Interesting story behind this jacket...
In the late 70’s when the original Battlestar Galactica series came into our homes, its popularity was immense. Many of us wanted to dress like the colonial viper pilots on the show. To meet this demand, a little known company named Unlimited produced perfect replicas of the viper pilot jackets. These were sold exclusively through Star Log magazine by sending in a money order.
They couldn’t advertise them as BSG jacket (otherwise they would have had to pay licensing fees) so they were advertised as a “Future Space Pilot” jacket (though it was VERY obvious it was modeled after the ones seen in the show). They figured they were safe in selling these jackets because something was changed so that they were not “identical” to the ones seen on screen. They left off the dark brown leather shoulder pads (though there is a spot made for them). They started selling these but very quickly Paramount caught on and told Unlimited that the jackets they were selling looked too close to the ones seen on screen.
So Unlimited started making their jackets in olive green. Paramount allowed this. The majority of the jackets that were purchased through Star Log were the olive green ones. The rust-brown correct color versions are VERY rare. It is said that this jacket is as close to screen accurate as you can get in regards to design and materials. The only thing you need to make this 100% accurate is dark brown leather shoulder patches. With this jacket, the proper leather for the patches will be provided but it is up to you to have a seamstress apply them if you so desire.
We do this for a reason.
Some people want this jacket for its rarity in the Science Fiction fandom realm so we don’t want to alter it but we will provide you with the necessary material to make it accurate it if you choose to do so. Please keep this in mind: this is NOT the common BSG version that you find offered on eBay or other fan sites. Those jackets are made from faux ultra suede, which is a very thin material that is not very durable and has a tendency to tear easily and just hangs off of your body.
This jacket is made from durable brushed denim. As a result it can actually be used as a real jacket on those chilly autumn days on Kobal (or any of the other 12 colonies you choose to visit). So you can choose to have a very rare, vintage, costume piece or have the most accurate viper pilot jacket available. Here’s the best part, if you do find one of these jackets through another venue, they are usual in very bad shape due to it’s age.
We were lucky enough to stumble across this gem in pristine condition. As a matter of fact, it looks like it was made yesterday. There is no size listed in the jacket itself (though the original Unlimited tag is perfectly intact) but this was taken to a professional tailor to be sized and it has been determined that this jacket is 40 regular in men’s sport coat sizing.
If you want your costume to be a cut above the rest, this is the jacket for you.
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