BR Tanker question

[veli1]

Hello guys, I have a question regarding BR Tanker jacket. Is there any difference I mean in quality of the cloth and shading on the color between BR tanker which is bought directly in Japan stores (Mash,rakuten,hinoya etc.) and BR Tanker from Eastman/history preservation site. I have looked over the internet and found different shades of the same BR Tanker. Either true or false but I don't know which...if true that means we all have exactly the same BR Tanker jackets but in different sizes?? Thanks.

 

[asiamiles]

Hello guys, I have a question regarding BR Tanker jacket. Is there any difference I mean in quality of the cloth and shading on the color between BR tanker which is bought directly in Japan stores (Mash,rakuten,hinoya etc.) and BR Tanker from Eastman/history preservation site. I have looked over the internet and found different shades of the same BR Tanker. Either true or false but I don't know which...if true that means we all have exactly the same BR Tanker jackets but in different sizes??

The basic BR tanker is the same, it's just the lighting conditions where the various photos were taken. If you've ever tried photographing a jacket you'll know how incredibly difficult it is to get the colour right, even with a lot of photoshop tweaking.

The only variant is the Brown version which is easily identifiable by its Crown zipper.

 

[Chandler]

If you've ever tried photographing a jacket you'll know how incredibly difficult it is to get the colour right, even with a lot of photoshop tweaking.

Not to mention how different everyone's monitors can be!

Chandler

 

[Swing]

I've yet to see a photo that captures what my Buzz Tanker looked like in real life when new, though the photo on ELC's website comes the closest. The shell of my jackets was a very brown khaki, the knits where a dark forest green, and the light colored stitching was very pronounced. The jacket on the ELC site looks close, but the knit isn't dark enough.

I've had the jacket several years, and it has changed quite a bit from fading and dirt. The knit and shell look more like different shades of the same color rather than being distinctly brown and green, and the stitching doesn't stick out anymore. Depending on the light, the shell goes between a light golden khaki and light OD green. Knit has lost it's sharp darkness and is what I'd consider a fairly typical OD green.

Due to the color combination, I almost sent the jacket back when I got it. Glad I didn't. It's turned out nicely, and I've gotten a lot of use out of it. Only gripes I have with it, the zipper needs to go a little further up the neck knit, the pocket material is thin (wore a hole through on pocket last winter), and the lining could be a little heavier (warmer).

Here's a picture from a year ago, when I wore the tanker pheasant hunting. It's an overcast day, and as you can see, in that light it looks a bit green. I've got a W&G pink shirt and C-2 sweater in under it.

~Swing

 

[veli1]

Thanks guys,

now i understand why there are so many photos of tanker jackets with different "shades of green". Nevertheless this pic is one of my favourite

 

[Swing]

This thread got me paying a little more attention to my tanker. First thing, I looked for spots where sunlight wouldn't have been getting to, so see if I could find any of the original color. The pleats at the shoulders, and a little bit of the seams down the back still have some of the original color left, and wow, I forgot just how brown this jacket was. And boy is it ever a chameleon now. Today under the lights at work the shell looks like a washed out brown khaki with a little bit of a green cast. A few days ago when I was out in the woods on a overcast rainy day, the jacket looked very pea green. In general the jacket leans more towards shades of green, which is suprising after how brown it started out.

The shell is also starting to get more thin spots than I realized. Around the pocket edges, down the seam along the inside of the arms and where that seam meets the cuffs, and the seam that runs under the arms down the body. I think this is my fourth or fifth winter with this jacket, and if I gets a lot of use this winter, it may be too ratty for next winter.

~Swing

 

[269sqnhudson]

I've just received 2 Buzz Tankers from Eastman. Interestingly the lining is better than the last one I owned 4 years ago. I'll put pics up of any aspect people are interested in, let me know.

T

 

[Anonymous]

I've yet to see a photo that captures what my Buzz Tanker looked like in real life when new, though the photo on ELC's website comes the closest. The shell of my jackets was a very brown khaki, the knits where a dark forest green, and the light colored stitching was very pronounced. The jacket on the ELC site looks close, but the knit isn't dark enough.

I've had the jacket several years, and it has changed quite a bit from fading and dirt. The knit and shell look more like different shades of the same color rather than being distinctly brown and green, and the stitching doesn't stick out anymore. Depending on the light, the shell goes between a light golden khaki and light OD green. Knit has lost it's sharp darkness and is what I'd consider a fairly typical OD green.

Due to the color combination, I almost sent the jacket back when I got it. Glad I didn't. It's turned out nicely, and I've gotten a lot of use out of it. Only gripes I have with it, the zipper needs to go a little further up the neck knit, the pocket material is thin (wore a hole through on pocket last winter), and the lining could be a little heavier (warmer).

Here's a picture from a year ago, when I wore the tanker pheasant hunting. It's an overcast day, and as you can see, in that light it looks a bit green. I've got a W&G pink shirt and C-2 sweater in under it.

