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Ebay help on A-2's

1

1970Novass

New Member
OK guys - hope I'm not shooting myself in the foot but here goes. I'm looking at 2 vintage A-2's on ebay. Both seem pretty
sweet but one has NO jacket tag? Does that reduce the value a lot? I realize jackets of this age and value should be bought not to
make money but be appreciated and enjoyed. I'd love to put one on display in my office.
I'm not computer savvy so I've include ebay numbers. If anyone can help out to post links.
Any advice/recommendation would be great
Thanks

Ebay numbers
#161561851852
#161560075602
 
a2jacketpatches

a2jacketpatches

Active Member
They both seem a little pricey but are good decorated examples. The missing tag seems to be minor considering the rest of the jacket and wouldn't devalue it much. Making money from jackets purchased on Ebay just ain't gonna happen, but nothing wrong with making money if you find one out there in the field at a good price. If there wasn't guys out there buying to make money a lot of these jackets that we appreciate and enjoy would be 20 feet under at the dump.
 
TankBuster

TankBuster

Active Member
The Shade Ruff jacket as was discussed is a very nice original WW2 painted jacket. The opening bid of $2,200 is a very fair price in my opinion. If it sells for anything under $2,600, I would say it would be a pretty decent buy for such as well painted 8th AAF jacket.
As for the other jacket, it is also very nice, but I think that a missing spec label does hold it's value back by a fair amount. If a guy could get it for $2,000-$2,200 I think you would be doing well.
All this is my opinion of course, but I normally buy and sell a fair amount of original A-2 jackets each year. Best of luck!
 
1

1970Novass

New Member
Also bidding wars can get crazy against on eBay.
I remember years ago getting in a bidding war on ebay over a 1970's era Hot Rod magazine that I quit on at $100. 2 weeks later I bought another for $22.
Of coarse these aren't Magazines ! But they do come up every so often.
 
a2jacketpatches

a2jacketpatches

Active Member
Just a completed listings search is what I based my guess on. And the 3500- Buy Now price tells me there's probably a reserved on it at least fairly close to that. The other jacket seems a little rough compared to another that sold for quite a bit less recently.

Of course, these are worth exactly what the Ebayer is willing to pay for them. They can pick and choose personal preferences for BS's, FS's, etc. they can afford to pay as opposed to the time and patience consumed searching for a bargain. And you're right about the bidding wars, the realized price on either of these could surprise everyone and usually does one way or the other, high or low. Bottom line is that Ebay prices are top dollar. I don't buy any A2's on Ebay, any that I've had came out of houses at 40 bucks max if I recall. But I do sell everything else military that finds the light of day. It's very hard to nail down a price based on small discrepancies.

Pros and cons on every jacket I see out there, the previous stitch holes and lack of tag on the B-26 jacket bug me, I know of a guy in Massachusetts that's been piecing these things together so long he can't get his story straight any more. But the 401st BG seems right as rain to me and I have positively ID'd the actual painter in another thread. How often is the painter ID'd? To me, this jacket is much more desirable and less of a risk than the other. Forgive me seller of the B-26 jacket if you're on here, but in my experience behind the Ebay illusions, the fakers have been at it for a very long time.

However, little things like tags and broken zippers is a great way to cut the deal face to face.
 
TankBuster

TankBuster

Active Member
Andrew said:
The 554th BS patch looks suspiciously like one of the RKO Studio jobs too.
Click to expand...

Hey Andrew... Now that you mention it, it does look like canvas! When I glanced at it before, it looked like leather. Better pics would surely be in order.

Looks like the shade ruff auction was ended. I was hoping to see what it was going to sell for to help me valuate mine. Oh well. Probably got a offer close to the buy it now.
 
a2jacketpatches

a2jacketpatches

Active Member
Andrew said:
The 554th BS patch looks suspiciously like one of the RKO Studio jobs too.
Click to expand...

I noticed it was canvas as well and it does say so in the listing. Looks like the seller is trying to talk it up as well, Can't say I've seen many painted canvas original patches so it probably is an RKO. The seller also explains why there's conflicting BG ID on the jacket. Wonder what a little history check on this individual might reveal. The more I look at this jacket the more I think bogus. The "SHADE RUFF" is good as gold though and being ID'd to the owner certainly is a factor in whatever it sold for. Maybe the guy even got word of the painter Harry Holl.
 
TankBuster

TankBuster

Active Member
In the off chance that someone here got the Shade Ruff jacket, drop
me a PM. I would like to trade info and crew details. I would love to
hear from you. My jacket belonged to the ball turret gunner from
that crew.
 
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