Magnoli Escape vs. Bill Kelso Duke

[Xopher]

Does anybody have or know anything about the Magnoli Escape jacket? How does it stack up against the Bill Kelso Duke? Are there any pros and cons between the two. Anybody have any personal photos of them?

http://www.magnoliclothiers.com/esc...ather-jackets-by-magnoli-clothiers-p-183.html

 

[handymike]

There is also the Thedi Leathers one...

 

[Xopher]

There is also the Thedi Leathers one...
View attachment 64193

Good lawrd that is gorgeous! I bet that's more expensive than both BK and Magnoli put together.

 

[tropicalbob]

There is also the Thedi Leathers one...
View attachment 64193

Funny, I was just ogling that jacket today. An interesting and beautiful take on the style. Love that color.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Kelso jackets are made at a high artisan standard in Greece. Magnoli outsources his work in Asia and while solid, his jackets are not in the same league quality wise.

 

[Edward]

Kelso jackets are made at a high artisan standard in Greece. Magnoli outsources his work in Asia and while solid, his jackets are not in the same league quality wise.

Having never handled them both, I'd be reluctant to say with certainty, but the price difference does suggest they are at least aiming at different markets.

With the rise in price of Kekso jackets in recent years, I'd be surprised if the Thedi was much more, if it's more expensive at all, based on what folks round here seem to have paid. Both produce a great product, so it might be a case of with whom you'd rather deal.

I'd love to see a Pliskin jacket in that battered, marbled hide that Horween(?) had out a while back. Was it battered tan?

 

[l0fielectronic]

To me the hardware on the Magnoli jacket looks cheap and not in style with the jacket/era which lets it down. Not really a fan of the pebbled colouring either, it may be the photos aren't doing it justice but to me it looks like a jacket which I'd expect to be about a third of the price.

The Duke looks a lot more wearable and less 'costumy' and will age over time as it should, that said I think the Thedi jacket is awesome. Would be interested to know how much it is, though at the same time I'm glad I don't as it removes it from temptation.

 

[Sloan1874]

The leather on the Magnoli is fairly horrid, tbh. Either the BK or Thedi, though I prefer the Thedi's button-up and leather choice. Price is all relative at this level, really, once you're at 700 Euros, what's an extra 80?

 

[Superfluous]

Or . . . FW Four Corners (admittedly not exactly the same)

 

[handymike]

I believe Thedi's pricing is in-line with others (Aero, etc). I have one of his jackets, and I really like it
Freewheelers bumps into a different catagory IMHO (both design and price).
Beautiful jacket though.

 

[tmitchell59]

The Thedi and the FW look great. I had not seen either of those.

The BK Duke was sold with buttons also.

One Victory Horsehide one Capeskin.

 

[handymike]

Looks great Terry. That Victory Horse was killer.
Here's another shot of a Thedi...in goatskin:

 

[Xopher]

That Victory Horse is nothing short of divine, but at 1850 gbp I think that falls into the only in my dreams category. I'd really like one in the brown horween that Aero uses, think they would do a custom one? Or maybe Thedi has similar hides.

How do you folks like the Liberty Horse by BK. Does it age well? I'm all about honest earned patina. How thick is itmy it looks pretty thin judging from the photos

 

[scotrace]

And lose $1600 if you resell.

 

[Superfluous]

How do you folks like the Liberty Horse by BK.

Not bad . . . if you like vinyl. Seriously, I purchased two BK Liberty HH jackets at a substantial discount -- I mean dirt cheap -- and I sent both back to BK for a refund because, among other things, the Liberty hide was so disappointing. It genuinely looked and felt like vinyl. But thats just my opinion.

Ps: Whats the over/under until BK berates me yet again on its FB page?

 

[Sloan1874]

One of the things that put me off BK, even before all the Andy F stuff, was their propensity to produce a seemingly endless conveyor belt of new-and-improved leathers, each of which was followed by a 'the previous version was s%&t, this is vastly superior!'. How to trash your own product, eh?

 

[nick123]

That first run of veg tan horse BK had was phenomenal for the price. It was Victorious in my book without being advertised as such. I can't fault them for wanting to source something preferable but seriously that was an awesome time before the forum earthquake when everyone seemed to be happy and joyous.

 

[Carlos840]

The first BK thread of the year! Oh Joy....

BK might make a decent jacket, but the way they do business i would not send them any money if my life depended on it.
Do some search, and find out if you really want anything to do with them.

He threatened me with legal action to try to have me delete my posts, he's a great guy...

Happy New Year Andy!

 

[Edward]

To me the hardware on the Magnoli jacket looks cheap and not in style with the jacket/era which lets it down. Not really a fan of the pebbled colouring either, it may be the photos aren't doing it justice but to me it looks like a jacket which I'd expect to be about a third of the price.

This sort of thing is where the enthusiast market begins to differ from the mainstream, and where you get into the law of diminishing returns - y'know, where the "right" ten dollar zip means a jacket is a hundred bucks more expensive, that sort of thing (not picking on any of the particular products mentioned here, more a general point). I think it's fair to say that the target market for the Magnoli jacket is fans of the films dedicated enough to put together a great costume, rather than fans of the vintage jacket design for its own sake, who want to wear it every day. Whereas there's a limit to what one might spend on a costume (see, for instance, the preponderance of budget repros of all sorts of military uniforms for reenactors), if you're going to wear it every day, then you might want something with a bit more heft, where you're more fussy about exact details and prepared to pay for them. Of course, if the Magnoli jacket has been produced with the intention of marketing at a pricepoint markedly lower than the likes of BK, Aero, et al, then hardware is an obvious place to save money - a more modern, aluminium YKK rather than a Talon, say, will be functionally just as good, but isn't fully "correct" looks-wise.

TL/DR: You pays your money and you takes your choice.

Or . . . FW Four Corners (admittedly not exactly the same)

View attachment 64225

That is very nice I could see me wearing something like that with a collar and tie and a sleeveless fairisle or such.

And lose $1600 if you resell.

Ouch, yes... alas, it's the same old story in most any enthusiast community: once you spend up to a certain level, you'll just never see it back in resale, especially if the brand isn't mainstream. (By comparison, I've seen a lot of Schott jackets sell used for a much larger proportion of their new price than most of the premium makers in my experience).

One of the things that put me off BK, even before all the Andy F stuff, was their propensity to produce a seemingly endless conveyor belt of new-and-improved leathers, each of which was followed by a 'the previous version was s%&t, this is vastly superior!'. How to trash your own product, eh?

That was certainly one of the factors that put me off buying one of the discounted house A2s at the end of their first incarnation.

 

[tropicalbob]

Looks great Terry. That Victory Horse was killer.
Here's another shot of a Thedi...in goatskin:
View attachment 64230

Sigh. Anyone know what Thedi charges for that jacket? I'm just feeling a bit masochistic.