Finds and Deals - Leather Jacket Edition

[photo2u]

Anyone recognize this. Can’t read tag, and only two photos posted. Local seller and it kinda speaks to me in a 70’s kinda vibe. Any info would be appreciated. (Remember... Newb here).

Anyone recognize this. Can’t read tag, and only two photos posted. Local seller and it kinda speaks to me in a 70’s kinda vibe. Any info would be appreciated. (Remember... Newb here).

I have the same jacket with a REED label. Nicely done. Mine runs modern size.

 

[Marc mndt]

The problem is the fit...will it, won't it? The shoulders say yes, the chest says no....risky biz at a G.

Looking at the overall dimensions, I have a hard time believing it has a 21 ptp. I'm going to ask for pics with measuring tape

 

[Jumper]

Looking at the overall dimensions, I have a hard time believing it has a 21 ptp. I'm going to ask for pics with measuring tape

The odds are not small that the seller is measuring seam to seam and disregarding what lies outside them.

 

[Coriu]

I dunno...makes all the repros look like straight up garbage... Annihilates Aero, Destroys Toys McCoys, Trashes Thedi, Laughs at Lost Worlds, Flattens Freewheelers, Evicerates ELMC who did I leave out??? It's priced too high...maybe? I've seen far worse brand new jackets sell for much more... This one has me scratching my head.

Repros can be such fun
But this jacket's a smoking gun
Could a repro surpass the original one?
Trying to find better was a pain in the bun
The original's the best bar none
Under the rising and setting sun
According to our major dude, Mr Ton

 

[ton312]

Repros can be such fun
But this jacket's a smoking gun
Could a repro surpass the original one?
Trying to find better was a pain in the bun
The original's the best bar none
Under the rising and setting sun
According to our major dude, Mr Ton

I’ve been talking with the seller. This one will fit. Hoping I can swing it. There is nothing being made by any current maker I’d even put anywhere near this jacket. I don’t have a grail… but if I did, THIS IS IT.

 

[Claybertrand]

I dunno...makes all the repros look like straight up garbage... Annihilates Aero, Destroys Toys McCoys, Trashes Thedi, Laughs at Lost Worlds, Flattens Freewheelers, Evicerates ELMC who did I leave out??? It's priced too high...maybe? I've seen far worse brand new jackets sell for much more... This one has me scratching my head.

I agree. If you look at it that way, it's actually quite the bargain.

The problem is the fit...will it, won't it? The shoulders say yes, the chest says no....risky biz at a G.

DISCLAIMER: I realize this is an ASKING price we are talking about but I will address it as the price in general. We all know it will go for less.

To me, this jacket is overpriced but not unworthy per se. As I carefully straddle the fence here......

I think that it kinda sucks to ask so much for a jacket missing the chest pulls. I know this is splitting hairs here...... but just my stubborn sense of value with vintage pieces is that this you can ask top dollar when you basically have no flaws. Do the pockets look cool nonetheless??? YESSSS they do!!!! But that's not the point.

Just saying that you can't balk at the price as much when a jacket is fully intact with vintage zippers. They are the hardware.....the bling.....and the hard to find, pricey to buy, just as pricey to replace (or more) parts to the jacket that complete the package----FOR A TOP DOLLAR JACKET. I admit to being too into the zippers and almost, though not quite, a zipper snob. I love the cool old zippers---maybe too much. So maybe I'm a little more disappointed in their being gone on this jacket than some might be.

Now is this asking price considered Top Dollar???? I mean, for vintage, and not a celebrated brand or maker, to me---its up there. I would say it's overpriced currently. I think if its intact with the original zippers and all, maybe its in the $600-650 mayyyyybe $700??? range max give or take.....but valuation is hard with these odd branded garments with no market comps. The condition besides the zippers seems very very good.

The other side of the fence is the WELL, IS IT WORTH IT COMPARED TO NEW REPROS angle??? Which is I think a more Macro question and a well debated one. To me, given the price of quality repros, this original, one of a kind, unable to be purchased elsewhere (most likely) type of piece has its own value that the repros do not (and vice versa). But this larger debate is dead horse jerky by now in the lounge so I think this question will likely fall along the VINTAGE vs. HIGH END REPRO party lines that we have all seemed to dig in on.

Admittedly, as more of a collector than regular wearer, and loving vintage, I think the price is not unreasonable if looked at from the comparison to new high end retro jacket perspective.

Still, personally, its priced fairly substantially higher than what I would be willing to pay for it.

