New Aero Zip Sleeve Highwayman, LOVE IT!!!

[mendelboaz]

Hi y'all, guess what: My Aero Zip Sleeve Highwayman arrived yesterday and I am LOVING it! This is my first Aero jacket, and I have read through many Aero threads which helped me decide on some of the details. I got the idea for the zip sleeve version from GriffDeLaGriff's jacket I especially like the clean-looking yoke across the chest

Here's what the order looked like:


Zip Sleeve Highwayman

Brown Heavy 4.5oz Steerhide

Size 38”

Tapered to size 36” at waist

Brown cord lined sleeves

Brown cord reinforcement at hem

No zips on pockets

Brown moleskin lining in pockets

Brass hardware

Cotton Tartan Royal Stewart Lining, Strome weight

+0.5" on collar (wink to GriffDeLaGriff here)

25.5” Back

26” Sleeve


The jacket comes in at 4.5kg (9.9 lbs), making it my heaviest jacket. The Lochcarron wool is itchier than I expected it to be, I expected something soft. But it's nice & thick and looks absolutely gorgeous.


Now, for the pics: (nobody was home to take my picture and the lighting is terrible, pics were take with phone camera)

I tried to capture the depth of the brown leather, will upload some better pics when a friend of mine gets here this weekend!

This is my 9th jacket so far and I own a Vanson, a Langlitz and two Schotts but none of those leathers are as beautiful and smell as divine as the Horween CXL Steerhide on my HWM... Already my favorite jacket, by far. Breaking in this bad boy sure is gonna be tough!

Will put up some measurements in the coming days

 

[Worf]

Nothin' better than a happy camper/customer! Good lookin' jacket and the style suits you...

Worf

 

[Superfluous]

Well executed -- congrats!

 

[Sloan1874]

Lovely stuff. An excellent fit by the looks of it too.

 

[handymike]

Looks great! Nice touch with the tapering.
The smell/ feel of an Aero jacket can be quite addictive.
Be careful or you might end up ordering another one in a couple years. ;-)

 

[mendelboaz]

Thanks for all the compliments, gents!

@handymike I'm already planning on ordering a 38-1711-p on the pattern of the Bronco in brown FQHH this october...

 

[Edward]

Stunning looking jacket, enjoy. Looks like you got the fit bang on. Is the front yoke and absence of chest pocket standard design for the zip-sleeve Highwayman?

 

[mendelboaz]

Stunning looking jacket, enjoy. Looks like you got the fit bang on. Is the front yoke and absence of chest pocket standard design for the zip-sleeve Highwayman?

Thank you, sir! Yes they are standard, it looks very classy IMO.

 

[Plumbline]

Gotta love the Horween steerhide ........ I still think it shades the horse especially in break in and developed "character"!

Great jacket ... very nice indeed and great fit ... wear it hard and wear it well

 

[kronos77]

Best looking Highwayman I have seen.

I was unaware of the option to reduce waist size instead of just sizing down. I think it makes the jacket look comfortable in the upper body and close fitting without being overbearing, at least from the photos.

 

[mendelboaz]

Best looking Highwayman I have seen.

I was unaware of the option to reduce waist size instead of just sizing down. I think it makes the jacket look comfortable in the upper body and close fitting without being overbearing, at least from the photos.

Thank you!

If you have about a 7-12" drop from chest to waist, I would definitely recommend tapering the jacket 1 size. Makes the jacket fit a bit closer at the waist without sacrificing the classic, boxy Highwayman look. However, the side straps were fully tightened in the fit pic and the jacket was just out of the box. The leather has relaxed a tiny bit now, and I find that untightening the side straps a bit makes for a more comfortable fit, and tightening them all the way makes the leather bunch up at the sides. It's still a good ol' boxy Highwayman, if you want a "slim fit Highwayman", you should look into an Aero Sheene (cafe racer with HWM collar, a style Thurston Bros. came up with).

In retrospect, I think I would've liked another 0.5" length in the body and sleeves.

 

[wdw]

In retrospect, I think I would've liked another 0.5" length in the body and sleeves.

It looks great on you, but I don't think you need any more length. Your sleeves are long and will shorten, and the front's normally higher than the back, but this still looks a good length. It's meant to be a short cut anyway.

 

[mendelboaz]

It looks great on you, but I don't think you need any more length. Your sleeves are long and will shorten, and the front's normally higher than the back, but this still looks a good length. It's meant to be a short cut anyway.

Cheers, can't wait to see how it breaks in. I know, the length looks spot-on in the pic. It's just that it feels short in the front when I wear it, but if I wanted something longer I should've gotten a Half Belt. I'm used to MC jackets with either shoulder gussets or a bi-swing back, so the sleeves tend to feel short & restrictive when I lift my arms. But indeed, they look fine and will shorten a bit over time.

 

[Monitor]

Just wow. Fantastic looking jacket. I wish my HWM would fit me this well... Never realized the zip-sleeve HWM has a front yoke, but it's the first thing that caught my eye on your jacket. Cool stuff. Great idea for the cord lined sleeves that I am totally stealing.

How so you went with the steer instead of horse?

 

[mendelboaz]

Just wow. Fantastic looking jacket. I wish my HWM would fit me this well... Never realized the zip-sleeve HWM has a front yoke, but it's the first thing that caught my eye on your jacket. Cool stuff. Great idea for the cord lined sleeves that I am totally stealing.

How so you went with the steer instead of horse?

Thanks for the kind words, monitor! The cord lined sleeves feel awesome, very rich and thick. As for the steer; the heavier the better for me (to some extent, I think... I doubt I can ever find a 13 pound jacket). I was desperately trying to outweigh my Langlitz and this did the trick. I will go for FQHH for my A2, which I am already super-anxious for.

 

[Fanch]

Great looking HWM which appears ideal as a foul weather jacket. I have always been intrigued by sleeves lined with either corduroy or moleskin but concerned that either might be too heavy for Texas. I know the strome lining would be.

 

[mendelboaz]

Thanks, Fanch. Wears great in heavy rain! Only had it for an hour when it came pouring down. I had a place to be, so I figured: why not? The cord lining feels great and luxurious, but is very heavy compared to cotton drill. The strome lining definitely feels thicker than the reiver weight, but if you can wear reiver you can probably go strome... It's not that warm, I wore it today in 25 degrees celsius and it was doable. Holly said it's not nearly as warm as tweed or alpaca wool lining. I doubt it's that much warmer than cotton drill, of course a little bit (it is wool, after all) but not a night/day difference. I mainly went with strome for the added durability and weight (the heavier the better )

 

[jack miranda]

Nice jacket! Tapering the waist is the ticket for the Highwayman. You nailed it. A beautiful jacket in every detail. Enjoy the daylights out of it, and, thanks for the pics.

 

[ProteinNerd]

Looks great, I think tapering the waist is a great idea for us slim guys. My standard fit version was just too boxy around the mid section especially for a shortish fitting jacket and I sold it on, this definitely looks like a keeper!

 

[Cooperson]

Great looking jacket, beautiful thick hide and an excellent fit! I would be interested in your opinion of the the corduroy lining in the sleeves after you've worn it for a while.