MrCC
Familiar Face
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I thought I share my thoughts on a new MTO jacket from Rugged West Co, which I received this past Friday.
I have seen another review very recently here, after not having seen a mention of the brand for some time. I guess is a bit like the London buses, wait for one for ages, then all come at once!
In any case this may well be the first review of a jacket from their new “Olympia” range which is meant to be a step up into the “Premium” bracket.
As others have said, I think the process of ordering a custom-made leather jacket, from the agonising choice between styles and materials, debating the details, down to pulling the trigger and the joy of finally receiving the final article, is as much about the journey as the end result. The personal contact with the manufacturer throughout that journey is for me what makes it special. In these very strange times we live in, there is still space for that mutual enthusiasm between humans towards a creative process, which transcends (or at least complements) the mere transactional side of it.
So, I will try to describe my entire experience, hoping that this can be of interest.
The Firm:
I came across RWCo through social media and its clever algorithms that know what is of interest to me better than my missus!
Having then followed with some curiosity the steady growth of the brand in the UK and beyond, I found Leilah (owner, stylist and CEO) at her stand in the corner of the main hall of the annual London Motorcycle Show last May. I was impressed with both her energy and passion for all things leather jackets and her stock of styles and hides on display. The stock was mainly from her start-up line of budget creations, but the potential was visible and after only few minutes of conversation it was clear to me that she is on a mission.
I decided on impulse to trust her with my dosh and asked her if she would like to get commissioned something I had been mulling over for a while, a 1930’s button up half-belted jacket, with a tan, light brown vibe and a smart-ish but rugged appearance.
Straightaway she mentioned that she had just bought a small batch of beautiful walnut coloured hide from Conceria Walpier (Walpier Tannery) in Tuscany, and soon I was excited as she was!
The Leather:
Conceria Walpier is part of the Consorzio Vera Pelle Italiana Conciata al Vegetale, a group of Tuscan tanneries preserving Italy’s centuries-old vegeatable tanning tradition using natural tannins from tree bark to create hides that will age and patina beautifully with time. Walpier have been doing their thing in Tuscany for over half a century.
Now as an old Italian boy and a fan of Italian leather and craftsmanship in general, that was a no-brainer.
The Process:
Fast forward few months of conversations about style, cut, lining, buttons etc, decisions were made, a grey wool cashmere blend and contrasting buffalo horn buttons were suggested, tweaks were applied. These were times full of the usual rollercoaster of excitement, self-doubt, fear and expectation… but Leilah was steadfast and unmoved, a true beacon of hope and professional reassurance with an infectious positivity to her.
Finally, the piece was there to be collected, I got a text, promptly dropped everything and after a sleepless night it was finally in my hands.
The Jacket:
when I first handled it, I found the texture and depth of colour pretty striking. With the scent of leather filling the room, the shining blend of walnut/tan was everything I had hoped for. Then came the crucial time of trying it on. There was a moment of eerie silence, like the slow-motion scene from the movie The Longest Yard when Burt Reynolds flies over the defensive line of the guards’ team to score the winning try…and it was immediately a joyful time, as the jacket felt “at home” right away. Which in my personal experience is quite rare.
Consideration:
I can be a very demanding customer and very conscious about sizes and fit, from the time of first discussing and sizing the jacket, I happened to lose a bit of weight and this prompted a mild re-sizing which though causing a small amount of delay, in my opinion proved absolutely instrumental.
The length is just over 27’’, slightly longer than what I envisaged.
The extra inch or so was unilaterally decided by Leilah based on my height (just shy of 190CM) and I am so glad she did, because it sits just where I wanted it, covering the belt and just short of my jeans’ pockets, I would say somewhere in between a regular HB and a Teamster, which I think really suits the style and just “feels” right to me.
It is difficult if not impossible for one to be objective about one’s fit-check unless something is obviously wrong, but judging from how it felt from the very first try and the range of movement when either buttoned or unbuttoned it would appear to be pretty spot on.
For a medium-heavy hide the jacket handles really well straight out of the box, quite unlike the hard-wrestling of trying on a HFQHH, this is easy in comparison. Though I would say definitely stiffer than for instance Vicenza.
Like a nice substantial weight but…somewhat welcoming. The top coat makes it look and feel very luxurious, with a rich, deep glow and only a very small amount of squeak!
At close look, there is a real depth in the hide and beyond the very apparent shine, it shows some really nice grain.
In terms of colour, I am absolutely delighted with it, in my forever-indecision and quest for the perfect blend within the Tan/Natural/Russet palette, for me this just hits the mark.
The panels seem to me to be well matched in terms colour and grain
I am no expert, but having spent the next morning inspecting pretty much every inch of the jacket, the stitching alignment seems nice and straight
I think the pleated back works really well with the overall style, when it comes to half-belts I am forever debating plain/pleated but here I think it was the right choice.
The cuffs are ever so slightly tight, I have quite wide bone structure in my hands and have this habit of grabbing the cuff of my shirt while sliding the arms into the jacket sleeves, so that makes it a little tight but no doubt the opening will give a bit so not a big deal, conversely, the sleeves themselves feel just the right size, not too roomy at all and the arm-holes are high enough for a really good range of movement.
Perhaps a bit on the long side but having quiete long arms and an absolute aversion for sleeves that turn up short,I always err on the side of caution, as someone say, you can always shorten but you can’t add…
The side adjustments are functional and at the moment kept “in neutral” with seemingly no immediate need of tightening, which is another good indication of the overall fit
To sum up, I really love the look and feel of the jacket and, I will wear the hell out of it in the upcoming weeks as I am curious to see how this hide will develop.
