Jeans

[53Effie]

Nick, I'm guessing those are Iron Hearts. I have a pair of 634S's that I like really well too. I think I paid $280 at sale time last Fall. I use mine a lot for riding. They make me feel almost invincible, even though I know that is not quite true. I would buy more and have been dropping hints to Mrs Santa about some super blacks. We'll see....

 

[Dav]

Nick, I'm guessing those are Iron Hearts. I have a pair of 634S's that I like really well too. I think I paid $280 at sale time last Fall. I use mine a lot for riding. They make me feel almost invincible, even though I know that is not quite true. I would buy more and have been dropping hints to Mrs Santa about some super blacks. We'll see....

Yes Mike they are Iron Heart 9634z. I would have said the ideal riding jean.

 

[kyboots]

Yeah! I read that bad article that tried to made me feel guilty as I sat in my T R jeans this weekend. I liked them, they looked good (importantly I thought they made me look good) and I worked in them that day. A splurge for some expensive jeans ever so often is fine. I paid for them and high end jeans can be used in the work place for many of us right now. Jeans and a sport coat have been the acceptable style. I like the look! So be it.---John

 

[apba1166]

I have some Japanese (expensive) denim and like them too--one of things I like is you can get them unwashed and unsanforized and deep indigo like the old days (at least my old days), and the cuts fit me well. I never liked all the stonewash stuff, or the baggy seats, and am not a big fan of light blue in any kind clothes, so by the mid-70s I basically avoided wearing those pre-wash light blue jeans for many years (decades!). Recently I discovered you could get Levi 501's in the unwashed unsanforized state. Maybe you always could--but I never saw them in stores. So for $29 on sale online I got Rigid Brown and some other lighter brown and like them a lot. I think these are great value. I am a 34W, 33+ inseam (even 32 if the rise is low enough). I bought TTS for waist and 36 length. They are now, several washes later, 34W (1st wearing you have to wiggle a bit but they stretch back) and 33L.

 

[Lefty]

If you really want them like the old days, from the old days, you've got to pay up.

 

[apba1166]

No kidding. I have only one pair left, and those aren't even 60s, they're from '72-74 with a lot of patches from the hitchhiking days. Maybe I should get them insured.

 

[Mr Badger]

Seeing as this is likely to be the last fair weather weekend before the Autumn kicks in (bringing rain, rain and, you guessed it, rain), I decided to do a de-stink of the worst offenders among my selvedge jeans - suffice to say, the combo of a desk job and sweet-smelling denim isn't on the cards, especially if you just wash 'em a coupla times a year in cold water, using Woolite... so I gave five pairs a good dunking and rubbing with biological washing liquid and a go over with gold water and the shower head, just in the posterior area, so they deffo got clean but didn't shrink round the waist/leg... after all, that is the only way to keep 'em sweet-smelling, you can forget the 'freezer trick', non-bio washing liquid, Woolite, dry cleaning or travel wash - if it stinks, you gotta go with the heavy approach!

Still, many of these pairs are eight-to-ten years' old, and they look'n'wear better every season... from left: LVC 1933, LVC S1944, LVC 1955, LVC 1920 201 & Lee 101B

 

[TrenchGuy]

Do you guys consider 14 oz. denim heavy-duty? Because one shop in Finland that sells workwear also sells basic 5-pocket jeans that are 14 oz. denim and they are really cheap, only around 50 euros.

 

[boushi_mania]

It's about as heavy as you'll find in most mall shops, but it's really more of a medium weight, if anything. See Iron Heart for jeans that are much heavier.

 

[Mr Badger]

Do you guys consider 14 oz. denim heavy-duty? Because one shop in Finland that sells workwear also sells basic 5-pocket jeans that are 14 oz. denim and they are really cheap, only around 50 euros.

IMHO, the weight of the denim isn't really the issue, as I've seen Iron Heart jeans that have worn thru in the usual places, seemingly just as quickly as lighter pairs.

What you're after is really a good quality denim - i.e. is it true selvedge cloth that's been tightly woven on an old loom using top quality cotton and veg-dyed, or is it just a modern 'blown together' denim which, although it will feel heavy, is actually just thicker than most mall jeans and will wear thru in no time...

As I've pointed out on FL before, for my moolah, the best value / wearing / 1950s-style fit selvedge jeans you can currently get are Edwin's Nashville model, which are 14oz ringspun selvedge denim – heavy enough to wear in Winter but not so that you'll sweat all Summer... I've had several pairs and they wear very nicely indeed, developing great patina over time... if you're a smaller size, you can pick 'em up for under E100, but they're usually around E130... I bought my last pair off Ebay for £40!

