The duffle coat design also just works as a functional, easy-to-throw-on winter coat that does the job. That classic “toggle coat” style is definitely not going out of fashion anytime soon, unlike fast-fashion disposables predestined for the landfills of the Atacama desert. But I digress.

Fabric-wise, we opted for a rare little-known vintage classic material, a dark charcoal-colored double-layer (double cloth) HBT wool, 30 Oz., a period-correct reproduction of the shell fabric of the short-lived 1941 USN Submariner HBT wool jacket. Our friends at Buzz Rickson’s had made a replica of that unicorn a few years ago, and we were lucky to secure left-over yardage for our FW2024 coat project. Just like the 1940s originals, the material’s wide-weave herringbone pattern — hardly noticeable at first — will gradually appear with extensive wear.

The Mister Freedom® FAIRWATER Duffle Coat is designed in California, USA, and produced in collaboration with Sugar Cane Co in Japan.

SPECS

PATTERN: Inspired by an eclectic combo of vintage military and civvy duffle coats, blending WW2 British and US Navy winter coats with vintage Old World elegance and 1960s American Ivy style.
FABRIC:
Shell: 100% wool, double-layer (double cloth) textured HBT, 30 Oz., flecked dark charcoal grey color, milled in Japan.
Inside pocketing: 10 Oz. all-cotton indigo pincheck fabric, milled in Japan.
DETAILS:
* Hybrid design with classic hip-length cut.
* Unlined, simple period construction.
* Twisted cotton rope fastening, wooden toggles, triple bartacks.
* Single layer shawl collar, tapped hem with attached chin-strap.
* Two patched hip pockets.
* Two concealed chest pockets.
* Black cotton twill reinforcement tapes on inside.
* Buttoned wrist adjustment tabs, corozo wood buttons.
* “MFSC Naval clothing Tailor” woven rayon neck label.
* “Experimental Garment” cheesecloth printed label.
* Made in Japan.

SIZING/FIT

The Mister Freedom® FAIRWATER Duffle Coat comes ready-to-wear, no shrinking protocol needed.
At 5’7 ~145 lbs and 40 chest, I opted for a Small, my current size in most MF® jackets and coats, with room for a thick Mariner type sweater.

CARE

Dry-clean only, in your local eco-friendly cleaner.

STORY

“Formality did not flourish aboard submarines where performance counted more than appearance.”
David A. Jones “US Silent Service, Dolphins & Combat Insignia 1924-1945.”

The all-original pattern of the Mister Freedom® FAIRWATER Duffle Coat is another might-have-been hybrid, inspired by a combo of traditional vintage British duffle coats, 1940s Royal Navy-issued fearnaught duffle coats, and rare 1941 USN Submariner HBT wool jackets.

For this “Experimental Garment” our “Clothing & Textile Research Unit” took a vintage 1950s “Made in England” civvy duffle coat as a starting base, and blended it with a 1943 British Royal Navy duffle coat with its shorter hip length and rounded shawl collar pattern. The single layer collar can be turned up and secured by the large chinstrap — of civvy heritage — that can be left dangling or buttoned in the back of the collar.

The two patched hip pockets are complemented with two concealed chest pockets.

The rather simple construction and streamlined design are typical of vintage 1940s military duffle coats. We just cleaned up the seaming a bit, as period pieces often display some manufacturing “funkiness”, depending on the contractor’s QC.

The specific toggle-and-rope fastening system was lifted from the 1943 British duffle, with its characteristic one-sided twisted rope style.
The reinforcement twill tapes on the inside — securing the toggle-and-rope — are also typical of the period.

Semantically, our FAIRWATER Coat is not a “duffle” coat per se, as the term allegedly refers to the actual coarse wool fabric initially milled in the city of Duffel, Belgium. It is more of the “toggle type”, and definitely in a league of its own considering our jambalaya-style design process.
The Fairwater — aka “Conning Tower”, or “Sail” — of a submarine is the command room (or “brain center”), the small “tower” structure on top of the boat, mostly known to old war movie cinephiles as the place the periscope comes out of (“Up scope!!”), with the classic Hollywood scene of a tense radarman monitoring the green oscillating ping of enemy presence on a black screen, “watching the sound”!

Style-wise, the Mister Freedom® FAIRWATER is pretty versatile, depending on what one chooses to pair it with. It can carry its rugged military WW2 nautical heritage when styled with utilitarian pieces, add an elegant Old World touch to a rugged denim outfit, go 1960s British swinging Mod, vintage American Ivy, laid-back Beatnik style, preppy bon-chic-bon-genre etc…

Fairwater Duffle Coat