Gustin L1 Horween CXL

[Seb Lucas]

I think it looks ok. Will look better with some wear. One piece back? An A2 has that. The top chest pocket looks slightly odd with no zip and that thick ridge. I'd be interested but the leather's too thick for my taste at 3-3.5 oz. If it were a medium horsehide I'd maybe buy one.

 

[handymike]

I like both simple AND fancy backs!

 

[dudewuttheheck]

I don't like Gustin very much at all. I dislike their attitude toward their business and what they actually make. However, I am definitely a bit of a denim snob so I am inclined to dislike them.

The leather jacket is possibly the most dull, uninspired, and unlikable product they have made. Most of what they make at least pretends to be good. This is just so drab I could never wear it.

 

[Sloan1874]

I think their briefcase may be a new low, tbh.

 

[Plumbline]

It's funny how certain features on certain jackets get rave reviews .. and the same features on others get slated .....

e.g.

One Piece Back

On an A2 .... an absolute prerequisite and a feature which almost defines the jacket ( no fit issues incidentally if it's cut right )
On a Cafe Racer ... a valuable differentiator
On the Gustin L1 .. it's plain and uninspiring

Two Piece Sleeve

On a vintage MC jacket again a much lauded feature
On a vintage jacket a thing of value and differentiation
On the Gustin L1 .. hardy a mention

I think the L1 is built to a price ( the raw material taking greater importance than the construction ... I read reviews about thin thread and equally low quality lining) ..... equally .... I don't think this is a Fedora Lounge targetted product and is more a "Style Forum" targetted product. I can't recall any 1920's - 1960's jacket of similar simple construction or features ( one piece back, two piece sleeve, non zip single lip chest pocket ). It's more a modern simple leather jacket made from top quality leather. It's not a reproduction and with the exception of a button cuff ( which isn't really a vintage cut) doesnt take any vintage styling cues.

Given it's simplicity I'd imagine it would wear and age really well .... if simplicity was really the design brief they could lose the chest pocket and the button cuffs ...... a straight cuff would be MUCH easier to adjust for fit and the chest pocket is superfluous on this jacket IMHO. No adjusters .. no flexibillity ( cinch straps, bi-swing back, elasticated areas ) ... just a simple jacket made of top notch leather.

I like it ... but it's not what I'm looking for in a jacket .... I wouldn't expect many on here to be inspired as it isn't really based on any of the features that many on here find inspiring ( myself included). At $649 it is very competitively priced for the US market and that a huge plus IMHO.

Just MHO

 

[Sloan1874]

I think the A-2's back is a different proposition: it's a mid-weight panel, tucked into a broad waistband. The Gustin is just a flat panel devoid of any attempt to shape the jacket. I think that's the thing, though, it's just a big tube of leather. Maybe a set of cinch straps might have helped, but it just hangs there looking rather unfinished. Also, the collar looks to short in proportion to the rest, which adds to the unbalanced look.
As you say, probably made down to a price and something intended for a different market, fussy bastards that we are...

 

[Seb Lucas]

The more I see it the more the back grows on me. I have never heard of Gustin. Maybe that helps.

 

[navetsea]

from the picture, looks very square no hourglass at all around the waist.

 

[Fanch]

The more I see it the more the back grows on me. I have never heard of Gustin. Maybe that helps.

Their denim jeans are nice, particularly their Okayamas and Zimbabwe jeans, but have little interest in most of their other stuff. Not saying anything is wrong with Gustin's other offerings, just not on my radar, including their leather jackets.

 

[Edward]

I remember the last thread on this. For me it's just too under-designed, too basic. I'm sure it's practical and the hide is nice, but.... it looks like a Cro Magnon up against the likes of a Highwayman's homosapien, if that makes any sense. The proportions look wrong to me - breast pocket too narrow, collar undersized, but that's subjective, of course. In any case, looking across the Gustin range, it's readily apparent that I'm not their target market (their jeans are all much too low in the waist and narrow in the leg for my tastes), so I would assume that while the design doesn't appeal to me, it may well have a lot going for it from the pov of someone interested in contemporary fashion. One thing I do quite like is the apparent lack of zip on the breast pocket, though (assuming there's also a secure, inside pocket). Great for gloves and such.

 

[handymike]

I'm not quite sure who the jacket is targeted to. On Reddit they are calling it "Dad-core", so are they aiming at us?

