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Please Help A2 Jacket


anton67
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I do not believe this is your Jacket.

He said he has one similar, i would post a pic of the zipper as well theres plenty that were replaced. Jacket looks good otherwise and the leather is in good shape

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I picked it up over the weekend. It is fragile and I want to display it. What is the best display option? I was thinking one of those jersey frames?

I am concerned that the hanger will damage the shoulder area.

It says Lightning Strikes on top.

I will post the entire grouping when I get a chance.

post-63438-0-09824000-1576459955.jpeg

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Hello Anton:

 

A friend sent me photos of that group, and I chased it as well. Congratulations! Glad to know where it ended up. My take on the damage (from what I could see in the photos) was that it did not detract from a really nice A-2, but would absolutely need to be considered when displaying the jacket. Hangers are bad for everything, but with leather jackets, the damage caused by hangers is compounded due to the weight of the material. (this goes double for shearling jackets) With seam damage already there, you will have to be extra careful. Ideally, it will be stored flat in an acid-free box, with archival tissue supporting it from the interior of the body and sleeves, so as to not create hard folds. When displayed, you will need to support as much of the weight over as broad an area as possible. With that in mind, your best bet is a torso form. Keep it free of dust and debris, and out of sunlight or other UV sources.

 

Though I know this next idea in a collector forum is bit is like parking a bacon themed food truck in the middle of Mecca.. as an ex-museum guy whose interest is only in the long-term preservation of the artifacts, I would in the strongest terms advise you to ignore those who will surely encourage you to 'treat' it with their favorite 'preservation' product. (yes, those are snarky air quotes). Conservation studies show that oils and surfactants (i.e. Pecard's, among many others) are known to destabilize the collagen fibers. So, these create a temporary illusion of lubrication, at the expense of damaging the very substance that is ostensibly being 'preserved'. Just like stripping patina from Civil War muskets with naval jelly, covering painted helmets in lacquer, or 'freshening' painted A-2's with new paint.. collectors who subscribe to the leather treatment dogma will never miss an opportunity to advise others to do the same, and just cannot be convinced that hugging the puppy until it suffocates is not really love.

 

As for torso forms, the ideal is all inert or sealed materials, cotton batting and muslin covers. That is not always practical or easy to do, so as a second-best but still good choice I have been impressed by these: https://www.zoro.com/econoco-muscular-shirt-form-black-81bl/i/G8871418/?q=G8871418

They are molded plastic, of a variety that appears quite stable (no appreciable off-gassing, as some plastics will do more than others). They used to be on eBay.. now I find them on zoro at a very good price with free shipping for orders over $50.

 

Good luck with the group! Sorry to have missed it, but I am very happy that a fellow forum member got it and is interested in taking care of it. Let me know if I can help with anything.

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Though I know this next idea in a collector forum is bit is like parking a bacon themed food truck in the middle of Mecca.. as an ex-museum guy whose interest is only in the long-term preservation of the artifacts, I would in the strongest terms advise you to ignore those who will surely encourage you to 'treat' it with their favorite 'preservation' product. (yes, those are snarky air quotes). Conservation studies show that oils and surfactants (i.e. Pecard's, among many others) are known to destabilize the collagen fibers. So, these create a temporary illusion of lubrication, at the expense of damaging the very substance that is ostensibly being 'preserved'. Just like stripping patina from Civil War muskets with naval jelly, covering painted helmets in lacquer, or 'freshening' painted A-2's with new paint.. collectors who subscribe to the leather treatment dogma will never miss an opportunity to advise others to do the same, and just cannot be convinced that hugging the puppy until it suffocates is not really love.

 

 

 

Best thing I read all day... and I want a puppy now. :blush:

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Thank you for the helpful info. I am NOT going to touch it with any type of chemical or leather treatment.

I actually have a torso which I might be able to use.

I thought maybe a torso would be bad for it.

