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The Mighty A-2: A Guide to the Army Air Forces’ Leather Flying Jacket

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mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

31B46AB7-DFE2-4981-99BF-D8B055BAE98E_1_105_c.jpeg

Introduction:​

One of the first things that any newbie stumbling onto vintageleatherjackets.org (VLJ) and looking to buy a flight jacket learns (besides “it costs how much?!”) is that there was not one A-2 jacket, but countless different combinations of patterns, leathers, zippers, thread and knit colors that were used during the decade-plus that the A-2 jacket was standard flying equipment for America’s nascent Air Force.

For those who don’t quietly back out the proverbial door and resolve that maybe they should explore other hobbies, the sheer variety of details that can be found on these contracts poses an on-going challenge, and finding good sources of information can be a struggle. Most reproduction manufacturers provide some details about the contracts they copy in order to give prospective buyers an appreciation for their wares, but these details only pertain to the contracts a given manufacturer reproduces, and the quality of information is limited by how much the manufacturer himself knows or wants to share. Reference books are more comprehensive and generally better, but these are often out of print and can sometimes represent a considerable investment over-and-above the cost of the jackets themselves. They also may contain information that is out of date.

Our aim in this thread is to bring together as much reliable information as possible about the various A-2 jacket contracts manufactured for the U.S. military between 1930 and 1943. Taking up a project like this is daunting, both because the A-2 jacket is the bread and butter of folks like us, but also because the topic has already been tackled by a very heavy hitter, Gary Eastman. Eastman’s A-2 Guide, published in 2012, is one of the top one or two books available in this hobby, and anyone who has an opportunity to buy a copy should do it, no questions asked. Eastman’s book was a great leap forward in our knowledge about the contract data, with several of the “no-name” contracts being identified for the first time in the pages of his book. He also proved that cowhide was indeed used in A-2 jackets. This question was wracking the hobby at the time, and it had started several very bitter fights that today seem rather silly. Eastman’s book is also very readable and makes its points in a clear and sensible way.

That said, in the last decade there have been several exciting new discoveries, and the internet has the potential to give us access to far more jackets than were accessible when Eastman first published his book. Working from the solid foundations in Eastman’s A-2 Guide, we hope to build on its successes, address some questions that it didn’t, and carry the conversation forward.

For all that Eastman is a very tough act to follow, I personally am reassured because I had some great people around me who - I hope - have kept me from messing this up. Phil (@Lord Flashheart) read through this thread more than once and pointed out a number of areas where I was unclear, made unwarranted assumptions, or where more needed to be said. And the conclusion is his baby. Jeff Thurston (@ZuZu) made a number of great suggestions to improve the identification guide, and I knew I could count on him to call BS if I started regurgitating rumor and hearsay. VLJ member @33-1729 had the A-2 specification 94-030 documents declassified from the National Archives (1-Aug-2017) and this identified two new contracts as well as several errors that were contained on a "Type Designation Sheet" (TDS) used by many reference books, among many other findings. The information at his fingertips, and the knowledge he brings to this project are both astonishing. And John Chapman has kindly agreed to look over our findings when he can spare a moment from his busy career making astonishing reproductions and offer feedback and ideas to improve. This thread would be amateurish without all their contributions.

Finally, I would like to make a request of you who are reading this thread. The VLJ is a wealth of information and knowledge, and while none of us has the experience of a John Chapman or a Gary Eastman, together we bring quite a lot of knowledge and experience to bear on this topic. We have worked hard to place in this document only information that we could support with physical evidence – specification documents, original jacket inspections, contract documents, official correspondence, etc. Speculation has been kept to a bare minimum, and is clearly noted as such. Nevertheless, there are likely still some omissions, particularly in such areas as the zipper data and the identification guide. If you see any such mistakes, please comment, with supporting evidence, so we may correct it. The intention is to make the conversation on this board even better informed than it already is. So I guess my final “thank you”, in advance, is to the readers who will make this thread better.

