the project..

[STEVE S.]

heres a better picture of where its at today:

 

[ausreenactor]

Wow!!

Really smashing the paradigm that brilliance only comes from 'the top'. Great work!!

 

[STEVE S.]

have a bunch of hide samples on the way now. thinking seriously about doing some B-1's. other than the shearling liner, there are only a couple small differences i've found between the two.

would there be any interest in B-1's if some were available? haven't seen any being made by the major players.

 

[STEVE S.]

funny story: i've been working on this project for a few weeks now, with parts scattered all over the kitchen table. last night, after i put most of the liner in, i had the mrs put it to see what she thought. besides the comment about it being heavy (everything is "heavy" to her, even my m-422a's) she thought it was o.k., then went to the back of the house. about 5 min later, she came rushing back into the room all wide eyed & asked "did you MAKE that???" the whole project had completely flown over her head.

now she wants me to construct her a purse.... :shock:

 

[bseal]

It's smashing! My wife wants a purse too. :|

 

[STEVE S.]

It's smashing! My wife wants a purse too. :|

:shock: ..... :lol:

 

[dmar836]

One of the first things my wife suggested too.

 

[John Lever]

have a bunch of hide samples on the way now. thinking seriously about doing some B-1's. other than the shearling liner, there are only a couple small differences i've found between the two.

would there be any interest in B-1's if some were available? haven't seen any being made by the major players.

The Few did make them for a while and JC found an original. Apparently the seams are made in a different way, not folder but butted together like at the back of an A2 collar.

 

[John Lever]

heres a better picture of where its at today:

Amazing.

 

[STEVE S.]

have a bunch of hide samples on the way now. thinking seriously about doing some B-1's. other than the shearling liner, there are only a couple small differences i've found between the two.

would there be any interest in B-1's if some were available? haven't seen any being made by the major players.

The Few did make them for a while and JC found an original. Apparently the seams are made in a different way, not folder but butted together like at the back of an A2 collar.

yes, the Switlik Parachute jackets, B1 & B2 were French seamed vs. stitched, folded & topstitched on one side. looking at the pics of the one JC had, the cuffs weren't a seperate piece like the B-2 but simply had the stitching like it was two pieces if you can cipher thru what i'm trying to say :lol: It's fascinating to really look at all the different variances between the makers & how they sorted things out.

 

[STEVE S.]

look close at the cuffs/waist on the one JC had;









:

 

[STEVE S.]

finished up the sleeves tonight. . also decided to add a patch pocket to the inside liner since the outer pocket on these is really useless. I lined the pocket with canvas to protect the liner a bit should I decide to carry something like my .380 in there.

 

[Vcruiser]

Nice work Steve.
Hacker needs to see this.. :geek:
Van

 

[John Lever]

On the B1 you can see how the seams are constructed.

 

[STEVE S.]

Nice work Steve.
Hacker needs to see this.. :geek:
Van

Thanks Van! Yeah, we need to rattle his cage a little... :?

On the B1 you can see how the seams are constructed.

John, you can see them really well on this Switlik B-2 that was just on ebay. actually would be easier to sew in that manner, less layers of leather to push through the machine.

 

[ausreenactor]

Nice work Steve.
Hacker needs to see this.. :geek:
Van

Thanks Van! Yeah, we need to rattle his cage a little... :?

On the B1 you can see how the seams are constructed.

John, you can see them really well on this Switlik B-2 that was just on ebay. actually would be easier to sew in that manner, less layers of leather to push through the machine.

I don't know how you do it? I have a meltdown doing chevrons on a tunic... :evil:

 

[Falcon_52]

Nice work Steve.
Hacker needs to see this.. :geek:
Van

Thanks Van! Yeah, we need to rattle his cage a little... :?

On the B1 you can see how the seams are constructed.

John, you can see them really well on this Switlik B-2 that was just on ebay. actually would be easier to sew in that manner, less layers of leather to push through the machine.

That's a pretty good picture of the seam construction. Does anyone know if these type of seams are inherently weaker than the "fold-over" type seam on most leather jacket sleeves? It's a very clean look but I wonder if it would hold up to heavy use.

Steve - your jacket really turned out well. You must be very pleased. I'm green with envy. :mrgreen:

Noel

 

[STEVE S.]

the strength of that french seam would be determined by whether it was backed with anything or not. if its not backed, you only have one stitch line holding the two pieces together. the outer two topstitch lines bordering the seam dont have any structural use. the old shearlings used a weird zig zag stitch underneath, then the seam was capped with leather on the top side. best bet on doing this type of seam now would be to back it with a strip so that the two outer stitch lines contributed to the strength of the seam (kinda like a B3, but on the inside).

 

[Falcon_52]

I think I understand what you are saying. That explains why that herringbone tape cloth was used under the shoulder seam by United Sheeplined (I think) on their A-2. If Switlik reinforced their B-2 seams like that, that must have been a complicated jacket to assemble. It surely is beautiful though!

Noel

 

[STEVE S.]

It's not too difficult. For an amateur like me, i would sew the initial seam, then flip it & glue the strip on first, or if you had enough material, just lay a wide piece underneath, sew, then trim off the excess.