Aero Shawl Barnstormer

[ihatesullivan]

Does anyone own an Aero Shawl Barnstormer, preferably in black, who would be willing to post pix? I think the jacket is terribly cool - in a weird, retro, tough guy way - but I am not sure I can pull it off.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Does anyone own an Aero Shawl Barnstormer, preferably in black, who would be willing to post pix? I think the jacket is terribly cool - in a weird, retro, tough guy way - but I am not sure I can pull it off.

You mean you're not a weird, retro tough-guy?

 

[Don Tomaso]

You mean you're not a weird, retro tough-guy?

That would be the show-stopper then...

 

[Hammer Down]

The word "shawl" does not make me think "tough guy." Neither does a fluffy white collar. But still . . . the jacket is very cool.

When I see a barnstormer, I think "bi-plane" and a gentleman's war in the sky with barbed wire and mustard gas leaving unsightly corpses strewn across the landscape below in a very ungentlemanly way.

[Edited for content. No politics please. Thanks.]

The barnstormer shawl jacket is a great jacket for cold climates. A real attention-getter when most other people are bundled up in modern jackets, which often tend to lack class and style, since many fashions today are modeled after the utilitarian demands of extreme sports like mountain climbing, rather than the comparatively more suave and debonair sports of yesteryear.

 

[Deleted member 16736]

Check the Aero Leather used jackets page on their website. There's a very nice Barnstormer on sale now in vintage black with awesome graining.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Let see...
We went from the OPs quest for pics of a shawl collared Barnstormer to a theory about war and coming wars.
Interesting ?

 

[Dinerman]

And not even on a military style jacket! I see these old leather shawl collared jackets mostly in old photos of farmers and motorcycle riders. Sort of the winter version of the utility jacket.

 

[Dr H]

Let see...
We went from the OPs quest for pics of a shawl collared Barnstormer to a theory about war and coming wars.
Interesting ?

Van, if you mean that JC's legs might be discussed soon, or Scott's untucked shirt, then I'm with you...

 

[Hammer Down]

As Aero's website says in the first paragraph about the Barnstormer, inspiration for its design "came from the Royal Flying Corp's full-length leather coat."

A great many barnstormers learned how to fly in the military generally, and WWI specifically. The coat was inspired by military fashion. If you Google "barnstormer" and "coat," you will come up with tons of pictures of pilots from both sides of WWI.

I think the Aero Barnstormer is smashing, to be sure, a very cool jacket, as I've said.

 

[Dinerman]

Very very loosely inspired by. In that they're both double breasted and leather, but the similarities really end there.

If you look at any old ads or do any actual research, you'll see it's nearly identical to civilian designs of the '20s and '30s.

But it's better marketing to call it a "Barnstormer jacket" than a "Farmer jacket".

 

[Hammer Down]

Interesting point, Dinerman. However, the fact that civilian designs in the 20's and 30's looked nearly identical speaks nothing of the fashion from which the coat was inspired, which was being worn in the teens, rather than the 20's and 30's, and being worn in the military.

Do you see my point, Dinerman?

We can't put the pilot before the plane, so to speak.

The coat's evolution came from prior fashions, and those prior fashions were military, and much of them were worn in WWI

 

[Dinerman]

No, I don't follow your logic.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Van, if you mean that JC's legs might be discussed soon, or Scott's untucked shirt, then I'm with you...

Dr...I'm more concerned about those who post photos of Aero's with pajama bottoms..to be perfectly honest. [huh]

 

[Hammer Down]

Then be a sport and wait for them, bub. [huh]

Here is another style of flying coat/jacket altogether, but it's amazingly inexpensive. http://www.wested.com/memphis-belle-sheepskin-b3-2-p.asp. There used to be a vintage version of this jacket that I really regret not buying. It was even better.

 

[ButteMT61]

Dr...I'm more concerned about those who post photos of Aero's with pajama bottoms..to be perfectly honest. [huh]

Had I a proper barnstormer, you not even notice my untucked shirt or Hello Kitty tattoos...I am looking for a good used biplane however.

 

[Hammer Down]

Here's a vintage barnstormer with shawl for sale on ebay for an arm and a leg. Not my cup of tea, but interesting nonetheless. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vtg-20s-30s-HorseHide-Leather-Shearling-Shawl-Collar-BarnStormer-Jacket-Coat-/150744115438?pt=Vintage_Men_s_Clothing&hash=item23190ca8ee

That used barnstormer on Aero's site that Joel mentioned is quite nice. Perhaps a shawl collar could be installed on it, along with the label the company has already offered to sew onto the back of the neck. Aero prob wouldn't charge too much for putting a shawl on the jacket. Not sure though. It's my size. I like it the way it is. I have been keeping tabs on it. A very good price. I am allergic to alpaca unfortunately, or I might have bought it already. The graining is really superb on it. It already has a really sharp vintage look to it.

 

[ihatesullivan]

I had no idea that my question would provoke a conversation about World Wars and the origins of the Aero Barnstormer. Thank you, everybody, for keeping the thread lively and interesting. That said, I should probably clarify what I am looking for. To wit, photographs of someone actually wearing the Aero Shawl Barnstormer, preferably in black. The photographs posted on eBay and the Aero site are nice, but they do not give me a sense of how the coat looks being worn by a regular guy in the "real world." Does that make sense? The Wested jacket mentioned by Hammer Down is handsome, but I prefer a more authentic B-3 design. MR. PARIS on this site apparently owns an Aero Shawl Barnstormer, but I am unable to reach him.

 

[Graemsay]

The Aero Leather Japan gallery has a few shots of a Cheyenne with a sheepskin collar, which should give you a feel of what the Barnstormer would look like.

There are a couple more on the linked page, along with a few pictures of a standard Barnstormer.

The shawl collar is a different design, and the Cheyenne is single-breasted and unbelted.

If you haven't dealt with Aero before, then it's worth pointing out that they can combine features from various jackets. For example, you might be able to get the shawl collar fitted to another style and you could certainly get any of them lined with Shearling.

They also do an Arctic Parka, and I saw a one-off car coat (not listed on their site) that they did too.

 

[Lear]

Graemsay, I think that looks ******* amazing! Looks really good on you. I know how brown /cordovan FQHH ages nicely, but you can't wear brown all the time. Details on the collar please. Is it shaved moulton? How exactly did you ask Aero to make that collar?

Lear

Selling my Aero Veste de Rallye, Size 46 cordovan. See Classified...

 

[Graemsay]

That's not me, though the guy in the photos has a similar amount of hair.

The photos come from the Aero Leather Japan website. I'm sure if you sent Amanda an email, and said, "I want this one" then she'd accommodate.

I do own an old, black Hercules, though. With wear the leather has dulled down and there's a bit more grain, but the colour has remained uniform whereas the cordovan and brown tend to darken and lighten in patches.