46R vs 46L

I am looking at a jacket on eBay that’s 46L I usually wear 46R. The measurements listed show it about a 1/2” longer in the back than a different 46R which I think I can live with. How much longer is a long typically in the body? Does a slightly longer jacket look odd?

Jaxenro said:

I am looking at a jacket on eBay that’s 46L I usually wear 46R. The measurements listed show it about a 1/2” longer in the back than a different 46R which I think I can live with. How much longer is a long typically in the body? Does a slightly longer jacket look odd?

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I think that the important thing is whether a jacket meets the curled finger test for length. If you're not familiar with that test, the idea is to stand with your arms dangling by your sides, then curl your fingers. The bottom of a properly fitting jacket will just nicely fit into your curled fingers.

Yes but that’s hard with an eBay but it’s more of a crapshoot

It kind of depends on the maker, the vintage, and the tailoring. If a 46L jacket fits me through the shoulders, I usually figure it will be an inch or two longer through the body than a 46R. That said, if you pick the years right, a 46L Levi's "trucker" jacket can be as much as 2 1/2" longer than a 46R. As you said, it can be a crap shoot.

As a 40L wearer, my experience is that "Ls" are 1-2 inches longer than "Rs" depending on brand / model / etc.

If the jacket you are considering is only 1/2" longer than what you normally wear, then you should be fine (that's the key thing I'd check: the Ebay jacket's length versus what you have in your closet) as there is more than 1/2" in variance from different Ls as noted.

As to the curl test mentioned above, just put on one of your jackets and see if when you hold your arms out fully extended at your side and then curl your fingers up slightly, does the bottom of the jacket just touch. If so, then the length is probably good. Another way to judge the proper length of a jacket is it should fully cover your butt but not extend down further.

I ended up buying it I guess I will see when I get it