London leather bonanza

HoosierDaddy · Oct 20, 2018

Great write up Bigbenbs
Goes along with many of my opinions of certain brands, leathers, and fit...from a distance. Often I just can't understand the hefty price of some brands & leathers over others. I can comprehend the idea of straighter and more stitch per inch threads and how nice a certain leather drapes, etc. Yet for me those critiques are often minimal in my world since I am most always more concerned with fit, leather finish and eventual rustic character. My finickiness has more to do with strange grain, forever new looking finishes, etc. Looking at the last black work coat style in your group of photos, I bet the price is high..but I would in no way consider buying it because of the weird vertical looking grain. I call them stretch marks rather than grain. LW leather often exhibited those same quite horrible and unusual marks.

Recently looking at Thedi I found neat little nice additions and details such as leather trim around the zippered inside pocket, inside under arms. Also unusual styles different to what other companies seem to all make their renditions of. I even looked closely at the stitching on the fit jacket that I was sent. Looked exceptionally straight to me and holding the jacket together well..

Their hides and fit also make them very appealing without a $ 2000 price tag.

Well we all have our criteria and even strong opinions. I just cannot justify some of these exorbitant prices for very little difference than other brands much cheaper but very well made as well. Leather jackets that will hold up and break in nicely.
HD

Mich486 · Oct 20, 2018

HoosierDaddy said:
Looking at the last black work coat style in your group of photos, I bet the price is high..but I would in no way consider buying it because of the weird vertical looking grain. I call them stretch marks rather than grain. LW leather often exhibited those same quite horrible and unusual marks.
HD

I don’t think the stretch marks (due to the horse growing) are unusual at all. In fact, my brown cxl fqhh Aero has those. Isn’t it part of the uncorrected grain leather package? Doesn’t that make the jacket more “rustic” to put it your way?

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ProteinNerd · Oct 20, 2018

Nice write up and pics. While part of me wishes I were back in London so I could do the same type of store tour, the sane part of me is glad as all hell there isn't a stockist of any of these within a thousand miles!!

Bigbenbs · Oct 20, 2018

willyto said:
Ah! A shame you missed a visit to Clutch Cafe where they have some other brands like Buzz Rickson (Other special models), Pherrows, Addict, Belafonte,etc. Also the staff is just fantastic, Ben and the other guy who used to work for Son of a Stag are top notch. I can tell from the selfie at RMC that you met Max

https://clutch-cafe.com/collections/leather-jacket

It's nice to be able to try stuff on, changes the whole thing.

Next time.

HoosierDaddy · Oct 20, 2018

Mich486 said:
I don’t think the stretch marks (due to the horse growing) are unusual at all. In fact, my brown cxl fqhh Aero has those. Isn’t it part of the uncorrected grain leather package? Doesn’t that make the jacket more “rustic” to put it your way?

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Nope..doesn't make it more rustic to me. I've had quite a few Aero CXL jackets over the years but never had one with any of those type of marks. The only place I've noticed them is the abundance making up most of the hide on this photo jacket as mention in my previous post, and some LW jacket photos in the past. Rustic character to me is how the leather jacket breaks in. Never seen one break in and then develop those marks. Some may like them..but I prefer grainy rather than the stretch mark distortion.
HD

Mich486 · Oct 20, 2018

HoosierDaddy said:
Nope..doesn't make it more rustic to me. I've had quite a few Aero CXL jackets over the years but never had one with any of those type of marks. The only place I've noticed them is the abundance making up most of the hide on this photo jacket as mention in my previous post, and some LW jacket photos in the past. Rustic character to me is how the leather jacket breaks in. Never seen one break in and then develop those marks. Some may like them..but I prefer grainy rather than the stretch mark distortion.
HD

I don’t think they develop with wear but rather either they are in from the beginning or not. They are actual stretch marks on the horse skin (like you see on some people who gained muscle/weight very quickly) probably more common in certain areas of the body? Not an issue for me but of course this is personal.

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HoosierDaddy · Oct 20, 2018

Yep..I do know what they are. Yet I don't think they are present on most jackets. Seems like many companies must trim them off for the waste bin, while at least one expensive jacket company seems to prefer them as print for most all of the jacket. Just not my cup of tea Mich.
HD

Fonzie · Oct 21, 2018

ProteinNerd said:
Nice write up and pics. While part of me wishes I were back in London so I could do the same type of store tour, the sane part of me is glad as all hell there isn't a stockist of any of these within a thousand miles!!

