Satchel and Page Leather Jacket Review: 3 Years In a Calfskin Bomber

Nobody has nicer bag leather than Satchel & Page (S&P), who managed to find a tiny Tuscan tannery that makes the most perfect leather I’ve seen for the kind of tough-but-beautiful bags that looks better as they age.

But that kind of leather doesn’t work on jackets.

Naturally, a jacket needs leather that’s thinner, softer, and stretchier than what you’d use to make an heirloom quality briefcase, so I was keen to see what S&P came up with when they decided to take advantage of all that leather-related website traffic to come out with leather jackets.

The “Bomber” leather jacket is their very first attempt in the world of jacketry, a word that I insist does exist, thank you, Spellcheck Feature. S&P sells a few different jackets now, but when I picked up my Bomber it was their only offering — meaning, yes, this jacket is several years old. And I’ve got pictures all over this review to prove it!

Since grabbing my Bomber I’ve published scores of leather jacket reviews on this site and visited multiple leather jacket factories, and I think I’m in a good spot to assess this well worn piece.

Pros & Cons

In a hurry? Do you realize how insulting that is to my craft? You think writing like this just falls out of the sky? You think being so self serious is making you want to just leave this review right now? In that case, here’s my breakdown:

What I Like

• Design is a great balance of throwback and minimalist
• Longer, more modern fit than vintage flight jackets, which are super short and boxy
• Combination tanned calfskin is good balance of the benefits of lambskin and cowhide
• Leather has rich tones that have aged gracefully over years of wear
• I loved the ability to add or remove the shearling collar, depending on the weather
• Cotton lining; no synthetics

Downsides, but not dealbreakers

• Calfskin is comfier and smoother, but not as thick and hardy as cowhide
• Enthusiasts won’t love the ahistoric design or leather choice
• Designed only to fit average or athletic builds; not ideal for heavyset guys
• Fans of S&P’s veg tan leather may dislike the use of combination tanned leather or using calfskin at all
• Leather dye fades a bit at stress points; I love it, but you might want your jacket to stay young
• Brushed cotton lining is luxurious, but some won’t like how it catches your sleeves

Design

• Similar to vintage G-1 or A-2 jackets associated with the U.S. Air Force
• Modernized fit: longer body, higher arm holes, less boxy
• Elastic cuffs at waist and wrists to better preserve warmth
• Front flap pockets have convenient snap closures and hidden handwarmers
• Interior snap closure pocket for valuables
• Removable shearling collar, darker than the bright white found on many vintage pieces, giving it a more subdued, modern edge
• Cotton lining; no synthetics

Satchel & Page’s Bomber jacket is clearly modeled after old-fashioned leather flight jackets like the G-1: elastic cuffs at the wrists and waist, flap closure front pockets, and a big furry collar.

I, too, have seen these jackets and felt the call to get one for myself, but here’s the problem: G-1 jackets that are reproductions of those worn in the War (or jackets designed to be a lot like those) fit short, boxy, and very roomy.

The way the old G-1s fit makes sense given they were worn by guys with high pants who were sitting in little cockpits and needed to be able to swing their bodies around as they were gunning their enemies, but look: I don’t think vintage G-1s look great unless you’re a really dedicated vintage menswear dude with plenty of your own armpit-high pants you can pair with yours.

Anyway, my point is that S&P’s Bomber is taller and slimmer, and looks way better on 21st century gentlemen such as yourself. I’d just note that it’s also true that the 2020s has seen something of a resurgence in high waisted pants and boxy vintage fits, and if genuine vintage is an aesthetic you like, you will not like the way this jacket fits.

Other neat design notes are that that the front pockets snap closed instead of buttoning (way more convenient in the cold) the lining is 100 percent cotton (yes, it catches your sleeves when you put your arms in, but I still prefer cotton over synthetics)

Finally, the main event: a shearling wool collar. Shearling includes the sheep’s skin with the wool, so it’s even warmer (if a little grosser — I mean, more like leather) than wool. The collar’s zipper attachment is simple and secure, and it doesn’t look like it’s missing anything when you’re going sheep-free.

I love that the wool is brown and not the natural, creamy color of most wool collars — it makes the jacket look way more modern and subtle. It also makes you feel awesome and look like you’ve got about 10 more pounds of upper back muscle than you do, plus the collar’s detachability makes this jacket wearable in a much wider range of temperatures than most leather jackets.

Satchel & Page’s Jacket Leather Is Calfskin

• French calfskin is smoother and softer than most burlier cowhide / steerhide jackets
• Combination tanned; both veg tanned and chrome tanned
• Longlasting, has aged well

This is full grain leather, meaning the outer layer of the animal’s skin wasn’t smoothed down — you can see the pattern of the animal’s skin. Full grain makes a jacket and tougher and cooler, but what’s cool about full grain calfskin is you can leave it full grain, but the grain is more subtle and less dramatic than the grain on a cowhide leather jacket.

