Over 50 wearing leather jackets

[jonbuilder]

One needs to be careful about buying vintage deerskin. Much of it was no tanned well and is flacking. The $75 purchase price for my jacket is just half the story. I paid $100 to have it dry cleaned. I removed the lining which was a home-like patch together lining and just worn out and torn.

 

[handymike]

It’s not just the tanning that causes the flaking. Dry storage conditions and excess heat can do it too. I think mine was stored in an attic, garage, or barn. I love the pattern, but can’t really wear the jacket. Potentially a Five Star project in non-distressed Buffalo.

 

[Coriu]

Concerning old folks wearing leather...one man's perspective. There seems to be a lot of emphasis today on "fit." Heaven forbid one not have "the look" or leather is not suited for you. It's interesting how times change. In the old days, leather was often associated with a certain lifestyle or background. It had nothing to do with fit. The worst thing one could do back then was wear leather and look like a dude that was trying too hard. That's the key...not looking like you are trying too hard.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Over 50 are old folks...really? Having a leather jacket that fits well is trying too hard?
I'm 73 and certainly want my jackets to fit well as I prefer. I don't get your logic.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Concerning old folks wearing leather...one man's perspective. There seems to be a lot of emphasis today on "fit." Heaven forbid one not have "the look" or leather is not suited for you. It's interesting how times change. In the old days, leather was often associated with a certain lifestyle or background. It had nothing to do with fit. The worst thing one could do back then was wear leather and look like a dude that was trying too hard. That's the key...not looking like you are trying too hard.

I think I get you but really I have seen too many period photos of working men wearing jackets and matching outfits, where fit and a whole look clearly matter very much to them.

 

[Monitor]

I think I get you but really I have seen too many period photos of working men wearing jackets and matching outfits, where fit and a whole look clearly matter very much to them.

Yeah, this. People were so very mindful of fit & style in those days - clearly evident simply from the movies - that correctly emulating the look nowadays is truly difficult, as many members of this forum are perfectly aware of.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

I choose a custom fit that suits me, my height and long arms. I also spend good money on certain styles that may be considered a more modern look although maybe still utility oriented with a 'working man vibe'. Leather jackets years ago were sold off the rack, however more/most men were smaller in stature than today and the stock fit accommodated their size well. Today, decades later, it may more often take custom sizing to project a similar or even more fitted appearance. I like todays offerings and choices and style trumps fashion IMO.
HD

 

[Coriu]

Over 50 are old folks...really? Having a leather jacket that fits well is trying too hard?
I'm 73 and certainly want my jackets to fit well as I prefer. I don't get your logic.

Let's say "older" then, though there are plenty of younger people who consider over 50 "old," (not myself, since I am over 50) It's one thing to want your clothing to fit well. It's another to obsess over it. When I am in a professional setting, I want my dress shirt to fit perfectly. When I am wearing my leather jacket at a biker bar...not so much. The crowd I hang out with don't stand around critiquing the lengths of each other's jackets or debating whether someone's sleeves are too ****y...and if you did, you may not get a welcome reaction.

By "trying too hard" I am referencing folks whose clothing is overdone and/or are gearing for a look they just cannot pull off....a guy who could not pass for a biker if his life depended on it, but tries to play the part....a person of shorter and frail stature who tries to pull off a "tough guy" look with some extreme biker gear...that is trying too hard in my book.

 

[Coriu]

I think I get you but really I have seen too many period photos of working men wearing jackets and matching outfits, where fit and a whole look clearly matter very much to them.

I grew up around a hard-core biker who built motorcycles and rode with an MC. Did he care about how his leather fit...sure. If we had internet back then, would he have taken selfies and posted them online looking for affirmation...no. Leather itself made a statement, and it did not matter whether you had 6-pack abs or a beer gut.

 

[MrProper]

By "trying too hard" I am referencing folks whose clothing is overdone and/or are gearing for a look they just cannot pull off....a guy who could not pass for a biker if his life depended on it, but tries to play the part....a person of shorter and frail stature who tries to pull off a "tough guy" look with some extreme biker gear...that is trying too hard in my book.

