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History Bunker WW1 Imperial German Pilots Jacket

CBI

Well-Known Member
Ordered this jacket from The History Bunker in Leeds. Ordered in a custom size. Yes, again made overseas, not UK.

WW1 Imperial German Fighter Pilots leather jacket - black

The jacket arrived and the workmanship is amazing. I was a bit worried that some portions were fake leather but they all past the "fake/real leather test with water. Maybe fake passes the tests these days. Smells like leather! Great WW1 vibe, looks great on. Need to take wearing pics. Not terribly grainy but I noticed it creases well. I am not much of a black leather jacket person but wanted one black jacket. This one is super heavy BTW. Lots of great details, inner pocket, etc. For the price - amazing. I will absolutely order a Hartmann jacket from them. They nailed the fit. Those pics to follow. Buttons inside like double breasted jacket. The only drawback is I will never this jacket enough to truly break it in.

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Smithy

Well-Known Member
Lovely flying coat.

The Bunker are one of very few who also offer a more than passable version of the long flying coat typical of those worn in the RFC (and made by a number of British companies specialising in flying and motoring clothing).

But their really special coat is this one:

https://thehistorybunker.co.uk/ww1-...Royal-Flying-Corps-leather-coat-short-version

This appears to be an exact copy of the revised RFC issue short flying coat (issued from September 1913). I have never seen one of these reproduced and I'm very tempted to pick one up.
 

johnwayne

Well-Known Member
I believe one of those UK companies was Mulberry, or maybe Burberry who certainly made trench coats - whatever, given the cost of either's merchandise today I can only assume back then they would have been a lot more affordable! Nice coat by the way - enjoy!!
 

Smithy

Well-Known Member
I believe one of those UK companies was Mulberry, or maybe Burberry who certainly made trench coats - whatever, given the cost of either's merchandise today I can only assume back then they would have been a lot more affordable! Nice coat by the way - enjoy!!

There were quite a few different British companies which made flying coats and clothing and you can see advertisements for them in copies of "The Aeroplane" from the period. One of the main reasons was that officers mostly procured their own flying kit (up until 1918 when the first pattern Sidcot became standard issue and were very well received by aircrew) - this is also a reason why the RFC issued flying coats are exceedingly rare now. Arguably the most sort after British flying coat were the Burfron offerings from Burberry which were very highly regarded.

British flying coats were highly sort after by Central Power airmen and you can see quite a few photos of them wearing examples which they've obviously obtained from downed Allied airmen. The best one I have is of Charles Jeffs of 56 Sqn after he was shot down, standing with his victor, Oblt Bruno Loerzer of Jasta 26. Both men are wearing British flying coats and Loerzer's is most probably a Burfron.
 

R-975

New Member
That looks really good.

Can I be a nuisance and ask you to measure the width of the belt please?

My German utility jacket is missing its belt and I have been looking for a suitable replacement. I've no idea if the manufacturer sells spares, but yours looks just the right style. It might be a bit too wide though as my belt loops are 1.5" maximum.

Mike

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk
 

CBI

Well-Known Member
the belt is 2 inches wide

Woo hoo - JUST ordered one of their Hartmann Jackets in a custom size and a one piece back.
 
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R-975

New Member
Thanks for your reply. Shame it's too wide for mine. I'll keep looking!

Mike

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk
 

seeker

New Member
Ordered this jacket from The History Bunker in Leeds. Ordered in a custom size. Yes, again made overseas, not UK.

WW1 Imperial German Fighter Pilots leather jacket - black

The jacket arrived and the workmanship is amazing. I was a bit worried that some portions were fake leather but they all past the "fake/real leather test with water. Maybe fake passes the tests these days. Smells like leather! Great WW1 vibe, looks great on. Need to take wearing pics. Not terribly grainy but I noticed it creases well. I am not much of a black leather jacket person but wanted one black jacket. This one is super heavy BTW. Lots of great details, inner pocket, etc. For the price - amazing. I will absolutely order a Hartmann jacket from them. They nailed the fit. Those pics to follow. Buttons inside like double breasted jacket. The only drawback is I will never this jacket enough to truly break it in.

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I ordered this coat but with some changes...i wanted somting difrent then was on the market ...a one of a kind
I wanted a full length trench coat that went all the way to the top of my shoes that was very heavy
i had the back changed a little and went with a full grain buffalo leather
The belt on mine is a full belt that i can take off and use a tie belt if i like or exchange it if it wares out
one thing i have learned from the past is the belt is the first thing to ware out and this way i can easily replace it if i need to
i also had them send extra buttons just in case one came off and got lost
i believe the liner will be in black
it took a while becuse it being a special order it should be here in the next few days
i did order mine from the UK

here is a picture of the layout i created so they knew what it should look like
 

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ausreenactor

Well-Known Member
Ordered this jacket from The History Bunker in Leeds. Ordered in a custom size. Yes, again made overseas, not UK.

WW1 Imperial German Fighter Pilots leather jacket - black

The jacket arrived and the workmanship is amazing. I was a bit worried that some portions were fake leather but they all past the "fake/real leather test with water. Maybe fake passes the tests these days. Smells like leather! Great WW1 vibe, looks great on. Need to take wearing pics. Not terribly grainy but I noticed it creases well. I am not much of a black leather jacket person but wanted one black jacket. This one is super heavy BTW. Lots of great details, inner pocket, etc. For the price - amazing. I will absolutely order a Hartmann jacket from them. They nailed the fit. Those pics to follow. Buttons inside like double breasted jacket. The only drawback is I will never this jacket enough to truly break it in.

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Nice one John. The gear is great. The website pics are cringy...
 

Southoftheborder

Well-Known Member
Never seen that site before but I suppose it appeals mainly to re-enactors. Is the leather stuff any good for the money though? It is pretty cheap, and that A2 looks horrible. Eastman do a version of the German WW1 coat but it's just a Brooklands motoring coat in black with different buttons.
 

CBI

Well-Known Member
the History Bunker makes some great stuff! Most of their leathers are made somewhere else and are made to order. they are excellent for the money. sometimes the hardware is not so great but the worksmaship is about as good as it gets Not terribly high end leather but it does the job. They will also do custom sizing. I really liked the jacket I am pictured in but ultimately could not pull it off. Really no appropriate place to wear it. What are you dressed up as, a Spy?
 

Pilot

Well-Known Member
As a little detail or side note…
Chest / Torso seams in leather jackets hardly existed prior 1930/40… just a little observation and about details and accuracy ( at least for details…within „Imperial „ Germany ).
Happy to be convinced otherwise..
 
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