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Identify a Cooper jacket

jdgloverjr

New Member
Hi everyone, first post here with a question. I was given an old Cooper jacket that a friend acquired through a yard sale. I've been searching online to try to find some information about it. I'm certain it is ai civilian issue from just reading and searching online, as it has a CSN stock number. But I can't find out much else. The jacket has a black Cooper labelled and most of the info I've seen on Coopers, they tend to have an orange label. It is a USA made Type A-2. The jacket overall is in terrific shape, it's just a tad bit tight fit for me. I've attached a copy of the label and am wondering if anyone can give me some info on this jacket as far as it's approximate age, etc...I'm guessing late 90's but again, I've not seen any info on black labelled Coopers.

I've also found this site to be terribly dangerous, as I know have my eye on a Five Star jacket on Amazon. It's sitting in my cart waiting for me to push the order button...:eek:

Thanks!

John

jacket tag.jpg
 

Bombing IP

Well-Known Member
Never seen that label before .Five Star is 1000% better than the Cooper and I am sure you will get one from Shawn that will not be tight !.His Jackets are shooting up the ratings as we speak ,becoming a real player for a modest investment .

BIP OUT
 

jdgloverjr

New Member
Thanks BIP, I've spent a couple days searching online, tried the search function here as well as on fedora lounge looking for "Cooper black label", found nada. Nice to know I'm not a search failure! :)

I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the Five Star off Amazon, after reading many very positive reviews. This is an off the shelf XL, it's the Bronco pattern with the hand warmer pockets, according to the label and jacket description.


It was a steal off Amazon at 60% off. I elected to go with Amazon because of both the price and the delivery time, plus free returns if this one doesn't fit right. Next purchase I already have in mind is an A-1 and I'm liking what I see on the Five Star site. I also just bought an N3B to get through the winter here in Chicago, as an A-2 is definitely not cut out for handling below zero temps.

This is a dangerous passion, I'm already into cameras and astronomy, neither of which are cheap hobbies, it was probably not a smart move for me to register here! But, the damage is already done......

John
 

Bombing IP

Well-Known Member
I was going to get an N3B but went with a Canadian Extreme weather Parka ,the color is solid olive green as it is an older one from the 1990s . I do not like all this digital camo none of it floats my boat .Live in NY been to Chicago many times pretty cool city and freaking cold in the winter with the wind off the lake ,yes you would not make it with an A-2 Types jacket .Unless it was under an N3B. Welcome to the forum and say goodbye to your bank account ! . Let the insanity begin time to drink the cool aid my friend .

BIP OUt
 

Bombing IP

Well-Known Member
Re your Cooper date I would guess 1993 give or take a year .
Wikapedia/ Cooper Sportswear ceased production in the late 1990s and retailer inventories were exhausted some time afterwards.

BIP OUT
 

jdgloverjr

New Member
I was going to get an N3B but went with a Canadian Extreme weather Parka ,the color is solid olive green as it is an older one from the 1990s . I do not like all this digital camo none of it floats my boat .Live in NY been to Chicago many times pretty cool city and freaking cold in the winter with the wind off the lake ,yes you would not make it with an A-2 Types jacket .Unless it was under an N3B. Welcome to the forum and say goodbye to your bank account ! . Let the insanity begin time to drink the cool aid my friend .

BIP OUt
Well I've been down the cash rabbit hole before, you can't take it with you! I went with the black N3B to match my black CWU 45/P, both are Alpha products.

Thanks for the welcome. I've been in Chicago for the last 23 years, but was born in southern Il. My dad was a Marine recruiter down there where he met my mom. As a kid I grew up in Camp Pendleton or Lejeune depending on the Crops' whims for my dad. In between his trips to Vietnam, we moved back to southern Illinois for the 13 months he was deployed, then we finally retired back to S. IL. Went to college in Chicago (Go Cats!) and lived through the -27F below winter in '79. I was in school then, a sophomore at Northwestern and was actually out at a friends party the night it hit -27....taking the Clark St bus back to Evanston as 2am was a real experience. I think the windchills that night were somewhere south of -60F. It was so cold the trains were not running because all of the mechanical switches were frozen solid.

John
 

jdgloverjr

New Member
Plenty of these “ black labeled “ Cooper civi jackets on Ebay.com
Cooper called them commemorative A-2.
Some are in real good condition
Just search ebay with cooper a-2 jacket... several will pop up...
eg:


Thanks Pilot, my jacket is in very similar condition, it just needs to stretch out a bit to be comfortable when zipped. I feel there's very little chance of me shrinking! LOL I'll probably hang on to it, just in case though.

Commemorative edition, commemorating what? USAF 50th? I'm just curious about the history of this jacket. I've just started exploring these jackets and find it very interesting, as well as quite confusing to sort them all out.

John
 

Pilot

Well-Known Member
Thanks Pilot, my jacket is in very similar condition, it just needs to stretch out a bit to be comfortable when zipped. I feel there's very little chance of me shrinking! LOL I'll probably hang on to it, just in case though.

Commemorative edition, commemorating what? USAF 50th? I'm just curious about the history of this jacket. I've just started exploring these jackets and find it very interesting, as well as quite confusing to sort them all out.

John
Cooper had at least one USAAF WW2 A-2 contract .Maybe they tried to
commemorate this fact... maybe for the 50th anniversary of the end of WW2 ( or something like it..).
Their originals issued to the USAAF and modern USAF ( Saddlery versions ) contracts are great jackets!...
The civi jackets might be OK as well..if prospect is low in budget...
Up to the wearers to decide.
My WWII Cooper A-2 was exceptional!
 
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jdgloverjr

New Member
Well, since this one was essentially free to me from a friend, though I did cover the $20 he paid for it at a yard sale, I can't complain at all. It's going to be a good learning jacket. I'm assuming this is a modern civilian repro at this jacket does have the handwarmer pockets on it. If I recall from my very beginner's research, the contract USAAF WWII A-2's did not have those pockets, just the flap pockets. That is one detail I do like though since in Chicago, one needs those handwarmer pockets, even with gloves on some days.
 

FtrPlt

Active Member
The fact that the sizing is a Large versus a numbered size presumably puts it sometime after the orange tagged jackets. I have an orange tag lurking about and they were all in numbered sizes -- 40R, 42R, etc

I started a post years ago on the variations of the orange tags over the years as well as the Saddlery contracts
 
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