Part of the fun for me is in the hunt for these jackets and finding them, though increasingly rarely, in places that are NOT hipster vintage shops or other places where they are marked up and or exposed to the masses. Don't get me wrong---I love purchasing here in the Lounge if its ever possible to survive the BRUTAL SHARKS in my weightclass!! But the Small shops, flea markets, garage/estate sales, are all still fun to comb thru if I have the time. It's a little less fun, and less satisfying perhaps paying hipster mark up at a shop on Melrose.

All that said, the reality is that a cool true vintage jacket that fits is WHERE YOU FIND IT. You try to buy it when you see it if at all possible or the next time you see it will be in the HOW MANY NEW JACKETS DO YOU HAVE COMING......thread.

 

[Claybertrand]

I missed your post typing mine @ton312......

This is almost an Arcadia design. Go hard on her about those zippers!!!! Grind her down!!!!!! Get it bro!!!! Its likely on the shorter side I'd wager but you would know better if your actually kickin the tires hard. You have Dena handy/local which is your ACE!!!

Keep us posted man!!!!!!

 

[Claybertrand]

I’ve been talking with the seller. This one will fit. Hoping I can swing it. There is nothing being made by any current maker I’d even put anywhere near this jacket. I don’t have a grail… but if I did, THIS IS IT.

Some of us only know our Grail when we see it. That's the truth.

 

[Claybertrand]

Smaller sized Frat Prep....looks like it COULD be a little flaky here and there but its not too far gone from what I see. Just worn. EDIT--It DOES look conditioned possibly so I don't know how much improvement can come from the new buyer.......

Those OG zippers........... they got me all hot and bothered...........

https://www.ebay.com/itm/185377485535?hash=item2b295bf2df:g:SecAAOSwAQBiMK0q

 

[Marc mndt]

Now is this asking price considered Top Dollar???? I mean, for vintage, and not a celebrated brand or maker, to me---its up there. I would say it's overpriced currently. I think if its intact with the original zippers and all, maybe its in the $600-650 mayyyyybe $700??? range max give or take.....but valuation is hard with these odd branded garments with no market comps. The condition besides the zippers seems very very good.

Yes $600 -$700 sounds a lot more reasonable but there wil never be a second one like this, let alone a proper sized one. What's an extra $300 for this priceless mega grail?

 

[Monitor]

Curiosity more than a find.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/917827363/size-40-us-50-euro-vintage-70s-black

 

[Coriu]

Some of us only know our Grail when we see it. That's the truth.

I remember once looking at fine rugs and being a bit overwhelmed and a Persian man told me to "buy the one that talks to you."

 

[ton312]

Another high asking price vintage Halfbelt. Size 38”-40”. I personally have become far more inclined to spend bigger money on originals.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/horsehide-sports-jacket-vtg-30s-40s-usa-half-belt-cinch-motorcycle-riding-/255468174687?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&_trksid=p2349624.m2548.l6249&mkrid=711-127632-2357

 

[Coriu]

DISCLAIMER: I realize this is an ASKING price we are talking about but I will address it as the price in general. We all know it will go for less.

To me, this jacket is overpriced but not unworthy per se. As I carefully straddle the fence here......

I think that it kinda sucks to ask so much for a jacket missing the chest pulls. I know this is splitting hairs here...... but just my stubborn sense of value with vintage pieces is that this you can ask top dollar when you basically have no flaws. Do the pockets look cool nonetheless??? YESSSS they do!!!! But that's not the point.

Just saying that you can't balk at the price as much when a jacket is fully intact with vintage zippers. They are the hardware.....the bling.....and the hard to find, pricey to buy, just as pricey to replace (or more) parts to the jacket that complete the package----FOR A TOP DOLLAR JACKET. I admit to being too into the zippers and almost, though not quite, a zipper snob. I love the cool old zippers---maybe too much. So maybe I'm a little more disappointed in their being gone on this jacket than some might be.

Now is this asking price considered Top Dollar???? I mean, for vintage, and not a celebrated brand or maker, to me---its up there. I would say it's overpriced currently. I think if its intact with the original zippers and all, maybe its in the $600-650 mayyyyybe $700??? range max give or take.....but valuation is hard with these odd branded garments with no market comps. The condition besides the zippers seems very very good.

