Vintage Redskins B32 Steerhide Flight Jacket - Shearling Collar, Made in France

Sewn inside this jacket, on a small cream label, Redskins made a promise in two languages: if a slight mark should ever appear, “it is just the charm of genuine leather.” Decades on, the steerhide has kept its word.

The jacket is the B32, labelled “Army & Civil”, and the name tells you what it set out to be. It was cut on the lines of the wartime flying jacket and made for life on the ground. Redskins founded its reputation on exactly this kind of piece. The house started in Gennevilliers on the edge of Paris in 1984, taking American flight and motorcycle leathers and making them with a French hand. Its early jackets, with the woven script label still stitched to a pinked leather patch, are the ones that rarely come up now, and the B32 is among the hardest to find.

What time has done to the leather is the real story. Across the shoulders and yoke the colour has lifted to honey and tobacco. The sleeves have taken on a deep glaze where they’ve bent and moved a thousand times, and the body has darkened to chestnut over a heavy, pebbled grain. It’s the kind of patina collectors chase and no finishing room can counterfeit.

The details are the ones a flight jacket should have, and they’re done properly. The broad shearling collar snaps shut against the wind, with a throat latch behind it. The main zip is antique brass and runs under a leather thong pull, and the two rounded pockets close with chain-pull zips. Twin snap tabs sit at the hem, and inside it is lined in brown diamond quilting.

It was made to be both Army and Civilian. These days it’s simply rare.

Condition & Restoration

The jacket is in excellent vintage condition, with a beautiful, storied patina and the character that only years of honest wear can give. It has been specialist cleaned and conditioned in-house. The steerhide is fully broken in and has moulded to the shape of wear, but it keeps the weight and structure that make it so hard-wearing.

The zips have been cleaned, polished and waxed, and all of them run smoothly. The knit ribbing at the cuffs and waistband is in excellent condition. Every snap fastens securely, and the quilted lining is clean and sound.

Key Features

• Redskins, France, with the original woven “Jacket Type B32, Army & Civil” label
• Heavy steerhide with a rich tobacco and chestnut patina
• Broad shearling collar with snap fastening and a throat latch
• Antique brass main zip with a leather thong pull
• Rounded patch pockets with angled chain-pull zips
• Vertical slash hand-warmer pockets
• Epaulettes with X-box stitching
• Twin snap tabs at the hem
• Knit cuffs and waistband
• Brown diamond-quilted lining with an inside zip pocket
• Original bilingual French and English care label

Size & Fit

Measurements, laid flat

• Chest, armpit to armpit: 26" / 66 cm
• Shoulders, seam to seam: 22.5" / 57.2 cm
• Sleeve, shoulder seam to cuff: 23.5" / 59.7 cm
• Underarm seam to cuff: 19" / 48.3 cm
• Back length, base of collar to hem: 26.5" / 67.3 cm
• Waist, ribbing relaxed: 22" / 55.9 cm

Best suited to: 46" chest, regular / Size XL

Fit: The label reads XL, and it fits true to size. It’s a classic flight jacket cut, full through the chest and back, with broad, dropped shoulders. That’s why the shoulders measure wide and the sleeve from the shoulder seam measures shorter. The knit waistband gathers it in at the hip, so it sits in the traditional bomber shape. Please go by the measurements above rather than the label, and compare them with a jacket you already own.