My Aero 50's Half Belt 36 fit opinions

[winterland1]

Newer board user here but have learned a alot already.
Here is a Aero heavy SteerHide 50's Half Belt size 36 in black that is a little too tight in the shoulders for me. I love it otherwise.
I want to be able to wear a sweater under it. I can zip all the way to the top with a light shirt but anything heavier and I cannot. I like the length, width at bottom and arm length. Arms could be a little longer I guess.
Even with a light shirt I feel tightness in my shoulders. Jacket it partly broken in but I am sure would loosen up a little with wear.
I have another leather jacket, Perfecto style and it is 1" larger in the shoulders and pit to pit and fits perfect.
I am 5' 8.5" 137lb. Wear 30/30 pants 37" chest.
This is the Aero's measurements

Pit to Pit Front 18.5"
Pit to Pit Back 20"
Front top of neck zipper to bottom hem 20"
Shoulder to shoulder seam 17"
Arm length top shoulder seam to end of sleeve 24
Arm length bottom seam to end of sleeve 17
Back seam below collar to bottom hem 23
Waist 18.75"

Here are some pics.

 

[Rudie]

The shoulders don't look too narrow. The shoulder seams should be just level with the outermost part of your shoulder blades (acromion in Latin). To me it seems the seams are rather wider than that. Maybe you're just not used to a fairly tight fitting jacket. The leather is probably quite stiff as well.

 

[philosophy101]

winterland,

I agree with Rudie that the shoulders don't look too narrow at all. Rather, from the photo it looks like where it's binding on you is at the armpits.

 

[Blackadder]

I concur that the armhole seems to be the problem.

 

[wdw]

38.5" around the chest seems very small for a 36" 50s. I take it that doesn't include the side panels?

 

[winterland1]

38.5" around the chest seems very small for a 36" 50s. I take it that doesn't include the side panels?

Yes, I am measuring to the same place from front and back across pit. Back includes side panel.
Maybe it is binding at my armpit also. I tried it on again with comments in mind. Like I said the other jacket I have is a fitted feel also and I love it. I think the Aero just needs another inch for shoulders and pit to pit.
I do appreciate everyones help.
I can see the picture does seem to show the shoulders fitting ok. If you were to feel them though they are very tight. The zipper only gets tight when past the pit area to the neck. When zipped up feel choked unless in Tshirt.

What exactly does it mean when you say armhole could be problem?

 

[wdw]

I would have thought the pit-pit would have been 40 or probably 42 around for a 36 50s. I know the 30s Half Belt is slimmer, but 38.5 sounds very unforgiving for even that. Did you ask for it to be a slimmer cut?

 

[Sloan1874]

Certainly nothing wrong with your shoulders, those are on the nail. But it does look a little awkward at the front - the odd creases coming down from the shoulders to the armpits and the pulling under them are giving you a slight pear-shape, and it seems to be pulling the back into an awkward fit too, to my eyes. I think your right, the arms need to be re-thought. Apart from that, it's a nice looking jacket.

 

[winterland1]

I edited/added some text in last post but you guys are fast.
I do appreciate everyones help.
I can see the picture does seem to show the shoulders fitting ok. If you were to feel them though they are very tight. The zipper only gets tight when past the pit area to the neck. When zipped up feel choked unless in Tshirt.

What exactly does it mean when you say armhole could be problem?

I did not purchase from Aero is used.

 

[Seb Lucas]

It's a shame it looks like an almost perfect fit.

 

[wdw]

As Aeros are so customisable there's no guarantee that you've got a standard size. My bet is that yours is smaller around the pits than the standard pattern, for whatever reason.

 

[Sloan1874]

It's tricky to see, I might even suggest it's perhaps too broad across the back, rather than too tight on the arm pits, causing the gathering. I would suggest sending your pics to Aero. Ken'll tell you what the issue is in a moment.

 

[winterland1]

Yes it is so close. I don't know if it is anything Aero or someone else could adjust or if I just look for something a little bigger?
Even if it could be adjusted would it be worth it?
I knew it was going to be close when I bought it.

