Is there some rhyme/reason/coding/classification to mouton colors on original G1s?

[BigBrother]

I settled on, for me, the perfect G1: a Star Sportswear 38, up through the D series. Every time I've tried one on the fit and feel have been perfect!

The thing is, I recently bought an example off eBay, from 1967, which was in insanely good shape. But the collar was more of a reddish brown than I wanted. I decided to take a chance, and sure enough, it doesn't look good on me. (Shame since it is, again, probably the best condition one I've ever seen.) So I'll be returning it. What I really want is the color that matches the goatskin, that dark brown.

Did the contracts call for specific colors? Right now G1 fur seems like a total random hodgepodge to me, a spectrum from black to almost honey blonde.

I was wondering if there's some way to know and possibly see the variations, to ideally know "Ok, I want a Star Sportswear, these years, code 47 for color", etc.

Or was there never one and it was luck of the issue?

Thanks all!

 

[Flightengineer]

No, it has nothing to do with a specific contract. Initially, the mouton collar on all G-1s is dark brown when the jacket is new. Approximately one shade (with slight deviations).
It brightened/fading in the sun, in the cockpit and on deck. And that faded, rusty-reddish to light-colored mouton is just one of the reasons most people here love these old jackets.

 

[B-Man2]

Flightengineer is spot on in his post.
The Star most likely had a dark brown Mouton collar when it left the factory, however, over the years aging, sun and the the weather elements have all worked together to fade that collar into the rust or honey color that it is today. This is a very desirable thing for most people . The dual tone color contrast between the goatskin and the mouton collar shows that the jacket has “been there and done that”. In later years the makers switched out the mouton collars for Dynel collars that will not fade. While most people try to replace the Dynel with Mouton because they want the collar to fade, maybe you should consider reversing that process and trading the mouton for Dynel so it doesn’t fade. I personally think that would be a mistake but it’s your call ……Cheers

 

[BigBrother]

Something doesn’t add up for me here. What I’m seeing doesn’t look like a natural process at all. The fur looks almost new and I feel wouldn’t be consistently the color I’m seeing if it were due to a natural process. I’ve also seen other ones from this era from the same manufacturer that barely look any different than the dark brown, and seem much more used and exposed than mine. I will post pictures when I get home. Maybe the fur was replaced, I’m not sure. I’ll see what you guys have to say.

 

[BigBrother]

Ok folks, what sayest thou?…

(Also, it feels very soft like a woman’s coat or a teddy bear. Not sure if right.)

 

[B-Man2]

The jacket could have had the collar replaced but without actually having the jacket in hand to examine it , I can’t tell from the photos. But I would suggest that if the jacket fits you perfectly and is in great condition and you didn’t pay a lot of money for it … then consider keeping the jacket and having the collar replaced with the one you want .
Here’s a photo of my Star G-1 with a factory collar that has faded for comparison.

 

[MikeyB-17]

That looks like a particularly nice example of a mouton collar which is in near to mint condition. I’d be well pleased if I found one like that. I imagine it’s soft and fluffy like that because it hasn’t been exposed to moisture-usually when they’re new the fibres are straight, giving the fluffy appearance, and when it gets wet they tend to curl and clump together. Colours will fade as has been pointed out, but colours can vary greatly anyway, from very dark brown, almost black, to beige, and AFAIK there was no specific colour requirement or attempt at standardisation. Other types with mouton collars or entirely sheepskin jackets came in all sorts of colours too-AAF B-10’s can be found with white, undyed collars, and some RAF Irvins were so dark as to be pretty much black. I think they used whatever colour they had available.

 

[BigBrother]

Hah, ok then, anyone wanna buy this thing?

I get its value (and yes, B-Man2, it does look nearly identical to yours), but it’s just a taste thing. Not mine. Ironically, I wonder if I should actually seek out the E series with the synthetic collar, ensuring the dark brown forever.

 

[B-Man2]

Hah, ok then, anyone wanna buy this thing?

I get its value (and yes, B-Man2, it does look nearly identical to yours), but it’s just a taste thing. Not mine. Ironically, I wonder if I should actually seek out the E series with the synthetic collar, ensuring the dark brown forever.

I see you wear a size 46, I wear your size and have a couple of very nice G-1s with Dynel Collars. If you don’t find what you’re looking for .. PM me and we’ll see if you might like something I have. What are you asking for this one ?

 

[BigBrother]

The size 46 were your pics . I wear a size 38.

I have no idea what a fair price for this one would be to be honest.

 

[B-Man2]

Oops !!

 

[Capt]

On the subject of the sun fading mouton, I wonder if the salty air when at sea helps oxidise it or at least has a reaction with the sun, just a thought?

 

[BigBrother]

Yeah I'm really fascinated now by this on two accounts:

1. It's shockingly uniform when it does occur.
2. Some well-worn jackets seem to exhibit none of it, some obviously plenty.

This would seem to lead to the air being the culprit and not the sun, with those out at sea perhaps fairing way differently than their terrestrial counterparts.

 

[Chandler]

On the subject of the sun fading mouton, I wonder if the salty air when at sea helps oxidise it or at least has a reaction with the sun, just a thought?

I think this was a kiboshed myth some years back.

 

[Pippinvh]

Hi - used to be a member a while ago, can’t find my old account, started a new one….

Anyway, my grandfather was a furrier and his house was full of mouton, of the same general date as the original m422a collars. He had so much of it that he made little mats to go outside the bedrooms, as rugs, etc etc. As I recall, it all shaded from dark through to that sort of ‘honeycomb’ colour in BigBrother’s pics, sometimes in a single piece. I’d speculate that what we’re looking at is batch variation, often through the same whole skin, and a lot of the colour difference is down to which end of the skin the collar was cut from.