How many new jackets do you have coming (and how many potential ones)?

[Rich22]

This is what the hide looks like:

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/field-leathers.100211/page-48#post-2816335

It looks very pretty, I must say. Is that sample yours? How does it react if you scratch it with a fingernail? Thanks.

Edit: If a pigment 'ink' of sorts was applied to absorbent aniline leather it would be absorbed and stain the top layer, and would be there permanently. If it was applied to finished water resistant leather then it would likely sit on top, as it would when applied to glossy photo paper as opposed to absorbent copy paper. Perhaps this is akin to what is done to blackened-brown leather? The pigment 'ink' sits on top until it's rubbed off?

 

[Marc mndt]

It looks very pretty, I must say. Is that sample yours? How does it react if you scratch it with a fingernail? Thanks.

It's really hard to scratch, even if you use something hard and sharp (thanks to/due to the pigment top coat).

I say due to because that also means it won't develop character as fast as non-pigment dyed leather.

 

[Rich22]

It's really hard to scratch, even if you use something hard and sharp (thanks to/due to the pigment top coat).

I say due to because that also means it won't develop character as fast as non-pigment dyed leather.

Ok, it seems more than a mere pigment ink has been applied in that case. Do you think the top coat contains any additional colouring? If it's a transparent layer I think 'top coat' is infinitely more appropriate than 'pigment'. By the way, I edited the post you replied to, to add some comments.

 

[Marc mndt]

Ok, it seems more than a mere pigment ink has been applied in that case. Do you think the top coat contains any additional colouring? If it's a transparent layer I think 'top coat' is infinitely more appropriate than 'pigment'.

Semi-Aniline: Leather that is aniline dyed and coated with matching pigment and/or other topical finishes to even out the color and add protection. Also called aniline-plus or protected aniline.

 

[Rich22]

It would be considered semi-aniline with just a synthetic sealer applied even without colouring, as it radically changes the characteristics of the leather.

This little diagram I stumbled across is nice, and shows how despite being in its own category, oil pull/waxed/oiled leather would fall somewhere between aniline and semi aniline. I'll take care to ensure all future leather goods I buy fall squarely in this category.

https://www.paulfordleatherproducts.co.nz/identifying-leather.html

 

[Monitor]

I am not sure all leather is dyed. The off-white Trojan Night Rider I purchased this year has a top coat of paint. Due to poor storage in humid China, the paint was flaking off. Under the paint, the leather is a grayish-green color. It seemed that thin layers of hide spilt off with the paint coat.
I do not see where a dye was used?

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Not all, of course but most is 'cause it's like I said earlier, leather that hasn't been dyed is exactly the color of your jacket, under the finish It's gray or very lightly blue-ish and not very nice to look at at all - but - It's perfect for bright top coat, such as white. Some would argue that that's the natural color of chrome-excelled tanning and they wouldn't be wrong but not all chrome tanned leather turns out that way as you can add any color to the CX solution.
Vegetable tanned leather is more brown, due to the properties of the tanning solution which tends to be brown-ish but again, some dye is added to it as well as the color wouldn't be nearly as rich and nice as what people expect veg-tanned hide is.

But all that is just one more thing that adds to the confusion; For instance, acrylic top coat vs. dyed surface. Clearly not the same thing, not by a long shot, but by just going with terms such as aniline or whatever, the differentiation gets blurred even further which, to me, is a much more substantial than whether a piece of hide's been covered with dye or soaked in it.

Any leather that has any kind of color already has pigment applied to the surface by default and since all brown leather is dyed (to some extent), physical properties of leather that's surface dyed vs. the kind dyed all the way thru are negligible. Functionality wise, it's the same thing.

However, heavy, leather with acrylic finish applied to it is completely different than the other sort. That's the kind of leather that's considerably more waterproof and indeed intended for riding. Like your Trojan.

In short, dye don't make no top coat. Dyed surface is simply that - Dyed leather. Top coat or actual finish if you will, is another thing.

 

[Monitor]

Respectfully disagree. Dave Himel has been studying leather tanning in depth for many years. He has visited multiple different tanneries in Japan, Europe, and the US -- sometimes multiple times -- and interacted extensively and intimately with the tanners. The notion that he is uninformed about the leather he sells and/or no more knowledgeable than the average jacket enthusiast is nonsensical. Dave may not be as knowledgeable as the actual tanners, but he knows exponentially more than most enthusiasts. I have spoken with Dave about this precise issue. His has an impressive command of the intricacies of leather tanning.

I didn't mean Dave himself but the info that's on the website doesn't really say very much about any of the leather they use that's of any particular use to the consumer. There's a lot written down but all that we can essentially learn is that all of their leathers is 1.2 to 1.3 mm, pigmented, waxy & that they smell like mimosa. And they're tanned in Japan. Or Italy. But that's okay. I believe that even that's going into excessive detail that isn't really necessary for any of us.