I grew up around a hard-core biker who built motorcycles and rode with an MC. Did he care about how his leather fit...sure. If we had internet back then, would he have taken selfies and posted them online looking for affirmation...no. Leather itself made a statement, and it did not matter whether you had 6-pack abs or a beer gut.

and what exactly does that have to do with age?

 

[HoosierDaddy]

I think he is obsessed with the 'tough guy' persona who care nothing about how they look and you better not mention it or the bad *** comes out. Even though he is browsing and posting in the outerwear section of a forum that cares about their appearance and could care less who thinks they are biker bad.
HD

 

[air]

I grew up around a hard-core biker who built motorcycles and rode with an MC. Did he care about how his leather fit...sure. If we had internet back then, would he have taken selfies and posted them online looking for affirmation...no. Leather itself made a statement, and it did not matter whether you had 6-pack abs or a beer gut.

Wen you are part of the in crowd you can afford not caring too much, you already have other attributes that make you look the part. In the same way an extremely good looking person can wear the most ridiculous clothes and it will be a fashion statement, while you and I need to care about fit and finish.

In the end everyone cares about the performance of products they use often. The more expensive the product, the harder it is to be satisfied.
Just the raw materials for a leather jacket are more expensive than anything in a normal person's closet. When making such an investment, why compromise in the little details for fear of trying too hard? In my opinion that is trying too hard to condorm to the norm. The ultimate try hard.

 

[ABCD]

In the end everyone cares about the performance of products they use often. The more expensive the product, the harder it is to be satisfied.
Just the raw materials for a leather jacket are more expensive than anything in a normal person's closet. When making such an investment, why compromise in the little details for fear of trying too hard? In my opinion that is trying too hard to condorm to the norm. The ultimate try hard.

Sorry but I don't have a clue what you're saying.

 

[air]

Sorry but I don't have a clue what you're saying.

When you spend money on an expensive jacket, you want it to fit just right and meet your expectations. Compromising because it is not manly to fuss about the details is trying too hard to be manly.

Better now?

 

[Monitor]

By "trying too hard" I am referencing folks whose clothing is overdone and/or are gearing for a look they just cannot pull off....a guy who could not pass for a biker if his life depended on it, but tries to play the part....a person of shorter and frail stature who tries to pull off a "tough guy" look with some extreme biker gear...that is trying too hard in my book.

Sorry, but this is just something I cannot agree with. Just wear whatever you want to & enjoy wearing. You like leather jackets? Wear them. 90% of the girls on the street are dressed as "bikers" these days. And what exactly is a "biker"? Person who bought a motorcycle & goes to a bar where other people who bought a motorcycle go to? Why is a person in a car not called an automobilist? Where are all the chauffeur gangs? AC's? Being a "biker" is to me a definition of "trying too hard".

Wear what you like, the way you like it and anyone giving you **** about your clothes doesn't really understand life.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

When you spend money on an expensive jacket, you want it to fit just right and meet your expectations. Compromising because it is not manly to fuss about the details is trying too hard to be manly.

Better now?

Better and right on.

 

[ABCD]

Why is a person in a car not called an automobilist? Where are all the chauffeur gangs? AC's?

Yet we do call people who travel from a to b on a skateboard 'skaters'.

 

[TooManyHatsOnlyOneHead]

I've got about 54 weeks before I can start posting photos in here and I can't wait. Some of the best things I've seen have been in this forum. Whatever you do in life (clothes or whatever), if you don't rock it and feel it, it ain't going to work. Go all in or go home. I've seen leather jackets on the beach with flip flops (and in the water , leather jackets with cool hats, leather jackets with a "traditional" biker vibe, etc. etc. etc. YOU wear the jacket and it will work. There's something to getting older. Forgot who said it, but "youth is wasted on the young". Luckily in today's healthier lifestyle-- 50's, 60's 70's isn't what is used to be. You now have the wisdom and to a lot of extent, most of your faculties. I find myself just not giving a **** as much anymore and doing what makes me happy. And that aura comes through in a lot of the photos in this thread in particular.

 

[Downunder G Man]

Hey ! "I resemble that remark" haha

 

[air]

Wear what you like, the way you like it and anyone giving you **** about your clothes doesn't really understand life.

Indeed, though I agree with @Coriu that depending on one's appearance some outfits have the risk of looking like a parody rather than what they're aiming for. When I was a teenager...