Apparently I disagree with most previous postings. Will try to keep it short, but first and most pressing, two warnings, from experience:
1. Re: the advice against horsehide jackets that are tight in the beginning: the utter opposite is true, and I'm not the only guy to say this. Whether it's boots or protective motorcycle gear, if you want a good fit for life, then your start MUST be tight. The leather will never mold to your body shape if it's not tight to start with! A) It will not be able to follow your movements properly, and B) it will not even be able to absorb enough body heat to warm up to temperatures that make it malleable. If you start out loose, it will hang on you like a bag later on. See also item 3, and keep in mind that the correct way (as in: intended by the inventor) to wear jackets with belts is to fasten those belts and have the jacket sit on the hips, not hang from the shoulders!
2. Re: the advice to ask LW for numbers: he's VERY reluctant to give any. Instead, in my experience he will ask you for your measurements, and may look at photos of you if you send any. I am most happy with all of my LW jackets (bought three so far, from various production periods; one was 2nd hand) and I will gladly buy again from him, but the sizing process was very cumbersome because of his secrecy. His method is not as successful as he would like it to be, either. At one point he recommended a size that I know now would have been two (!) units large (42 instead of 38). He also commented on a photo of me wearing a Schott jacket that he perceived the fit as "on the trim side" whereas for me it was comfortable, borderline too loose (especially as an MC riding jacket that's supposed to protect). I'm glad I was stubborn to stick with my gut feeling that I obtained from looking at many of his photos, my own photos, generally taking time, and reading his emails "between the lines" - and I still had to have my J23 taken in at the waist a bit and am glad I chose a custom shorter sleeve length. I could very well wear the J23 in size 36 as long as I didn't zip it up to the neck! And if you don't need a riding jacket but just a pedestrian one, zipping up to the chest is enough.
More comparatively speaking:
3. That LW J23 runs a bit large compared to the motorcycle jackets from Schott, Vanson and Hein Gericke that I've worn. Both in length and width (esp. waist). The 38 mentioned above is despite my usual preferred size being 40, and the 38's shoulders & chest are still more comfortable than the 40 Schott's when both are fully zipped up and I'm in pedestrian mode (i.e. arms down).
4. I think Americans tend to wear looser fits than Europeans, and because of that habit, they will call something TTS that many Europeans would find too loose, too long in the sleeves, etc.
If this is correct, it may have to with the bigger prevalance of overweight conditions in the US as well as with simply different taste. I've read about the latter on several forums. It's said to be something acquired in childhood and never grown out of. Please note I'm not judging. Just mentioning differences. And I'm not a fan of modern "slim fit" styles, either, in fact they suffer from the same error as too loose fits (lack of V-shape).
I also wonder if oversizing has to do with belt lines dropping lower and lower over the decades. If you combine a 70s MC jacket with modern low rise jeans, you'll most likely expose your belly button... Personally I regret this trend and wish that pants were higher and jackets shorter again.
5. Keep in mind that the people in this forum will always (pun not intended) gravitate more or less towards the heavier side of body shapes simply due to the age and/ or the financial situation we need to reach to afford the stuff we're talking about here, especially in any "collector's" quantities (I don't know anyone in RL/ outside this forum who owns more than one leather jacket above $150, and neither did I before my mid 30s). Some manufacturers may take this into account more than others, and in LW's case, I think it's "more".
1. Re: the advice against horsehide jackets that are tight in the beginning: the utter opposite is true, and I'm not the only guy to say this. Whether it's boots or protective motorcycle gear, if you want a good fit for life, then your start MUST be tight. The leather will never mold to your body shape if it's not tight to start with! A) It will not be able to follow your movements properly, and B) it will not even be able to absorb enough body heat to warm up to temperatures that make it malleable. If you start out loose, it will hang on you like a bag later on. See also item 3, and keep in mind that the correct way (as in: intended by the inventor) to wear jackets with belts is to fasten those belts and have the jacket sit on the hips, not hang from the shoulders!
2. Re: the advice to ask LW for numbers: he's VERY reluctant to give any. Instead, in my experience he will ask you for your measurements, and may look at photos of you if you send any. I am most happy with all of my LW jackets (bought three so far, from various production periods; one was 2nd hand) and I will gladly buy again from him, but the sizing process was very cumbersome because of his secrecy. His method is not as successful as he would like it to be, either. At one point he recommended a size that I know now would have been two (!) units large (42 instead of 38). He also commented on a photo of me wearing a Schott jacket that he perceived the fit as "on the trim side" whereas for me it was comfortable, borderline too loose (especially as an MC riding jacket that's supposed to protect). I'm glad I was stubborn to stick with my gut feeling that I obtained from looking at many of his photos, my own photos, generally taking time, and reading his emails "between the lines" - and I still had to have my J23 taken in at the waist a bit and am glad I chose a custom shorter sleeve length. I could very well wear the J23 in size 36 as long as I didn't zip it up to the neck! And if you don't need a riding jacket but just a pedestrian one, zipping up to the chest is enough.
More comparatively speaking:
3. That LW J23 runs a bit large compared to the motorcycle jackets from Schott, Vanson and Hein Gericke that I've worn. Both in length and width (esp. waist). The 38 mentioned above is despite my usual preferred size being 40, and the 38's shoulders & chest are still more comfortable than the 40 Schott's when both are fully zipped up and I'm in pedestrian mode (i.e. arms down).
4. I think Americans tend to wear looser fits than Europeans, and because of that habit, they will call something TTS that many Europeans would find too loose, too long in the sleeves, etc.
If this is correct, it may have to with the bigger prevalance of overweight conditions in the US as well as with simply different taste. I've read about the latter on several forums. It's said to be something acquired in childhood and never grown out of. Please note I'm not judging. Just mentioning differences. And I'm not a fan of modern "slim fit" styles, either, in fact they suffer from the same error as too loose fits (lack of V-shape).
I also wonder if oversizing has to do with belt lines dropping lower and lower over the decades. If you combine a 70s MC jacket with modern low rise jeans, you'll most likely expose your belly button... Personally I regret this trend and wish that pants were higher and jackets shorter again.
5. Keep in mind that the people in this forum will always (pun not intended) gravitate more or less towards the heavier side of body shapes simply due to the age and/ or the financial situation we need to reach to afford the stuff we're talking about here, especially in any "collector's" quantities (I don't know anyone in RL/ outside this forum who owns more than one leather jacket above $150, and neither did I before my mid 30s). Some manufacturers may take this into account more than others, and in LW's case, I think it's "more".
