Five Star Leather Jackets

[MotionDesign]

Wow! That is a gorgeous leather. As usual, I had no idea they offered this. Is there an upcharge for it? What colors does it come in?

Also, it looks like your wrists will be tight. 5” wrist is very narrow but you can stretch that a bit with a shoe stretcher

They offer 2mm CHL leather in black and brown. The jacket was $350 plus shipping, so there is an additional cost for the leather and custom work.

Thank you for the tip about using the shoe stretchers to loosen the wrist. It's 5" when zipped so hopefully it will not be necessary.

 

[KBlake]

They offer 2mm CHL leather in black and brown. The jacket was $350 plus shipping, so there is an additional cost for the leather and custom work.

Thank you for the tip about using the shoe stretchers to loosen the wrist. It's 5" when zipped so hopefully it will not be necessary.

Oh I didn’t see that it was a zip closure. That should be perfect then.

 

[hughesovka]

I still need to post a detailed review of my new Five Star but i wanted to let everyone know that I'm working on some new vintage-inspired labels for Shawn. I'm a designer by profession and while his labels aren't bad by any means, they could use some work, especially compared to the big time repro jacket makers. I'm not doing it for any serious money, i just asked him to knock a few bucks off the next jacket I get from him.

 

[ton312]

I still need to post a detailed review of my new Five Star but i wanted to let everyone know that I'm working on some new vintage-inspired labels for Shawn. I'm a designer by profession and while his labels aren't bad by any means, they could use some work, especially compared to the big time repro jacket makers. I'm not doing it for any serious money, i just asked him to knock a few bucks off the next jacket I get from him.

Perfect idea! Please share some images when you have them ready. I wanted Shawn to revamp his labels too, and use his native language and text but he did not want to change what he had.

 

[hughesovka]

Perfect idea! Please share some images when you have them ready. I wanted Shawn to revamp his labels too, and use his native language and text but he did not want to change what he had.

Will do, I'd love feedback from you guys. I'm outlining everything right now, the real work is going to start when i get back to the city and all my illustration programs and Wacom tablet. That's how they designed labels back in the 30s and 40s right?

 

[Aloysius]

is made from their 2mm CHL

Oh no… I’m glad you benefited from @MrProper, @ton312, and @Canuck Panda’s experiences but you should have searched their names plus “CHL”…

 

[Aloysius]

I wanted Shawn to revamp his labels too, and use his native language and text but he did not want to change what he had.

In Urdu, done up in embroidered Arabic calligraphy? That would be beautiful!

 

[ton312]

In Urdu, done up in embroidered Arabic calligraphy? That would be beautiful!

Yes exactly!

 

[Hobbes1]

The bootleg horsehide Thedi has been delivered! Unfortunately, I'm in the city at work so i have two fingers crossed that the DHL man put it in the package chute and not just outside my building in the middle of Brooklyn

Update: the package was safe and sound, and Shawn knocked it out of the park. More to follow but here's some quick closeups of the whiskey horsehide. It's great, uniformly thick (i made sure to specify), and a lot less "waxy" than the CXL horsehide from Aero

That is a very attractive hide you are showing. I'm interested in your review and especially how pliable the leather is in the pocket areas. When I got mine, they did do one thing I didn't want which was to put the inside pocket on the interior, left side of the jacket. So there are multiple pockets/leather outlines in a small area and thus not (yet?) as pliable as I'd like the jacket to be overall. I need to wear it more, for sure, to facilitate break in. Cheers!

 

[Aloysius]

Yes exactly!

Marvelous. I got a record recently that was pressed by EMI Pakistan in the early 70s and the cover art has the coolest calligraphy going across the front.

 

[MotionDesign]

Oh no… I’m glad you benefited from @MrProper, @ton312, and @Canuck Panda’s experiences but you should have searched their names plus “CHL”

I did. I don't mind a stiff jacket. Also, this is a new 2mm CHL which is supposed to be softer then the original 2.2mm previously offered. Anyhow, I still think Ton312's brown half belt suit of armor jacket is the most memorable garment I've seen in the last decade ;-)

 

[Aloysius]

I don't mind a stiff jacket.

So you think, as did they. If you want to go all-in, ask him for the SXL leather next time…

 

[ton312]

The CHL jacket did look awesome from the back. Front was a train wreck of sorts. Most uncomfortable thing I’ve ever worn in my entire life.

I can’t think of a worse leather for a jacket. I remember furiously beating it with a mini sledge hammer and literally…no change.

 

[Aloysius]

The CHL jacket did look awesome from the back. Front was a train wreck of sorts. Most uncomfortable thing I’ve ever worn in my entire life.
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I can’t think of a worse leather for a jacket. I remember furiously beating it with a mini sledge hammer and literally…no change.

Could be nice to put on one of those display stands I suppose, though I’d be more interested in seeing how it handles a trip to the shooting range.

 

[MrProper]

This CHL, which is suitable for making Roman breastplates, I believe no longer exists.
If the new one is like the 2mm waterproof HH, then it's really good.

 

[MotionDesign]

Thank you for the feedback and suggestions @Aloysius . The jacket certainly looks good in the picture. I should find out how it wears in 2 weeks or less. Btw, what is the SXL leather?

 

[Aloysius]

Thank you for the feedback and suggestions @Aloysius . The jacket certainly looks good in the picture. I should find out how it wears in 2 weeks or less. Btw, what is the SXL leather?

I assume you read about the old CHL–SXL was the even heavier version of that…

 

[MotionDesign]

I vaguely remember. It was almost 3mm thick, right? Could be perfect if one has an urge to hug a cactus.

 

[Eddiesuave]

The CHL jacket did look awesome from the back. Front was a train wreck of sorts. Most uncomfortable thing I’ve ever worn in my entire life.
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I can’t think of a worse leather for a jacket. I remember furiously beating it with a mini sledge hammer and literally…no change.

Disregarding your opinions on the overall stiffness of the leather this is actually a really nice looking leather.

 

[hughesovka]

Here's the rundown on the HH aviator finally (pardon the PJ pants, still at my dad's house on vacation). When i ordered this time, i was more exact in the measurements i sent shawn. I made sure to add a taper to the hem and a slight taper to the sleeves. I did love my grizzly from Shawn, but lack of additional input from me meant that it had a much more relaxed fit from my aero, and with a real set of bell-bottoms for sleeves. This time, Shawn did it perfectly. The fit is nice and trim, but i can still layer without restricting movement.
As for the whiskey horsehide, it's beautiful. I'm not as versed as many here in leather, but I know crummy leather and this stuff is nice. It has a nice solid heft to it, but it's really quite soft. The whiskey color is beautiful, a lot of the natural character of the hide is visible. The lighting in my dad's kitchen isn't really doing it any justice. I have a long way to go breaking it in, but i did wear it squirrel hunting with the dogs and the old man. All in all, this jacket proves the quality for value that Shawn is providing is still unrivaled as far as i know. Also i don't know how much whiskey horsehide shawn has, so you might want to jump on it

Also @Hobbes1 this one has the left side interior pocket like yours, which I'm not wild about but I can live with it