Not that the lack of stores here in Oz has stopped you (or me) from falling head first into the rabbit hole though...

rocketeer · Oct 21, 2018

HoosierDaddy said:
Great write up Bigbenbs
Goes along with many of my opinions of certain brands, leathers, and fit...from a distance. Often I just can't understand the hefty price of some brands & leathers over others. I can comprehend the idea of straighter and more stitch per inch threads and how nice a certain leather drapes, etc. Yet for me those critiques are often minimal in my world since I am most always more concerned with fit, leather finish and eventual rustic character. My finickiness has more to do with strange grain, forever new looking finishes, etc. Looking at the last black work coat style in your group of photos, I bet the price is high..but I would in no way consider buying it because of the weird vertical looking grain. I call them stretch marks rather than grain. LW leather often exhibited those same quite horrible and unusual marks.

Recently looking at Thedi I found neat little nice additions and details such as leather trim around the zippered inside pocket, inside under arms. Also unusual styles different to what other companies seem to all make their renditions of. I even looked closely at the stitching on the fit jacket that I was sent. Looked exceptionally straight to me and holding the jacket together well.. Their hides and fit also make them very appealing without a $ 2000 price tag.

Well we all have our criteria and even strong opinions. I just cannot justify some of these exorbitant prices for very little difference than other brands much cheaper but very well made as well. Leather jackets that will hold up and break in nicely.
HD

Nice reviewBB and great to see so many brands reviewed.

I have to second most of what you say there Van.
Concerning Freewheelersere how they justify their prices, I would like to know who their customer base is? The well known (hate this word) celebrities of TV etc? I doubt you would get your general vintage clothing enthusiast paying that. And £2,999 for an A1

What about all that so called railroad clothing especially the tool bags which will probably hold nothing more than an iPad. Where as your vintage clothing enthusiasts may discuss each others purchases should they like them, I could not see todays pop stars and footballers discussing the merits of a canvas manbag.
If I were to buy that black work coat I would take it to the counter asking did they have another without those horrible vertical stretch marks. No doubt the salesman would say that is what made it so special....waffle waffle waffle. A great design but this one looks awful, put it on the sale rail and remind cutter to bin any panels with this finish.

ProteinNerd · Oct 21, 2018

Fonzie said:
Not that the lack of stores here in Oz has stopped you (or me) from falling head first into the rabbit hole though...

All I keep thinking is how much worse it could be!!!

FREEradical · Oct 21, 2018

HoosierDaddy said:
Yep..I do know what they are. Yet I don't think they are present on most jackets. Seems like many companies must trim them off for the waste bin, while at least one expensive jacket company seems to prefer them as print for most all of the jacket. Just not my cup of tea Mich.
HD

They don’t trim off the leather parts containing stretch marks, they simply buff the top grain of the hide to create an artificially smooth finish. These are corrected grain leathers and are intrinsically inferior to full grain leathers since they are slightly weaker in tensile strength due to the removal of the top portion of the grain. Those stretch marks are basically an iron clad indicator of quality and durability, and will only ever be seen in a truly full grain hide. It is called veining typically but you are correct, they are in fact stretch marks. Scars and insect bites are often also visible on these hides, and sometimes even brands though these are typically cropped out of finished products unless otherwise specified or desired in the specific product. Full grain hides are more expensive because many hides simply cannot be used in their full grain state, too many blemishes and imperfections which could be considered unseemly, so only the best and least blemished hides are chosen to be sold as full grain. The rest will be corrected to varying degrees and possibly have a fake grain embossed. The finest leathers will be full grain and aniline dyed, without any opaque pigments to mask the true nature of the hide which will result in a rather textured, marbled looking leather with any imperfections in the skin visible to the naked eye, including stretch marks, hair follicles, bug bites, pimples, warts, scars and brands unless otherwise removed before stitching the article together.

Bigbenbs · Oct 21, 2018

FREEradical said:
They don’t trim off the leather parts containing stretch marks, they simply buff the top grain of the hide to create an artificially smooth finish. These are corrected grain leathers and are intrinsically inferior to full grain leathers since they are slightly weaker in tensile strength due to the removal of the top portion of the grain. Those stretch marks are basically an iron clad indicator of quality and durability, and will only ever be seen in a truly full grain hide. It is called veining typically but you are correct, they are in fact stretch marks. Scars and insect bites are often also visible on these hides, and sometimes even brands though these are typically cropped out of finished products unless otherwise specified or desired in the specific product. Full grain hides are more expensive because many hides simply cannot be used in their full grain state, too many blemishes and imperfections which could be considered unseemly, so only the best and least blemished hides are chosen to be sold as full grain. The rest will be corrected to varying degrees and possibly have a fake grain embossed. The finest leathers will be full grain and aniline dyed, without any opaque pigments to mask the true nature of the hide which will result in a rather textured, marbled looking leather with any imperfections in the skin visible to the naked eye, including stretch marks, hair follicles, bug bites, pimples, warts, scars and brands unless otherwise removed before stitching the article together.

