Vintage Schott-Beck Motorcycle Jackets

[Marc mndt]

I wonder what people thought of having to pay 30% more than Buco for one and having vinyl parts.

Today we think of pleather as cheaping out. Back then it was sold as the hard wearing alternative to leather.

 

[unhatted]

Today we think of pleather as cheaping out. Back then it was sold as the hard wearing alternative to leather.

Ah that figures. It does appear to be heavy wear areas rather than hidden ones—I was confused as to why they used leather on e.g. the underside of the epaulettes but vinyl on the inner pocket. And in fairness to the marketing the vinyl parts of mine do look factory fresh, though I’ve seen those parts cracking elsewhere.

Funny how things change, I’ve read accounts of people gleefully chucking their old tube amplifiers away when solid state was invented…

It’s funny because even the old horsehide Perfectos had vinyl on the inside hem.

I’m fairly sure my inner hem is leather. Does this mean the hem vinyl was replaced by leather before the other bits? And given the above, I wonder if people grumbled about cost-cutting(!)

 

[Marc mndt]

And in fairness to the marketing the vinyl parts of mine do look factory fresh, though I’ve seen those parts cracking elsewhere.

Here's another Schott with pleather parts. The inside hem looks to be in good condition, one of the sleeve gussets not so much.

 

[jeo]

Today we think of pleather as cheaping out. Back then it was sold as the hard wearing alternative to leather.

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Hilarious they say it won’t crack!

I wonder what ads from the 50’s looked like and what the cost was.

When nylon came out in the very early 50’s it was also heavily marketed across the board by all brands as a hard wearing alternative.

I can’t imagine anyone in the 50’s thinking that anything is a good alternative to horsehide.

Here’s a page from the 1967 Schott catalog (Edit: maybe end of ribbon label era or beginning of cactus label era)

The “Bolta-Flex” bottom facing is mentioned as a selling feature for added strength.

 

[Marc mndt]

Schott wasn't the only manufacturer using pleather parts...

Buco j24L

All leather except for one sleeve gusset.

'50s Sierra. The right side lapel and epaulet are made out of pleather. Note the back side of the epaulet which is smooth instead of fuzzy. Meanwhile the part that needs to be hard wearing, the inside hem, is made out of leather. Totally random.

 

[Marc mndt]

Schott wasn't the only manufacturer using pleather parts...

After a long discussion with @jeo and closer inspection in daylight I have come to the conclusion that it was false alarm on the Sierra having pleather parts. On closeup you can clearly see the natural fibers. It probably feels and looks like plastic because it's heavily corrected leather with a very thick and hard topcoat.

I'm still undecided on the Buco's gusset though. It has a spot where the topcoat is peeling off and on closeup you can see weird orange fibers sticking trough. Someting I don't see anywhere else on the jacket. Those fibers might be from the canvas that was used as a base for the pleather?

 

[jeo]

After a long discussion with @jeo and closer inspection in daylight I have come to the conclusion that it was false alarm on the Sierra having pleather parts. On closeup you can clearly see the natural fibers. It probably feels and looks like plastic because it's heavily corrected leather with a very thick and hard topcoat.

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I'm still undecided on the Buco's gusset though. It has a spot where the topcoat is peeling off and on closeup you can see weird orange fibers sticking trough. Someting I don't see anywhere else on the jacket. Those fibers might be from the canvas that was used as a base for the pleather?

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I knew it!! I’m pretty sure the Buco is leather too.

 

[jeo]

Schott half belt with super rare Perfecto label from the 30’s

 

[AHP91]

 

[Monitor]

After a long discussion with @jeo and closer inspection in daylight I have come to the conclusion that it was false alarm on the Sierra having pleather parts. On closeup you can clearly see the natural fibers. It probably feels and looks like plastic because it's heavily corrected leather with a very thick and hard topcoat.

View attachment 599622

I'm still undecided on the Buco's gusset though. It has a spot where the topcoat is peeling off and on closeup you can see weird orange fibers sticking trough. Someting I don't see anywhere else on the jacket. Those fibers might be from the canvas that was used as a base for the pleather?

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You've no worries, that's all leather 100% on both jackets.