum what to do with it and some very knowledgable collectors advised preservation but it looks like you'd already made up your mind.

 

[gruvi]

I was hunting for a popular vote on what to do. I got some responses that were on the side of reselling it and others on keeping it. Anyway 8 am getting it, and with more input I am swaying toward keeping it, wearing it sometimes, and leaving it alone except for a condition at some point down the road. Thanks for helping me more on my indecisions Andrew.

Replacing the original lining would simply devalue the jacket. It's fine and if you are concerned about damaging it then don't try to wear it. Replacement would be the ultimate damage.

Im a bit confused, you asked the forum what to do with it and some very knowledgable collectors advised preservation but it looks like you'd already made up your mind.

 

[Stony]

That sparkly stuff might be mold spots. I've seen them before and a cleaning will get rid of them. I also wouldn't use Pecards, but that's just my opinion. J.C. recommends Zymol, or at least he used to.

 

[gruvi]

That sparkly stuff might be mold spots. I've seen them before and a cleaning will get rid of them. I also wouldn't use Pecards, but that's just my opinion. J.C. recommends Zymol, or at least he used to.

Yes, I decided not to use pecard on it already. Im going to follow the mild cleaning advice, let it dry as I learned it should, and put it to the side for now. Never expected I was getting into such a delicate situation with such an item. It is quite fun. I wore it inside today and it looks really lovely on me fit wise.

 

[RCSignals]

If this wasn't an April fools joke, Great find!

:lol:

 

[gruvi]

If this wasn't an April fools joke, Great find!

:lol:

Yeah, you know, I forgot it was April 1!
No joke and thanks. I still dont know what I have and there have been generous offers to buy it from me. After all the help and advice I have made a decision on what Im going to do with this jacket. Thanks all that pitched in with wisdom

 

[Roughwear]

Assuming this is no April Fool you have picked up an excellent RW 1401-P from the Autumn of 1941. This was RW's third A2 contract and Jimmy Stewart wore an A2 from the same contract in a size 40. If you are intending to re-sell it leave it as you bought it. However if you decide to keep it the horsehide would benefit from a light coat of Pecards and you could get the lining professionally repaired, but as has been said any treatment to the jacket may devalue it in the eyes of some collectors. The presence of the pocket tag with the production number is a real bonus and just adds to the value of this iconic RW contract.

 

[gruvi]

Assuming this is no April Fool you have picked up an excellent RW 1401-P from the Autumn of 1941. This was RW's third A2 contract and Jimmy Stewart wore an A2 from the same contract in a size 40. If you are intending to re-sell it leave it as you bought it. However if you decide to keep it the horsehide would benefit from a light coat of Pecards and you could get the lining professionally repaired, but as has been said any treatment to the jacket may devalue it in the eyes of some collectors. The presence of the pocket tag with the production number is a real bonus and just adds to the value of this iconic RW contract.

Thanks for the wealth of info, Andrew. As of now its laying in a safe place and I am not doing any thinking about it now. The lining in it is shot, the collar is worn, the cuffs are a mess...it is easier on me that I forget I even own it. I have no clue of its realistic value right now, and due to this, it will stay dormant until I learn more someday. Thanks again!