As in our Navy Jacket thread, “A Better Fighting Garment”, we have opted to create a separate thread for comments and reactions, so that this thread can remain a focused sticky. You can find the link here.
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

The Contract Data:​

Every component and material that went into the construction of the A-2 was supplied by the U.S. Government, ensuring all components met specification. The vendors were only responsible for constructing the garment from the materials supplied. The cost per jacket prices listed in Eastman's book reflect this and not the total cost of manufacture. The one exception to this was the Australian-made A-2, the V505, for which local materials were used.

Leather:
Horsehide was approved for use in the first 1931 A-2 specification, 94-3040. The specific horsehide spec was not called out in 94-3040, but rather in a 20 Oct 1931 letter from the Specifications Unit, referenced 12015B with the co-ordinated spec 9-77. Only the first three contracts are unquestionably horsehide, since direction by the Assistant Secretary of War to use other leathers came on 18 August 1932, after these contracts had been awarded.

Before 1940, A-2 production was slight compared to what followed, with the two A-2 contracts of 1940 easily surpassing all previous A-2 production combined. The addition of cowhide and goatskin became necessary as shortages appeared. The first firmly-established specification for cowhide, covering multiple types, is 12028 dated 17 July 1940 (EA2G 34). Goatskin was approved for use on 10 March 1941 (EA2G 34, citing spec. 12022-A).

The Specifications Unit favored horsehide, and, during his research, Eastman uncovered a number of letters from tanneries asking the military to review their cowhide/goatskin completely understandable as the quote below shows (The Quartermaster Corps: Organization, Supply, and Services, Vol. 1, pg 73):

Quartermaster items also made use of large quantities of leather of various types, much of which was normally imported. Most of the leathers used in the manufacture of equipment became critical materials sooner or later. The first serious shortage to appear was in horsehide, used for heavy leather gloves. A cowhide tannage was developed which was intended to give cowhide the same characteristics as horsehide, and this material was used as a substitute. Another substitute specification for horsehide gloves was worked out in goatskin. As cowhide itself became a critical material, a new glove design, in which leather was used only in the palm, was developed in 1942. This cut-and-sewn glove replaced the wool knit glove previously supplied as the general issue item of handwear.​

The key to note is that, after being approved for use, the government might send any or all of the chrome tanned leather types for construction into jackets by the vendor. Goatskin can be readily identified by an even pebbled grain, while horsehide and cowhide have an extremely similar appearance, and even experts can struggle to tell them apart.


Lining:
All A-2 jackets were made with a cotton lining. The persistent myth of silk-lined A-2s originates in the Type Designation Sheet (TDS) that was used as a key reference in early studies of the A-2 jacket. This TDS erroneously noted the A-2 were silk lined. When the A-2 94-3040 specification documents were declassified it became clear why this error occurred: a common secretarial guideline at the time was a certain number of corrections per page, usually three to five, were permitted before a document needed to be re-typed. The original paper specification, hand dated 9 May 1931, showed clear corrections while the photostat version clearly showed the underlying text. Anyone using the photostat version as a reference instead of the paper version may capture an underlying draft copy and not the official version. Hence the error(s) seen in a number of earlier reference books, e.g., by Sweeting, Nelson, etc. (The Clearance of Specification for 94-3040 occurred on 18 Aug 1932, after the first three contracts had been produced relying upon the 9 May 1931 version.) An example is below.