 

[A-1]

I actually like how it looks from the back, and I think the jacket will gain a lot of its character with wear. And to me that’s a good thing.
(The problem is that many jackets on TFL do not get worn enough to actually gain character. Most seem to be sold off quite quickly again, at least that is my superficial impression. No offence to anyone here, just an observation)

 

[Grayland]

[QUOTE="A-1, post: 2122800, member: 34709
(The problem is that many jackets on TFL do not get worn enough to actually gain character. Most seem to be sold off quite quickly again, at least that is my superficial impression. No offence to anyone here, just an observation)[/QUOTE]

I agree 100%. Either they are sold off (at quite a loss), or the buyer owns so many leather jackets that none of them ever get any serious wear. I'm guilty of both.

 

[A-1]

To me that’s a actually sad thing. Most of us landed here because we don’t want to be part of that mass consumption world out there. And yet we keep buying and selling stuff. We’re talking about patina and wear showing photos of jackets and jeans that have been worn for months instead of years or decades.

 

[navetsea]

To me that’s a actually sad thing. Most of us landed here because we don’t want to be part of that mass consumption world out there. And yet we keep buying and selling stuff. We’re talking about patina and wear showing photos of jackets and jeans that have been worn for months instead of years or decades.

Activity we do in the jackets matters too... I'm trying my best to wear my small number of jackets equally all year round the past 2 years, and I take frequent pictures of each to keep a record of their "character development" I must say the most evolution I get on them were from putting them into washing machine than through wearing constantly... I can't help it, my daily activity is not enough to get any serious thing going into the leather other than initial creasing, the patina thing never happens to me and my indoor living.

 

[Sloan1874]

I've really tried to revolve my jackets, but I do find myself favouring ones over others, though it changes from year to year. Last year, I wore my A-2s a lot, this year, it's been my LB-2, though all of them have got an airing. It can only be a matter of weeks, though, when I reach for my Dust Bowl...

 

[Fanch]

I've really tried to revolve my jackets, but I do find myself favouring ones over others, though it changes from year to year. Last year, I wore my A-2s a lot, this year, it's been my LB-2, though all of them have got an airing. It can only be a matter of weeks, though, when I reach for my Dust Bowl...

I understand full well what you are saying and conclude that it's not our jackets that are works in progress but us. Early on I thought the baggy look was the correct look but have found my tastes and point of view have changed. I now prefer a more fitted look which is far more difficult to obtain as there is far less margin of error than when starting with a baggy jacket, as any article of clothing that is too tight is far worse than something that is too loose. I suspect that Gustin recognized this when they designed their jackets to be a loose/baggy fit, much like mall leather jackets do the same. For the most part when I see people wearing leather jackets when I am out and about, virtually every leather jacket looks baggy and ill fitting to my eye. Before I became infected with The Fedora Lounge virus years ago, I would have been more than satisfied with a Gustin leather jacket but not now.

 

[nick123]

I think the A-2's back is a different proposition: it's a mid-weight panel, tucked into a broad waistband. The Gustin is just a flat panel devoid of any attempt to shape the jacket. I think that's the thing, though, it's just a big tube of leather. Maybe a set of cinch straps might have helped, but it just hangs there looking rather unfinished. Also, the collar looks to short in proportion to the rest, which adds to the unbalanced look.
As you say, probably made down to a price and something intended for a different market, fussy bastards that we are...

That back reminds me of Dav's one piece back Teamster? from a few years back.

 

[Fanch]

That back reminds me of Dav's one piece back Teamster? from a few years back.

Nick, I don't think that the Gustin leather jacket and Aero's Teamster are comparable as the Teamster is a significantly longer coat, and even Dav's Storse Teamster made by the Will Lauder regime a few years back, as I recall, still had the back yoke but no half belt / side straps that IMO adversely affected the overall look.

If you look at the Gustin and my Teamster taken from the back soon after I got it, one can see that the two are not really comparable, even though I ordered my Teamster with a 28.5" back rather than the standard 30.5" for a size 42.



After I posted here, I looked again at the pictures. My Teamster was new when the above pic was taken but found the coat is no longer stiff but has softened and gradually molded to my body over time. However, my Teamster was not IMO designed to be a trim fitting jacket, although it does not feel baggy, even when I don't layer underneath, which I frequently do during the winter as it is my cold/foul weather coat. The combination of action back and half belt design makes the Teamster highly functional, and with the back yoke included all give, to my eye, a pleasing aesthetic appearance.

 

[Sloan1874]

Look at the back of the Highwayman. It's still pretty simple, but the hem at the bottom and the yoke make it feel 'finished':