Vintage Workwear Values: Carhartt, Filson, Stifel and More

Last reviewed 2026-10-04 by the AntiqueCostume editorial team · Sources · How we research

Vintage workwear is worth real money when it is old enough: pre-1960s labels, union tags and early fabrics carry the premium, while 1980s and later workwear mostly sells as wearable used clothing. In 2026 sold data, vintage Carhartt Detroit jackets had a median of about $190 on eBay, blanket-lined chore coats roughly $85 to $380 depending on era, a used Filson Mackinaw Cruiser $275 to $450, and early pieces in Stifel fabric $400 to $1,500. Age and label beat condition in this category: faded, paint-flecked and repaired pieces still sell well if they are early.

Quick answer

Carhartt: vintage Detroit jacket median $190 (middle half $135 to $295); vintage chore coat median $85, with older blanket-lined examples $200 to $380; deadstock Detroit jackets $500 to $700+.
Filson: used Mackinaw Cruiser $275 to $450; 1930s to 1940s tin cloth about $650.
Pre-1960 specialist makers (Stifel cloth, Sweet-Orr, Can't Bust 'Em, Big Mac) sell from about $150 to $1,500, with single pieces higher.
Later volume brands (Key, Walls, Pointer Brand) are mostly $20 to $150.
Check the logo and label era first; it decides more than wear does.

Why age beats condition in workwear

Workwear was made to be worn out, so early examples in good shape are rare and collectors accept honest wear. One 2026 dealer survey of sold pieces found that "most of the prices ... were made by pieces in worn or fair condition": a fair-condition pair of 1930s logger pants brought $480, and a 1930s Sweet-Orr chore jacket honestly described as fair sold for $840. Fading, paint spatter and period repairs are part of the look. What damages value is washing, modern repairs and cut-out labels.

That means the first question is always era, read from the label and hardware:

Carhartt: the railcar-and-heart logo ran until the early 1960s and marks the collectible era.
Filson: address-style and "FIL-CLO" labels mark the early decades.
Union labels and "Made in USA": place a piece before production moved offshore. See our union label guide and RN and WPL number guide for dating.
"Sanforized" tags and contract or stencil markings help date pre-1960s pieces.

Carhartt values

Two 2026 sources agree on the shape of the Carhartt market. Underpriced analysed 573 eBay sales of used Carhartt from July 6 to October 3, 2026; California Vintage Buyers gave dealer ranges for older pieces.

Piece	Median (middle half), eBay Jul to Oct 2026	Dealer range, 2026
Vintage Detroit jacket (blanket lined)	$190 ($135 to $295), 125 sales	Deadstock $500 to $700+
Vintage chore coat	$85 ($50 to $120), 131 sales	Blanket-lined vintage $200 to $380
Active jacket	$90 ($70 to $125), 45 sales	n/a
Double knee pants	$60 ($40 to $80), 117 sales	n/a
Bib overalls	$45 ($33 to $55), 79 sales	Heart-logo 1940s to 1950s deadstock: dealer ask around $799
Modern Carhartt, worn	about $25 typical	"Work-clothing money"

Sold prices on eBay: vintage carhartt detroit jacket blanket lined · stifel wabash vintage workwear

The gap between the $85 chore coat median and the $200 to $380 dealer range is age: the eBay median mixes 1980s and 1990s coats with older ones. A warning from the dealer side: the $500 to $700 deadstock figure belongs to Detroit Jackets, not chore coats, and the two are often confused online. The Detroit jacket dates back to 1954. Check comps with check sold prices for vintage carhartt detroit jacket blanket lined on eBay.

Filson values

Piece	Typical 2026 range
Mackinaw Cruiser, used	$275 to $450
Double Mackinaw coat	top comps around $385
Tin Cloth cruiser, broken in	top comps around $265
1930s to 1940s tin cloth	around $650
US Forest Service marked pieces	premium over the above

California Vintage Buyers notes the general eBay asking level for Filson averages around $360, which is an asking price, not a sale price. Cluzy's 2026 comps put most used Filson between $120 and $400.

The early makers collectors chase

Below Carhartt and Filson sits a deep market for pre-1960 workwear labels. These are 2026 sold figures reported by California Vintage Buyers.