The other side of the fence is the WELL, IS IT WORTH IT COMPARED TO NEW REPROS angle??? Which is I think a more Macro question and a well debated one. To me, given the price of quality repros, this original, one of a kind, unable to be purchased elsewhere (most likely) type of piece has its own value that the repros do not (and vice versa). But this larger debate is dead horse jerky by now in the lounge so I think this question will likely fall along the VINTAGE vs. HIGH END REPRO party lines that we have all seemed to dig in on.

Admittedly, as more of a collector than regular wearer, and loving vintage, I think the price is not unreasonable if looked at from the comparison to new high end retro jacket perspective.

Still, personally, its priced fairly substantially higher than what I would be willing to pay for it.

Part of the fun for me is in the hunt for these jackets and finding them, though increasingly rarely, in places that are NOT hipster vintage shops or other places where they are marked up and or exposed to the masses. Don't get me wrong---I love purchasing here in the Lounge if its ever possible to survive the BRUTAL SHARKS in my weightclass!! But the Small shops, flea markets, garage/estate sales, are all still fun to comb thru if I have the time. It's a little less fun, and less satisfying perhaps paying hipster mark up at a shop on Melrose.

All that said, the reality is that a cool true vintage jacket that fits is WHERE YOU FIND IT. You try to buy it when you see it if at all possible or the next time you see it will be in the HOW MANY NEW JACKETS DO YOU HAVE COMING......thread.

There is an intangible piece to all of this I rarely hear discussed. How does the jacket make one feel when you wear it? Visual appeal, technical correctness and proper fit are all important considerations related to value. But unlike other pieces of clothing, a leather jacket has an intense feel and related emotion(s) associated with it....at least for me. It is unlike any other piece of clothing.

When I was a young adult, I would not dream of wearing clothing worn by someone else. I don't care how much someone would have tried to convince me otherwise, I would have felt uncomfortable. In that sense, the most wondrous of vintage jackets would have had little value for me.

Today, as an older man, my mindset has completely changed. I have come to appreciate the value of being old and being comfortable in my own skin. Wearing a jacket that has flaws and/or doesn't fit quite right...that's the least of my problems. Everything about me now is flawed and doesn't look or work right. LOL

For me, there is something completely magical about wearing an older jacket. The allure of antique furniture baffled me in my younger years. How the hell could someone value something that's flawed? Now, I "get it." Like me, these vintage things have lived many years and have many stories to tell. Appreciating such older things is, in a way, expressing an acceptance of myself.

All that said, I can't dictate how someone can feel in a jacket. It's a bit like debating whether older or younger women are better. Our grails in life evolve over time and , in that sense, the values of certain things are dynamic and difficult to quantify. The girl we thought was perfect in our 20's may do nothing nothing for us 20 years later, and vice versa

 

[Wildhorses]

What a gem. What a ridiculous price.

View attachment 416906 View attachment 416905

https://www.etsy.com/listing/121128...cc&utm_term=0&btn_ref=srctok-be22233a220842b7

Funny price, especially when you know that the words "Bon marché" on the label in french mean "cheap". Nice looking jacket anyway.
Some cheaper Hercules HB in Japan :
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144406596756?hash=item219f4dcc94:g:fAgAAOSwk~FiBJ~E

 

[dubpynchon]

This is mine y'all. I sent it to Aero so they could update their pattern for their Brando jacket and Ken sent me the letter of authenticity. Hopefully it'll sell at some point.

 

[ton312]

Funny price, especially when you know that the words "Bon marché" on the label in french mean "cheap". Nice looking jacket anyway.
Some cheaper Hercules HB in Japan :
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144406596756?hash=item219f4dcc94:g:fAgAAOSwk~FiBJ~E
View attachment 417121

The name “Bon Marché” actually refers to the west coast department store where it was sold! Later to become Macey’s and not part of the Bon Ton group which owned Carson’s and Bergner’s as well as The Bon Ton store here in the Midwest.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bon_Marché

 

[morrison2951]

Tony, she's a beauty!

 

[Marc mndt]

There is an intangible piece to all of this I rarely hear discussed. How does the jacket make one feel when you wear it?

Whenever I wear a jacket that's new to me, whether repro of vintage, I feel like a million bucks. With repro's that feeling diminishes over time yet with vintage jackets the feelings stays.

 

[morrison2951]

Whenever I wear a jacket that's new to me, whether repro of vintage, I feel like a million bucks. With repro's that feeling diminishes over time yet with vintage jackets the feelings stays.

Agreed.

I only just recently added a vintage '80's 2nd gen label Vanson with its talon pulls and all. Love it!

Uh oh. It's created a monster!