Aero Hooch Hauler - Brown CXL FQHH - 2 month review

[TartuWolf]

Greetings from Estonia!

I decided to make a separate thread instead of making a post in the https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/aero-hooch-hauler-thread-2022.108961/ thread.
This will be an initial impressions / review of my Aero Hooch Hauler after wearing it almost exclusively for 2 months as well as a short history of my personal experience with leather jackets.

This will be split into 4 parts : My story with leather jackets, the story of this leather jacket, the leather jacket itself and the fit.
I enjoy writing so this will be quite verbal / long. You have been warned. Hope you enjoy this write-up.

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My story:​

I'm from EU, Estonia. Originally from Lithuania. I'm in my early 30s, wife, two kids. IT job.
My first love are leather boots. Mostly have experience with Red Wings and Sendra boots.
After having fallen in love with leather I started exploring other related fields a bit.
Got into leatherworking, bought a lot of various tools and supplies. Made some wallets. Not very active with this hobby these days.
Got a nice custom belt made, understood better what I like in terms of leather - brown, aniline, waxy with lots of pull-up.
What's the ultimate expression of leather? To me - leather jackets.
Found out about TFL from Jake (almost vintage style) blog if I'm not mistaken. Thank you @dudewuttheheck for that!
Joined TFL, started exploring the vast amount of info, knowledge and opinions available around these parts.
Research started here.

First I made a list of makers, dividing into parts of the world.
Europe being top priority because then I can avoid extra taxes.
UK is still ok because it's at least rather close by. I consider US and Japan to be too far/remote, so they got lowest priority.
Sorting out through various makers, what hey have to offer and price ranges I ended up with a couple of favorites:
Vanson (US), Aero Leather (UK) and Simmons Bilt (UK). Thedi would definitely make that list but they are in a difference price bracket.

Then I started gawking at tons of photos to feel out what style I like most. Eventually ended up with these priorities:
Cross-zip half-bet / aviator > Minimalist cross-zip MC (no epaulets or belt) > Belt length button-up half-belt > Center-zip MC

Next question was - vintage, used, stock or custom?
Ideally it would be used because that seems like the best bang-for-buck but requires patience and compromises.
I definitely did not and still do not feel ready or interested in Vintage.
Stock would be ok if I could find the right measurements. Haven't found one yet.
So the final goal was a custom jacket.

Leather - I had a feeling that I want a waxy, brown, pull-up, medium-thick aniline veg tan / combination tanned leather that is on the stiff side. Basically as far away from floppy leather that I've experienced all my life but something that would show as much natural beauty of the leather and not be covered with pigment / top-coat.

The first glimpse of my potential future was grabbing a used Aero Dustbowl size 36 from DE:
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...l-fqhh-brown-fit-impressions-thoughts.109523/
Turned out too big, but it was amazing to finally get to feel how a "real" leather jacket feels like. Fell in love.
Sold this one without much loss. Good experience.

At some point I started considering Aero / SB more seriously (ordering custom).
Made a thread about Aero leather choices: https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/aero-leather-choices-options-end-of-2022.109422

Contacted Shawn about making a 5* jacket for me. Figured that would really help me dial in various measurements.
It was a custom pattern based on various photos that I sent them and my descriptions.
Result: https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...-belt-in-black-waxed-premium-goatskin.110262/
Body fits ok but the sleeves turned out too narrow. Ok for summer with a t-shirt. Mobility kind of sucks. Will try to sell it as I'd rather wear my IH type 1 denim jacket in summer.

At this point I felt ready. Talked to both SB and Aero for a while.
Decided to go with SB because the communication made a better impression.
The price was better as well because in case of SB I can use a proxy and avoid taxes. That's not an option with Aero.
And the communication was truly a pleasure. Huge respect to Deborah - only after 100+ emails (!!!) did I finally make an order.
I also got free samples 2-3 times from SB.
Got all the details down, placed an order and started waiting.

While waiting for my SB "Pacific" to be finished I made my third purchase - a used Vanson Chopper (size S/36). Also from DE. Turned out too big as well (mainly in terms of body length and gut/naval width):
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/vanson-vanson-vanson.105617/post-3012293
So far my experience has been that my general size is closer to 34 than to 36.

While waiting for SB another opportunity came up which I decided to take advantage of - this is where the "story of this jacket" part starts - the hauler of the hooch!

