Leather Jacket Thread

[Grand Potentate]

All the English get run out of this forum. That's the way it goes.

This is why you got run out of this forum you sanctimonious cunt.

 

[Dropbear]

I absolutely love this simple, no frills custom cross-zip (Buco J24 pattern from the early 1950s) from Aero. Just the D pocket for some visual interest. It’s in Vicenza blackened brown - you can already see the brown undertones coming through the black topcoat and you can tell how it is going to continue to fade beautifully.

 

[Dropbear]

Aero are fucking awesome. There are other companies that offer more exclusive hides and some that have, arguably, better patterns or offer more pattern customization options. But Aero are the gold standard for good reason - QC being a big part of that.

I ordered a custom jacket last month when they were running the sale. They used the last of the Vicenza hide on my jacket and, once completed, decided that it did not meet their standards (grain and thickness mismatching in panels). It would have been very easy to ship the completed jacket out, but they decided to do a remake.

The completed jacket will be sold at a reduced price on the website with a blue label and noting the reasons it didn’t pass QC. I may still buy it, since the maker said she nailed my requested specs exactly.

Meanwhile, I now have the option to change my order - which is tempting.

Anyway, kudos to Aero!

 

[Dropbear]

A little vintage inspiration from 1939/1940. I like that suede jacket in the middle.

 

[Great White Snark]

Interesting left is biker style but very early - didn’t know that style existed that early.
Centre and right both have that ugly cell phone pocket. Prescient eh?

 

[Dropbear]

Interesting left is biker style but very early - didn’t know that style existed that early.
Centre and right both have that ugly cell phone pocket. Prescient eh?

Jacket nerds will call the one on the left an aviator, a 1930s design that morphed into the various versions of the cross-zip motorcycle in the early 1950s. Differences are more apparent in the back, but on the front they didn’t have lapel snaps any belt (half belt and side-adjusters would be visible from the back).

Maybe these guys have a DeLorean to match their cell phone jackets!

 

[fxh]

Except for the hat everything the dude in centre is wearing looks good. Trousers, shirt, jacket.From experience suede jackets don’t work.

 

[Dropbear]

Except for the hat everything the dude in centre is wearing looks good. Trousers, shirt, jacket.From experience suede jackets don’t work.

I agree that hats were fine for the era, but look contrived these days:

Suede gets a bad wrap due to the usual skivved down soft stuff with high nap. There’s also some super thick goat suede like this Aero:

as well as rough-out hides that are as durable as any smooth-out leather like this Schott:

Yes they show age, but so does all leather.

 

[kneeshuh]

I like the Aero suede, but I think that suede probably works best in A-1/Valstarino-type jackets, something a bit smarter, where durability is not the main point.

 

[Dropbear]

Suede works well in a ‘trucker’ style:





A lot of people like suede in the 1950s campus jacket style (including Crompers), but that doesn’t do much for me.

Aero’s goat suede is indeed beautiful. Here it is used on the Rockafella pattern for that true 30s/70s vibe:



And of course the Majestic:



Johnson in San Francisco has a rust colored suede that looks similar, if a little thinner:

 

[Dropbear]

I stumbled on this pic of someone wearing a Rainbow Country (high-end Japanese brand) car coat and I’d say it’s the nicest of the style I’ve ever seen:

 

[fxh]

I stumbled on this pic of someone wearing a Rainbow Country (high-end Japanese brand) car coat and I’d say it’s the nicest of the style I’ve ever seen:

View attachment 45340View attachment 45341

Not what I call a car coat but maybe the worlds changed.

 

[fxh]

Suede jackets I’ve had a few. Feel too heavy, but maybe expensive ones don’t. And stain far too easily for a jacket. Have to be babied. But too casual to baby.

 

[Dropbear]

Leather is wonderful the way it ages and moulds to the owner’s body. I can’t think of any textile that does all that. It’s also a lot of fun working with the craftsperson to get a custom creation with the features you want and tailored to fit your body. I can’t think of anything else that matches the bespoke suit experience so closely.

That said, I don’t want to be a collector- I capped myself at a max of four - preferably 2 brown and 2 black. There are far too many guys out there buying beautiful jackets that will break-in wonderfully and then buying more so that they never actually see how they age with wear. Or constantly buying and selling, seeking the ‘grail’ jacket.

