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What can be done to take wrinkles out of a leather A-2 jacket?

RAYMUNDO

New Member
Purchased a leather jacket that is in good shape except the leather has a lot of wrinkles in it like it was crumpled up and stored in a bag or something. Any way to get the wrinkles out other than just wearing the jacket or sleeping in it? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Raymundo
 

Skip

Well-Known Member
As Persimmon said pictures would help us visualise the area.

I find warming the jacket up, i.e. leaving in the sun (if it's warm enough) or in a warm environment and then just wear it. As long as it hasn't 'set' the leather in that area to become a crease line then it should work itself free. You could also condition the leather with a reputable leather product or vaseline, this seems to work as well.
 

Smithy

Well-Known Member
I think Steve is right. If it's a horsehide, cowhide or goatskin A-2, once they get wrinkles they are there. Skip's advice of conditioning the jacket will help and hanging it up to relax for a bit with certainly help but you'll probably never completely get rid of the wrinkles.

On a different note I have an Irvin which some movers packed in a box under some other things when we moved country a few years back and the jacket stayed in the box with shipping and then in storage all up for 16 months. When I went to get it out it had got pushed in a corner and was balled up and completely wrinkled. TBH I was a tad worried and thought the old girl was probably stuffed for good but I lay it out for a week in the spare bedroom and it relaxed remarkably and with wear was back to normal - actually it looked even better. But that's with a sheepskin jacket which are less stiff than the leather that A-2s are made from.
 

HackerF15E

Active Member
Well...that's not technically true. I've removed wrinkles on goat and cow A-2s with a trip through the washing machine and an air-dry to follow...but most folks don't want to do that to their jackets. Mine are current AF-issue stuff, so really not of any kind of value, so doesn't bug me to wash them.

It *can* be done.
 

Skip

Well-Known Member
I had an m422a that was as dry and stiff and the folds from the packing had creased the arms etc, applied some pecards and just wore it. Eventually those lines blended in to the 70 years of wear and the more I wore it the more it blended in. Just wear the hell out of it.
 

MikeyB-17

Well-Known Member
Most people spend ages trying to give their jackets wrinkles, grain and wear! I do know the sort of thing you mean though, usually that will drop out of its own accord one it’s not scrunched up. Best solution is, as Skip says, wear the hell out of it.
 

Pilot

Well-Known Member
I had a G-1 ( Brill. Bro) from the 80 ies. I got it for a very good price, since the goatskin was totally wrinkelt and the rayon liner dirty.
I soaked it in handworm soapy water washed- rubbing the stains in the liner away and left it for an hour in its (changed to clean water ) bath....It was already much better when it cam out of the water....hanging relaxed to drain all the water out.
After a half a day ,I put it inbetween towels and ironed it...almost dry.. the wrinkels came almost all out. The remaining moisture came out when I wore it over a jumper to “stress-pull” the leather and thus avoit the big pleads/ folds to form again.
Ironing was done with lowest possible iron temp. ( for silk) only through the towels...no direct contact.
The G-1 came out very nicely after a bit of Pecards leather balm applied on it....it was totally “refreshed” and with a very souple and soft goatskin.
Finally I sold it on a Militaria ( air memorabilia) show in Speyer/Germany.
 
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Skyhawk

Well-Known Member
It really depends on the leather but there are things you can do to release wrinkles. Most have been touched on above. Wearing a lot and just hanging up once unpacked will help. You can iron them out but be careful if you do. Use a cut out piece of a brown paper bag to cover the area you iron and start with a low temperature setting. Increase the heat if needed but be patient and don't over do it. This is a great way to straighten out pocket flaps too. This has worked on cow, goat, and capeskin for me. Lastly you can soak in water and let dry laid flat until damp. Then wear it damp until it dries completely. This will release wrinkles and help form the jacket to your body shape.
For extreme situations I have actually tumble dried one of our headwind A-1 jackets in high heat after soaking with warm water. This was mostly to test the durability of the jacket and to see how the hide would age. You can expect the jacket to shrink a bit if you tumble dry so don't attempt it unless you don't mind a tighter fit. I sent the jacket through 2 cycles of high heat drying and it removed all wrinkles, even most of the arm creases. This was chrome tanned Capeskin and results will vary depending on the hide. I would imagine that with a stiffer hide like Cow or Horse, this process would not be as effective.
 

dmar836

Well-Known Member
Yeah, too much heat can make areas of leather(yes, real leather) turn into a hard, shrunken potato chip! Ask me how I know that. Gross, I know, but 10 yrs in the Burn ICU taught me even living skin will do that!
Dave
 
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