Bad experience with Lost Worlds

[Monitor]

DISCLAIMER: This is an account of my experience purchasing from LW & in no way do I wish to question the quality of their product, which is superb. I still believe that they make some of the best leather gear around and this isn't to be taken into question.

I'll split this post into several parts so let's start with the ordering process...

PART 1...

You all know how impressed I was with my previous LW jacket. I'd rave about it often enough but since it was a 44 and I wear a sz. 40/42, I decided to treat myself to a remake, done entirely to my specifications. Loads of money but again, it's a great jacket to say the least.
This alone ought to tell you how highly I (used to) think of LW!

There had been enough talk about how off-putting communication with LW is and while I found the emailing to be a bit crude, it was... Well, for the better part serving the purpose.
However, things would get vague whenever I inquired about the sizing. Uncertain whether to go with a 40 or a 42, concrete sizing information was something I couldn't get a straight answer on and all my questions on the matter were either ignored or dismissed.

Ultimately, though, I was assured that the chest and the waist circumference on the 42 will be 2" smaller than on the size 44.

The jacket arrived four days ago. Inferior construction compared to my earlier jacket became apparent the moment I opened the box and it didn't take much examining to notice empty stitch holes, loose threads and an entire row of double stitching, where the machinist seem to have missed and decided to do another row right next to the first one because who cares.

Regardless of how big of a deal you find this to be, I promise you that my other LW is an absolutely perfectly made jacket - I'd rate the construction with a pure 10/10 - which is precisely what I believe I was buying.

Immediately & without even trying the jacket on, I emailed LW, asking what gives. The reply I received was these aren't holes but just indentations (so I'm a liar) and that it's difficult to work with heavy leather so errors such as this are to be expected (so I'm dumb).

In the following reply though, they offered to take the jacket back for an inspection though no guarantee of a remake/refund was mentioned.

I answered that I would sleep on it because this would mean wasting more money for the overseas shipping, possible import taxes, etc., all this for an outcome that was uncertain.

Some of the issues...

 

[Hh121]

I am very sorry....... you didn't listen to me. Ordering custom jacket from LW and dealing with S is a gamble.

 

[Monitor]

PART 2...

The next day I woke up thinking, whatever, it's still a nice jacket and I've never been one to be overly OCD about things. Life isn't perfect. I'll keep it.

Now's the time to mention I didn't really check the fit at all the day before because of the aforementioned issues and I didn't want to get the creases in until the matter is resolved.

So I put the jacket on and I realize, wait, how's this any different than the 44!?

It's not.

I've taken a few photos of the measurements which you can see below. This jacket, labeled a 42, is actually BIGGER than the 44. It fits bigger, it feels bigger and, yeah, it's bigger.

Inquiring if they've changed the pattern or something produced a following reply...

"...a thicker jacket will dimensionally fit differently than a broken in thinner jacket until it too broken in. weight increases dimensions markedly as does firmness."

So, once again I'm being called an idiot for not understanding that a new smaller jacket is supposed to be bigger than a broken in larger jacket because once a larger jacket breaks in it'll... I don't even. Both jackets are exactly the same weight, 4oz, BTW.

At this point, I literally ask them why am I being treated this way to which the owner replied that it'd be best if I send the jacket back and I will be refunded a base price.

Base price, by the way, means only the price of the jacket without the $450 I paid for the mods and of course the shipping, etc.

Again, the only reason why I decided on a 42 was because I have been assured several times that the 42 will be 2" smaller tighter in the chest / waist than a 44 - which makes perfect sense but wanting to be absolutely 100% sure, this was something we went a good few times over.

What I requested several times during the sizing process was that the P2P on the new jacket doesn't surpass 22 inches but I believed that even if it did, the 42 can only be smaller than the 44 so what could possibly go wrong?

You be the judge...

 

[JMax]

I already gave you my thoughts so I won’t repeat all of them, but whoever made this jacket should be drawn and quartered. As a LW aficionado, I am disappointed that they sent you this jacket and that he responded how he did.

 

[jonesy86]

Bummer.

 

[Monitor]

I am very sorry....... you didn't listen to me. Ordering custom jacket from LW and dealing with S is a gamble.

I already had the jacket on order when I asked you but yes, I should've taken more notice when you posted about your ordeal with the maker. But I honestly didn't believe anything could go as horribly wrong as it did. If nothing else, I was sure that I had at least gotten the size right.

 

[Marc mndt]

Wow, unbelievable. Maybe there were reasons for messing up this jacket (and they messed up big time, you don't have to be ocd on stitching to dismiss this jacket). It happens. I've read accounts of messed up Aero jackets and faulty Eastman jackets. Difference is that they took the jacket back like they should. I don't see how a company can last if they treat customers like this. Charging them for their own mistakes.

 

[Will Zach]

LW needs to refund the full price, not just a base price.

 

[Finn Vigorous]

LW needs to be avoided.

 

[Psant25]

Wow man sorry to hear that. Did you send them the pics and all? How can you refute the measured size, fit pics, stitching? Didnt carlos just get a new jacket based on a fit pic?

 

[Mich486]

I’m sorry this happened Monitor. Botched stitching aside the (lack of) difference in size is what I find more surprising.

I decided a while ago I won’t buy anymore from custom makers that can’t disclose clearly the measurements of their jackets. I’m much more confident buying OTR in that case.