"including stretch marks, hair follicles, bug bites, pimples, warts, scars and brands"

Sounds like my 14 year old self at summer camp.

Regardless, my impression of the freewheelers hide was that it was full of really interesting character, and that the impression that the stretch marks left was of higher and not lower quality.

FREEradical · Oct 21, 2018

Bigbenbs said:
"including stretch marks, hair follicles, bug bites, pimples, warts, scars and brands"

Sounds like my 14 year old self at summer camp.

Regardless, my impression of the freewheelers hide was that it was full of really interesting character, and that the impression that the stretch marks left was of higher and not lower quality.

You’ve got a good eye for leather it would seem. To the uninitiated marks such as these are often misinterpreted as poor quality which is why most leather that is sold has been corrected, and indeed why the term for damaging the hide by removing the top part of the most integral fiber layer of the epidermis is called “corrected” rather than being more properly called “damaged” as it really should in my opinion be called.

Monitor · Oct 21, 2018

FREEradical said:
They don’t trim off the leather parts containing stretch marks, they simply buff the top grain of the hide to create an artificially smooth finish. These are corrected grain leathers and are intrinsically inferior to full grain leathers since they are slightly weaker in tensile strength due to the removal of the top portion of the grain. Those stretch marks are basically an iron clad indicator of quality and durability, and will only ever be seen in a truly full grain hide. It is called veining typically but you are correct, they are in fact stretch marks. Scars and insect bites are often also visible on these hides, and sometimes even brands though these are typically cropped out of finished products unless otherwise specified or desired in the specific product. Full grain hides are more expensive because many hides simply cannot be used in their full grain state, too many blemishes and imperfections which could be considered unseemly, so only the best and least blemished hides are chosen to be sold as full grain. The rest will be corrected to varying degrees and possibly have a fake grain embossed. The finest leathers will be full grain and aniline dyed, without any opaque pigments to mask the true nature of the hide which will result in a rather textured, marbled looking leather with any imperfections in the skin visible to the naked eye, including stretch marks, hair follicles, bug bites, pimples, warts, scars and brands unless otherwise removed before stitching the article together.

Yep. Spot on.

And yeah, the so called stretch marks are an indication that the jacket's been made out of a really good chunk of hide and it's the kind of character that's sought after.

High Large, for example, often deliberately incorporates a portion of the hide with stretchmarks into their jackets. Fine Creek doesn't shy from it too and there's no need telling these guys know what makes a good leather jacket.

Lit Up · Oct 21, 2018

I don't like stretch marks on my partners and I don't like them on my jackets either.

But whatever bloats your goat, activates your almonds.

Carlos840 · Oct 21, 2018

Lit Up said:
I don't like stretch marks on my partners and I don't like them on my jackets either.

But whatever bloats your goat, activates your almonds.

It's a good thing they make plastic partners and plastic jackets then...

Bigbenbs · Oct 21, 2018

Monitor said:
Yep. Spot on.

And yeah, the so called stretch marks are an indication that the jacket's been made out of a really good chunk of hide and it's the kind of character that's sought after.

High Large, for example, often deliberately incorporates a portion of the hide with stretchmarks into their jackets. Fine Creek doesn't shy from it too and there's no need telling these guys know what makes a good leather jacket.

Where would you place fine creek in relation to freewheelers in terms of quality? Because they do custom and are a good bit cheaper l.

Lit Up · Oct 21, 2018

Carlos840 said:
It's a good thing they make pastic partners and plastic jackets then...

Maybe you like cougar hides?

Monitor · Oct 21, 2018

Bigbenbs said:
Where would you place fine creek in relation to freewheelers in terms of quality? Because they do custom and are a good bit cheaper l.

No clue. Haven't seen either IRL. I just love pretty pictures of their jackets. I think you've nothing to worry about with either.

red devil · Oct 21, 2018

@FREEradical great post, thanks!

@Monitor just thought you would like to know that high large leather and fine creek are kind of the same. They changed names or shuffled some people. Didn't get the specifics.
But their jackets are the same in terms of hide and construction (they are very nice in hand)

On another note, I wouldn't buy a Japanese jacket in London.

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