Maker or mark	2026 sold range	What drives it
Stifel (fabric mill, closed 1957)	$400 to $1,500; exceptional pieces higher	Boot-shaped logo stamped in the cloth; wabash, polka-dot and shadow-stripe prints. 1920s shadow-stripe overalls sold for $1,500, wabash railroad pants $748
Sweet-Orr	$200 to $850	Pre-war union labels, tug-of-war logo; a fair 1930s chore jacket brought $840
Can't Bust 'Em	about $120 worn; one 1950s selvedge jacket $2,400	San Francisco maker, rooster logo
Boss of the Road	$200 to $525 (Lee era); pre-war reported in four figures	Deadstock, early history
Osh Kosh (adult, pre-1960)	bibs $60 to $150; a 1950s engineer jacket $1,100	Adult sizes, union label
Big Mac (JCPenney)	$150 to $400 chores and overalls; a rare shirt $675	1950s to 1960s sanforized denim, salt-and-pepper cloth
Hercules (Sears)	$75 to $500, volatile	1930s outerwear and horsehide leather
Lee Union-Alls	$50 to $200 for 1940s on; several hundred to a few thousand for 1910s to 1920s	Early H.D. Lee Mercantile labels
Key	$20 to $100	Later production only
Walls	tops out around $100	1970s to 1990s insulated wear
Pointer Brand	$75 to $150	Still in production, which caps vintage value

The single-sale figures (the $2,400 Can't Bust 'Em jacket, the $1,100 Osh Kosh engineer jacket) are outliers. Use the ranges, not the best sale, to set expectations. Search comps with check sold prices for stifel wabash vintage workwear on eBay.

Heritage outdoor and wool brands

Later heritage brands sell steadily but rarely reach collector prices. Cluzy's 2026 comps from eBay and Depop:

Brand	Typical resale	Strong examples
Pendleton	$45 to $180	Board shirts around $125; 1950s to 1960s loop-collar wool shirts around $140; lodge coats around $175
Woolrich	$40 to $180	Arctic Parka with ruff around $175; 1990s buffalo plaid coat around $150
Red Wing boots	$110 to $320	Iron Ranger around $275; Beckman around $245
Harley-Davidson apparel	$35 to $250	1980s single-stitch and 3D Emblem tees; Holoubek graphic tees around $125

WWII Navy denim and chambray

Military work clothing overlaps with workwear collecting. California Vintage Buyers' September 2026 read of dealer asks:

Garment	Typical range
WWII shawl-collar denim jacket	about $225 to $550 at dealers (eBay asks of $950 to $3,000 seen but not supported by sales)
WWII dungaree trousers	about $200 to $1,000 asked; 1950s pairs nearer $200
1942-pattern chambray shirt	about $40 to $200; top end needs a contract stamp and clean stencil

These are asking prices, so expect sales somewhat below. For flight jackets and other military outerwear, see vintage coat and fur values.

How condition is priced here

Workwear grading is forgiving, but not unlimited. Cluzy applies typical resale multipliers of about 1.0 to 1.2x the baseline for excellent, 0.75 to 0.95x for very good, 0.5 to 0.7x for good and 0.25 to 0.4x for fair, with deadstock at 1.3 to 1.8x. For early workwear the fair-condition penalty is smaller in practice, as the $840 fair Sweet-Orr jacket shows. Things that cost real money:

Torn seams, broken zippers and missing snaps (noted by Underpriced for Detroit jackets).
A shredded or missing blanket lining on chore coats and Storm Rider style jackets.
Washing before sale, which dealers list alongside modern repairs as a value killer. Leave pieces as found.
Removed or cut-out labels, which erase the evidence of age.

Read our condition grading guide for the full scale, and repair or leave it before mending anything.

Not sure what you have? Appraise a photo

Selling vintage workwear

Early pieces sell best to specialist workwear and denim buyers, at eBay auction with clear photos of the label, logo, buttons and any fabric stamp, or through dealers who will read the piece in hand. Common 1980s and later items move fastest on eBay, Depop and Etsy at the medians above. See where to sell vintage and pricing your vintage.

All prices are estimates as of 2026, drawn from the sold data and dealer reads cited below. Asking prices are flagged where they are not sales.