I guess this just shows how going custom isn’t a guarantee of a good fit.

 

[l0fielectronic]

When I looked at your comparison photos I thought the photos of you in the Blue jeans must be the 42 jacket as it does look trimmer fitting and fits you better - then I noticed the lack of creases on the other jacket - Thats supposed to be the smaller size?

Sorry to hear how this has gone for you.

I must admit after a couple of things along these lines an easy return policy where I know i'm not going to be out money is one of the factors I put into choosing what I buy, but I can see why this would seemingly be simple going down a size on a jacket you know etc.

 

[torfjord]

They really need to own up their mistakes with this jacket. Nothing but a full refund is unacceptable. Everyone can make mistakes, every company can unintentionally deliver products that don’t live up to the expected quality. What matters is if they own their mistakes.
The emails that you’ve exchanged with them do not speak to their advantage. I would be very hesitant to ever buy anything from them in the future.
Really a shame because I know there are a lot of members who speak very highly about their product. They can do a lot better than the jacket that you got.

 

[lina]

Yep, I feel for you too man. What a disappointment all around. I know LW is famous for their attitude, but I see this basic attitude more and more, namely, "we will admit no wrong doing on our part, anything that seems wrong is just you over-reacting or misunderstanding how right we are."

 

[jacketjunkie]

I don't care much about stitching (even though maybe I would care if the jacket was 2 grand...) but I'm seriously irritated by how these two jackets are literally the same size, I'd go as far as saying cut with the same pattern block but with a different size tag in them. In Stuarts defence, there is a chance that the 44 you own is the oddity considering its measurements were always closer to a 42 and the jacket you received is actually a correctly sized 42. Did you give him exact measurements of the jacket you owned or did you just mention you owned a size 44 and wanted something smaller?

That being said, he should offer a full refund because of the needle holes in the leather alone. Is thick leather hard to work with? Yes, absolutely. But if you charge 2 thousand dollars for a jacket, you are paid more than plenty to make the effort to get it done properly.

 

[itsallgood]

Must feel really frustrating! The new one does not seem to live up to the standard he sets on his website. I hope they make it right for you. They're going to hurt their brand if they don't.

 

[trainspotter]

Wow, eye opener for potential customers like me

 

[Worf]

Never owned any LW gear. Thought about it a lot over the years but NEVER pulled the trigger... Cost and attitude I suppose. Maybe I'm jut not man enough to own one...

Worf

 

[Will Zach]

Tough to sew thick leather, Stu says? Let him say it to all those manufacturers of stitch-perfect boots we see here on the TFL. That leather is often 8-oz, Stu. This is the lamest, intelligence-insulting excuse I have ever heard.

 

[Monitor]

When I looked at your comparison photos I thought the photos of you in the Blue jeans must be the 42 jacket as it does look trimmer fitting and fits you better - then I noticed the lack of creases on the other jacket - Thats supposed to be the smaller size?

Sorry to hear how this has gone for you.

I must admit after a couple of things along these lines an easy return policy where I know i'm not going to be out money is one of the factors I put into choosing what I buy, but I can see why this would seemingly be simple going down a size on a jacket you know etc.

Realized just now I forgot to point out which jacket is which but yes, you're correct, the one I'm wearing in the blue jeans photo is a 44. The 44 looks better because I had it for a while and it has formed to my frame as I'm sure the 42 would as well but then it'd fit just the same and that's not really what I had in mind when I dropped $2K for this jacket.

I don't care much about stitching (even though maybe I would care if the jacket was 2 grand...) but I'm seriously irritated by how these two jackets are literally the same size, I'd go as far as saying cut with the same pattern block but with a different size tag in them. In Stuarts defence, there is a chance that the 44 you own is the oddity considering its measurements were always closer to a 42 and the jacket you received is actually a correctly sized 42. Did you give him exact measurements of the jacket you owned or did you just mention you owned a size 44 and wanted something smaller?

That being said, he should offer a full refund because of the needle holes in the leather alone. Is thick leather hard to work with? Yes, absolutely. But if you charge 2 thousand focking dollars for a jacket, you are paid more than plenty to make the afford to get it done properly.

Agreed on every point and as I mentioned, the following morning I had the jacket, I was absolutely willing to forget the questionable workmanship, thinking I'm still having a really high quality jacket and one that ought to fit perfectly this time. Shoddy stitching wouldn't bother me in the long run. Never had. I was just amazed to see how bad this remake was, having a practically perfectly made jacket right next to it.

As for the sizing, at one point during the ordering process & after I already deposited the $ to LW's bank account, I requested that the production be put on hold until I was absolutely sure about the size. Once I wasn't able to get any kind of absolute guarantee on the sizing of the jacket - other than the "42 is recommended" droning - my only request was that they go with whichever size number doesn't surpass 22", 22.5" TOPS in P2P.

Even if the 44 was an oddity, which I completely agree could be the case, why was it tagged a 44 if it was made from the same pattern? Was the previous owner then made a fool of or was it just me? I know you don't know but it's shady whichever way you look at it.

Oh, and let me just add that every single request I've had for the customization of the pattern, as in 1" longer sleeves (since I believed they'll be shorter on a 42), were immediately shot down. All the while other members were getting full on custom fits.