shrinking an A-2 to size

[FriarTuck]

Recently I purchased an A-2....but since then I have lost a lot of weight. My question is.....since I have sewn unit patches all over the jacket, if I give it the hot water shrinking treatment now, will those patches cause me a problem as the leather shrinks?.....Thanks, Paul

 

[CBI]

they might

 

[PADDY]

If the A2 isn't right anymore, get a new one IMHO.

 

[aswatland]

Yes they will shrink. I would sell the jacket and buy another that fits rather than trying to shrink it.

 

[aming06]

But horesehide shrinks less than others

 

[too much coffee]

But horesehide shrinks less than others

Hello aming06 and Welcome to the Lounge.

And you base this on past experience? Perhaps you could explain more in depth. Thanks!

Regards, coffee

 

[aswatland]

But horesehide shrinks less than others

Do you have evidence to prove this based on comparison with goatskin, steer hide and sheepskin? If you wet your hh A2 and then tumble dry it it will shrink, the zipper tape will become distorted and the leather patches will also shrink by around 10% depending on the heat of the drier, thickness of the hh etc.. This is based on personal experience. Just sell the jacket and buy one which fits.

 

[Corky]

Please add to what Andrew said: Amen.

 

[Phantomfixer]

Do not destroy your A-2. Sell it, make some other guy happy, and buy one that will fit properly.

 

[FriarTuck]

Thanks everyone for your input....FriarTuck

 

[aming06]

Hello,"too much coffee", it's not my experience. I got this from my Japanese friend, who holds four A-2 jackets, Buzz rickson's, The Few and Real Mccoy HH and a Eastman goatleather one. You know the Japanese they like the slim fit stuffs crazily, so he did the shirinking treatment to Buzz and Eastman and found the difference. Well...I wanna say both shirinked, but goat one shirinked more. And another information to share with you is that in many cases HH thickness of A-2 of Japanese makers is higher than that of ELC, and the Japanese HH are much harder. I have a Buzz one, but I will never do the shirinking to it. I think it's better to buy a new one.

 

[aming06]

Hi, aswatland, u a right, both will shrink in commen sense, but HH shrinks less. I didn't do it, my friend did. But as you said, it's better to buy another one.

 

[aswatland]

Hello,"too much coffee", it's not my experience. I got this from my Japanese friend, who holds four A-2 jackets, Buzz rickson's, The Few and Real Mccoy HH and a Eastman goatleather one. You know the Japanese they like the slim fit stuffs crazily, so he did the shirinking treatment to Buzz and Eastman and found the difference. Well...I wanna say both shirinked, but goat one shirinked more. And another information to share with you is that in many cases HH thickness of A-2 of Japanese makers is higher than that of ELC, and the Japanese HH are much harder. I have a Buzz one, but I will never do the shirinking to it. I think it's better to buy a new one.

I was hoping for a scientific answer-in short a fair test using different types of leather of the same size, weight etc.... Do the variations between different types of hh and goat make generalisations about shrinkage possible?

 

[aming06]

I was hoping for a scientific answer-in short a fair test using different types of leather of the same size, weight etc.... Do the variations between different types of hh and goat make generalisations about shrinkage possible?

Well, that's a good idea...and it sounds like a scientific research,LOL. But it's good to assess all the leathers. For example, if we could get those leathers from different makers with the size of 30cm X 30cm, and shrink - dry them under same conditions, and then measure them again....it's a nice project. Finally we will get a plot--shrink (%) as a function of leather type.

 

[too much coffee]

Hello,"too much coffee", it's not my experience. I got this from my Japanese friend, who holds four A-2 jackets, Buzz rickson's, The Few and Real Mccoy HH and a Eastman goatleather one. You know the Japanese they like the slim fit stuffs crazily, so he did the shirinking treatment to Buzz and Eastman and found the difference. Well...I wanna say both shirinked, but goat one shirinked more. And another information to share with you is that in many cases HH thickness of A-2 of Japanese makers is higher than that of ELC, and the Japanese HH are much harder. I have a Buzz one, but I will never do the shirinking to it. I think it's better to buy a new one.

Gee, I had no idea. Thank you for the in depth explanation.

Regards, coffee

 

[ButteMT61]

This thread has gone to the dogs.
The whole concept is ridiculous, IMHO. The "data" even more so...

<ignore>

 

[aswatland]

This thread has gone to the dogs.
The whole concept is ridiculous, IMHO. The "data" even more so...

<ignore>

Why do you say this?

 

[Jaguar66]

I have drawn up some Goodwear A2s that were JCs sample jackets, and it worked well, and if you talk to him, he will say no problem doing this. He will state that the leather these jackets are made from, spend many many hours soaking in liquid baths of preservative, dyes etcs and water does not damage them. The pilots that wore them, wore them in the rain. I would even bet that guys knew how to draw them up to help get them to fit better. Next time anyone talks to a WW II pilot, it would be interesting to talk to them about their jackets and what they did to them.

I will admit that the zipper tape does get distorted, so that is one drawback to the procedure.

The concept may seem ridiculous, but in practice it is not. I will agree that doing the procedure changes the character of the jacket and the leather, but to some, the change is an improvement. I would not do this to an investment jacket or one I was going to sell down the road. I wouldn't do it to a jacket with patches either. But if you are going to wear it, and you know you want to keep it, I can say I have done it and am happier with the fit.

 

[ButteMT61]

Why do you say this?

Thus Amigo06 guy is just trolling IMHO. Nothing of value.
If you want to shrink an expensive jacket, have at it. Not me.

 

[aswatland]

Thus Amigo06 guy is just trolling IMHO. Nothing of value.
If you want to shrink an expensive jacket, have at it. Not me.

Thanks for the clarification.