Anyway I have an order in with Aero now, so maybe next year I’ll place an order for number four and call it quits. Knowing this will be the last, adds to the fun though. I would like something (half-belt or trucker) in a thick rough out goat or maybe a J100 ‘cafe race’ in a rich Badalassi cow hide. I’m also intrigued by the designs of Thedi in Greece whose patterns are supposed to be spectacular for range of movement and fit, but none of the designs really leap out at me. I like the look of the old aviators with detachable mouton collars, but I already have one cross-zip. First world problems or maybe luxuries, indeed!

 

[Dropbear]

This is pretty cool ….

Here’s a 1930s aviator jacket made by Ralphs Pugh for JC Penny:

A US collector came across this one in really good condition:

And had graciously agreed to loan it to a maker to do a reproduction in full Deco glory. What’s interesting is that I think he will send it to Pakistani maker Five Star, who have built a reputation for making decent reproductions of flying and bonnet jackets. Their home-grown patterns all have problems but they seem pretty good at copying and creating new sizes from one original. Most of the hides they have access to are a bit underwhelming but they do get some nice locally-sourced goat.

I can see this becoming a really nice and very reasonably priced (sub-$400) semi-custom jacket option next year.

 

[Grand Potentate]

This is pretty cool ….

A US collector came across this one in really good condition:

 

[Dropbear]

Not a fan of aviators, then? Too plain?

 

[Dropbear]

 

[Dropbear]

Cutting is done and about to go into production.

 

[fxh]

$3,500 aud for an over shirt.

 

[Dropbear]

One-off repro custom repro of a 1930s aviator. The workmanship on this is out of this world:

 

[Dropbear]

So much to unpack here. Not sure if it’s Morrissey or Aero getting Rick rolled:

 

[Dropbear]

New Aero. It’s a blackened brown Vicenza horse hide, so the brown will start to show through as it ages.

 

[belinmad]

It looks awesome and also how many of these do you have?

 

[Dropbear]

It looks awesome and also how many of these do you have?

Only three. I’ve sold a few that were ‘learning experiences’, as I honed in on exactly what I was looking for.

 

[Grand Potentate]

Only three. I’ve sold a few that were ‘learning experiences’, as I honed in on exactly what I was looking for.

Where have you found success selling custom jackets?

 

[Dropbear]

Far too pricey for OTR in my book, but I still like to admire these beautiful Rainbow Country car coats from Japan:

 

[Grand Potentate]

Far too pricey for OTR in my book, but I still like to admire these beautiful Rainbow Country car costs from Japan:

How much?

 

[Dropbear]

How much?

Somewhere around $2k and a whole lot of hassle ordering from Japan.

 

[Grand Potentate]

Somewhere around $2k and a whole lot of hassle ordering from Japan.

Get the fuck out of here

 

[Thruth]

Get the fuck out of here

nope.

 

[Dropbear]

Thoughts on the Matchless suede blouson? It looks like an overly delicate suede (not a tough goat) and a bit flimsy, but I love that collar and how it ages. But something about the vibe is off - too much like a mall jacket or too suburban dadcore?

 

[Great White Snark]

Too soggy and shapeless. A bit more structure and stiffness like a suede trucker or cafe racer style would have worked wonders here. As is it looks like suede pajamas.

 

[Dropbear]

I’ve been getting a lot of wear out of my suede pajamas

 

[Dropbear]

Not my style, but I like this high-quality take on the old varsity jacket. Badalassi hide ages beautifully, so I can imagine this will only continue to improve over a lifetime. Greg is currently selling these for 600 pounds (regularly 800), which is about half what he charges for a full bespoke leather jacket.

 

[Dropbear]

Matchless, back from the dead?

 

[Thruth]

Matchless, back from the dead?

€1400?

 

[Dropbear]

€1400?

Oof! Before they closed down at the start of the year, there were stories of unfulfilled orders and credit card charge backs. This is starting to sound like an infamous and epic StyFo thread.

 

[Dropbear]

^
Also, it’s interesting that on IG they have disabled comments to their posts. I guess they're anticipating more "Where's my jacket?" etc than "Great to see you back."

 

[Thruth]

^
Also, it’s interesting that on IG they have disabled comments to their posts. I guess they're anticipating more "Where's my jacket?" etc than "Great to see you back."

…and they are selling off of IG and their website still lists closed