Toys McCoy 25th Anniversary A-2 'Mighty Eighth' TMJ2123, Rough Wear Reproduction, Horsehide, Size 40, New with Tags

Toys McCoy's 25th-anniversary A-2, 'Mighty Eighth', new with its tags: Rough Wear pattern horsehide, red knits, a winged-star pin-up by Hiroshi Okamoto and an anniversary flag inside.

The Mighty Eighth

The Eighth Air Force was activated in January 1942 and sent to England to carry the American daylight bombing campaign to Germany. At its peak it could put more than two thousand heavy bombers into the air in a single day, as it did on Christmas Eve 1944, and the name 'Mighty Eighth' was earned in the costliest way: some 26,000 of its men were killed, more than in the entire United States Marine Corps in the Second World War.

Its crews painted their aircraft and their A-2s with an exuberance that still defines nose art, and the winged 8 with its star became one of the most recognisable insignia of the war. Okamoto's 'Mighty Eighth' design, set here as a pin-up astride that insignia above rows of mission bombs, is one of the best-known works of the Toys McCoy founder.

Rough Wear Clothing Co. and the Japanese reproduction

Rough Wear Clothing Company of Middletown, Pennsylvania, was among the most prolific A-2 contractors of the war, and its labels, including contracts W535-ac-23380 and W535-ac-27752, are the ones collectors meet most often. That is why Japanese makers chose the name for their most faithful reproductions.

Toys McCoy was founded by the illustrator and painter Hiroshi Okamoto, who had worked with The Real McCoy's in its early years. Its A-2s are cut in vegetable-chrome combination tanned horsehide with a pigment finish and closed with reproduction wartime Talon zips, and its custom pieces carry Okamoto's own artwork rather than licensed transfers. They are reproductions, made in Japan, and are collected in their own right.

The Piece

This is a Toys McCoy reproduction, style TMJ2123, made for the brand's 25th Anniversary Collection with an original retail of ¥330,000 before tax, and it is new with its swing tags. The woven label reproduces a Rough Wear Clothing Co. A-2, Drawing 30-1415, contract W535-ac-23380, and the lining is printed with the Army Air Forces emblem.

The back carries Okamoto's 'Mighty Eighth': a winged pin-up in stars and stripes perched on the Eighth Air Force insignia, a spray of roses above the script title, and ranks of green mission bombs below. On the left chest a leather-crafted shield shows a dragon with a bomb, a squadron patch drawn by Okamoto for this jacket and believed to represent the 833rd Bomb Squadron, beneath a leather nameplate. The left shoulder bears a leather-crafted Eighth Air Force insignia.

Inside, a stars-and-stripes panel stitched with '25 Anniversary' and the Toys McCoy wings marks the occasion. The horsehide is a deep seal brown, vegetable-chrome combination tanned, with red knits at the cuffs and waistband and a reproduction Talon zip.

Anniversary pieces are made once. With every size now sold through at the maker's own stockists, a new example in size 40 is the way to own this design without a previous owner's creases.

Details

• Maker: Toys McCoy Product Co., Ltd., Japan
• Season: 25th Anniversary Collection
• Model / ref: TMJ2123, Type A-2 'Mighty Eighth', colour 151
• Label: Rough Wear Clothing Co. · Drawing 30-1415 · Contract W535-ac-23380
• Material: Horsehide, vegetable-chrome combination tanned, pigment finish; cotton lining; Talon-type zip
• Colour: Seal brown with red knits
• Made in: Japan
• Tagged size: 40
• Measurements: Shoulder 46 cm · Chest (pit to pit) 54 cm · Sleeve 63 cm · Length 62 cm
• Included: Toys McCoy 25th Anniversary swing tags

Condition

• New and unworn, with swing tags
• Back art, patches and anniversary panel pristine
• Knits, zip, collar hook and snaps as new

Condition grade S on the Japanese scale; see Japanese condition ranks, explained.

Authenticity & Care

The labels, materials, stitching, hardware and construction are examined together and documented in Japan before dispatch; anything that cannot be confirmed is stated plainly in the description. Every piece carries the Japonista authenticity guarantee. Hang on a broad shoulder hanger away from heat and sun, and condition the plain horsehide sparingly, never over the painted back.

Delivery from Japan

Packed by hand in Japan and shipped insured and tracked by EMS or an equivalent express service. Import duties and taxes, where applicable, are payable on arrival. Every sale is final; please ask anything before you buy, and see our published policy.

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