GoodWear Werber 1402P, Fantastic!!

One week of hard wear (i.e. Daily wear, in un-seasonal cool weather in Oklahoma) This jacket is taking on ALL of the personality that one would expect of the new leader in A-2 Reproduction Jackets!! All Hail JC!!

SWEET!!!!

nice jacket

Wow, look at that grain! You and rotenhahn put some serious mileage on them jackets in a hurry. But, if one wants a true repro that's what it would look like after some action.

fedoralover

Being a spray dye the loss is heavy early, but, John assures me that the loss will stop on the high points, and it will mellow out. I for one really like the "original" look of this jacket... the color in photos does not do it justice unfortunately. I really didn't want that "too shiny" look that the cowhide used to have, and would've had for years to come. This Horsehide is just fantastic!

DD

I think its going to break in very nice. Great looking 1942 Werber.

Beautiful

CBI said:

One week of hard wear and the leather is cracking like that. That's NOT good. All that excessive wear on the sleeve. What's it going to look like in a year? Hopefully not like its 100 years old. Good luck. Harumpf, harumpf!

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I've found that after an initial period when there seems to be wear where the jacket moves (as opposed to where it is rubbed eg. seatbelt) it calms down. My United stopped wearing after about two weeks. The newer GW stuff has a thicker coat (I believe) so it is even more resistant but still not bizarrely impenetrable a la Lost Worlds. The leather on my United and on Diamond Dave's Werber looks exactly like certain WW2 leather seen on certain contracts like Unknown 27753, some 1401ps, some Broncos,and some Werbers. It is peanut-colored leather with a coat of pigmented finish sprayed directly on it. When I had my RMNZ Dubow custom made in 2006 I had a leather furniture restorer analyze an original Cable I had- his verdict: vegetable-tanned leather raw with a light coat of pigmented dye (paint basically) and cellulose varnish over all. Look at GWs Werber and compare it to the sterile straightness and timidity of Eastman's.

Very nice looking Werber, Dave. Pretty shade of russet. Was this jacket the one you were looking around for a chevron Crown for? Did you find one or what???


Ted

You guys gotta be kidding, right?!? A jacket showing that kind of wear after one week??? Sorry, but I'll gladly take the "sterile straightness" of my ELC Werber over a new jacket with the finish wearing away like that after a week. The finish on that jacket reminds me of those old Aero repros that wearers were complaining about the finish coming off on their shirt collars and car seats. I'm quite happy with my year old ELC Werber as it is starting to show honest wear after a year of good old use and abuse biking in snow and rain of a NYC winter.

Grant

GW - some nice stuff

Allot of it has to do with the finish of the hide and tanning process. The stuff I have on my Dubow in aniline and has a dark base so it will not show allot of wear Some but not drastic and allot of Dubows were like that. In fact Pauls original that I had mine made like is. Grain is either there or its not. It can become more pronounced over time but if its not there its not there. Grains not to be confused with stretching and wrinkles.

Ted,

No, I never did find a Crown Zip, this one has one of JC's repro Talons in it. The Crown is for another copy that he is doing for me of an original Spiewak. Still looking for that zipper if anyone has a line on one (repro OK, prefer original if possible)??

Cheers,
DD

DD did ya try Yoshi at MASH? He had some Crowns.

Also I think he had some NOS Talons too.

Gents,

Yes, this jacket has some issues. Some may have surmised that the jacket was purchased brand new. It was a test jacket, no more and no less. I've had to spray horsehide myself with russet color, and as many if you could imagine, I didn't start with perfection (or end with it). I'm not a magician. Spraying a finish took some testing, and this jacket was the third attempt, and one with a lesson. I did three coats of spray and then a matte clear spray. That matte layer jelled with the paint and became very sticky...to the point that the leather stuck to cloth. Not at first, but over a day.

Oh well. I took note to avoid that in the future. I wore the jacket for two weeks (I really like the Werber pattern) and in doing so, some of the finish came off. This was before David bought it, and no, I didn't fail to tell him that. He's worn it for a week after he got it. I didn't care about the finish loss myself, as to me it looked fine. Are we therefor telling everyone to like it? Nope. I debated selling it, and decided to make a Werber in seal brown horsehide (the three originals I used for a pattern were seal brown), so I decided to sell this one. David wanted to try it, so I shipped it to him, and he really liked it. I'm assuming that this is why he posted his thoughts on it. Does everyone need to like it? Not really.

I know that a few people have said harsh things about other companies, and I don't agree with that. Anyone can like or dislike a jacket and scream it from the rooftops on this forum. I'm glad people like and dislike what I'm doing - that's the brakes and the other companies were here long before I ever tried to make a jacket. The stuff they make is categorically better - all good. I have a certain segment of jacket collecting who like my jackets, and some just don't.

I've learned a bit about spray finishing, and have a hell of a lot more to learn.

John

buzzthetower said:

Gents,
the other companies were here long before I ever tried to make a jacket. The stuff they make is categorically better - all good. John

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Sorry John, but I have to disagree with you on that. Granted you are working out some kinks with some of the leather finishes, but the jackets and the patterns are still miles ahead of what others have been offering for years. One doesn't have to even be an "expert" to see that. You offer a "True A-2" repro for those that desire such. Most of the others offer what I'd call an "A-2 Style" jacket. They are modern interpretations, jackets that resemble the A-2's from the 40s, but are not truly repro's since they lack the actual details that the originals had.

fedoralover

personally I wouldn't go for that jkt as pixed even if it's an original.

I think it takes a great guy to do a reality check on himself.........by himself.

It's so easy to have a swollen ego after so may ooooohs aaaaahs and droooools.

I TAKE MY HAT TO YOU, JC!

You have earned my respect.

Good to have your feet grounded.

THAT WAS WHY I LISTED MY DU BOW ON EBAY ..........to prove a few points:

a)That good originals altho scarce to come back can hold their own vs repros no matter how good. Remember repros are clones and clones are based on templates and unless one has template of every size extrapolation is just extrapolations.

Of course if someone were to buy the my bu bow at that price I'll let her go.

There's always the next grail.

No, that du bow wasn't my best jkt.

I like to think that the great jkt collectors like to keep their collection private........after all it's for their private enjoyment. They make share it with their local crew but to preen in public? haw haw.




NO PREEENING PEACOCK ME

so what's point b) ??

Personally I enjoy seeing respectful amounts of public preening.

What was that Stuff Peter G was asking about the other day SJ?

Leadsky said:

so what's point b) ??

Personally I enjoy seeing respectful amounts of public preening.

What was that Stuff Peter G was asking about the other day SJ?

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point b) .................typo no point b)

I think pete thought I was sniffing somethin' more then pecards.........hell I've seen pecards but never used it.........on jkts or myself! :lol:

OK maybe sour grapes.........I'll preen if I have a published jkt.........


how's things down under?