So you get a jacket that’s both full grain and low key. That’s kinda rare, and so is calfskin on a leather jacket at all.

A lot of great boots and bags use vegetable tanned leather, a much more ancient way of making it than chrome tanning, which accounts for over 90% produced.

But while veg tan leather is rare anywhere, it’s even more rare on jackets, which need to be more comfy and pliable than a bag. Here, much like S&P’s leather combines (some) benefits of cowhide and lambskin, it combines (some) benefits of chrome tanning and vegetable tanning: it’s combination tanned!

I don’t want to get sidetracked here, but you know the calf meat industry (think veal) that results in leftover hides that get turned into calfskin leather — like this jacket? I like it a lot less than the industrial slaughter that gives me my cowhide and goatskin. Like we all know people who won’t eat veal, and I know a few guys who own every famous leather but won’t buy calfskin.

I still wear the jacket though. I’m not like enraged by it being calfskin, I’d just rather it wasn’t. You probably feel differently, or at least you don’t care so much that you’d refuse to wear such a great jacket. That’s the camp I’m in!

Also, the brown color is a natural dye, and over the years it has faded a little at some stress points. You can see an example of it in the photo of my arm seams above; it’s not crazy dramatic, but I would understand if you would rather your expensive jacket aged slowly.

But personally, I love it. Basically my whole website is about my patina obsession. Who doesn’t love faded jeans?

Calfskin Leather Jackets vs Cow vs Lamb?

You absolutely need to watch the full video from that clip above in this article about how different animal leathers work on jackets. I filmed it at a leather jacket factory in New Jersey and learned a ton.

And while that company makes jackets from horse, cow, steer, goat, and lamb, they don’t use calfskin. I was surprised to hear this, especially given I’d already had many happy years with this very Satchel & Page bomber jacket.

But they said It’s not as tough as the other leathers — well, they acknowledged it’s tougher than lamb, but lamb is softer and cheaper and warmer. So I e-mailed S&P to ask why they went with calf, and they answered:

Lambskin feels too rubbery, and it tears more easily than calfskin. Calf is more expensive, lighter, softer, and compared to cowhide it’s smoother and more comfortable. Calf is a perfect ‘in between’ for cowhide and lamsbkin.

Sweet, I get it!

Fit

• Size up
• Longer torso and higher armholes than traditional flight jackets
• Best suited to average/athletic builds
• It’s not a slim jacket, but the fit and length won’t look great on larger bellies (they say so themselves on the product page!)
• Guys who wear high rise pants might not love the taller fit; the waists will be incongruous

I sized up for this jacket: most of my jackets are Large, this one’s one of my very few XLs.

I’m 6 feet tall, about 190 pounds, fairly athletic, and have a really long torso. That torso is one reason why I love this modernized, longer fit.

Unlike many reproduction flight jackets, which tend to be short and boxy to accommodate pilots in cockpits, S&P’s Bomber is cut with a longer torso and higher armholes. That gives it a more contemporary silhouette while still honoring the vintage inspiration. (Many of S&P’s designs are modeled after / inspired by leather goods from the early 20th century.)

The downside is the jacket won’t feel right for you if you have a large belly or if you like vintage leather jackets because you like vintage, high rise pants. The long, not-loose fit of this jacket won’t do you any favors in either instance.

Overall, it’s a jacket that feels rooted in the original design but refined for modern use, and thoughtful updates that make it more easily wearable today than a reproduction — or perhaps I should clarify that this jacket’s fit will fit into more modern wardrobes than the really authentic-and-boxy flight jackets of yore.

Satchel & Page’s Bomber Jacket Price: Is This Leather Jacket Worth It?

• $750
• Good value, despite not made in USA

You need to keep in mind a few things when looking at the price:

1. great leather jackets are pretty much always over $700 (don’t @ me)
2. the leather is French
3. calfskin is more expensive than lambskin (is it more expensive per-square-foot than cowhide?)
4. shearling is more expensive than wool
5. the cotton lining is more expensive than synthetics

There are other signs that this jacket is worth some bread: see how there’s no seam running along the chest? When you see that, it means they’ve sewn two pieces of leather together to cover the torso. It saves money and is super common in cheaper jackets.

This jacket is made in Turkey, which might rankle you if you’re looking at over $700 for a jacket. But being under $800 is a really good price, even for made in Turkey. This jacket is really nice.

Final Thoughts

Satchel & Page’s Bomber jacket delivers on what makes the brand special: respect for history, commitment to quality leather, and a willingness to refine old designs for modern life. The calfskin feels luxurious yet sturdy, the patina develops at just the right speed and manner, and the design is more subtle and modern than true reproduction flight jackets.