Paper; shows “silk lined” struck out in the first 9 May 1931 version:

AD_4nXdZW5VSIQuHwSZiqL6_XfUQW8ie-Zmof0MDW1Aw02oxbFYKKV0enRZoiVXm9h9loLTOz6cacyPxKdxWl5OzayaiU43iLFGJldh8aqKuyHSBmKqeFeFLLwtFuq-6IPwuH3rfGHa0ytfqool9OC1uAlpQxnBs


Photostat; shows “silk lined” underneath the correction not captured by the copy:

AD_4nXc5f4g5aKvJ3EHJfDD6Rjm_Ph14bn8N42z0UuokZ5ICWogEYFDqGOt4CRLy9r-8DTukryHeDcmu1PwIWdmC-6F2bTHVwiWNrcNNVE7CPG-L-7o77xJQ65Bf_LllHFvU5ZZW7SCNxPD0BNAFnseVzG_XZXGM


Some of the photostats contained within the A-2 specification documents were hand corrected to match the paper copy, so they knew this could happen at the time, but clearly not every error was caught and corrected.

Zippers:
The zipper data in this guide has been compiled primarily from jackets in “The Flight Jacket Gallery”, although in instances where Eastman has seen examples that we have not, we have deferred to him and cited his A-2 Jacket Guide appropriately. In all other instances, any zipper listed as appearing on a contract is linked to a jacket of that contract in the “Flight Jacket Gallery” that features that zipper. We would like to continue improving the zipper data in this thread, so if you have photos of an original that has zippers other than those listed for its contract, please let us know!


Knits and Thread:
Instead of stating whether a given contract was made in seal or russet, with dark brown knits or bright red knits, and so on, we have, wherever possible, attempted to include photos that represent the range of materials that were used on a given contract. We have however included data on the types of leather used and the color of thread, since identifying these materials can be difficult to do at a glance. And we will comment on knit color if there is something distinctive about it that can be used to identify the jacket.

We cannot claim that the photos we have chosen cover every permutation, but each post should convey a sense of what a jacket aficionado can expect to find. There will also be a link to the relevant album in the Flight Jacket Gallery at the end of each post, so that interested users can view more examples.
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator
Organization:
The contract data has been arranged by the date each contract was issued, and divided into different sections based on periods of A-2 production. In large part, this is just to make the mass of data more manageable – forty-five contracts is a lot – but it also gives us the opportunity to discuss broader trends that we can see in the contracts that were issued.

Table of Contents:​

 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Prelude: The A-1​

The A-1 Specification with Drawing number AN-6501 became Standard issue on 7-Nov-1927 and used two documented A-1 cape sheepskin jacket production manufacturers: Gordon & Ferguson, Inc. (St. Paul., Minn.) and A. Pritzker Co. (Boston, Mass.). Little else on the A-1 has been documented, as the paper trail is quite sparse.

AD_4nXfGrNtN1i5wJTVoMMhaXtra9Vhf54GQxHWCHHi5TFCvfEieZXtiXkRlV_guaiH-M1BY_KWEvXWeu-xjTFPZo2VGcPhNGYLr64RaM5xmgNkGj6-bWR7fUGuwc4BL74pr3d74xa2vjOqNz3rtaOSTNaY6AmHt
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Part I: The Early Years – October 1930 - September 1940​

A-2 jacket production began in 1930, almost without a pause, just a few months after A-1 order 31-800P was issued (Aug 1930). A-2 jacket proposals were service tested Sept 20, 1930 with the first official version quickly produced thereafter (Oct 1930). What often astonishes newbies about the A-2 is how much variety there was in the finished product. The vendor’s interpretation of the garment requirements, their own idiosyncratic manufacturing conventions, and the process of working the materials that the government supplied for construction all resulted in vendors making their own "style" that varied by and within each contract. This is how experts can pick out the most likely manufacturer, even though zippers, stitching, etc. may change. While the basic look of the garment remained relatively static, the initial A-2 jackets had a number of details that progressively changed or were abandoned:
  • The first three contracts had lined, button-flapped pockets.
  • On Werber’s 1936 contract (1112-P), some jackets had a leather tab with a snap in place of the collar hooks. This innovation had the longevity of a mayfly. Interestingly, these were the first A-2 jackets not to have a collar stand.
  • Until 1939, the liner on the left-hand chest panel was almost always separated from the zipper by a thin strip of leather.
  • Until 1939, the collar hooks were nearly always sewn into the collar stand, and there was a reinforcement stitch on the sleeve and on the lower torso, just above the knits, in order to reinforce the knits.
  • Most famously, every A-2 jacket before late 1941 had a collar stand, which helped to accommodate inset collar hooks, but became unnecessary once they switched to rivets. After October of 1941, just three manufacturers continued to employ this feature (Rough Wear, Perry, and Cooper). Chapman has noted that the collar stand actually makes the process of constructing the collar easier for the person doing the sewing, and observes that the companies with the best patterns (Rough Wear and Perry) opted to retain it. By contrast, Dubow, which was known more for sporting goods than for garments, was eager to do away with this feature (EA2G plate 13).
Features that were difficult to produce drove up costs and slowed down production. Since the majority of these changes (apart from the changes to the pockets) occurred toward the end of the decade, when the U.S. military was starting to expand from its interwar contraction (Miller 2006:36-40 repeatedly notes the budgetary constraints of the Army Air Corps between the wars), it seems likely that the larger concern was streamlining production, rather than budgetary constraints.