Eventually the SB jacket was finished and sent to my proxy. Turned out very bad in terms of measurements so I returned it and got a full refund without any problems or negotiations:
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...nd-how-many-potential-ones.89562/post-3017340
Unlike @Pandemic who had to fight for his refund, which was a very sad story overall which made me very hesitant about SB from the beginning (together with their backstory). In general I do plan to give SB another shot in the future potentially - I really enjoyed working with Deborah and I believe they CAN make an incredible jacket for a great price, but need to be really strict with them about QC and adhering to requested measurements within the margin of error.

After eventually getting the Aero Hooch Hauler I also got a mint Vanson model B from DE for a great price.
Lovely jacket overall, although I'm not a fan of the CR style and the body length is at least an inch too long:
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/vanson-vanson-vanson.105617/post-3046069

So here I am with 4 leather jackets : 5* button-up (will sell), Vanson Chopper (will sell), Vanson Model B (will maybe sell), Aero HH (will keep forever).

---

The story of this jacket:​

From the very beginning I had my eyes set on Aero - liked so many things about them and they have quite a few styles that I liked.
They were/are also highly respected on TFL (apart from fit/mobility/pattern complaints).
From all the styles the one that really caught my eye and stood out was the Hooch Hauler. Love from first sight!
Initial communication with Aero left me wanting (definitely more my fault) so I was hesitant about ordering a custom from them. The refusal to install bigger than #5 zippers also felt annoying to me.

But on 2023 June 13th Aero announced a 40th anniversary sale : https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/aero-sale-annoucement.111305/
It was now or never (turns out they raised their prices after the sale as well).

Got some leather samples (twice, as the first package got stuck).
Was debating between Brown Kelpie and Brown/Cordovan CXL FQHH.
Eventually went with the brown CXL FQHH for (what I consider) the "classic" Aero experience.

Initially was still thinking maybe go with the J-106/Ridley with some custom configuration but after talking to Holly for a bit and calling Aero a few times I eventually decided to go for a Hooch Hauler - staying true to my initial love.

June 30th - made my order. Respect to Holly/Aero for respecting the discount even though they had (for some reason) officially stopped the sale earlier than promised.
July 6th -Discussed some details with Holly and confirmed my spec. Got an estimation of 2-3months.
July 13th - order in production, communication with Denny starts. He had some suggestions (some very strong ones as well) regarding what should be changed about my spec. Also double checking and confirming some things with me. He gave me an estimation of a couple of weeks.
Aug 3rd - The jacket is finished, Denny sends me info and photos. Shoulders turned out too narrow (16.5" instead of requested 17.5"). Gorgeous jacket! Agreed to do a remake with a few small adjustments and trying to get the shoulders right. Again, huge respect to Aero for doing the remake without any issues.
Sept 4th - got info that the jacket is finished. Paid remaining balance. Waiting for final QC from Denny.
Sept 8th - got QC info, very happy with how the final measurements turned out. Turned out darker than the first one, but looks very nice as well. My shipment gets dispatched.
Sept 14th - the jacket reaches me and I enter leather jacket heaven.

Thank you @Hide'n'seek for the great customer service, communication and Aero customer experience!

 

[TartuWolf]

The jacket by itself:​

Specs:
- Aero leathers
- Hooch Hauler - 1930s Aviator style
- Brown Horween chromexcel front quarter horsehide
- Black moleskin body and pocket lining, cotton drill in the sleeves
- Brass YKK/Universal hardware
- Size 36 with custom measurements (not only length, but also body measurements like shoulders, waist and bottom hem width)
- One internal lining pocket (custom measurements based on my phone size)

Measurements from final QC:
Pit2pit 19.75”
Sleeve 24.25”
Back 23.5”
Hem 17.25
Half belt height 17.25
Shoulder 17.25”

Final price:
Subtotal: £620.00
VAT: £0.00
Delivery: £27.50
Total: £647.50
So ~740eu in total.
Incoming taxes were calculated from 620gb or ~720eu for some reason and I had to pay a total of 250eu in import taxes which is 34-35%. ********.. I hope my government puts that money to good use. Final total : ~970eu.

