The Original Golf Jacket Looks Tough As Nails in Waxed Canvas

You could call the Harrington jacket one of the oldest pieces of athletic apparel.

Legend has it that British outerwear manufacturer Baracuta invented the Harrington jacket in the 1930s when it released the G9.

It was designed for golfing, with a cropped waist, a vented yoke, secure pockets and tight cuffs. The neck of the G9 has a double snap throat latch to fend off the brisk wind native to golf courses in the Northern UK.

Flint and Tinder

Flint and Tinder created a toughened-up version by swapping out the lightweight, wind-resistant fabric for a 10-ounce dry-waxed canvas procured from Halley Stevensons. The Scottish mill is one of the most respected producers of wax-imbued textiles.

The Waxed Harrington does for the original golf jacket what Flint and Tinder’s Waxed Trucker did for the Type III jacket. It takes one of the most beloved and versatile types of outerwear and levels up the durability.

Flint and Tinder

This design is similar to a 2019 collaboration between Baracuta and Barbour, which built the G9 out of Barbour’s sylkoil cloth. It even comes in the same two color options, navy blue and olive green.

Fortunately, Flint and Tinder’s version is almost half the price without a drop-off in quality.

A Harrington, kind of

The definition of what makes a Harrington jacket has gotten muddled over the years. In fact, the name didn’t come about until the 1960s, when a character on the American TV series Payton Place named Rodney Harrington became synonymous with the jacket.

Flint and Tinder

Baracuta’s G9 jacket is credited with establishing the form, but many significantly different examples are lumped into the category. Even Flint and Tinder’s Waxed Harrington is actually closer to Baracuta’s G4 design.

The G9, which is just as popular as ever, has a broad elastic waistband and elastic cuffs, which are critical adaptations for golfing. Meanwhile, the G4 and the Waxed Harrington have open waistbands and open cuffs, both adjustable with tabs.

Flint and Tinder

By the broad modern definition of a Harrington Jacket, all three examples fit the mold. At least the G4 and Waxed Harrington share the throat-latched collar, vented back yoke and flap-closure pockets with the G9.

Keep it in the clubhouse

Functionally, the Waxed Harrington is more in line with a Barbour Bedale than a contemporary golf jacket. You can still hit the links in a Baracuta G9, but a 10-ounce waxed canvas jacket would be quite the handicap.

Flint and Tinder

Flint and Tinder’s take on the Harrington is predictably more rugged and geared toward daily use. It is lined with a soft 100-percent cotton flannel, and the collar, cuffs and waistband are lined with 100-percent cotton fine-wale corduroy.

It offers all the versatility of the brand’s famous Waxed Trucker, but in a more refined package. The Harrington jacket became cool on the backs of James Dean and Steve McQueen, but it retains the respectability of early-twentieth-century English menswear, like a Mac jacket or tweed blazer.

Flint and Tinder

Flint and Tinder’s Waxed Harrington is the perfect counterpart to its fan-favorite Waxed Trucker, providing a suave British respectability instead of classic American cool.

Availability and pricing

The Flint and Tinder Waxed Harrington Jacket is available now from Huckberry for $248. It comes in navy blue and olive green.

Flint and Tinder

Flint and Tinder Waxed Harrington Jacket

• $248 at Huckberry

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