Fine Creek Leather

[Captain Sensible]

You’ll need to pull your order in too right? What you planning?

 

[ton312]

^wow. That’s some news. Unfortunate if true. Meanwhile the prices across the board have been driving upward. Maybe the leather crash will hit in 2019 and we can go back to ‘09 prices. I won’t hold my breath but I will dare to dream.

 

[ton312]

He’s got a loyal fan base here. Any of his regulars hear this news? Shame if this is true but it’s got to be a very hard business to sustain. I’ve talked some shit about his stuff in the past but he’s certainly an unbelievably talented guy. Would be a real loss to us jacketeer’s. Shame for the leather jacket world if this does in fact come to fruition. Although, kudos to him for giving fair warning. Seems that’s not always the case with certain makers.

 

[sinnedk]

Himel going out of BIZ, wow thats sucky, i thought he and goodwear have work until like 2030

 

[handymike]

Do you have the story from him? Or is it hearsay? Is he discontinuing custom orders, or going out of business? Please be certain of your facts before you post this stuff.

 

[willyto]

Do you have the story from him? Or is it hearsay? Is he discontinuing custom orders, or going out of business? Please be certain of your facts before you post this stuff.

Exactly.

I can't imagine how someone who's attending many events, going to the CC show in japan, making collaborations with bootmakers like Viberg, unique designs for Clutch Cafe and in general making lots of jackets is closing business all of a sudden when it's his lifelihood (afaik).

 

[AeroFan_07]

Sorry to be a little forward...but without data it's just another opinion.

I see you had a tough experience, but let's stick to what you know for certain and have observed as factual. Just my $.02

 

[Rich22]

but the way they make the epaulette less version is borderline madness, hope they don't charge extra for that

That's probably the funniest/stupidest thing I've ever seen on this board! They just cut the bloody epaulette off!! Where's a facepalm emoji when you need one?

 

[Rich22]

So they all seem to have the highly grained right panel off the bat. Wasn’t sure if FCL distressed their jackets just for the Instagram pics or if that’s how they look when new.

Looks bad doesn't it. Mismatched left and right main panels looks like an awful screw up, rather than something intentional.

 

[Rich22]

Yes, that's their trademark.

Crikey.

And I wanted to like this company after they named their Cafe Racer after me...

 

[Rich22]

The size 44 leon fits a bit snugly, especially in the chest. The 22 inch chest, I knew, was likely to be very tight and risky for me as I am better with a 22.5 to 23-inch chest. Limited arm range. I just figured that if I hold off from wearing it much and stretching it out, it would probably fit better after I lose a bit more weight in the upcoming couple of months. I think the 20 inch shoulders works well and the tapering from the arms to the opening is not too bad (21.4) and so not as tight on my midsection as i had thought it might be. Again, I do mean to lose about 15-20 pounds and so think that this would fit great at that point. What do you think?

Please take a look at the pictures and tell me what you think.

Sorry, mate, but clearly looks too small. Best return.

And it has 20" shoulders in a size 44 but measures only 21.4" around the chest??!! What the heck is up with that? Sounds VERY wrong, if you measured in the usual manner.

 

[handymike]

I contacted him in the beginning of the year wanting to place an order for winter and he replied you might want to order soon because I may not be doing custom work by then. It shocked me and I was kinda offended as a customer willing to pay that type of money on a garment. I was just shopping around and felt like I got pushed in a corner having to BUY NOW. At least he could have gave me a little bit more details on the matter. He almost seemed like he didn’t want to be bothered with questions. I really didn’t get a good experience with him. But he makes a damn good jacket.

I’m sorry to hear that was your experience, but If you know Dave then this makes more sense....He’s not going anywhere. He would rather make OTR than bend over backwards for custom numbers, but he still does them! Just look at the beauty he made for @Mysteryo this week.
Now, stop spreading rumors!

 

[Coke20x]

Sorry, mate, but clearly looks too small. Best return.

And it has 20" shoulders in a size 44 but measures only 21.4" around the chest??!! What the heck is up with that? Sounds VERY wrong, if you measured in the usual manner.

Sorry for the confusion. It's 21.4 in the opening near the bottom. The chest is 22 inches.

 

[sinnedk]

Looks bad doesn't it. Mismatched left and right main panels looks like an awful screw up, rather than something intentional.

i prefer the mismatched grain looks cool to me.

 

[Robbie79]

Himel says he may be out of the biz this year which is disappointing because I really wanted one from him. The only time I could order is next year. Is cupra lining warm and what is SB and JL? Who sells Thedi? Thanks

JL = Johnson Leathers in San Francisco (very good reputation and high quality jackets, open for any customizations, very nice to deal with), Thedi (either directly, they're located in Greece - Theodoros, the owner is very nice to deal with and the jackets he make are top notch quality and very unique, thedileathers@gmail.com or from Thurston Bros. in the US), SB = Simmons Bilt Scotland (similar quality as Aero as many of their staff are former Aero, open for any customizations, IMO very nice to deal with, especially Debs (Deborah Toohey) even if their reputation in TFL is not the best for many good reasons. I think you can't go wrong with either of them.

 

[Rich22]

Sorry for the confusion. It's 21.4 in the opening near the bottom. The chest is 22 inches.

My mistake, no need to apologise. Still unusually snug in the chest at just 22”.

 

[Rich22]

Re

i prefer the mismatched grain looks cool to me.

Each to their own. I don’t mind mismatched leather if we’re talking top and bottom panels on the back or on a sleeve or whatnot, (so long as L and R sleeves match) but side by side mismatched strikes me as entirely wrong. No symmetry or balance. It’s like when sleeves are different shades of brown to each other, it just bugs me.

 

[Superfluous]

Regarding the rumor that Himel is discontinuing custom jackets, Himel replies: "Incorrect. I am just trying to develop a ready-to-wear line." In other words, Himel is offering BOTH custom and ready-to-wear jackets. This is nothing new, as Himel's jackets have been available OTR for several years in a few stores.

“The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”
~ Mark Twain

 

[sinnedk]

Re

Each to their own. I don’t mind mismatched leather if we’re talking top and bottom panels on the back or on a sleeve or whatnot, (so long as L and R sleeves match) but side by side mismatched strikes me as entirely wrong. No symmetry or balance. It’s like when sleeves are different shades of brown to each other, it just bugs me.

oh man then some of the footwear i have would drive you insane lots of scarring

Regarding the rumor that Himel is discontinuing custom jackets, Himel replies: "Incorrect. I am just trying to develop a ready-to-wear line." In other words, Himel is offering BOTH custom and ready-to-wear jackets. This is nothing new, as Himel's jackets have been available OTR for several years in a few stores.

“The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”
~ Mark Twain

thanks for clarifying, Himel is your favorite IIRC?

quick question do you know if on a custom order he would remove the zipper gap on the kensington or frobisher?

 

[navetsea]

Re

Each to their own. I don’t mind mismatched leather if we’re talking top and bottom panels on the back or on a sleeve or whatnot, (so long as L and R sleeves match) but side by side mismatched strikes me as entirely wrong. No symmetry or balance. It’s like when sleeves are different shades of brown to each other, it just bugs me.

maybe those people who like old bmw s1000rr can appreciate it