 

[kyboots]

I really like those!--John

 

[oldcrow82]

I need assistance. I am ready to take the plunge and try a pair of selvedge jeans. I have a few questions first. I am a 501 guy and have been looking at LVC's. First question is, is the LVC line still in production? I don't see it listed on the levis website. How does the current batch of selvedge raw denim offered by levis compare, if it is different. The raw 501's are listed as cone mills denim. I wear 30,32 pre shrunk 501's and am wondering if I find a good deal on eBay what size I should be looking for.
I am aware of superfuture and have read the denim thread, along with this thread. I really don't know weather to wash not wash shrink or not. I want to take the plunge, but help!!

 

[Mr Badger]

Hello mate, don't fret, it's really quite easy! So, yes, the LVC line is still in production - you should be able to see pretty much the whole range at the Levi's store in SF... the quality of LVC denim has varied over the years but, after the relaunch (which also saw prices rise by over 50%), apparently they're back to where they were... general rule of thumb is, if the denim is 'dry' (completely unwashed), buy a size bigger in the waist & leg and wash by hand in cold water, using a soap-free detergent (Woolite or similar) to avoid loss of colour, around three-six months after buying 'em... don't tumble dry, simply hang 'em out in the wind and let mother nature take its course! If the selvedge jeans you buy are pre-faded (hey, some folks like it!), then you'll generally still need to buy a size bigger (i.e. 32 / 24) but you'll find that the stated size is actually close to being one smaller than on the ticket... honestly, there's a lotta BS talked about selvedge denim, but it is a pleasure to wear, and not actually too difficult to keep nice, just avoid the 'stick it on a hot wash and tumble dry' routine and you'll be A-OK... the fit closest to the regular 501s would be the 1955 cut, although if you like a slightly higher waist, then go for the 1944s...

 

[Scottish Steve]

Okay but... can you find me a good deal on similar jeans? I don't really have much a choice beyond "2007 Mall 501s" and paying upwards of $100 for selvedge denim. (Which I think is ridiculous.)

You'll pay at least $100 for any pair of Levi's in The UK, China and many other places. In Suzhou, China, you need to pay $225 min. for Levi's selvedge. Edwin jeans in Shanghai start at 1,380 rmb, or around $215 and go up from there. Some of their denim jackets cost $375. Denim is big money now and (in my opinion) definitely not for the ordinary working man once you start getting into this sort of product.

 

[oldcrow82]

has anyone had any experience with Levis current (non LVC) selvedge selections?
http://us.levi.com/product/index.jsp?productId=10948887&ab=leftnav:bystyle:501originaljean:3194290&

 

[Mr Badger]

has anyone had any experience with Levis current (non LVC) selvedge selections?

When we were in New York last year, I saw some in the J Crew shop next to the Rockerfeller Center – they seemed pretty good, really!

 

[Yeps]

So, two of my three pairs of jeans (Levis 501 and 505) gave out recently, and now I need a new pair or two. I wanted to get Levis again, but they are now out of my starving artist price range. So, after waiting in vain for Old Navy to drop the price on its jeans (they are my goto for pants right now, since they make a 32-36), I realized that there was another classic maker of "inch wide-mile long" jeans: Wranglers. And they are cheap.

Long story short, should I buy my regular inseam (36) or should I size up?

 

[filfoster]

Check out Levis' Vintage range and also Lee and Wrangler vintage remakes-

original cut and detailing, with selvedge denim woven on old, narrow looms.
Big prices too- I have a lot of 'em- ranging from 1900-47.

B
T

I'm sure it's faulty recall but I have several pairs of the new 'vintage' (and expensive) Levi's and they seem much flimsier to me than the Levi's I bought new back in the day.
That said, my spiraling weight loss has caused me to buy two pairs of the 505's, rigid straight fit, and they seem pretty good. Oddly, thicker denim than the 'vintage' line ones.

 

[Boyo]

I'm looking to take the plunge into Iron Heart jeans... Although I'm not sure if the 666 Devils fit would too skinny for me, anyone have a photo or two to show?

 

[apba1166]

Plenty of pix on the IronHeart forums.
http://www.ironheart.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=948.0
http://www.ironheart.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=4339.0
http://www.ironheart.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1819.0
http://www.ironheart.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=3661.0
Enjoy!