Barbour Alternatives

[palmer]

All:

After more than a decade, my old Barbour Beaufort is on its last legs, and I recently went looking for a replacement. As I was a little disappointed in the new Barbours (or at least the ones I saw), I was wondering if anyone has suggestions for a replacement.

Thank you.

Best regards,

[rjman]

Beretta, John Partridge, the Loro Piana Horsey jacket, Le Chameau... not sure if they do waxed cotton, but they all make foul weather coats.

[LB]

Filson makes excellent products similar to the Barbour Beaufort.

[alden]

After only a decade they are just getting broken in. Send it back to Barbour and have them refurb it and then wear it for another decade while you look for a replacement.

[whyescalar]

Must wholeheartedly agree with Mr. Alden. These get better with age, much like some women.

Another option, still manufactured by Barbour, is the Moorland, or any one of the ranges made with the heavyweight oilcloth. I have one of these, seven years old, and its nearly new. Prior to that, I had one of the Burberry versions, which lasted for twelve. The difference in the cloth, a bit lighter, sort of like the Beaufort, made for sooner redundancy. The patchwork holding it together the last two years, I must confess, was a bit embarassing.

[palmer]

I thank all of you very much for your suggestions. I also agree that Barbours, including mine, improve with age, which brings me to a follow-up question about refurbishing my Beaufort: Do any of you know whether Barbour will re-line a coat? Mine's been re-proofed twice and had minor abrasions to the shell repaired. I trust that all of this can be done again, but my lining's also a bit of a mess and ought to be replaced.

Thank you once more.

Best regards,

[DD MacDonald]

After only a decade they are just getting broken in. Send it back to Barbour and have them refurb it and then wear it for another decade while you look for a replacement.

There is really no replacement to Barbour for that look, they have nailed it cold. L Piana and Baretta do some great coats and there are number of alernatives if you want a woven tweed, but if you want a green wax number, there is only one game in town. Making the deal even better is that they will rebuild them in the US and the UK. I have a beaufort that I bought in Corby (don't ask) in 1987 that has been to the factory three times. The underside of the sleeves, the entire bottom edge around the back, and the pockets have all been rebuilt. I even think that they replaced a large chunk of the lining. The best thing is that the jacket has gotten better each time. The only problem is that my wife and daughters have taken it over. (the upside is that I get other coats)

I have not seen or touched any of the lord-percy-shoots-alot (yes I'm jealous, that deep barbour green type) northumberland jackets, but they probably offer a number of technical advantages to the waxed numbers.

DDM

DDM

[palmer]

Dear Mr. MacDonald:

Thank you very much for your message; it contains the magic word: "lining." I'll be contacting Barbour about this shortly.

Best regards,