It would be great to have some objective opinions from the wisdom of the Lounge and hoping this can be an interesting insight into
I have seen another review very recently here, after not having seen a mention of the brand for some time. I guess is a bit like the London buses, wait for one for ages, then all come at once!
In any case this may well be the first review of a jacket from their new “Olympia” range which is meant to be a step up into the “Premium” bracket.
As others have said, I think the process of ordering a custom-made leather jacket, from the agonising choice between styles and materials, debating the details, down to pulling the trigger and the joy of finally receiving the final article, is as much about the journey as the end result. The personal contact with the manufacturer throughout that journey is for me what makes it special. In these very strange times we live in, there is still space for that mutual enthusiasm between humans towards a creative process, which transcends (or at least complements) the mere transactional side of it.
So, I will try to describe my entire experience, hoping that this can be of interest.
The Firm:
I came across RWCo through social media and its clever algorithms that know what is of interest to me better than my missus!
Having then followed with some curiosity the steady growth of the brand in the UK and beyond, I found Leilah (owner, stylist and CEO) at her stand in the corner of the main hall of the annual London Motorcycle Show last May. I was impressed with both her energy and passion for all things leather jackets and her stock of styles and hides on display. The stock was mainly from her start-up line of budget creations, but the potential was visible and after only few minutes of conversation it was clear to me that she is on a mission.
I decided on impulse to trust her with my dosh and asked her if she would like to get commissioned something I had been mulling over for a while, a 1930’s button up half-belted jacket, with a tan, light brown vibe and a smart-ish but rugged appearance.
Straightaway she mentioned that she had just bought a small batch of beautiful walnut coloured hide from Conceria Walpier (Walpier Tannery) in Tuscany, and soon I was excited as she was!
The Leather:
Conceria Walpier is part of the Consorzio Vera Pelle Italiana Conciata al Vegetale, a group of Tuscan tanneries preserving Italy’s centuries-old vegeatable tanning tradition using natural tannins from tree bark to create hides that will age and patina beautifully with time. Walpier have been doing their thing in Tuscany for over half a century.
Now as an old Italian boy and a fan of Italian leather and craftsmanship in general, that was a no-brainer.
The Process:
Fast forward few months of conversations about style, cut, lining, buttons etc, decisions were made, a grey wool cashmere blend and contrasting buffalo horn buttons were suggested, tweaks were applied. These were times full of the usual rollercoaster of excitement, self-doubt, fear and expectation… but Leilah was steadfast and unmoved, a true beacon of hope and professional reassurance with an infectious positivity to her.
Finally, the piece was there to be collected, I got a text, promptly dropped everything and after a sleepless night it was finally in my hands.
The Jacket:
when I first handled it, I found the texture and depth of colour pretty striking. With the scent of leather filling the room, the shining blend of walnut/tan was everything I had hoped for. Then came the crucial time of trying it on. There was a moment of eerie silence, like the slow-motion scene from the movie The Longest Yard when Burt Reynolds flies over the defensive line of the guards’ team to score the winning try…and it was immediately a joyful time, as the jacket felt “at home” right away. Which in my personal experience is quite rare.
Consideration:
I can be a very demanding customer and very conscious about sizes and fit, from the time of first discussing and sizing the jacket, I happened to lose a bit of weight and this prompted a mild re-sizing which though causing a small amount of delay, in my opinion proved absolutely instrumental.
The length is just over 27’’, slightly longer than what I envisaged.
The extra inch or so was unilaterally decided by Leilah based on my height (just shy of 190CM) and I am so glad she did, because it sits just where I wanted it, covering the belt and just short of my jeans’ pockets, I would say somewhere in between a regular HB and a Teamster, which I think really suits the style and just “feels” right to me.
It is difficult if not impossible for one to be objective about one’s fit-check unless something is obviously wrong, but judging from how it felt from the very first try and the range of movement when either buttoned or unbuttoned it would appear to be pretty spot on.
For a medium-heavy hide the jacket handles really well straight out of the box, quite unlike the hard-wrestling of trying on a HFQHH, this is easy in comparison. Though I would say definitely stiffer than for instance Vicenza.
Like a nice substantial weight but…somewhat welcoming. The top coat makes it look and feel very luxurious, with a rich, deep glow and only a very small amount of squeak!
At close look, there is a real depth in the hide and beyond the very apparent shine, it shows some really nice grain.
In terms of colour, I am absolutely delighted with it, in my forever-indecision and quest for the perfect blend within the Tan/Natural/Russet palette, for me this just hits the mark.
The panels seem to me to be well matched in terms colour and grain
I am no expert, but having spent the next morning inspecting pretty much every inch of the jacket, the stitching alignment seems nice and straight
I think the pleated back works really well with the overall style, when it comes to half-belts I am forever debating plain/pleated but here I think it was the right choice.
The cuffs are ever so slightly tight, I have quite wide bone structure in my hands and have this habit of grabbing the cuff of my shirt while sliding the arms into the jacket sleeves, so that makes it a little tight but no doubt the opening will give a bit so not a big deal, conversely, the sleeves themselves feel just the right size, not too roomy at all and the arm-holes are high enough for a really good range of movement.
Perhaps a bit on the long side but having quiete long arms and an absolute aversion for sleeves that turn up short,I always err on the side of caution, as someone say, you can always shorten but you can’t add…
The side adjustments are functional and at the moment kept “in neutral” with seemingly no immediate need of tightening, which is another good indication of the overall fit
To sum up, I really love the look and feel of the jacket and, I will wear the hell out of it in the upcoming weeks as I am curious to see how this hide will develop.
It would be great to have some objective opinions from the wisdom of the Lounge and hoping this can be an interesting insight into
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