Repro Irvin project - UPDATE

[Pete17]

Thanks for sharing this adventure with us Jon.
Helluva a first effort I must say. Looks excellent to me.
Don't get too hung up on the stitching being gun barrel straight. As you said, the originals were far from perfect but they did the job nicely when it counted.

Can't wait to see the finished product!

 

[jonnyboy]

Hi guys,

Here are a couple more pics of the sleeve. The first is a comparison of the sleeve next to an original. The original has more seams on the sleeve, as it's mid-war, but the first test jacket will have fewer seams, and full front and back panels on the 'body' of the jacket.

The other pic shows a detail of the zip. As I said in an earlier post, the zips are the thing I'd be keen to keep improving on. I don't think they're a bad starting point though.

Cheers,

Jon

 

[philip.ed]

Wow, that's incredible

 

[NW Carver]

I am impressed! The repro arms is almost identical to the wartime original - especially in the colour, look and leather texture!

 

[art of a2]

Zipper picture a bit dark to see but I think you are right. These zips are a very good starting point. Nothing wrong with the stitching in this picture you are getting better!

Excellent work..looking forward to you regular updates Jonnyboy..

 

[NW Carver]

Oh - and agree about the repro Irvin debate, that's why I have never bought a repro - because I cannot find one that's just right compared to the original Warrings that I have.

 

[jonnyboy]

Hi guys,

Here's my first attempt at making the belt (the side with the buckle). There are a few slipped stitches occurring still with my sewing - I think that's down to operator inexperience (probably pulling the leather as goes through the machine, rather than just guiding it)!

Still, I'm happy with it as a first attempt.

Cheers,

Jon

 

[PADDY_M]

Nice work!! just watching this unfold with interest like the rest of the boys here.

 

[jonnyboy]

Thanks Paddy - glad you like it so far.

Here's the eyelet side of the belt - again, pretty lousy stitching in places, but I don't think it's too bad for a first attempt.

Cheers,

Jon

 

[Persimmon]

Jon.

I too am following this project with interest and am amazed at your ability.
The best of luck on this.

Oh and as for the odd wavy stitch - Heck ....its War time Soldier

Keep going my friend

 

[Falcon_52]

Looking good! Out of curiosity, what kind of leather are you using for the non-sheepskin parts - steerhide or horsehide?

Noel

 

[jonnyboy]

Thanks Alan. Hopefully the stitching will get better with time though. For the first test jacket I'm not too worried, as I'm still just working out how to put it all together. I'd hope to improve after I've made a few more jackets, and eventually be able to get the stitching quite neat. For someone who has never used a sewing machine before, I'm happy with how it's going - very steep learning curve, but great fun!

Noel, the leather is cow hide. It's very nice stuff, and is full grain, so should develop character nicely. When I've finished this first test jacket, I plan to wear the hell out of it to see how everything holds up. It'll be be interesting to see how it looks after a few months of wear.

Cheers,

Jon

 

[philip.ed]

Certainly looks excellent. Can't wait to see how this looks once you start to piece it together!

 

[Andrew]

Getting exciting Jon. Thanks for these.

WRT the belt/ coverstrip leather, this reminds me of the belt and leather of my Wareings, which appears to have a pigment coating.

It might just be age but the leather on 2 of my others (probably IAC) is more natural russet or aged honey coloured and appears to have no coating at all but is burnished with age. Is this something youve noticed?

 

[Roughwear]

Wareings Irvins generally had a thicker polyacrilate coating than IAC jackets. This top coat is prone to cracking and would most likely have been sprayed onto the sheepskin.

 

[Andrew]

My question was about the cowhide components- specifically the belt but including the back of collar and seam cover strips. Not ruling out some kind of depot respray a la some US made shearling items (is there any evidence of this for Irvin gear?) the polyacrylate would have been sprayed on the sheepskin prior to assembly and the tapes and belts made from (I would have thought) aniline or veg tanned cowhide.

 

[jonnyboy]

There does seem to be quite a colour range with the leather used on original jackets (sometimes on one jacket!). I've seen some with very dark brown leather, others with quite light, toffee coloured leather. I suppose it would have come from different suppliers, and they had to use what they could get hold of.

I prefer the jackets with fairly dark brown leather, which is why I went for the leather I'm using on mine. It does fade nicely though. Below is a picture of my belt, with an original belt next to it. There's also a sample of my leather which has seen a fair amount of strong sunshine. The colour has faded to a similar colour to the original.

Cheers,

Jon

 

[Andrew]

I wonder if it has anything to do with the period of production- every early ones i've seen had lighter trim than their later War cousins, but that's certainly not conclusive. Perhaps it's Maker, it may be my impression but the darker trim appears to be a Wareings trait.

That sample is indeed lighter. Can't wait to see a shot of you wearing the final product.

 

[flyboy]

I wonder if it has anything to do with the period of production- every early ones i've seen had lighter trim than their later War cousins, but that's certainly not conclusive. Perhaps it's Maker, it may be my impression but the darker trim appears to be a Wareings trait.

That sample is indeed lighter. Can't wait to see a shot of you wearing the final product.

And I can't wait to see a shot of myself in the second jacket Jon produces...

 

[rich]

WRT the belt/ coverstrip leather, this reminds me of the belt and leather of my Wareings, which appears to have a pigment coating.

It might just be age but the leather on 2 of my others (probably IAC) is more natural russet or aged honey coloured and appears to have no coating at all but is burnished with age. Is this something youve noticed?

Just as a comparison Andrew, here's my Wareings - the belt on one side has lost most of the coating, I guess it had a lot of wear?
Congratulations Jon, it's looking tremendous .............