Lewis Leathers from their archive

[havocpaul]

Good to see the guys at Lewis Leathers reproducing jackets from their 1940's archive collection, I especially like the attention to detail in reproducing the WW2-period LL labels. I hope this is successful for them and other styles are resurrected in the future, I'm going to trawl through my old copies of Flight and Motorcycle magazines and see what they were advertising back then! Somewhere in my book collection I have seen a photo of an RAF pilot wearing a 'civvie' leather jacket during the Battle of Britain similar to these styles.

http://lewisleathers.com/165.html

 

[John Lever]

Derek tells me that there are more to come.

 

[deeb7]

Derek tells me that there are more to come.

Good, it's great that they're doing this, and yes, it will be interesting to see the other styles they introduce. I like the brown cowhide, so I wouldn't be waiting for nappa.

Are central backseams, and elasticised waists typical features of British jackets? They're not my favourite details.

 

[havocpaul]

I've seen a few jackets of that period with the elasticated waist band, all were British jackets if I recall.

 

[John Lever]

Paul,
Derek took me into ' The Basement ' where he keeps all his old Lewis jackets including other really old originals from the 30's and 20's. Some of them civi A-1's that pre-date the US jackets.

 

[havocpaul]

I am hoping at last to visit them and would love to see the 'basement' and its treasures! I am still debating whether to commission their 'Battle of Britain' film 'Luftwaffe' jacket, it would be great if they could add the 1940's style LL label inside. Is Derek there most days, John?

 

[asiamiles]

Are central backseams, and elasticised waists typical features of British jackets? They're not my favourite details.

I don't really like the seam much either, but I'm guessing it's an authentic feature...perhaps they might be persuaded to make a slight deviation from the original pattern and get rid of it. Otherwise I think the Clubman is very nice, with a slight resemblance to the jackets worn by Luftwaffe pilots, while the Lumber jacket to today's eyes perhaps looks a little too much like a bad copy of an A-2?

 

[havocpaul]

Going through a few old mags threw up these nice ads, the 1938 one from Flight magazine has plently of gear available for the flyer and offers discount for the RAF. Was the 'RAF Pattern leather coat' lined in heavy fleece an 'Irvin' style or more like a RFC coat? Note the availability of 'slightly soiled' examples! In the same edition of the mag is a full page advert from the Irvin Air Chute company for the Irvinsuit, no price listed. The second Lewis Leathers ad from the RAF Flying Review 20 years later (1958) has the Corsair jacket which was the basis for the 'Luftwaffe' jackets in the BOB film a decade later.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/havocpaul/?saved=1

 

[deeb7]

Paul,
Derek took me into ' The Basement ' where he keeps all his old Lewis jackets including other really old originals from the 30's and 20's. Some of them civi A-1's that pre-date the US jackets.

Do you mean that they pre-date the mid 1920's issue of the jackets in the US, or the popularity of the style altogether?

 

[John Lever]

One was from the 1920's.

 

[asiamiles]

I'm more and more wanting one of these. Are they actually on the market yet?

Would the back seam be a result of the type of leather being used? Generally jackets with large back panels are made from horsehide.

 

[deeb7]

Would the back seam be a result of the type of leather being used? Generally jackets with large back panels are made from horsehide.

Nah, cows are big enough.

Cooper, for example, was able to make a one piece back A-2, until they reached size 48 ... and that's with goatskin.

The back seam allows a cutter to get a little more out of each hide, in this case, Lewis are probably just staying true to the original design.

 

[asiamiles]

Would the back seam be a result of the type of leather being used? Generally jackets with large back panels are made from horsehide.

Nah, cows are big enough.

Cooper, for example, was able to make a one piece back A-2, until they reached size 48 ... and that's with goatskin.

The back seam allows a cutter to get a little more out of each hide, in this case, Lewis are probably just staying true to the original design.

Cows are certainly as big as horses, but I wonder if they yield as much usable hide for jackets?

Would the same be true of the nappa? Would that not be tough enough to have such panels and perhaps that's the reason for the jackets originally having the centre seam? It's not clear to me if the jackets were originally only nappa or if they were also available in cowhide.

 

[deeb7]

Would the same be true of the nappa? Would that not be tough enough to have such panels and perhaps that's the reason for the jackets originally having the centre seam?

I wasn't thinking of the nappa, yes those skins are smaller ... and I haven't seen many, but the centre seam does appear to be a feature of the British jackets.

 

[zoomer]

Let's not forget rationing. It went on for quite a while postwar. Shortages of leather would make smaller panels and piecing necessary.

Note that the lower, catalog illustration of the Countryman - from the 50s - has 1pc front panels. Earlier they were 2pc, yoked at the chest (the style being reproed now).

 

[asiamiles]

Note that the lower, catalog illustration of the Countryman - from the 50s - has 1pc front panels. Earlier they were 2pc, yoked at the chest (the style being reproed now).

I like the 2 panel fronts found on British jackets.

 

[Tim P]

I think the number of panels is immaterial if replicating an existing design. Our phobic reaction to multi panels is I think largely attributable to the evils of firms like Avirex producing back seamed A-2 'style' jackets. Many US manufactured civilian jackets also use multi panel designs to great effect, disguising the frugality of the construction (common sense really when making a profit on your product) with stylised scalloping, yokes etc.
When you have a fixed contract and the profit is assured because a government is paying you a pre-arranged stipend then it makes more sense to use bigger panels and less seams to speed assembly time, this may well have been a consideration with an A-2.

In terms of funtionality, a multi panel design is as efficient as a single panel and is arguably more ornate and less utilitarian. I like the look of the Lewis jackets.

did they make crushers for the US military BTW? someone called Lewis did. I have seen a couple of originals.

 

[asiamiles]

Somewhere in my book collection I have seen a photo of an RAF pilot wearing a 'civvie' leather jacket during the Battle of Britain similar to these styles.

I think in "War Films; A Pictorial History" by Clyde Jeavons there is a still from THE WAY TO THE STARS and one of the characters is wearing a jacket very much like the "Lumber Jacket".

 

[asiamiles]

The back seam allows a cutter to get a little more out of each hide, in this case, Lewis are probably just staying true to the original design.

Got this reply from Derek, who clearly knows all about customer service:
"Regarding the back style, 3 piece backs were common in British WW2 period jackets due to scarcity of materials and are a feature of jackets from this era, however, if you prefer a 2 piece back then we will be happy to do it for you. "

 

[deeb7]

That's very nice of him, I'd certainly go with that option ... if there weren't so many other ways of spending money.