Aero Cordovan FQ Horsehide

[Graemsay]

After a protracted period, I've finally figured out that I want to buy an Aero Cossack. However, I'm not sure about the colour.

I'm off black at the moment, as it doesn't age in an interesting manner. Seal brown and oil pull are only available in the lighter grades. That leaves cherry (which looks fantastic after a few years) and cordovan.

Does anyone have a picture of a well worn Aero in cordovan? I'm interested in seeing how it ages.

Thanks.

 

[ethanedwards]

Hi Graemsay, there's 2 shot's of worn Highwaymen in brown on the Aeroleather website - I don't know if this is close enough for you?

http://www.aeroleatherclothing.com/...oViewPage?page=displaysubcatlist&subcatid=138

Hope it might give you a clue - the Highwayman is a fantastic jacket!

 

[Graemsay]

Thanks. The brown seems to keep a consistent shade, so I suspect that the Cordovan will too.

What I was looking for was something that goes a bit "patchy". The oil pull does, but that's not available in the heavyweight leather, and so does the Cherry.

Tonypaj posted some shots of his very nice Barnstormer in cherry here in a response to my query on another thread.

That's what I'm after.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Here's my brown Hwymn...which has aged kinda patchy(lighter base). I would imagine that the cordovan though darker than the cherry would age to a lighter base...where the cherry seems to age to a darker base.....

HD

 

[feltfan]

After a protracted period, I've finally figured out that I want to buy an Aero Cossack. However, I'm not sure about the colour.

I'm off black at the moment, as it doesn't age in an interesting manner.

I am also considering a Cossack. I want black, but
can't seem to find any photos of what the HH looks like
after a few years. I just asked Mark Moye about it and
he says, "Color-wise black is always, well, black--it's really
an absence of color. The Browns and Cordovans "marble"
and mottle in color the first time you put them on.
They'll have lighter shades develop in the creases and wrinkles."

That doesn't really answer my question like seeing a picture of
a broken in Black HH Aero jacket. Anyone care to post pictures?

 

[feltfan]

Anyone care to comment further on the Aero jacket
pigment stain controversy?

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showpost.php?p=128340&postcount=12

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=17793

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Here's my black LongShoreMan. The black just fades somewhat...or greys in wear areas....

HD

 

[feltfan]

Here's my black LongShoreMan. The black just fades somewhat...or greys in wear areas....

Thanks. Useful to be able to compare it to your brown
jacket above. That black jacket looks great to me.
No more hesitation about the color.

 

[feltfan]

Graemsay, apologies for hijacking your thread.
Hope you find all this interesting.

I have been exchanging email with Mark Moye of
Aero Leather USA. He has been very fast to respond, which
I appreciate. Here are his responses, edited for brevity:

Regarding the zipper failures reported here, he said,

"We no longer offer Talon zippers on the non-military jackets but our Aero brand (mfg by YKK). These are much stronger and we'll guarantee them."

To which I responded that the failures appear to have been
on the YKK "Aero" zippers, not the Talon. I also asked whether
the dye rubbing was still a problem. He wrote:

"LOL! It's funny that none of the jackets I've sold with the Aero branded zips have come back for repairs. Maybe you should email the factory and see what their failure rate is (if there really is one?): enquiries@aeroleatherclothing.com

Oh, and can I absolutely guarantee you that the Black and Cordovan horsehide won't bleed? Certainly not. We've been using those hides tanned the same way for years and years with great success--many hundreds of thousands of customers worldwide. Naturally we can't please everyone so it's to be expected that you'll hear some negative about us or any other company.

The "vintage" horsehides are tumbled a bit longer during the tanning process--this seems to reduce the amount of initial color bleedout. Maybe you should look into those.

I say email the factory with your concerns and see what their take is."

I guess I have to repeat my questions for the factory.

 

[Graemsay]

Here's a picture of my current, black Aero Hercules.

Sorry about the black and white photo, but my camera has a habit of rendering blacks as magenta.

I've had the jacket five or six years, although it did spend some time in storage. I haven't had any localised (patchy) colour fading, as can be seen on HoosierDaddy's. But looking inside the pocket shows that the leather is neither as dark nor as shiny as when new.

I haven't had the colour transfer problem, at least not to any great extent.

