Bomber Leather Jacket

A vintage leather bomber jacket is built around its hem, not its cut. Ribbed knit closes off the collar, the cuffs and the waistband, pulling a short blouson body in tight while the leather itself hangs looser through the chest and back. Every jacket in this collection has already done its softening, so it sits low and easy on the shoulders instead of standing away from them. Nothing here gets restocked. Each piece is one of one, checked, measured flat and posted from our Doncaster office. Read on for the cuts, the sizing and the care that keeps one of these looking right.

What Makes a Vintage Leather Bomber Jacket Different

Take the ribbing off a bomber and it stops being a bomber. That knit trim at the collar, cuffs and waistband shapes the whole jacket, pulling the hem in so the body above it can stay loose and full through the chest and back. This blouson shape sits short, usually stopping right at the hip. A vintage leather bomber jacket gets this right because the leather has already relaxed into that shape, where a stiff new jacket still fights it.

Vintage Bomber Leather Jacket Style, From Flight Deck to Street

A vintage bomber leather jacket traces back to flight jackets built for pilots, where tight ribbing sealed out cold air at altitude and let the arms move freely. That is still the whole job the ribbing does. Some jackets on this rail keep that history close with a shearling or knit collar and clasp fastenings, close to the original flight cut. Others move further from it, with a band collar, snap tabs, or a quilted panel across the chest, all still built on the same ribbed hem. Black and brown suit this shape differently, so browse the black leather jackets for a leaner line or the brown leather jackets if you want the panel seams and grain to stay visible.

Vintage Leather Bomber Jacket Mens Cuts

A vintage leather bomber jacket mens fit is usually wide at the shoulder and straight through the body, since most of the stock here was cut for men in the first place. Go by the pit to pit measurement rather than the label, since sizing standards have shifted more than once since these jackets were made. A wider cut on a smaller frame just reads as an oversized bomber, which is a fair way to wear one, as long as the shoulder seam has not slipped down your arm.

Vintage Leather Bomber Jacket Womens Cuts

A vintage leather bomber jacket womens fit tends to run shorter in the body with a narrower shoulder, so the waistband sits at the natural waist instead of lower on the hip. The same rule still applies here: check the chest measurement before anything else, because leather will mould to you with wear but it will never gain inches across the chest.

What You Get With Every Vintage Leather Bomber Jacket

Every listing in this collection goes through the same checks before it is put online. Here is what that includes:

• One of one, real leather, never a reproduction
• Cleaned and conditioned by hand before it is photographed
• Measured flat: chest pit to pit, shoulder, sleeve, length and waist
• Photographed with nothing edited out, so creasing and marks are shown honestly
• Graded to one clear condition standard, the same across the whole shop
• Packed and posted within three working days

How to get the size right

Measure a jacket you already own that fits well. Lay it flat, close it, smooth it without stretching it, then measure straight across from armpit seam to armpit seam. That is the pit to pit, and every listing here carries one. Within an inch either way, it will fit much the same. Double the number for the chest measured around, so 22in flat is a 44in chest.

Size letters come from that measurement, not the vintage label: 17in or less is XS, 18 to 19in S, 20 to 21in M, 22 to 23in L, 24 to 25in XL, 26in or more XXL. The full method is on the leather jacket size guide.

Caring for a Vintage Leather Bomber Jacket

A vintage leather bomber jacket does not ask for much. Hang it on a broad hanger so the shoulders keep their shape, and keep it clear of radiators and other direct heat, which dries the hide out and leads to cracking. If the jacket gets caught in the rain, let it dry naturally at room temperature rather than forcing it. Condition the leather once or twice a year at most, and leave the ribbed knit alone, since washing it can pull the trim out of shape. The shine building at the elbows and cuffs is the patina doing its job, and it will keep deepening the more the jacket gets worn.

Every jacket here is a single piece in a single size. If the shoulder and the hem both sit right, it will not stay listed for long.