1960s Sears D-Pocket motorcycle jacket

Posted on April 25, 2014 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281318786990
This vintage D-Pocket leather motorcycle jacket was sold by Sears in the late 1960s-early 1970s. Sears introduced their D-Pocket motorcycle jacket model in the late 1940s. A simplified version, made of Steerhide instead of the Horsehide of the original came along in 1953. The model continued to be produced into the early 1970s with few changes. Although all sold by Sears, these were sold under a variety of Sears house brand labels, including Allstate, Sears Outerwear, Sears Fieldmaster, Oakbrook Sportswear and several versions of The Leather Shop label. The label, the hardware, and subtleties of the design help pin down the date of manufacture.

The jacket is made from black steerhide, with a D-Pocket (originally known as a map pocket and also known as a pistol pocket). The pocket on these 1960s models continue to the side seam. There is a smaller flapped cigarette pocket, and a zipper handwarmer/ slash cargo pocket on the other side. The jacket has a red nylon lining, Serval zippers, epaulettes, and a zipper at the collar for a detachable mouton collar. In a tradition dating back to the days of cowboys, and passed down through generations of bikers, the back of the jacket and the epaulettes have been embellished with stud work, in three sizes of studs.

Tagged size: 42
Chest (pit to pit): 23″ (doubled = 46″)
Shoulder to shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 25″
Length (base of collar to hem): 23-1/2″

1949

1958

1968

1972

1950s Jeweled Studded Belt

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281306058680
This vintage studded jeweled belt was made in the 1950s from Pennant Steerhide. It has an embossed floral pattern, red, blue, amber and green jewels, a western “good luck” horsehshoe and cloverleaf buckle, retainer and end. It measures 29-1/2″ at the smallest hole and 33″ at the largest. This would probably fit someone who wears size 30 pants the best.

Mid 1930s half-belt leather jacket

Posted on February 3, 2014 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271391483127
This vintage leather jacket was made in the mid 1930, probably in Wisconsin judging by the materials and construction. It is an early half-belt / cossack style. It can be dated to this point both by style and by hardware. By style: In the late 1920s and early 1930s, a full leather waistband was prevalent. The fancy belted back started to gain traction in the mid 1930s, but the front still retained the bottom panels found on this jacket. By the end of the 1930s, most makers had abandoned these panels for a cleaner look. Stylistically this dates from that middle period. By hardware: The full length separable zipper was first found on jackets made 1930. The “sunburst” deco Talon stopbox found on this jacket joined the riveted style stopbox around the midpoint of the decade, eventually supplanting it in Talon’s product line, before disappearing itself in the early 1940s. So that narrows the date down between about 1935 and 1942. The snaps are made by United Carr. These are of a style which I have not seen on anything beyond the mid 1930s, with the spring section of the fastener appearing on the male side of the snap.
This jacket has been worn extremely hard. The cuffs and collar have been worn through, and a hole has been worn through on the side. That was repaired what looks like some decades ago, but the repair has worn out as well. The lining is missing, and the zipper is missing both the slider and the bottom couple inches of the teeth and tape on the male side. There is paint on the skirt beneath the belt.

Chest (pit to pit): 23″ (doubled = 46″)
Shoulder to shoulder: 18″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 25″
Length: 26″

Sears Oakbrook D-Pocket leather motorcycle jacket

Posted on December 19, 2013 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271351691584

This vintage leather jacket was made in the 1960s by Sears under the Oakbrook Sportswear tag. This style was around for a while, with very little change made other than the label and zippers. 1950s models made under the Sears Fieldmaster label. It is made of black steerhide. It has a large D-Pocket (also known as a pistol pocket), with a smaller cigarette pocket. The other side has a zippered handwarmer. The lapels have exposed snaps, while the collar has concealed ones. The sleeves zip with Serval zippers, while the main is a large gauge Talon. There is a zipper on the collar, presumably for a zip-on mouton collar. The front of the jacket has an attached belt. It has a yoked back, bi-swing shoulders, and spotwork on the kidney panel. Pocket flaps are lined with black corduroy. The coat has a quilted red lining, with black corduroy trim on the pockets and the hem.

Chest (pit to pit): 23″ (doubled = 46″)
Shoulder to Shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 24-1/2″
Length: 23-1/2″

Canadian D-Pocket Motorcycle Jacket

Posted on December 19, 2013 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271351711041
This vintage leather jacket was made in Canada. It’s hard to say whether this was made by Brimaco or by Shields/Score Sportswear, as their patterns were so similar, and this one is missing the labels. Both manufacturers jackets were made as copies of the 1940s “Cycle Champ” jacket sold by Harley Davidson. While Harley retired the model, going with more of a Perfecto style, these Canadian manufacturers continued production with very little changes. It has a large patch D-pocket, with a smaller patch cigarette pocket. The other side of the jacket has a flapped square patch pocket. The ends of the pocket openings are all reinforced with domed bar studwork for that early motorcycle jacket flash. The back design, with kidney panel is more typical for the Score/Shields jackets, while Brimaco/British Cycle Leathers/British Sportswear jackets generally had three panels in a V shape. But you do see both designs coming from both makers, so it’s doesn’t clear it up that much. This has the smooth nylon lining more commonly seen on the cafe racers made by these companies, while the more old-fashioned plaid linings were generally put into the D-Pocket models. The main zip is a Lightning, the pocket zip is a Canadian Talon of the same design (same company).

