Aero Leather Black Vicenza HH break-in/patina/fade

[DarkKnight]

Hey TFL,

I've always been a fan of those beautifully aged, black leather jackets you see around that have scratches and highly worn areas that reveal a brown under the black.

I have a jacket from Aero I got recently, a custom Premier Highwayman which I'm loving. I got it in the Seal Vicenza.

I want to get a cafe racer/board racer in the black vicenza and I'm wondering if anyone knows how it fades. What's underneath? Is it that blue/grey? Or is it a more natural brown?

I think I saw somewhere on here someone testing out swatches/samples by scraping them on a wall and I think the black had blue undertones. Does anyone have first-hand experience?

 

[dan_t]

Hey there fellow Sydneysider!

Here's a post I did a while back about different Aero samples. May be helpful.
http://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/aero-horsehide-samples.81194/

 

[DarkKnight]

Thanks Dan. What did the scrape test on the black vicenza reveal? Blue/grey? I can't see any pictures in that thread of the black with a scrape on it.

 

[Sloan1874]

I seem to recall that the samples of black vicenza I've had were vat dyed right the way through, so it's unlikely to change dramatically. If I was you, I'd ask Aero if they had a CXL with a black top coat and brown base.

 

[dan_t]

Thanks Dan. What did the scrape test on the black vicenza reveal? Blue/grey? I can't see any pictures in that thread of the black with a scrape on it.

I don't think that I actually did try to scrape the surface off that one. But I still have the sample and as Craig mentioned, it appears to be dyed completely through the hide. I doubt you'd get a noticeable difference in colour if it were 'worn' in parts.

 

[DarkKnight]

Thanks guys.

I know the CXL's have brown undercoats, but I don't want a jacket that heavy duty/stiff so was hoping (against the odds) that maybe the Vicenza was the same. But you've both confirmed what I feared which is that they're dyed through n through.

 

[Sloan1874]

You may want to ask about Aero's mid-weight seal HH - the stuff that they use on their 1756 A-2s. If I remember correctly, it has a lighter base with a dark top coat, so it should give you a similar effect.

 

[Carlos840]

From my experience seeing my girlfriend's Vincenza jacket it is not a "patina" kind of leather.
New it is very grainy, as you wear it very little extra grain come through. At rubbing points the grain actually smoothed out and disapeard. At high friction points the leather becomes greyish black when the top coat is rubbed off.

It looks great, but i wouldn't say it really breaks in or ages in the way CXL does. It doesn't have the depth of colour or the grain evolution. At least this is what i have observed on her jacket.
On the other hand, it wil look "cleaner" far longer than CXL will i think.

Also, CXL is far from the armour people say it is. Mine is nice and smooth after a couple months wear. It really softens nice and fast.

 

[Carrie @ Thurston Bros.]

Hey TFL,

I've always been a fan of those beautifully aged, black leather jackets you see around that have scratches and highly worn areas that reveal a brown under the black.

I have a jacket from Aero I got recently, a custom Premier Highwayman which I'm loving. I got it in the Seal Vicenza.

I want to get a cafe racer/board racer in the black vicenza and I'm wondering if anyone knows how it fades. What's underneath? Is it that blue/grey? Or is it a more natural brown?

I think I saw somewhere on here someone testing out swatches/samples by scraping them on a wall and I think the black had blue undertones. Does anyone have first-hand experience?

Hi DarkKnight,

Glad you like your Premier Highwayman! For your next jacket, you may want to consider the Black Tumbled CXL FQHH (photo below). It looks A LOT like the Vicenza Horsehide, but is just a tad thicker and has a brown nap underside that "shows through" (exactly as you're describing above) with wear and break-in.

 

[Guardian Enzo]

Hi DarkKnight,

Glad you like your Premier Highwayman! For your next jacket, you may want to consider the Black Tumbled CXL FQHH (photo below). It looks A LOT like the Vicenza Horsehide, but is just a tad thicker and has a brown nap underside that "shows through" (exactly as you're describing above) with wear and break-in.

View attachment 63485

I'm kind of glad to hear you say that, Carrie, because I just got a stock Bootlegger in this very hide on the premise that it seemed relatively close to Vicenza in terms of the grain and being a bit lighter than regular FQHH.

 

[DarkKnight]

Hi DarkKnight,

Glad you like your Premier Highwayman! For your next jacket, you may want to consider the Black Tumbled CXL FQHH (photo below). It looks A LOT like the Vicenza Horsehide, but is just a tad thicker and has a brown nap underside that "shows through" (exactly as you're describing above) with wear and break-in.

View attachment 63485

Thanks Carrie. You were going to be my next stop for opinion/info. Sounds like a viable option. I'm ok with the slightly thicker hide, but how does it compare in softness to the VIcenza? I just want to avoid the heavy-dutyness of regular CXL FQHH. I want it to be comfortable and mould to my shape asap. And even though I want these jackets to last a lifetime, I am essentially using them as fashion jackets. They're not really for riding - for that I have a Thedi with some quilting/protection. So I want these Aero's to look good/be comfortable. With maybe a slight skew in priority to looking good

Also, CXL is far from the armour people say it is. Mine is nice and smooth after a couple months wear. It really softens nice and fast.

Thanks for the info Carlos.

 

[nick123]

Truthfully, the Vicenza is so comfortable out of the box it might as well be goat. If it never broke in beyond its new state I'd still think of it as a comfortable hide. Maybe it lacks the color depth of the regular heavy Chromexcel FQHH but it is much, much more comfortable. If you have any trepidations about regular FQHH being heavy or stiff I'd opt for Vicenza. No leather has every desirable attribute rolled into one type, but if there are definite things in your mind you want or want to avoid, I'd use that to choose.

 

[Fanch]

Given you want to avoid the heavy-duty feel of CXL FQHH, want it to be comfortable / mould to your shape asap, and use as as fashion jacket, go with Vicenza and never look back. My favorite jacket of all time is my black Vicenza Sheene (Cafer Racer with HWM collar) without zippers on the handwarmer pockets.

 

[Guardian Enzo]

Thanks Carrie. You were going to be my next stop for opinion/info. Sounds like a viable option. I'm ok with the slightly thicker hide, but how does it compare in softness to the VIcenza? I just want to avoid the heavy-dutyness of regular CXL FQHH. I want it to be comfortable and mould to my shape asap. And even though I want these jackets to last a lifetime, I am essentially using them as fashion jackets. They're not really for riding - for that I have a Thedi with some quilting/protection. So I want these Aero's to look good/be comfortable. With maybe a slight skew in priority to looking good

I've only had my tumbled FQHH for less than a week, so obviously not a lot of actual wear experience. But I concur with Carrie's assessment that it's quite soft and very flexible - not at all stiff. It's also not as heavy as standard FQHH, though I don't have an Aero in that hide handy to do a SBS.