Help dating a vintage Lewis jacket

[andyone]

I would really appreciate some help dating a vintage Lewis Leathers jacket.

Seller thinks it‘s from the 70ies.

Any thoughts from the experienced crowd?

Thanks!

 

[andyone]

According to the label, the jacket could be from the late 70ies / early 80ies:

 

[andyone]

I remember that the quality of Lewis Leather jackets got worse after being sold - could anyone educate me until what year the „good“ jackets had been made?

 

[Jon Crow]

I remember that the quality of Lewis Leather jackets got worse after being sold - could anyone educate me until what year the „good“ jackets had been made?

Have you seen their 40s lumber jacket and 59 cafe racer?

 

[andyone]

Have you seen their 40s lumber jacket and 59 cafe racer?

I just checked the lumber jacket, but can't find a 59 cafe racer on their homepage.
Anyway I don't unterstand the correlation between your post and my question - can you help me out?

 

[bn1966]

Wife picked up an 80’s Lewis cross zip … heavyweight and robust.

 

[Jon Crow]

I just checked the lumber jacket, but can't find a 59 cafe racer on their homepage.
Anyway I don't unterstand the correlation between your post and my question - can you help me out?

That label is the 60s they used Lewis leather jackets for the movie the battle of Britain for German pilots and there have been a few posts about that

 

[Edward]

That's a Super Phantom No 443, which model was introduced in 1975.

Super Phantom No. 443

This popular model is made from our supreme hide and is styled with a longer body length. The jacket features a straight front zip. Two angled chest pockets and a handy inside pocket with zipper closing. The adjustable mandarin collar is lined with warm corduroy and the sleeves feature zipped...

www.lewisleathers.com

This sort of reinforced style (elbows & shoulders) with the Mandarin collar was very typical of motorcycle jackets you'd see being worn by bikers in the UK and Ireland from the mid-70s through to the later mid-eighties, when more padded monstrosities (like the Terminator 3 jacket) took over until the advent of removable d3-style foam armour pieces allowed protective riding jackets to become stylish again. The SuperPhantom and then the Super Monza (1978) were the last great hurrah of the original Lewis designs, before the British motorcycle leathers industry declined and largely disappeared by the early 90s, running about a decade or fifteen years behind the demise of the British motorcycle industry itself.

All that said, I'd put this jacket somewhere around the mid-late 70s to early 80s going by photos.


I did at a time handle probably well over a hundred Lewises back in the days when HiStar leathers were in Camden and they had a rack of them at £200 or so (this is 25 odd years ago when that was quite a lot of money, and a new one could be had for a little under £400). The impression I had was that they always made a good jacket, but by the turn of the eighties the quality control had gone downhill, and it was hit and miss as to whether this or that jacket was as good as the next one on the rack. Older Lewis fans have told me in the past they felt it got hit and miss during the 70s, but hard to know for certain. Lewis of all period crop up regularly on eBay these days, though usually in very small sizes; bigger sizes and more-in demand models currently (typically the more classic 50s and 60s designs) of course tend to be much pricier.

 

[andyone]

That's a Super Phantom No 443, which model was introduced in 1975.

http://[URL]https://www.lewisleathers.com/super-phantom-no-443.html

[/URL]

This sort of reinforced style (elbows & shoulders) with the Mandarin collar was very typical of motorcycle jackets you'd see being worn by bikers in the UK and Ireland from the mid-70s through to the later mid-eighties, when more padded monstrosities (like the Terminator 3 jacket) took over until the advent of removable d3-style foam armour pieces allowed protective riding jackets to become stylish again. The SuperPhantom and then the Super Monza (1978) were the last great hurrah of the original Lewis designs, before the British motorcycle leathers industry declined and largely disappeared by the early 90s, running about a decade or fifteen years behind the demise of the British motorcycle industry itself.

All that said, I'd put this jacket somewhere around the mid-late 70s to early 80s going by photos.


I did at a time handle probably well over a hundred Lewises back in the days when HiStar leathers were in Camden and they had a rack of them at £200 or so (this is 25 odd years ago when that was quite a lot of money, and a new one could be had for a little under £400). The impression I had was that they always made a good jacket, but by the turn of the eighties the quality control had gone downhill, and it was hit and miss as to whether this or that jacket was as good as the next one on the rack. Older Lewis fans have told me in the past they felt it got hit and miss during the 70s, but hard to know for certain. Lewis of all period crop up regularly on eBay these days, though usually in very small sizes; bigger sizes and more-in demand models currently (typically the more classic 50s and 60s designs) of course tend to be much pricier.

Thanks for all the information!
The seller is not very responsive... so I don't get actual measurements nor could I see it in person before buying (kind of Swiss Ebay platform). He wants about 900£. I rather check the classifieds here regularly than buying without measurements.

 

[Jon Crow]

Here's a rare one at that price, very small size though

https://buyee.jp/item/jdirectitems/...versionType=jdirectitems_auction_DirectSearch

 

[andyone]

Here's a rare one at that price, very small size though

https://buyee.jp/item/jdirectitems/...versionType=jdirectitems_auction_DirectSearch

thanks for the link - but I am looking for a center zip jacket and need a 42 or 44.

 

[Edward]

Thanks for all the information!
The seller is not very responsive... so I don't get actual measurements nor could I see it in person before buying (kind of Swiss Ebay platform). He wants about 900£. I rather check the classifieds here regularly than buying without measurements.

Mn, yeah.... that sounds kinda pricey to me. You don't see this model come up quite as often as others, but it's a rare used Lewis I see sell on eBay UK for much over £500.