AD_4nXcghxuUWO3Z_mgpksZaxheGUqxg9CIoe213O_VCsd3S4XtXwS7YMEwkJUfxlkRNsiYd9ghwnrvT5seMxQNMpiqCuxqaVzuLSTTWwQPu5-EfZMKEDOaNYKzae5BF7Dpqj9lWaOCvy1q-aEg2zKUGWxhU36Cz

AAC Pilots at Muroc Army Air Field, 1934​
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

P. Goldsmith Sons Co. 31-1897​

Contract Awarded: October 1930 (dated by order number of that fiscal year)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: 25 (see Appendix A)
Leather type: horsehide
General Comments:
  • No known surviving examples.
  • A possible Goldsmith 31-1897 candidate is shown in Appendix C.
  • Order number 31-1897 denotes the fiscal year, 1931, and order number – 1897.
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Security Aviation Togs 32-485​

Contract Awarded: contract issued sometime between July 1931 (when the fiscal year begin prior to 1976) and June 1932 (Appendix A)
Date of Completion: After 2 December 1931, since the jackets bore the “Security Aviation Togs” label, and it was copyrighted on that date.
Quantity: 1,666 - Eastman’s A-2 Guide estimated production to be under 500, but without any supporting paperwork, whereas the Clearance of Specification No. 94-3040 dated 19 July 1932, shown in Appendix A, gives us the actual production number.
Leather type: horsehide
Stitch color: medium brown
Zipper(s): We have only seen Talon M-32 “hookless” zippers on this contract.
General Comments: The Art of the Flight Jacket by Macguire & Conway goes into detail on the best preserved SAT 32-485 known (pgs 148-150).
Identifying/Distinguishing Details:
  • Buttons closure on the pockets.
  • Lined pockets (FG 21).
  • Very simple design to the epaulets. This is a trait shared with Werber’s 1729 contract.
  • The SAT contract seems to have been made in a darker, more chocolatey brown leather than is seen on almost any other early A-2 contract.
  • A thin strip of leather between the zipper and the lining on the left-hand chest panel, referred to by Eastman as jetting (EA2G plates 1-6). This is a feature shared among Werber 1729, Werber 1112-P, Security Aviation Togs, ACT 3061-P and Aero 1711-P (EA2G plate 2).
  • SAT was the only known A-2 jacket manufacturer to include a manufacturer’s label beneath the spec. label. Even if neither label survives, stitch holes may be visible.
Security Aviation Togs example no. 1:
front1.jpg

epaulet.jpg
collar_stand2.jpg

collar_stand1.jpg

snaps_collar.jpg
pocket1.jpg
pocket_interior.jpg
zipper_tab3.jpg
talon_zipper.jpg
reverse1.jpg
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Werber Leather Coat Co., Inc. 32-6225​

