BSA Suppliers: Nylon Jackets and Wool Jac-Shirts

[Rip Van Scouter]

I have seen several references on this forum that Woolrich no longer makes the red wool Jack-shirt, however, the BSA catalog and Scoutstuff.org website still refer to it as the "Woolrich Jac-shirt". Can anyone verify if there is a new manufacturer and who it might be? The current inventory at the Scout shop only has the BSA label.

 

Also, I saw at the scout shop that the red nylon jackets they were selling had the manufacturers label, which was "Auburn". I found the Auburn website where you can order the jackets for roughly the same price (with shipping) as the scout shop. You can buy the patch at the Scout shop. This is important if you need larger than 4x (5x or 6x), which BSA does not carry.

 

Please check your nylon jackets and let me know if you have any other manufacturer's tags, the Auburn tag, or a BSA tag. Also, about what year you purchased the red jacket. I have an Augusta brand jacket that looks similar and I was wondering if they were ever a supplier.

 

 

[fotoscout]

My wife tried to get a red wool shirt-jac for me as a holiday present. National supply told her that they did not have any in stock, and that the earliest delivery would be in the spring. She said that they sounded a bit ambiguous about the whole thing. Maybe they dont know who the new supplier will be?

[John-in-KC]

FWIW:

At Woolrich website: http://tinyurl.com/435pc(This message has been edited by John-in-KC)

[BSAT17SPL]

That link does not work

 

[Rip Van Scouter]

John in KC,

 

I tried your link and it did not work. I even went to the TinyURL website, downloaded their toolbar, but still nothing. How about telling us the main URL for Woolrich that you used and what you did to find the info so we can get to the same page?

 

Thanks!

 

[Marty_Doyle]

Try this:

http://www.ntier.org/index.html

Go to documents and download the Trading Post Catalog for 2004.

They offer a red 100% wool shirt-jac, made by a US manufacturer - Bemidji Woolen Mills, with BSA logo patch already sewn on pocket, two button-down pockets plus two hand-warmer pockets. Only $89.99 plus shipping.

Much better deal than the one in the National catalog. Warm, extra pockets, looks just like the National one, sold by a BSA High Adventure Ccamp Trading Post, for almost half the price.

My wife got it for my last Christmas, and everyone wanted to know where it came from at my Wood Badge course.

 

 

(This message has been edited by Marty_Doyle)

[Rip Van Scouter]

Hmmmm....perhaps this is BSA's new supplier and Norther Tier is doing the field testing through their Trading Post. I can't imagine a BSA-affiliated organization selling a "knock-off", complete with BSA patch, without the blessing of Supply Division. That may be why Scout Shops that are out of stock in the Woolrich jac-shirt cannot get any replacement stock, until the field test reports come back positive or BSA gets a contract at the price they want.

 

Interestingly, at the Bemidji Woolen Mills website they offer two different jac-shirts, although the one with slash pockets as you describe is called a "jac-coat". The "Paul Bunyan" jac-shirt looks like the BSA Woolrich only it is not available in solid red and the pockets have only one button each, not two each as on the Woolrich. And no BSA patch of course!

 

The other, called The Voyagueurs Jac Coat is thicker than the jac-shirt (30 oz. vs. 20 oz.) and does indeed come in a version called the "Voyageur Scout Jacket", in Red, with BSA patch sewn on! It is $119, and only goes to size XL, while the non-BSA version is available in many colors and goes to XXXL and XXLT. The non-BSA version also sells for $121 or $128 in the tall sizes. How about that? It costs LESS to have the BSA patch sewn on! Both versions have double-button chest pockets as well as slash pockets.

 

At $89 I would say the Northern Tier Trading Post stock is a bargain! I hope if BSA does go with a new supplier they will pass along some savings to us, do you think? Maybe the Woolrich version will become a collectors item, or newbies will ooh and ah over the "original" jac-shirt without slash pockets!

 

Then again, BSA may just do an end run to line its pockets by switching suppliers, using the original patterns, and pocket the "profits". What's that, they wouldn't do that? BSA is a non-profit organization? You couldn't tell that by looking at the Scout Shop prices!

 

[Rip Van Scouter]

AHEM!......

 

Thanks to all for the info and input on the jac-shirt, very interesting,....but does anyone have any answers to my questions on the nylon jacket manufacturer(s)?

[John-in-KC]

Cut and paste this one:

http://www.woolrich.com/CGI-BIN/LANSAWEB?WEBEVENT+L0921564598670938DF20494+PRD+ENG

 

Cut and paste as appropriate. Sorry for the dead link!!!

 

 

John

[Rip Van Scouter]

New link is dead too, John. Can you describe what you found on the Woolrich website? I have searched there and found no references to BSA or any jac-shirts that look like it. Most of theirs have shoulder cape fronts, single button pockets, or long tails.

[Rip Van Scouter]

I talked to the manager of our local scout shop a few days ago. She informed me that the Jac-Shirt prices went up BECAUSE they got a new supplier last year. Now, she has never received any new stock, having plenty of the older Woolrich jac-shirts available in all sizes (...even in my 5X size, although no other standard uniform parts go to my size! Go figure!).

 

Don't most retailers sell old stock as clearance merchandise at reduced prices, rather than marking it up to the price of the replacement item?

 

 

 

[andrewcanoe]

I bought a red wool jacket at the northern tier base last Febuary and found it to be excellent( maybe a little too hot). I believe it was a little more than the price quoted but I bought a larger size. It does not have a lining like the woolrich coats I have seen on other scouters. I found that with a lands end wool sweater under it I didn't need or want a liner.

[Lenape]

Liner? What liner? I have an official jac-shirt I bought for the 1969 National Jamboree. I suppose it is Woolrich manufacture, although I really don't know. It has no liner. I have never seen any other Scout or Scouter with an offical jac-shirt that has a liner. When did this begin and by who?

 

I have long since outgrown my jacket, and have passed it on to my Eagle Scout son. I would like to buy a new one, but the current price is a bit much.

[Rip Van Scouter]

He may have been referring to a non-BSA jac-shirt sold by a Woolrich distributor, not the Scout Shops. Woolrich makes several varieties of Jac-shirts, some have liners. Interestingly, there is no BSA jac-shirt shown on their website.