My thoughts:
Really glad I went with this leather. It's exactly how I envision a perfect jacket leather in terms of thickness and firmness.
Don't feel like I want anything thinner/softer or with more drape.
In general I'm firmly in the "CXLFQQ break in not as bad as people say" camp.
After 2 months it has softened up considerably and is very wearable and pleasant.
To the point that I don't even want it to become even softer and more malleable - I like it as it is haha.
And boy is brown CXL gorgeous. In relation to my preferences it is as perfect as it can get.
Does it show wear and scratches easily? Sure does (see photos), but I'm embracing that and showing where it takes the jacket.

The lining was also a great choice - the moleskin is very luxurious and pleasant to the touch. Even though only my neck is the only part where skin touches the lining. I am quite disappointed with the durability at the bottom hem - I was assured that it is more than durable enough to not need any extra strip at the bottom hem, but it has already worn through at one of the high-stress points (see photos).

Very happy that I went with the lining pocket - very un-obtrusive while still being very functional and perfectly sized for my phone.

The chest pocket is not very useful because keeping my phone (does not fit closed) or wallet would get them badly scratched by the zipper teeth. From time to time I do put some small things there, but not very often. Beautiful aesthetically though!

The center pleat on the back seems mildly functional - it DOES do it's job but rather minimally I would say. It would need to be higher up the back to do a better job. I would really like to try the Indian Ranger / Elvis shoulder gussets to see how much more effective they are. They sure are extremely effective on my Vanson jackets..

Fully zipping the jacket up is quite a challenge due to how the collar panels meet with each other. Sure a larger neck hole with help with that, but even then it seems like they would fight each other along the way. Especially when using CXL.

I also experimented with reshaping the collar a bit. One side turned out nicely but the other one is too stubborn because the chest pocket is to close to the fold line. Will reshape back to normal.

Another thing I want to mention is the the slickness of the jacket - water beads off very nicely. You know what else "beads off"? Everything else. Hard to keep a pool cue case or backpacks on my back - everything really wants to slide off haha.

The jacket in relation to my body (fit):​

This order convinced me that Aero is more open to custom measurements than I initially thought. I thought that you specify the sleeve length and the body length. That's it. But in this case I specified shoulder width, chest width, waist width and bottom hem width as well. And they basically nailed all of them.

There are two things that I would change if I would order again.
1 - Sleeve length. Would specify at least 0.5" longer. Maybe the sleeves have creased so noticeably or maybe my initial specification was a bit off. But I would like them to be a bit longer ideally. Overall I'm very happy with the sleeve length as is.
2 - Body length. This one is very tricky for me.. Back length is perfect. Would a wee bit more front drop. Around 0.5"-0.75". But this is purely in relation to where my belt sits with my current denim (got a higher rise pair coming up, will see how the jacket works with that one). In THEORY I think the length is perfect as is. But in practice I still have not get used to the front being so (relatively) short. I just need to get comfortable with it. Just feeling insecure with the belt buckle poking out a bit from time to time. Funny enough holding better posture (hollow body, glutes squeezed) helps the belt stay higher - this jacket promotes good posture!

Sleeve width - perfect, nice and snug with my max layering. Wider would be better for max layering, but it would be too wide for normal layering.

Shoulder width - glad we agreed on a remake with wider shoulders, would not want them to be any more narrow. With this jacket I solidified my opinion that for a back with no movement features I want ~17"-17.75" shoulders.

Chest width - snug with max layering, very comfortable with normal layering. Would not change.

Waist width - could have specified 0.5" narrower and it would have been even better (I cinched up the waist a bit), but very good as is.

Bottom hem width - would be nice to have 0.25"-0.5" wider, especially when I'm wearing a vest on top of the belt - then it's quite snug, tight. Overall great.

Neck hole - would definitely like this part to be wider, but not sure if it's even possible to ask for. Fully zipped up it's definitely tight. Especially when new. Now It's a lot better but still tight.

Comment on the "hangs on the neck Aero issue" - it's there. Not too bad, especially after worn and broken in a bit. Interestingly it feels better if you pop-up the collar and if you puff out your chest / roll shoulders back a bit. Again, the jacket promotes good posture!

Mobility - Decent. Nowhere near as good as either of my Vanson jackets. Much better than the 5* jacket. Good enough for me. I don't expect a slim fitting CXL jacket with (basically) no mobility features on the back to have great mobility.

Layering - minimal layering (t-shirt or thin long sleeve) is on the looser side, but very comfortable. Mid layering (henley + vest or tshirt + wool sweater) is perfect. Max layering (henley + vest + wool sweater or fishnet thermo longsleeve + merino long sleeve + wool sweater) is snug but doable - mobility suffers a bit.

