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B-3 jacket repair question


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Hello,

I have a WW2 B-3 sheepskin bomber jacket that needs some TLC and am seeking opinions. The jacket is intact, in that it is all there,

However, one shoulder is blown out with a huge tear. Another large tear is near the waist. The cuffs are falling apart. Every time I examine it

a new tear seems to appear and it probably is new. It also has old repairs on the back which consist of leather patches slapped on with rubber

cement which I believe are wartime vintage. (But, hey, the zipper works!) Those are the bad points.

The good point is that, although no personal label is on the jacket, I know the history of the man who wore it.

He was a bombardier who completed 30+ missions in 1944 with B-17s from the 457th Bomb Group over France, Germany and Luxembourg.

I have a photo of him wearing the jacket plus some other documents. The 457th BG Association website allowed me to put together a

complete mission list with the planes the man flew as well as find several more related photos.

I have found a product called Tear Mender (find it on You Tube) which is specifically for repairing leather as used for jackets.

It is apparently a natural latex product and acid free.

I have tried it on one cuff and sleeve. It does a reasonable job of joining a tear when worked into the lambswool beneath. I may be able to repair all the tears on the jacket with this stuff . It will be a long project and the jacket will , in the end, be suiitable only for careflul display. As it is, now, it is one step away from the trash heap which is where it was going if I had not bought it.

My question is whether it is wise to spend much effort on this jacket. I mean, there are others around in way better condition

that serve as examples of what bomber crews wore.

Also, are there any other products or tbetter techniques for repairing tears in sheepskin leather that I might consider ?

 

Bill G.

 

 

 

 

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I would be leery of any sort of product like that for repair of a historically significant garment. What are its long-term chemical impacts? I suspect that eventually the shearling would likely tear again aroud the bond.

Shearling is very fragile when new and does not age as well as horsehide or goatskin. I've made repairs to shearling jackets by hand-sewing holes closed using as fine a needle as possible and 100% cotton thread. Gutermann makes a good product & coats & Clark has some all cotton thread as well. Synthetic threads are typically way too "hard" and can more easily cut & tear fragile materials. If possible place material behind the tear to support the seam. Chamois leather as is used in car care has worked very well for me in the past. In some instances I've been able to separate the wool pile from the outer layer of the hide and insert the chamois in between the two layers, then sew the repair and tack the wool pile to the chamois with a ph neutral adhesive. Its tedious work and will not be cheap.

in my opinion knowing who used the jacket and having documents makes it well worth the effort to save. HTH

Tim

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