Chest (pit to pit): 23″ (doubled = 46″)
Waist: 29″ (doubled = 36″)
Shoulder to shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 26″
Length: 22″

For reference, also see:

Silver British Mfg. Co. D-Pocket https://vintagehaberdashers.com/2013/04/19/silver-d-pocket-motorcycle-jacket/

British Mfg. Co “Wind Cheater” D-Pocket https://vintagehaberdashers.com/2013/01/12/canadian-cycle-champ-d-pocket-leather-jacket/

British Cycle Leathers D-Pocket https://vintagehaberdashers.com/2013/04/13/british-cycle-leathers-motorcycle-jacket/

Brimaco Cafe Racer https://vintagehaberdashers.com/2012/05/23/brimaco-leather-cafe-racer-jacket/

Score/Shields cafe racer: https://vintagehaberdashers.com/2013/10/26/score-sportswear-blue-leather-cafe-racer/

1950s Hell on Wheels Motorcycle Club Jacket

Posted on October 26, 2013 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271306503829
This vintage jacket was made in the 1950s by Peters Sportswear. It is made of black gabardine with yellow piping on the collar, sleeves and pockets. The original owner was a member of the “Hell on Wheels” motorcycle club, when it was still a sanctioned AMA club. The original owner’s name, “Dan” is chainstitched in yellow thread on the chest. It looks like the name was originally longer (Danny?), but that stitches were picked out. The chest also bears a American Motorcyclist Association patch and the club name, “Hell on Wheels”. Somewhat enigmatically, the jacket also has a football letter, “S” stitched on. The cuffs have dragon liberty cuffs sewn to the outside for a bit of extra flair. The jacket has a brass Serval zipper with a pin lock

Chest (pit to pit): 24″
Shoulder to Shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 23″
Length: 23″

Padded CHP leather jacket

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271233323658
This leather jacket is made in the “Columbia” style, pioneered by Langlitz leathers. This style is also known as the CHP / California Highway Patrol. This particular one was sold by “Leather Man”, and is a size 50. It has quilted, padded shoulders and elbows, an asymmetric zip, and zip cuffs with sheepskin storm cuffs. This is made of extremely heavyweight leather.

Chest (pit to pit): 26″ (doubled = 52″)
Waist: 22″ (doubled = 44″)
Shoulder to Shoulder: 20″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 26″
Length (base of collar to hem, down back): 22-1/2″

English Motorcycle Boots

Posted on June 22, 2013 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271227020412
These boots were made in England in the 1980s by a company named “Celebrity”. They are a captoe style, with functional buckles on the outsides. They have holes for studs or jewels.

British Cycle Leathers motorcycle Jacket

Posted on April 13, 2013 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271189228147

This vintage motorcycle jacket was made in Montreal, Canada by the British Mfg. Company under their “British Cycle Leathers” label. These are a copy of the Harley Davidson Cycle Champ design of the 1940s. It features a large D-pocket with cigarette pocket, a diagonal zipped front with snaps on the lapels, but not the collar, and studs on the pockets and epaulettes. The cuffs are zipped. All zippers are Canadian made Lightning brand, with oval pullers. Please note that all Canadian made zippers have the slider on the left track, in the European tradition. The liner is a plaid flannel, a real throwback to the 1940s roots of this design. The leather has some wonderful grain. While it has started to develop a nice patina, the usual spots (cuff, collar) are in great shape. There are several places where the stitching has let go, in particular the bottom of the zipper. These should all be easy fixes, though, as the leather and zipper tape are still in solid condition.

Tagged size: 38
Chest (pit to pit): 20″
Shoulder to Shoulder: 17″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 24″
Waist: 17-1/2″
Length (collar seam to hem): 21-1/2″

For another in this model, made a little bit later, please see This Jacket

Leather Car Coat

Posted on April 5, 2013 by Spencer Stewart

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281088084255

This vintage leather jacket was made in the 1950s. It is of a simple single breasted style, with yoked shoulders and slash handwarmer pockets. It has a quilted bottom section to the lining, and a sherpa top. There is heavy wear to the shoulders and to the collar, and stitch marks on the sleeves and chest from where there were once patches. There is flaking and damage to the bottom of the coat.

Chest (pit to pit): 24″
Shoulder to Shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 24″
Length (bottom of collar to hem): 30″

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