So I would say I'm 90-95% happy with the fit and mobility. And that's more than good enough for me.

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Final words​

So that's that - my thoughts and initial review after 2 months.
As always - I would really appreciate feedback, comments and discussion.
And a big thank you to everyone who helped me along the way - TFL and various specific members have been a huge help.
I'm planning to visit TFL less and less in the future - gonna take a break from it. Spending too much time here.. Most likely will come back next year if I start craving for / planning another jacket project.

And this is leads me to my main take away - to me, subjectively, this jacket is as close to perfect as I can imagine. Any other jacket that I see or can think of pales to this one. I just can't envision anything REPLACING this one. Don't see what I would get that would make me want to reach out for that one instead of this one. I am feeling fulfilled. Haven't felt this feeling with my other hobbies yet (denim, boots, etc..). And

I'm not the kind of person that craves variety - I really like sticking to one thing and really using/wearing it. After seeing many comments like "people on TFL tend to rotate and have to many jackets to actually put any serious wear in them" I want to do the opposite. Wear only this jacket as much as possible for a few years and show how it evolves and becomes an integral part of me.

This write-up took something like 2-3 hours min. I enjoyed writing it, hope you enjoy reading it! Photos coming up!

 

[TartuWolf]

Fit photos​

 

[TartuWolf]

Some large shots of the jacket​

Brand new : QC

Worn a bit

Currently:

 

[TartuWolf]

Detail shots (leather, leather wear, lining, lining wear, internal pocket...)​

 

[TartuWolf]

Also (for reference) the 1st version or initial jacket that was later remade ( I like the color more, but it can also be related to lighting):

 

[Canuck Panda]

Wow, I can feel your passion for leather stuff.

I agree the best bang for the buck is lightly used jackets. Even better if I have the skills to redo the lining or fix zipper or do a bit of torso tapering, sleeve shortening, add a welt pocket...etc. With these skills, used jackets are the best.

I too prefer SB's communication over Aero's. But Aero does has better overall product. SB's one hit wonder is their Tailgunner pattern. Very West Coast fitting, drop 5 torso, and easy wearing from neck down, probably heavily influenced by one of their retail partner, wink wink. If I could go back in time I just have all my SB jackets built off that pattern block, xzip, straight zips, buttons...etc.

The thing with Aero is that you have to know what to do with them, then you can get great result. But that's a chicken and egg situation right. Without a jacket or two to know what to do with that particular pattern, how do I know what to do with it. Aero has all the high end ingredients in their shop, best assortment of leathers imo and best assortment of linings and other little bits. Except I don't understand why Aero don't use Shinki. Maybe a supply / demand issue? My biggest beef with Aero is that I always end up buying at least one or two of the same pattern before I get to a final version of it, and then I incurr all the expense while doing so. This is the same situation with all custom jacket makers imo, at least Aero is more affordable by comparison. Online custom jackets by nature, thrives only in the grey area of make beliefs, YMMV... Which makes me go back to buying lightly used and modify it (if I had the skills and know how)... Nothing is perfect I guess, but some things come close.

I am glad your Hooch Hauler worked out well. Congrats! Mine still needs a few more tweaks. I have found that the Hooch is sort of between the PHwyman than the Boardracer 7, and I am more of a board racer 7 guy, not the design but the overall fit of the base pattern block.

So the big question for you is, what's next?

 

[Will Zach]

Great writeup. From detail pics it is apparent that you love the jacket, because you are wearing the heck out of it. Enjoy!

 

[casuallyworked]

the brown CXL is such a beautiful rich brown for a jacket. I would love a brown jacket, currently, I only own a tan battered HH, but finding the right brown is difficult since there are so many options. Thank you for sharing, and hope you enjoy it. Wear it well

 

[AeroFan_07]

Excellent, very detailed writeup here TartuWolf!

I would agree - instead of asking "What's next -" I hope you wear this one and enjoy it. Don't worry about another jacket for several years. It's what "normal" people do.

For me, this part is kicking me with regard to the remaining Aero products I still have - (apart from fit/mobility/pattern complaints).
Due to extensive Physical Therapy after a partial medial meniscus tear in one of my knees last winter, I have grown deeply in appreciation for flexibility and mobility. If a jacket gets in the way of this - it's gone. Simple as that. So indeed, I have already and will be continuing to make difficult choices regarding a couple of my remaining jackets.