Don't worry about the hijack Feltfan. I've broken two of the Talons on my jacket. Most recently the slider (that feeds into the bell) pulled off. The bell is still (as far as I can tell) the original one.

I asked Amanda, and she said that they've not had any problems with their own brand zippers either.

 

[feltfan]

Here's a picture of my current, black Aero Hercules.

I haven't had the colour transfer problem, at least not to any great extent.

Don't worry about the hijack Feltfan. I've broken two of the Talons on my jacket. Most recently the slider (that feeds into the bell) pulled off. The bell is still (as far as I can tell) the original one.

I asked Amanda, and she said that they've not had any problems with their own brand zippers either.

Thanks for posting the picture and for not minding.
The link you posted won't display a picture for me,
but it did allow me to download the picture.

Amanda confirmed what you wrote,
"We have not had ONE single jacket sent back to
us with a faulty Aero zipper in the past 2 years,
so the failure rate is 0%."

About the bleeding she said,
"We cant assure that every single item made in
chrome tanned f/q horsehide
will not bleed, which is why there is a label in the
pocket of all these items
saying that bleeding may occur. The bleeding is down
to the tanning process.
Also the leather tannery cant guarantee the leather
wont bleed, so its crazy
to say we would!"

So I guess I'm somewhat reassured. With today's exchange
rate, it's a lot of money, at least for me.

 

[Rufus]

Hi Feltfan...

I've got a cordovan Bootlegger, and it's a bit over a year old...

It had a lot of initial colour transfer, onto bags, seats, clothes...

A year later I would still not wear light coloured clothes with this jacket. Around the neck it still rubs off onto shirts and when zipped up it marks even dark denim.

I love the jacket, and the Aero hardwear is great. I'd definitely go for another colour if I were to buy again! (And I will, Aero's service is fantastic, I'd heartily recommend them!!)

Hope that helps... or rubs... ;-)

Rufus

 

[Graemsay]

Feltfan - I'll edit the original post in an attempt to get the photo up this evening. It seems that the Google / Picasa service doesn't want to play.

Rufus - do you have a picture of the Bootlegger? I was wondering how it looked after being worn. However, the colour transfer would put me off.

 

[Milu]

I have a civillian flight jacket from Aero in FQHH cordovan. I have the colour bleed problem.

Amanda and Aero were very professional and happy to exchange. I didn't because it was the only colour I wanted it in and exchange was more trouble than it was worth.

However, I think it is ridiculous that Aero and the tanneries continue pushing this defective leather on to the market at what is a premium price. It is supposed to workwear in theory- not a fashion item. I should not have to worry about my jacket staining my shirt, trousers or upholstery. Aero is wrong to continue offering it without huge and clear disclaimers (there is none on my jacket and I don't remember seeing one on the site when I ordered mine nor was it ever mentioned in any of the e-mails we exchanged. We are wrong to buy it and accept it as a delightful idiosyncracy of a traditional product. (I admit I'm an offender as I should have sent my jacket back).

Would we accept this from Schott? If it was an Avirex I am sure we would be on a major warpath.

 

[Rufus]

Here you go! The jacket has worn in nicely, and is very soft. The leather is lovely, and again I'd like to reiterate that Aero were extremely helpful.

The colour has worn off in some places, Elbows etc., and the leather has lightened considerably in these high wear places.

The Cordovan is quite 'purple', and I admit I'd have been better picking Dk Brown or black.

Apologies for the photos quality! The colour is most like the close up picture.

Ruf

 

[bobjones]

I have a civillian flight jacket from Aero in FQHH cordovan. I have the colour bleed problem.

Amanda and Aero were very professional and happy to exchange. I didn't because it was the only colour I wanted it in and exchange was more trouble than it was worth.

However, I think it is ridiculous that Aero and the tanneries continue pushing this defective leather on to the market at what is a premium price. It is supposed to workwear in theory- not a fashion item. I should not have to worry about my jacket staining my shirt, trousers or upholstery. Aero is wrong to continue offering it without huge and clear disclaimers (there is none on my jacket and I don't remember seeing one on the site when I ordered mine nor was it ever mentioned in any of the e-mails we exchanged. We are wrong to buy it and accept it as a delightful idiosyncracy of a traditional product. (I admit I'm an offender as I should have sent my jacket back).