As for Picards I have used it in the past on roaches leather items and brought them back to life. But I would not use it on something like this.

Thanks for the congrats.

I will post photos of the full group later. Tons of extras.

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That is a great 511th group.

 

Was Cecil in the unit for the Normandy battle?

 

They stopped the German attempt to cut the Patton break out at Avranche.

 

They destroyed over 60 vehicles on their first mission and more in follow ups.

 

Are you going to post the entire group?

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I've seen the entire grouping, and it's amazing. Many components, and some surprise pieces not shared in the sellers photos.

 

I won't give away any spoilers, though. Look forward to seeing it posted, Mark, and hope to check it out in person soon! :D

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BigDogMilitaria

Hello Anton:

 

A friend sent me photos of that group, and I chased it as well. Congratulations! Glad to know where it ended up. My take on the damage (from what I could see in the photos) was that it did not detract from a really nice A-2, but would absolutely need to be considered when displaying the jacket. Hangers are bad for everything, but with leather jackets, the damage caused by hangers is compounded due to the weight of the material. (this goes double for shearling jackets) With seam damage already there, you will have to be extra careful. Ideally, it will be stored flat in an acid-free box, with archival tissue supporting it from the interior of the body and sleeves, so as to not create hard folds. When displayed, you will need to support as much of the weight over as broad an area as possible. With that in mind, your best bet is a torso form. Keep it free of dust and debris, and out of sunlight or other UV sources.

 

Though I know this next idea in a collector forum is bit is like parking a bacon themed food truck in the middle of Mecca.. as an ex-museum guy whose interest is only in the long-term preservation of the artifacts, I would in the strongest terms advise you to ignore those who will surely encourage you to 'treat' it with their favorite 'preservation' product. (yes, those are snarky air quotes). Conservation studies show that oils and surfactants (i.e. Pecard's, among many others) are known to destabilize the collagen fibers. So, these create a temporary illusion of lubrication, at the expense of damaging the very substance that is ostensibly being 'preserved'. Just like stripping patina from Civil War muskets with naval jelly, covering painted helmets in lacquer, or 'freshening' painted A-2's with new paint.. collectors who subscribe to the leather treatment dogma will never miss an opportunity to advise others to do the same, and just cannot be convinced that hugging the puppy until it suffocates is not really love.

 

As for torso forms, the ideal is all inert or sealed materials, cotton batting and muslin covers. That is not always practical or easy to do, so as a second-best but still good choice I have been impressed by these: https://www.zoro.com/econoco-muscular-shirt-form-black-81bl/i/G8871418/?q=G8871418

They are molded plastic, of a variety that appears quite stable (no appreciable off-gassing, as some plastics will do more than others). They used to be on eBay.. now I find them on zoro at a very good price with free shipping for orders over $50.

 

Good luck with the group! Sorry to have missed it, but I am very happy that a fellow forum member got it and is interested in taking care of it. Let me know if I can help with anything.

Excellent info! Ive been struggling with options on an A2 I picked up last week and the info here is exactly what I was looking for . Thanks for taking the time to post !

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For two reasons.

First I was not 100% sure on Dec 11th that it was legit (although I had strong suspicions). And I wanted confirmation before laying down the cash.

Second, the sale was not until December 14th. So I did not want to alert any other potential buyers about the sale.

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BTW I wanted to thank Shenkursk again for the great display advice. I could have ruined the jacket by framing it.

I used a wooden torso that was covered with cloth. I then put one of his dress shirts over it and stuffed the sleeves lightly with clean rags. Then I placed the jacket over too.

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For two reasons.

First I was not 100% sure on Dec 11th that it was legit (although I had strong suspicions). And I wanted confirmation before laying down the cash.

Second, the sale was not until December 14th. So I did not want to alert any other potential buyers about the sale.

 

Sounds fine. Concerning alerting others, I would hope the collecting/forum community would have respected your pursuing of it for your collection and not bid against you.

 

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