~Swing

Swing,
No disrespect but it seems to me that all your gripes are with details that were authentic to the original jacket. And as we know on here, copying original details are more important than improving said period jacket. We take the high quality repros for all their faults. No ?

Maybe you should have chosen a cheaper and more practical jacket for the purposes for which you are using the BR tanker ?

As I understand it, the tanker and M41 were not very durable jackets. Not a problem when they were cheap to produce and on free issue. But a BIG problem when they are expensive and you gotta buy it !

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Swing]

Swing,
No disrespect but it seems to me that all your gripes are with details that were authentic to the original jacket. And as we know on here, copying original details are more important than improving said period jacket. We take the high quality repros for all their faults. No ?

The zipper not going far enough up the neck knit is unauthentic IMO. I know it's not supposed to go all the way to the top, it's supposed to go about half way up the knit, maybe a hair higher than that. Well, on my Buzz it's well below half way, so when the jacket is zipped all the way up, the knit doesn't really offer much protection in the front. As for the blanket lining, it's lighter than all the other repros I've handeled (MASH/ELC, WWII Imp) and is lighter than the one vintage jacket I've had the chance to handle. Pocket linings, I don't know how authentic they are or not, but they are thin and not too sturdy IMO.

~Swing

 

[Anonymous]

I had an original. Blanket wasn't that thick but maybe that's because the jacket was 40 odd years old .......

The zipper didn't go above half way up the knits. I'd assumed it was a seamstress error. Jacket made in haste etc.

Pocket linings were already trashed.

Now the Eastman tanker I bought and sold on last year also had the zipper stop short of the half way point on the neck knit. The blanket smelled like a genuine GI blanket and was not that thick (but i didn't check it with a micrometer) and the pockets were of the same cotton material that the original had had.

I have to say that having spent nigh on $500 for it I hadn't planned on using it for hunting. I also wore it with a scarf 'a-la-WW2 aviator'. I bought it because I was having a nostalgia moment for the original tanker I had 15 years earlier and sold. As it turned out, the jacket was too warm for the UK winters and I didn't like the bi-swing back being full length. Made it look too boxy IMHO.

If I were hunting I'd go with a vintage Duxbax or Filson with a fleece underneath. The tanker was never going to be waterproof and when wet must weigh 3 times it's dry weight.

Horses for courses I s'pose Swing.

Dave

 

[Swing]

I had an original. Blanket wasn't that thick but maybe that's because the jacket was 40 odd years old .......

The zipper didn't go above half way up the knits. I'd assumed it was a seamstress error. Jacket made in haste etc.

Here's a photo that was posted here recently. As you can see, the zip goes at least half way up the collar knit.

Here's a doodle of how my Buzz Tanker is, the zip barely goes into the knit, so the knit kinda V's out above it.

I thought this might be just a problem on the larger jackets, but looking at photos of other Buzz tankers, it looks like it's through out the size range.

BTW, I didn't buy my tanker as a hunting jacket. It gets worn when weather permits, whether that's back and forth to work, out hunting, or working around the house. And since it's faded, dirty, and I'm starting to wear holes in the shell, I'd guess I like it (in spite of it's shortcomings) and it gets a lot more use than most other guy's repro jackets.

~Swing

 

[Anonymous]

Swing,
I just assumed you were filthy rich and that's why you wore your tanker for hunting

Ref the details : I'm not disputing your experiences. Only adding mine. It proves that old jackets ain't all EXACTLY the same. A lesson to be heeded by many.

Perhaps tanker jackets need to be fully explored by maker and contract the way flight jackets have been. A 'Full Gear' for tankers maybe ?

I'll leave that chore to someone who cares a figg.

Dave

 

[Chandler]

As it turned out, the jacket was too warm for the UK winters

Hmm, and I was just noting how mine (WW2 Impressions) doesn't seem to block the wind too well and can be less than desirable when I know it's below 40°F here in the US midwest. Makes me more appreciate those poor GIs in Italy who really needed something warm and lusted after the tankers.

BTW -- Here's another image where you can see the zip stop halfway up the collar:

Chandler

 

[asiamiles]

I'm sure the zips on originals didn't all stop at exactly the same place; they were churning these out to keep fighting men warm, not for fashion shows! The zipper on my BR Tanker stops at half way; remember BR use NOS Conmatic zippers on their Tankers, not repro's. I think the Tanker makes a pretty cool looking hunting jacket in those photos.

 

[Anonymous]

as a bit of a footnote, I recently bought 'Gear Up!' and in it all the photos of tanker jackets show the zipper ending everywhere BUT the top of the knit ....................................

Incidentally, I will be doing a full review of that book plus several others that don't seem to warrant a mention on this forum with photos etc over the Christmas period. As a taster, Gear Up has some great period photos of jackets that I've not personally come across elsewhere.

Dave