Except then they go on about something they termed Full grain suede which couldn't possibly make any less sense!
Sanded leather by definition has no grain! It's been sanded off. It's gone! That's the whole point of sanding. I don't know how Dave allowed for that to sit on his page for so long but it ultimately doesn't matter as the average consumer won't have a clue what any of it really means and they'll still get a top quality suede (as opposed to split hide or maybe even rough-out).

 

[jonbuilder]

Not all, of course but most is 'cause it's like I said earlier, leather that hasn't been dyed is exactly the color of your jacket, under the finish It's gray or very lightly blue-ish and not very nice to look at at all - but - It's perfect for bright top coat, such as white. Some would argue that that's the natural color of chrome-excelled tanning and they wouldn't be wrong but not all chrome tanned leather turns out that way as you can add any color to the CX solution.
Vegetable tanned leather is more brown, due to the properties of the tanning solution which tends to be brown-ish but again, some dye is added to it as well as the color wouldn't be nearly as rich and nice as what people expect veg-tanned hide is.

But all that is just one more thing that adds to the confusion; For instance, acrylic top coat vs. dyed surface. Clearly not the same thing, not by a long shot, but by just going with terms such as aniline or whatever, the differentiation gets blurred even further which, to me, is a much more substantial than whether a piece of hide's been covered with dye or soaked in it.

Any leather that has any kind of color already has pigment applied to the surface by default and since all brown leather is dyed (to some extent), physical properties of leather that's surface dyed vs. the kind dyed all the way thru are negligible. Functionality wise, it's the same thing.

However, heavy, leather with acrylic finish applied to it is completely different than the other sort. That's the kind of leather that's considerably more waterproof and indeed intended for riding. Like your Trojan.

In short, dye don't make no top coat. Dyed surface is simply that - Dyed leather. Top coat or actual finish if you will, is another thing.

Thank you for explaining monior. I now understand some of the various processes for preparing a hide o to be made into a jacket better. I do agree with you, a lot of us put too much emphasis on the preparation of the leather and would be better-served concentrationing of the jacket design and construction.

 

[Will Zach]

I got this Bates CR for a decent price off fleabay. I was attracted by the good shape the jacket is in and the fact that the measurements looked spot on for me (we shall see about that). Can anyone tell me what decade the jacket is from? Looks 60-70s to me. @handymike?

 

[handymike]

The smaller shoulder gussets indicate an earlier date- probably mid sixties... before the teardrop zipper pulls, gold lining, and gloriously large collars. Great score!

 

[Rich22]

I got this Bates CR for a decent price off fleabay. I was attracted by the good shape the jacket is in and the fact that the measurements looked spot on for me (we shall see about that). Can anyone tell me what decade the jacket is from? Looks 60-70s to me. @handymike?

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Tremendous jacket!

 

[Will Zach]

^^
Thanks, hope it fits, you never know with these vintage things...

 

[handymike]

I find the 40 to be slightly large for me (I’m really a 38), but comfortable. Mine has the larger action back, so it probably feels bigger than your incoming one. You know who to PM if the fit is off .

 

[Will Zach]

^^
Absolutely. If the fit is off I will measure key measurements as accurately as I can and fire off a PM to you...

 

[Carlos840]

I just received these pics from Stu, i am in awe, she is an absolute beauty!
The hide is a custom batch of anthracite grey moose hide from Finland, 2.2mm thick. Unfortunately this hide is never going to be available as standard. I cannot wait to handle this beast and see it for real, she looks amazing!

 

[Canuck Panda]

That's some very serious leather. Super thick super soft. This is the thickest I've seen for Moose. Or Elg as they are called over there in Europe. Very nice. Going to LW page to check it out now.

 

[Carlos840]

That's some very serious leather. Super thick super soft. This is the thickest I've seen for Moose. Or Elg as they are called over there in Europe. Very nice. Going to LW page to check it out now.

There won't be anything to see on the LW website, since this is a custom project and he is never going to have this hide for sale he decided not to put the pictures on his website (at least that's what he told me a few weeks ago). No point advertising something you can't sell i guess.

 

[Bfd70]

@Carlos840 just sell the rest of your awesome collection and be known as “that big guy in the badass moose jacket” from now on.

 

[JMax]

I just received these pics from Stu, i am in awe, she is an absolute beauty!
The hide is a custom batch of anthracite grey moose hide from Finland, 2.2mm thick. Unfortunately this hide is never going to be available as standard. I cannot wait to handle this beast and see it for real, she looks amazing!

That may be your best one yet. Incredible.

I noticed no crown main zip?

 

[Marc mndt]

I just received these pics from Stu, i am in awe, she is an absolute beauty!
The hide is a custom batch of anthracite grey moose hide from Finland, 2.2mm thick. Unfortunately this hide is never going to be available as standard. I cannot wait to handle this beast and see it for real, she looks amazing!

I love the studs, super cool.