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Are prices for Vintage Leather jackets getting a bit insane?

Iron Horse

Vendor
Messages
55
Looks great next to that knucklehead. Get too far away from the bike tho... bring in the gimp.

Yeah, hard to pull off casually, unless it's open:

15ug7str1.jpg
 

tmitchell59

I'll Lock Up
Messages
7,478
Location
Illinois
Thanks for the links to the Freewheelers and the Mccoys. I think I've seen the McCoy.

It probably would not/is not a high demand item, but looks like they are going to be expensive.

I think the Beautiful reproductions are the answer to the why people pay money for the Originals. These well respected leather companies could make copies of any Vintage MC jacket and they seem to choose Buco. These folks have had their hands on about everything cool that has been made in leather. As you can see here, they know what they are doing.

I don't think the interest/desire for Buco products is a money driven fad picked out of thin air. The owners are much like other collectors. They own multiple pieces, like and A-2 or G-1 are collected. They have more interest in owning the jackets than bragging rights, especially when there is no one to brag to.

We are into leather Jackets I would think we would be happy to see such a high money sale.
 

technovox

One Too Many
Messages
1,236
Location
San Francisco
I don't know. I do know however that my friend was very satisfied with his two new Cal's. He discovered Cal by chance and began collecting their CHP's (but really anything that got listed) and piled up close to 30 jackets. Or more? In the mean time, he purchased two new jackets, CHP and their padded kaff racer, fully custom made and all. They turned out perfect from what I've seen and he said the quality (leather weight, stitching, etc.) remained the same.

However, the company seem to have some problems with communication. Another TFL member, Pawnieguy, tried to buy one but the company was slow to respond and after missing the deadline a few times, PG gave up on the order. I've contacted them about the jacket ID and they were relatively quick to respond and helped me out a great deal.

Cal was always in a different league than Buco and most other makers. Their jackets were almost $90 in the 50's if I remember well, which was nearly twice as much as the J-24. Nowadays, vtg Cal goes for $400-$500 tops...

Yep. Just looking at my vintage Cal Leather CHP jacket side by side next to the vintage Buco J24, and the Cal Leather just blows it away as far as quality and durability. And consider that back then, all vintage Cal Leather jackets were custom made... compared to the mass produced Bucos. So I'm still mystified why a vintage Cal Leather horsehide jacket sells for a fraction of a vintage Buco. Maybe that will change if and when the Japanese start collecting the Cal Leathers...
 

rocketeer

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,605
Location
England
Let's give this a bit of exposure. I'm REALLY curious what it'll go for. That's the only one I've ever seen in the wild.

s-l1600.jpg

This looks more like a highway patrol police jacket from years back rather than a general biker jacket, pre war? Just need some jodhpurs, high boots and a soft rider cap. Oh yes, don't forget the knucklehead or Chief
 

kirkaero

New in Town
Messages
38
Location
New Jersey
Yep. Just looking at my vintage Cal Leather CHP jacket side by side next to the vintage Buco J24, and the Cal Leather just blows it away as far as quality and durability. And consider that back then, all vintage Cal Leather jackets were custom made... compared to the mass produced Bucos. So I'm still mystified why a vintage Cal Leather horsehide jacket sells for a fraction of a vintage Buco. Maybe that will change if and when the Japanese start collecting the Cal Leathers...

I think people tend to confuse the quality of a repo by RMJ and the quality of the real original item. In some cases we have incredibly well made repoductions of jackets that were well designed but not that we'll made. Of course we also have poor repoductions of great originals. Finally, the Japanese do set the trends. They wanted our old denim and jackets, and the machines to make them years before most of us did.
 

Blackadder

My Mail is Forwarded Here
Messages
3,821
Location
China
The Freewheelers Centinela is not a repro of Buco J-31 but of an older Superior Leathertogs model that dates back to the 30s. According to Mr Himel, the Leathertogs disppeared in WW2. I think the name Buco came in the 40s but they started making jackets in the 50s but I am not sure.
 
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Butch_Coolidge

Familiar Face
Messages
85
If you had that kind of money, why wouldn't you go to a high end store where the selection would be there? It's ridiculous, but you could find one that was perfect and strike a deal. Or you could have one custom made that didn't smell like New Jersey.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

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