 

[TartuWolf]

Thank you for the responses so far.

@Canuck Panda
I think I will be (not so actively) still hunting for those slightly used deals, using the Finds and Deals sections as well as my usual places. But I will be more strict about measurements, especially body length haha.

From Aero I would like to get a Vincent in black badalassi with shoulder gussets one day. A Tailgunner from SB, maybe in natural unfinished horsehide for that extreme veg tan experience. A custom Vanson C2 would be on top of my list as well. Otherwise I don't really want anything else.

@AeroFan_07
Give me an Aero on a Vanson pattern right? Now THAT would be the best of both worlds.

 

[TREEMAN]

This is the write-up all other write-ups will be judged by…. Terrific !!

 

[Brandrea33]

Congratulations and thank you for the share. The jacket looks amazing on you and I really don’t think you could improve upon it (from a visual standpoint).

I’ve gone full circle in my short time here, trying a number of different makers, both stock and custom jackets. I finally decided to focus on one jacket that suits me, and I’m very happy.

 

[casuallyworked]

Congratulations and thank you for the share. The jacket looks amazing on you and I really don’t think you could improve upon it (from a visual standpoint).

I’ve gone full circle in my short time here, trying a number of different makers, both stock and custom jackets. I finally decided to focus on one jacket that suits me, and I’m very happy.

I think this is the way to go, also have a short time here and am learning. Have one you love and wear the heck out of it

 

[Benny Holiday]

Awesome review. And you nailed the fit judging by those pics. Helluva nice jacket. Congrats!

 

[Phil4]

Great write-up. I just got a vintage aero in the same material and color. Interesting to see it new.

Fit-wise I think it is just about right. Sleeves should hit a little bit down the hand like that, for driving or riding. I think they're about right in the pics. Jacket length is tricky with these, since they're really made for sitting. A little high in front when standing is the price paid, but you do get that Joey Ramone swagger with it hitting a little bit above your belt.

 

[nattevagten]

Final price:
Subtotal: £620.00
VAT: £0.00
Delivery: £27.50
Total: £647.50
So ~740eu in total.
Incoming taxes were calculated from 620gb or ~720eu for some reason and I had to pay a total of 250eu in import taxes which is 34-35%. ********.. I hope my government puts that money to good use. Final total : ~970eu.

Sorry, not to ruin the fun or anything, but I think you got screwed by the customs or didn't request the customs duty to be deducted (it can be done with UK-made goods - saves you 10%). I am also based in EST, my total was 652GBP - and I only paid 168 euros extra (i.e. VAT + DHL fee), letting DHL fully handle the customs procedure.

Otherwise, nice jacket!

 

[TartuWolf]

@nattevagten
It is definitely possible that I don't know something and that I could have avoided some of those taxes.
I asked DHL specifically whether I would be paying less in terms of taxes in case I authorize them to handle the import taxes. They said that no - I would be paying the same as I would myself + DHL fee.
I didn't know you can request import tax to be reduced, never heard about that. How does it work and is it UK specific?
Today I had to pay another 34% in import taxes on top of the price+shipping for a package coming from Japan which pissed me off again.
They take the price+shipping and add 12% customs on top of that. And then add another 20% on top of that. Ends up something like 33-35%.

 

[nattevagten]

@nattevagten
It is definitely possible that I don't know something and that I could have avoided some of those taxes.
I asked DHL specifically whether I would be paying less in terms of taxes in case I authorize them to handle the import taxes. They said that no - I would be paying the same as I would myself + DHL fee.
I didn't know you can request import tax to be reduced, never heard about that. How does it work and is it UK specific?
Today I had to pay another 34% in import taxes on top of the price+shipping for a package coming from Japan which pissed me off again.
They take the price+shipping and add 12% customs on top of that. And then add another 20% on top of that. Ends up something like 33-35%.

Goods manufactured in the UK are exempt from customs duty in the EU countries. Just need to have a 'certificate of origin' on the sales invoice (Aero always adds it, I think). Never paid any customs duty when ordering from Aero/SB. You just have to tell DHL that they are dealing with UK-made goods (don't think they automatically deduct anything).

​

 

[TartuWolf]

@nattevagten
Interesting. Wish I knew that beforehand. Will ask Estonian DHL about it. Haven't found any official info about it.