Contract Awarded: sometime between July 1931, the beginning of the fiscal year at that time, and June 1932 (Appendix A)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: 600 (see Appendix A)
Leather type: horsehide
General Comments:
  • No known surviving examples.
  • The first of five sequential A-2 orders for Werber Leather Coat Co., Inc. of Beacon, NY (note that Werber Sportswear Co. was located in Newburgh, NY)
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Werber Leather Coat Co., Inc. 33-1729​

Contract Awarded: Fiscal year began July 1, 1932 and ended June 30, 1933 (the fiscal year changed in 1976): Full Gear estimated 1933 based upon the order number sequence
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: Estimated to be under 500, but no supporting paperwork (EA2G plate 2)
Leather type: horsehide, based on visual appraisal (EA2G plate 2)
Stitch color: medium brown
Zipper(s): We have only seen Talon M-32 “hookless” zippers on this contract.
General Comments: This is the first order after A-2 specification 94-3040 was cleared for procurement through the Asst. Secretary of War (18 Aug 1932)
Identifying/Distinguishing Details:
  • This is the first A-2 order with snapped pockets (Air Corps drawing 30-1415 Flying Jacket, Type A-2, a part of Spec. 94-3040, contains this type of detail)
  • Like all Werbers, the pocket flaps are nicely scalloped and come to a rounded point in the center (Acme Depot).
  • A “nearly square” collar, according to Marc at Acme Depot.
  • A thin strip of leather between the zipper and the lining on the left-hand chest panel, referred to by Eastman as jetting (EA2G plates 1-6). This is a feature shared among Werber 1729, Werber 1112-P, Security Aviation Togs, ACT 3061-P and Aero 1711-P (EA2G plate 2).
  • Y-shaped reinforcement stitching on the pocket corners.
  • Collar hooks sewn into the collar stand, as was the case on nearly all A-2 contracts prior to 1939.
  • The knits on Werber contracts were a light, caramel brown. They are the only manufacturer to use this color.
  • Talon M-32 “hookless” zipper
  • The epaulets on this contract are simpler in construction than on almost any other A-2 contract that came after it.
  • An extra line of top-stitching just above the knits on the body and sleeves. This is almost universal to A-2 jackets prior to 1940.
Werber 1729 example no. 1:
W172901.JPG

W172902.JPG

W172903.JPG

W172904.JPG

W172905.JPG

W172906.JPG
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Werber Leather Coat Co., Inc. 34-518P​

Contract Awarded: 5 September 1933 (EA2G 209)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: Estimated to be 170, based upon contract value (EA2G 209)
General Comments:
  • No known surviving examples.
  • Significant fire due to arson occurred at the Werber factory on 7-May-1934.
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Werber Leather Coat Co., Inc. W535-AC-8004 36-1112P​

Contract Awarded: 13 September 1935 (EA2G plate 3)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: 550 jackets (EA2G plate 3)
Leather type: horsehide, based on visual appraisal (EA2G plate 3)
Stitch color: medium brown
Zipper(s): M-33 “hookless” Talon with a fan tail pull (EA2G plate 3)
General Comments:
Identifying/Distinguishing Details:
  • Like all Werbers, the pocket flaps are nicely scalloped and come to a rounded point in the center (Acme Depot).
  • Talon M-33 “hookless” with a fan tail pull.
  • Box-stitch reinforcement at the pocket corners (Acme Depot).
  • The knits on Werber contracts were a light, caramel brown. They are the only manufacturer to use this color.
  • A thin strip of leather between the zipper and the lining on the left-hand chest panel, referred to by Eastman as jetting (EA2G plates 1-6). This is a feature shared among Werber 1729, Werber 1112-P, Security Aviation Togs, ACT 3061-P and Aero 1711-P (EA2G plate 3).
  • An extra line of top-stitching just above the knits on the body and sleeves. This is almost universal to A-2 jackets prior to 1940.
  • Collar hooks sewn into the collar stand, as was the case on nearly all A-2 contracts prior to 1939.
    • An original 1112P has been found, complete with its spec. label, that lacks both a collar stand and collar hooks. Instead, it has a leather tab with a press stud closure. Similar jackets are seen being used by the Philippine Air Force at around this time.
1936_Werbers.jpg

