Diamond Clothing Black Shinki Buco J100

[ProteinNerd]

Here is a quick look at my new Diamond Dave Buco J100 in Shinki Leather.

Th grain on this thing out of the box is already crazy, even more so than on my Vicenza Half Belt after a few months of (admittedly very light) wear.

I didn't really know much about Shinki apart from that its supposedly the bees knees. After hearing all the hype, I was curious and decided to give it shot as I was pretty happy with the Vicenza Half Belt I received recently.

I must say there are definite similarities and differences between the Shinki and Vicenza. It feels a little lighter than the Vicenza and while it still has that slight stiffness to it, it isn't quite as stiff as my Vicenza Half Belt. The Shinki definitely has more grain. Both are great, just a bit different which is to be expected I guess.

Dave now makes these according to your supplied body measurements and I learnt from my last attempt not to try and tweak, just let Dave do what he does and I'm glad I did.

The fit is a little loser than the "Thurston Fit" on my similar styled Board Racer. I have room in this one for a light sweater and can move a little more freely. Obviously the difference in thickness of the steer BR also plays a part in this.

The stitching is immaculate, I've had a damn good close look all over and anyone that says Dave's stitching isn't up to par with the other makers doesn't know what they are talking about.

There is one minor inconsistency I've seen. I'm not sure if its an issue that bothers me enough to contact Dave yet. It will be interesting to see if other people notice or its just me.

I won't give fit shots today, I want to wait till I can get some decent ones to do it justice.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Wonderful looking object Prote - what is the back length on that 40? I'd also be interested in what it weighs. Is the inconstancy you're referring to related to the front length?

 

[ProteinNerd]

Back length is 26.25 inches
Dave asks for your height as one of the measurements so I'm guessing he adjusts that depending on your height.

No the inconsistency isn't the front length.

 

[Seb Lucas]

You'd have to adjust height or it would look silly. You're just under six feet?

Can you weight it for us? Sick I know but I reckon anything over 4 pounds is harder to wear in Oz.

 

[Bunyip]

Unreal! You must be chuffed. I'm trying to decided what leather to use...also still a bit iffy on how this would look on my chunky frame.
Is this shinki the standard leather advertised on his site?
I'm trying to see inconsistency.....I'm wondering if it's chest pockets( could be the angle they are lying on), or it looks like a weird bit on the inner zip stitching about 3/4 of the way up? I'm on my iPad so the photos are bouncing around everywhere when I try to enlarge...either way, it really is a lovely jacket.

 

[technovox]

Absolutely stunning! And just wait until that Shinki gets a bit broken in a bit...the grain keeps getting better.
As far as the weight difference between the Vicenza half-belt and the Shinki cafe racer-- did you factor that a half-belt would typically weigh a bit more than a cafe racer, given the extra hardware and extra leather in the collar and the half-belt portion?

How comfortable is the lining? Is it the cotton drill?
And I'm not able to tell from the pictures..but what color thread did you go with?

Can't wait to see more pics!

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Very nice.
Looking closely...only thing that I can see that may be a bit off...is the chest pockets might not quite line up with each other. Appears as if the left pocket is a little higher. Although when I first looked at the photo, I thought perhaps the jacket wasn't quite laying flat/straight.
HD

 

[navetsea]

great looking BR, congrats Protein!
the grain looks tastefully wild.
your last brown one looked very straight and trim, can't wait to see how lighter one would look or even some drapes

I don't see any inconsistency from the pictures, but if you want me to nitpick from them:
-perhaps the sleeve zipper bandage looks "dark brown" compared to the blackness of the hide, and a little wavy, but probably it's just optical illusion
-probably the label on the lining is a little slanting to the left when comparing to the liner's fabric weft ?
-bottom of the liner on the left front side seems like there is a part that is left unstitched? perhaps just sagging past the stitches
those are wild guesses... can all be just optical illusion.

 

[ProteinNerd]

I really didn't want to turn this into a "try and pick the fault thread" but I was curious if anyone could see what I could.
The jacket is gorgeous but yes, HD got it, the chest pockets are a little misaligned, I can notice it when I wear it zipped up.
I'm not sure if that falls under the "quirks of a handmade item" or you paid $1200 for a jacket it should be perfect?

 

[Seb Lucas]

great looking BR, congrats Protein!
the grain looks tastefully wild.
your last brown one looked very straight and trim, can't wait to see how lighter one would look or even some drapes

I don't see any inconsistency from the pictures, but if you want me to nitpick from them:
-perhaps the sleeve zipper bandage looks "dark brown" compared to the blackness of the hide, and a little wavy, but probably it's just optical illusion
-probably the label on the lining is a little slanting to the left when comparing to the liner's fabric weft ?
-bottom of the liner on the left front side seems like there is a part that is left unstitched? perhaps just sagging past the stitches
those are wild guesses... can all be just optical illusion.

There's no pleasing you.

 

[Seb Lucas]

I knew there was something not even about the front but because the jacket is on an angle I couldn't tell if it was the bottom hem or the pockets that didn't line up. Vintage cafe racers I have seen sometimes have front panels that don't quite line up - especially the bottom hems. Brooks jackets are notorious. I don't think it's a huge issue. When worn it would barely be noticeable surely?

 

[dan_t]

EXTREMELY nice jacket!!!
And just in time for the cooler weather, you must be over the moon!
Congrats on another wonderful purchase.

 

[mattp]

I noticed that, but probably only because I was looking for a 'flaw'. It's subtle, but if mine arrives like that it'll probably be going back. Once I know it's there it'd bug me. There should be a stencil to get them placed symmetrically I would have thought? It looks amazing otherwise, but as you said it's a $1200 jacket, no use putting flaws down to the charm of being handmade. If it's visible to the naked eye it's not just nit picking I reckon.

 

[Bunyip]

I mentioned the chest pockets in my post, I wasn't sure if it was lying on the deck crookedly....how noticeable is it? Can you throw a pic up of it lying totally flat? I wonder if it would be possible to get the slanted pockets on this from Dave?

 

[navetsea]

I really didn't want to turn this into a "try and pick the fault thread" but I was curious if anyone could see what I could.
The jacket is gorgeous but yes, HD got it, the chest pockets are a little misaligned, I can notice it when I wear it zipped up.
I'm not sure if that falls under the "quirks of a handmade item" or you paid $1200 for a jacket it should be perfect?

sorry.. I was trying my best to nitpick with a good intention, and all just optical illusions.
about the pockets alignment, I didn't see it from the picture, wouldn't have guess too that thing might happen
are you sure the problem is there, or perhaps the zipper position is the culprit, if one side of the zipper was installed a little bit too high then it could make the same effect, and it is much easier to fix
but if the pocket hole is indeed cut higher than the other side... I wouldn't be satisfied at whatever price point it would bug me to no end

 

[mattp]

I just checked my Vanson PLU-3, it has a very slight difference when you look for it, and I'd never previously noticed... I guess it comes down to how noticeable it is to you, the photos can make things look better or worse depending on the angle.

 

[Seb Lucas]

I noticed that, it's subtle but if mine arrives like that it'll be going back. There should be a stencil to get them placed symmetrically I would have thought? .

Of course he has stencils (A.K.A. patterns) I think the two front sides are misaligned I don't think it's the pockets begin cut in different places.

 

[ProteinNerd]

 

[HoosierDaddy]

View attachment 30022

That's a shame. I'll be honest..I wouldn't be happy with that.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Better photo, thanks. I feel for you mate - I don't know what I'd do in that situation.