Good Wear Leather Coat Company — Sale U.S. Navy M-444A Jacket

This item has been sold.
U.S. Navy M–444A
Price: $800.00 (lightly used but clean condition) — note shipping costs below
Fit: this jacket has a very comfortable fit
Sheepskin: dark brown somewhat distressed finish with light biege fur color
Goatskin trim: aniline seal brown firm hides
Sleeve wool cuffs: golden brown wool
Thread: dark brown cotton
Zipper: Vintage NOS M–43 Talon zipper
Size: 46

This jacket is our latest reproduction. We have copied our original Fried, Ostermann M-444A Navy jacket to the finest detail, and this is a test model. These jackets are comfortabel, and with 1/4" sheepskin pile, the jacket can be worn in a flexible level of climates. Ostermann (known as Albert Richard in the non-military merchandise realm), had one contract for the M-444 series, along with many other Navy sheepskin garments.

This jacket is made with sheepskin that has fur in a very light biege color, and the finish has a distressed dark brown tone. The fur is lighter in color than originals, but we coule readily purchase it earlier this year, and knew it would be used for test models. The finish looks like an aged older jacket, but is very solid. The zipper is an NOS WWII Talon (full circle cutout pull tab) from 1943. We had to use this zipper, as the length of the zipper required for this type of jacket is longer than typical M-422 and A-2 jackets.

These jackets are comfortable in fit, and look great. The cuffs inside the sleeves prevent any cold air from going up one's arms, and the side belts keep the lower jacket snug. We used vintage Anchor Brand buckles on this particular jacket.

We had used a different label on the jacket, and once the correct labels were finished, we added the correct label over the older label. One can see two lines of stitching on the lower level of the label, and the two stitch lines through the back of the jacket, but the sewing is clean. Also, note the label comparison at the end of the images.

The sheepskin fur is lighter than what we will use for stock jackets. We used this sheepskin purely as a test sample, as production jackets will have a more tan shade of fur, and more solid pigment finish.