Thanks for the suggestion., I will email them Monday. I actually am waiting to hear back on measurements of a couple items they have. Started looking again as soon as I tried this one on and wore it for a bit.

 

[Fanch]

I would have thought the pit-pit would have been 40 or probably 42 around for a 36 50s. I know the 30s Half Belt is slimmer, but 38.5 sounds very unforgiving for even that. Did you ask for it to be a slimmer cut?

I think I understand what wdw is saying: If your chest measurement is 37 inches and the jacket pit-to-pit front + back measurement is 38.5 inches, it would seem that you have only 1.5 inches of spare room at the chest as the zipper passes through that area of your body and would likely cause perceived binding. I suspect that you have a jacket that was made according to someone else's measurements that had a much smaller chest circumference that you. Hence, the binding would occur at the arm pit area. It looks like this might be the case as I look at your picture. I think that most of us prefer a comfort level of a minimum of 4-6 inches difference. You might want to recheck the measurements in that area, including your chest measurement.

 

[winterland1]

Yes makes sense just didn't understand arm hole thing.

 

[philosophy101]

I think that most of us prefer a comfort level of a minimum of 4-6 inches difference. You might want to recheck the measurements in that area, including your chest measurement.

winterland,

Adding to what Fanch said: You mentioned you currently wear a Perfecto, which many people wear very closely fitted -- with the jacket measuring as little as 2 or 3 inches larger than the wearer's actual chest measurement. (For example, my chest measures 40" and I wear a Perfecto whose chest measures 43" in circumference, and it's snug but not at all uncomfortable.) But I think you will find that your Perfecto has wider armholes than does the Aero, allowing for more freedom and ease of movement. The Aero, with it's smaller/higher armholes, likely requires the 4-6 inches of room in the chest that Fanch suggests. So I think using your (well-fitting) Perfecto's measurements as a point of reference may not get you the proper fit in an Aero. They're just different designs.

 

[majormajor]

What exactly does it mean when you say armhole could be problem?

This is, I believe, a reference to the diameter of the armhole - where the top of the sleeve meets the jacket.

If this is not big enough for your particular physique, then the jacket will cut into you under your arms, and make the jacket feel tight. The issues you have with zipping up are exactly what it would feel like.

This issue will be exacerbated by narrow shoulders, which has the effect of pulling the armholes higher. A looser shoulder would enable the same diameter armhole to feel looser.

Looking at the jacket, it seems particularly long and thin. I guess it was a custom fit for someone quite tall and very thin. I'm not sure it is ideal for you.

 

[dr.velociraptor]

Sleeves look short and maybe a touch tight in the shoulders.

 

[Fanch]

This is, I believe, a reference to the diameter of the armhole - where the top of the sleeve meets the jacket.

If this is not big enough for your particular physique, then the jacket will cut into you under your arms, and make the jacket feel tight. The issues you have with zipping up are exactly what it would feel like.

This issue will be exacerbated by narrow shoulders, which has the effect of pulling the armholes higher. A looser shoulder would enable the same diameter armhole to feel looser.

Looking at the jacket, it seems particularly long and thin. I guess it was a custom fit for someone quite tall and very thin. I'm not sure it is ideal for you.

Majormajor and philosophy101 correctly brought up the arm hole issue that I failed to do. If one looks at the front picture, it is readily apparent that if the arm holes were larger/lower, the binding might not occur, and wearing the jacket might work much better. I still think that the pit to pit measurements should ideally be another 3-4 inches, and the jacket was perhaps designed for someone more pear shaped. Very frustrating to attempt to better design a jacket after the fact!

 

[Blackadder]

That's part of what I meant about armhole. With the bigger armhole, you would not feel the pull as bad as it would feel looser. On the other hand, if you have an even tighter fit with smaller higher armhole and tighter shoulder fit, it will be tight but you won't feel the pull as bad when you lift your arm. It will fit like a glove but then you will not be able to wear thicker garment inside. You're kind of caught in the middle.