What, however, is the case is that very old, often second quality LW jackets purchased on the cheap are what the bargain-seeking Buyer too frequently gets. And gets burned, thinking he's getting a genuine, first quality LW gem.
For instance, around fifteen years ago, before Ebay existed, we unloaded for around $110.00 each a batch of Discontinued, Trainee and Second Quality pieces dating from 1992-93 to several local militaria dealers. Our intention was to get a few bucks back on decent but outdated or not up-to-par LW jackets and allow the guy without the money to afford our genuine current stuff to get a decent jacket in his bracket.
These jackets continued to change hands over the years. When they get to Ebay, dishonest or ignorant sellers pass them off as current, first quality LOST WORLDS jackets. Which they are most certainly NOT. Our patterns have changed dramatically in the space of the almost twenty years since we first made these "Ebay bargains." The early 90s pieces are good, but flawed, being trainee and sample pieces, but good is a universe away from what our current jackets are. For us R&D is a religion! How have they changed? Detailing, workmanship, length, shaping, hide quality. They're frequently "rough cuts," not Ready-For-Full-Retail Players. NOR MEANT TO BE. Some of the "authorities," moreover, on these egregious web sites, blogs, chat groups pronounce about sizing, detailing, etc. on LOST WORLDS jackets from the perspective of these pieces. With full malicious intent, of course.
Over the years we have also both tuned and tweaked our hides dramatically but also created, for wholesale accounts, LW hides differing from our regular production in a variety of customer-specified ways: color, weight, finish, etc. If, therefore, a Seller misadvertises an LW jacket as current, etc., you may be getting leather or detailing not identical to current or even recent production. It should be good, make no mistake, but not necessarily what we prefer, recommend or currently make. Further, if you're not sure and go to one of these forums for advice, you will get mis- and disinformation often controlled, supervised and subsidized by commercial frauds, shills and, well, you get the picture. Everybody likes cheap, many will take risks for cheap, but please don't blame us if you get taken -- we didn't sell you the jacket. Ebay is a risk both for Sellers and Buyers, although dishonest Buyers are fully protected and Sellers not.
So if some Ebay Seller tells a tale of woe, that it's a new LW jacket but it doesn't fit his new girth or he needs the money and must sacrifice the jacket, it may be true, it may be untrue. Best thing: compare the A-2, G-1, A-1, Motorcycle Jacket, etc. on this website with the one being offered. There may be visible differences in collar and pocket flap shaping and sleeve diameter. (We know this can be tough for the novice.) The pre-1998 A-2s are also on average 1.5" shorter than current manufacture. Now many Sellers are honest and tell the truth. They should therefore be able to tell you when they bought the jacket. If you get the old story that it was a gift, my brother's, etc., it probably wasn't and isn't.
And for those who think that differences between jackets can only be slight -- after all, it's just a jacket -- cassoulet isn't the same thing as beans and franks although beans and franks are pretty good too!
COMPANY POLICY: LOST WORLDS aggressively protects its name and its loyal customers from those on eBay who attempt to take advantage of both. Accordingly, any use of the LOST WORLDS name or trademark on eBay without written authorization from us that infringes on our name, trademark, reputation and products in a dishonest and unlawful manner will be referred to eBay's VeRO division and the listing removed. The violator loses all insertion fees. We are frequently confronted with blatant theft of our images and descriptions by Pakistani mfgs. How surprising, right? What does one expect from a terrorist state FULLY complicit in the 9/11 attacks but unpunished. Our website is repeatedly ransacked by the unscrupulous, the uneducated, the unethical and the unwashed. Many apparently were never taught by parents, school or television (their genuine parent) that copyrighted materials and trademarks are not in the public domain. Our inferiors use our name, our reputation and our communication skills as their public library for selling and also manufacturing. Please inform us if you run across an unauthorized use of the LOST WORLDS name, trademark or website copy on eBay either as a Keyword in a description, the description itself or what appears to be a bogus or misrepresented LOST WORLDS item. We can't, unfortunately, keep track of everything -- on eBay it's like opening the kitchen light in the middle of the night and witnessing a Cecil B. DeMille crowd scene of cockroaches scuttling under the fridge.
NOTE: We frequently get emails asking
if LOST WORLDS itself sells on eBay. We have ceased doing so unless we
have a non-LOST WORLDS item. All Sale Items are found on this website through the
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