Members of the Philippine Air Force wearing Werbers with this unusual throat closure
​
Werber 1112-P example no. 1:
W3601.png

W3602.png

W3603.png
W3604.png
W3605.png

W3606.png

Werber 1112-P example no. 2:
36collar_detail.jpg
36werber_front.jpg
unnamed.jpg
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Werber Leather Coat Co., Inc. 37-1119P​

Contract Awarded: 11 September 1936 (EA2G 209)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: Estimated to be 620, based upon contract value (EA2G 209)
General Comments:
  • No known surviving examples.
  • This is the last Werber Leather Coat Co., Inc. contract. Due to a 7-May-1934 arson and false insurance claims, the company sold off all properties to pay off debts in 1936. In 1938 the insurance policy was voided due to fraudulent claims. In short, Werber Leather Coat Co., Inc. went belly-up.
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Aero Clothing & Tanning Co. 37-3061P​

Contract Awarded: sometime between December 1936 and May 1937, since the company only existed under this name during that period
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: Estimated to be under 500, but no supporting paperwork (EA2G plate 4)
Leather type: horsehide, based on visual appraisal (EA2G plate 4)
Stitch color: medium brown
Zipper(s): M-34 “hookless” Talon with a fan tail pull (EA2G plate 4)
General Comments:
  • Aero Clothing & Tanning Co. (ACT) of Brooklyn, NY existed under verbal agreement from Sept 1936 until May 1937 with Emily Kramer at the helm and the force driving it. The money and contacts Emily Kramer raised in that company were used to help her husband, Louis Kramer, form a new company called Aero Leather Clothing Co., Inc. in Beacon, NY (Aero) that was incorporated on May 18, 1937.
  • Just two examples of this contract have been found. Both of them are believed to be in Gary Eastman’s collection.
Identifying/Distinguishing Details:
  • ACT waistband and cuff were top-stitched. The sleeve thumb seam was not top stitched like Aero’s 38-1711P.
  • A thin strip of leather between the zipper and the lining on the left-hand chest panel, referred to by Eastman as jetting (EA2G plates 1-6). This is a feature shared among Werber 1729, Werber 1112-P, Security Aviation Togs, ACT 3061-P and Aero 1711-P (EA2G plate 4).
  • Dot snaps, as seen on Aero’s 38-1711P & 40-3785P.

Unfortunately, we have no photos of this contract. If anyone happens to find pictures, it would be very much appreciated. In the meantime, users are encouraged to consult Eastman’s A-2 Guide for photos of this contract.
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

H. L. B. Corp. NY W535-AC-9709 37-3891P​

Contract Awarded: 3 March 1937 (EA2G plate 5)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: 375 jackets (EA2G plate 5)
Leather type: horsehide, based on visual appraisal (EA2G plate 5)
Stitch color: caramel brown
Zipper(s): Kwik Zip no. 8 (EA2G plate 5)
General Comments:
  • This is one of the rarest A-2 contracts out there, more difficult to find even than examples of Werber’s 1933 contract, even though that contract is older than the H.L.B. While the company only had one small A-2 contract, they had several Air Force contracts for other jacket types (FG 39, 60, 70), including four B-3 contracts, and they did a good business making private purchase A-2 jackets, which survive at a far greater rate than their government A-2 contract (Chapman).
  • H.L.B. Corp. at 146 W. 26 St. New York, NY refers to a leather jacket company with Harry L. Breslow as president. This was first noted by VLJ member @bjoy referencing the Industrial Directory of New York, page 141, 1940
Identifying/Distinguishing Details:
  • Unique V-stitch pattern reinforcement on the back of the collar (Chapman).
  • Like Bronco’s much more common contracts, the H.L.B. contract had beveled pocket corners and epaulets placed in front of the shoulder seam, as opposed to on top of the seam.
  • Unlike the Broncos, this contract has a collar stand, and the collar hook was enameled black and stitched to the collar stand, as opposed to being riveted.
  • Unique folded leather construction at the top of the storm flap (Chapman).
  • Rectangular reinforcement stitching at the tops of the pockets, as opposed to the triangular ones used by Bronco.
HLB example no. 1 - currently on display at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force:
A2_HLB_Dayton.jpg