Would we accept this from Schott? If it was an Avirex I am sure we would be on a major warpath.

With all due respect, i think that that's not being fair or realistic. I have many fine leather goods, and all of them will bleed when rubbed against with a light-colored clothing item.

I would think that wearing a leather jacket, something that you press against for hours at a time, would constitute rubbing up hard enough to cause some bleeding. Even my expensive leather shoes bleed, so why wouldn't a jacket?

 

[feltfan]

A year later I would still not wear light coloured clothes with this jacket. Around the neck it still rubs off onto shirts and when zipped up it marks even dark denim.

There's the rub, if you will... a year later... Thanks for posting.

With all due respect, i think that that's not being fair or realistic. I have many fine leather goods, and all of them will bleed when rubbed against with a light-colored clothing item.

I would think that wearing a leather jacket, something that you press against for hours at a time, would constitute rubbing up hard enough to cause some bleeding. Even my expensive leather shoes bleed, so why wouldn't a jacket?

I have had a couple of new leather jackets and countless leather
boots, shoes, bags, etc. I can't recall any of them bleeding
noticeably on any clothing or upholstery. Here's what Amanda
wrote me this morning:
"Its very few that bleed to be honest, I think we had 2
returns last year
out of all the f/q horsehide jackets we sold, which
was a lot!
If your do experience bleeding, the best thing to do
is the rub
the affected area with a dry cloth, never put it in a
dryer and never
put any creams or anything on it EVER!"

I do find that reassuring. But I am reconsidering the
purchase. I do want the jacket, but may look into a
"safer" jacket first.

I have been posting the response I have received from Aero
as a way of letting them defend themselves in this thread.
I know they don't participate in forums like this. I just
want to balance the presentation a bit. Sometimes one loud
voice can skew impressions in online discussions.

 

[Rufus]

FF,
I'd certainly recommend getting an Aero jacket. They're civvie jackets are fantastic.

Despite the Cordovan 'problems', I will definitely purchase again from Aero.

I ordered Cordovan as I wanted something different, i already had numerous Brown and Black leather jackets. I don't regret the jacket, just the colour!! ;-)

Rufus

 

[tonypaj]

There's the rub, if you will... a year later... Thanks for posting.


I have had a couple of new leather jackets and countless leather
boots, shoes, bags, etc. I can't recall any of them bleeding
noticeably on any clothing or upholstery. Here's what Amanda
wrote me this morning:
"Its very few that bleed to be honest, I think we had 2
returns last year
out of all the f/q horsehide jackets we sold, which
was a lot!
If your do experience bleeding, the best thing to do
is the rub
the affected area with a dry cloth, never put it in a
dryer and never
put any creams or anything on it EVER!"

I do find that reassuring. But I am reconsidering the
purchase. I do want the jacket, but may look into a
"safer" jacket first.

I have been posting the response I have received from Aero
as a way of letting them defend themselves in this thread.
I know they don't participate in forums like this. I just
want to balance the presentation a bit. Sometimes one loud
voice can skew impressions in online discussions.

My Barnstormer used to bleed, and it may still do... I solved it by wearing it with jeans or like, darker clothes, until it became a habit, now I don't really think about it.

Anyway, I live in a country cottage next to a working farm, and I tend to wear much rougher clothes these days even to the office. The cars I really don't worry too much about, either, they are there to be used...

I do understand, though, if someone has doubts about these jackets, I simply see them differently, and would never consider them "dressy" or would never have worn them during my "serious professional" days...

For the record, I also have two Aero A-2s, no issues ever with bleeding, and I wear them all the time...

 

[Edward]

The only jacket I ever had that 'bled' was a cheap black leather jacket, years ago. As I recall, it did it once when new (at a hot sweaty Joyrider gig in the mid 90s!), then it was fine. The dye washed right out, though. If that was the case with the Aero, I wouldn't be so worried.... I wonder why it only seems to be the one colur that is affected - is there some ingredient in the cordovan dye that makes it behave so differently?

Regarding buffing it with a cloth to lift any loose dye - am I the only one flashing back to the opening credits of one season of Happy Days which had a clip of the Fonz polishing his leather jacket with a drill-buff? wonder whether that would be a shortcut to sorting it out?