Fake Aero Highwayman?

[leathersuperb]

Hi! I'm new but I have been researching/reading a lot here on the topic of good leather jackets.
So I figured that Aero is considered a very good brand with high quality leather.
Now I found an Ebay auction (idk if its ok to link here) with an Aero Highwayman from steer leather and from the pictures the leather looks awful to me, so I would even assume it is fake?
I mean it looks cheap, like grey leather with a paint coat on top, and if that scratches/breaks off you see the uncolored leather below which reminds me of a cheap mall jacket and not something priced at 1000+$?

 

[Seb Lucas]

Looks fine to me. That's what leather does, Man. Some leathers have a top coat that shows white or grey underneath when scuffed, some have deeper pigment. That wear is where you would expect it to happen.

 

[KissMyMuscle]

I think it looks amazing.

 

[Monitor]

Um, no. That's a genuine Aero Highwayman.

What @Seb Lucas said, leather is either dyed all the way through or only coated but in both cases, the surface coating will start fading away with use, especially around the edges, and the usually lightly dyed core will start showing through.

This happens even on the cheapest mall jackets from Zara that have been completely plasticized.

It's also very clear from the photos that this is a very heavy, very high quality hide. You can see the natural grain, how the panels vary, you can see hair follicles...

Hey, and the best part about this awesome leather? But any $2 brown shoe creme and the jacket will look brand new!

 

[Carlos840]

That's a good looking jacket, definitely real...
You need to handle more real leather jackets and learn what leather is and what you should expect from it.

 

[Peacoat]

Yes, you may post to live ebay auctions.

Welcome to the Lounge. PC

 

[ton312]

 

[navetsea]

if you get too immersed into internet school of leather and leather jacket, you'll get stuck with buttery soft analine brown through and through.

 

[Monitor]

View attachment 228710

Yeah, my first thought too.

 

[nick123]

As an amateur student of leather, i'll admit my first casual glance at the photos too showed probably not a leather I'd go for. But all of the construction screams Aero, otherwise.

then I looked again closely, and as others have said the natural grain's all there, which is good. Definitely not steer chromexcel. Looks a lot like Lost Worlds russet.

 

[Mich486]

Yes looks genuine but not a leather that excites me to be honest. This is definitely not a hide that Aero offers at present.

 

[Monitor]

 

[AeroFan_07]

Nope that's a real Highwayman, an older label for the Genunie Steerhide, so could be Heavy Alaskan Steerhide, or Connolly Steerhide, both of which they have not used in quite a few years.

There are a few Aero's on there currently at more than thier brand-new asking price....

 

[Monitor]

@leathersuperb , hey, did the jacket shrink too by any chance?

 

[VintageTQ]

This is the type of person who is a complete nightmare for ebay sellers

 

[leathersuperb]

Well thanks for the nice (and not so nice lol) answers so far. I have learned some things, that there can be good leather and bad coating.
I can now see that the grain is good, so there is good leather underneath. Although it is not properly dyed and the coat of paint on top looks cheap, I stand by that.

Look below for what I consider a good patina. Its properly dyed leather and so ages beautifully.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

lol did you just post a Ralph Lauren jacket and say the leather is better than the leather on an Aero on this forum?

You need to spend more time on this forum before making claims like that, dude.
Even if you were right, you need to read the room and realize how much this forum worships at the altar of Aero.

That Aero leather is very dull looking in the photos, but the quality of the leather appears to be quite good from what I can see. Tea core leather is not low quality in this day and age. That is important for you to learn. Do you not see how horrible those photos are in quality? They were taken with a non-diffused flash and horrid lighting so of course the leather doesn't look great at first glance.

The leather on that Polo jacket is meh. The grain is flat and boring and Ralph Lauren products are disgustingly overpriced for their quality. It only looks decent because the pictures are much better than the Aero pictures.

Here's an example:

These pictures are of my Freewheelers Mulholland in vintage brown Shinki horsehide. As you may notice, the color is also a fairly dull brown, but this is on purpose. It's a certain vintage look. Whether you like Shinki or not, you cannot argue that it is low quality. It is one of, if not the most expensive jacket leather in the world and takes up to one year to tan and finish. This jacket is also tea core and the top finish chips away just like with the Aero jacket. Just because a leather looks dull at first doesn't mean it isn't extremely high quality. Honestly, you can hardly judge that Aero leather with such terrible pictures.

 

[navetsea]

it is just like "high end" denim nowadays, it is engineered to fade easier because that's what people in a niche market segment want their jeans or jacket to look without waiting years or decades, however it is not for mass market,

most still like their jeans to be soft and dyed through and through and not easily fading

same with their opinion on leather must be soft, dyed struck through, not too easily creased or fading, and looks new lot longer, especially for women jacket.

but unlike raw denim that you are forced to accept the reality how they will fade and nothing you can do about it, with leather even when fresh "wound" appears pale, give it some time and keep on wearing it, it will soon get darker or if you want it sooner, just oil the wound a bit or rub shoepaste/ leather dye a little on it if you are really impatient with a scratch, overtime the dye will get absorbed and you'll see the wound again just not as pale.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Surely Mr Superb is just trolling us - people are bored right now and taking the piss this way must seem like fun.

 

[Carlos840]

Well thanks for the nice (and not so nice lol) answers so far. I have learned some things, that there can be good leather and bad coating.
I can now see that the grain is good, so there is good leather underneath. Although it is not properly dyed and the coat of paint on top looks cheap, I stand by that.

Look below for what I consider a good patina. Its properly dyed leather and so ages beautifully.

View attachment 228896 View attachment 228897 View attachment 228898 View attachment 228899

So you are comparing an actual cheap Chinese made lambskin mall jacket to a quality Steerhide Aero jacket and all your "researching/reading" led you to the conclusion that the mall jacket was of better quality than the Aero?
That is quite incredible. (And i say that as someone who doesn't even rate Aero that high...)

Please do point us towards the source of your research, i would love to read it.