60CD0861-38A4-4FEF-AF1A-2B189D9073B0.JPG

05F27161-D014-450C-982F-B3B8FE9F6A41.JPG

0F2C78F3-9317-47DD-B6FB-74304EDD77BD.JPG
D1AF14B3-30DF-4744-9B9D-97B16A02A66A.JPG


HLB example no. 2 - currently in the collection of Gary Eastman, photographed before he acquired it:
hlbA2-4.jpg

hlba2.jpg
hlbA2-3.jpg

hlbA2-2.jpg

hlbA2-1.jpg
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Aero Leather Clothing Co., Inc. W535-AC-10490 38-1711P​

Contract Awarded: 26 October 1937 (EA2G plate 6)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: 1,500 jackets (EA2G plate 6)
Leather type: horsehide, based on visual appraisal (EA2G plate 6)
Stitch color: medium brown
Zipper(s): We have only seen Talon M-33 “hookless” zippers with a fan tail pull on this contract.
General Comments:
Identifying/Distinguishing Details:
  • Aero contract features:
    • Bottom pocket corners were frequently more squared-off than other contractors.
    • Relatively narrow epaulets (Acme Depot)
    • The x-stitch on the epaulets outer edge of the shoulders is off-center, so that it appears to go off the edge of the shoulder. There are other makers that do this too, like Perry and Cable, but it is a detail worth noticing.
    • Rather wide pocket flaps with some gentle scalloping
  • Waistband, cuff and sleeve thumb seam were top-stitched
  • Collar stand
  • Dot snaps
  • A thin strip of leather between the zipper and the lining on the left-hand chest panel, referred to by Eastman as jetting (EA2G plates 1-6). This is a feature shared among Werber 1729, Werber 1112-P, Security Aviation Togs, ACT 3061-P and Aero 1711-P (EA2G plate 6).
Aero 1711-P example no. 1:
unnamed9.jpg

unnamed2.jpg

unnamed3.jpg

unnamed5.jpg

unnamed12.jpg

unnamed13.jpg

unnamed10.jpg
unnamed14.jpg
unnamed00.jpg

unnamed6.jpg

More photos…
 
mulceber

mulceber

Moderator

Werber Sportswear Co. W535-AC-12091 39-2951P​

Contract Awarded: 9 January 1939 (EA2G plate 7)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: 1,250 jackets (EA2G plate 7)
Leather type: horsehide/cowhide(?). The use of cowhide was detected by DNA test (EA2G plate 7), although it should be noted that the test for both this contract and Aero 21996 (contract date 14-Oct-1941) were inconclusive (EA2G 25).
Stitch color: light brown (Chapman)
Zipper(s): The following zippers have been attested:
General Comments:
  • The new Werber Sportswear Co. of Newburgh, NY was created to limit any further liabilities by legally cutting all ties to the original Werber Leather Coat Company of Beacon, NY. They had to begin back from the ground up as the original company assets were all sold off to pay outstanding debts. This is their first A-2 contract.
Identifying/Distinguishing Details:
  • The pocket flaps are nicely scalloped and come to a rounded point in the center (Acme Depot).
  • The knits are a light, caramel brown. They are the only manufacturer to use this color.
  • Collar hooks sewn into the collar stand, typical of nearly all contracts prior to 1939.
  • An extra line of top-stitching just above the knits on the body and sleeves - almost universal prior to 1940.
  • Box-stitch reinforcement at the pocket corners (Acme Depot).
 
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