New made to order jacket verse vintage or pre worn jacket

[jonbuilder]

I 've drop back on the FL recently reading outerwear posts. Appears to me majority of new posts concern new made to order leather jackets. I have 25 + leather jackets the majority being vintage. Traded away another 10 or so jackets in the past 15 years. With the exception or one made to order custom Aero Bootlegger the remaindering of my leather jackets have been previously owned. My question is are us vintage and pre own leather jacket owners a silent majority or is the majority or FL outerwear readers more interested in buying new made to order leather jackets verse pre owned leather jackets.

 

[mendelboaz]

Almost all of my jackets are new & made to order. I like a new, stiff leather jacket that needs to be broken in and tamed; a jacket that will become uniquely mine.

 

[handymike]

I love Vintage, but found many dont fit right.

 

[Dinerman]

There is surprisingly little interest on this vintage clothing site for vintage jackets. Most people like modern ones.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

I once attempted to collect vintage leather jackets years ago...but found myself mainly trying then reselling jackets that I finally realized just weren't made to fit a tall guy with fairly long arms. After my first modern made to measure repro vintagelike leather jacket it was obvious that this route eliminated the eventual headaches and hassle for me. I did keep a couple vintage jackets that turned out fitting fairly well...but out of the many I tried to be happy with (somehow)any well fitting vintage was a rarity.
HD

 

[Carlos840]

If regular sizes fit me i would buy used! Unfortunately very few things off the rack fit me, so i have to to custom made.

 

[resortes805]

There is surprisingly little interest on this vintage clothing site for vintage jackets. Most people like modern ones.

Very true.

 

[zhz]

Problem of vintage jackets are, they are not fit as good as made to order jacket. And the condition of vintage jackets is another problem.
So, the real question is, IMO: are we collecting jackets or we like the vintage style jacket?
All in all, the jacket is for wear, unless I want to collect vintage jacket, otherwise, I prefer not to buy vintage jacket.

 

[feltfan]

If you are vintage size, by all means get a vintage jacket. I have seen very few size 50
vintage jackets. I own one that is too small, one that is good, but had to be repaired,
and some made for me or new off the rack. If you don't count my 80s jacket as vintage.

Personally, I have much more interest in vintage when it comes to hats. I still maintain that
you can't buy a hat made today that is as good as a really good hat from the old days.
The felt just isn't there, whether due to regulations or market scale. FWIW, a lot of vintage
wool clothing can fit here, too- the quality of tailoring and certain vintage fabrics can be
better than anything you can buy today, if you are not a millionaire who visits Italy and goes
to the right places.

But a new vintage jacket from Johnson or any number of other places is just as good as
a vintage one, if you order the right thing. And after repairs and such, especially for those
of us who need hen's teeth size 50 vintage, the new jacket is usually just as affordable.

 

[Worf]

If you are vintage size, by all means get a vintage jacket. I have seen very few size 50
vintage jackets. I own one that is too small, one that is good, but had to be repaired,
and some made for me or new off the rack. If you don't count my 80s jacket as vintage.

Personally, I have much more interest in vintage when it comes to hats. I still maintain that
you can't buy a hat made today that is as good as a really good hat from the old days.
The felt just isn't there, whether due to regulations or market scale. FWIW, a lot of vintage
wool clothing can fit here, too- the quality of tailoring and certain vintage fabrics can be
better than anything you can buy today, if you are not a millionaire who visits Italy and goes
to the right places.

But a new vintage jacket from Johnson or any number of other places is just as good as
a vintage one, if you order the right thing. And after repairs and such, especially for those
of us who need hen's teeth size 50 vintage, the new jacket is usually just as affordable.

My problem exactly. Not a lot of size 50's out there in the vintage range. I've a vintage barnstormer and a vintage wool Mackinaw hunting jacket. Other than that. All new/used/sale.

Worf

 

[ProteinNerd]

Problem of vintage jackets are, they are not fit as good as made to order jacket. And the condition of vintage jackets is another problem.
So, the real question is, IMO: are we collecting jackets or we like the vintage style jacket?
All in all, the jacket is for wear, unless I want to collect vintage jacket, otherwise, I prefer not to buy vintage jacket.

Exactly, I buy my jackets to wear not to "collect" as such and I'm never gong to get a jacket that fits as well as something made specifically for me.

I do plan to keep most of them so they do become a vintage jacket some day

 

[nick123]

Nearly every vintage jacket is about 2 inches short in the arms and body for my tall frame, so they're out of the equation. If I could buy them, I would. I wouldn't have to shell out so much cash for a new custom, and I think the hobby would be infinitely more fun and cheaper finding vintage finds or being able to purchase second hand from more people.

 

[tropicalbob]

Some time ago there was a thread about leather jackets members have owned. I realized I'd owned nine or ten, none of which actually fit, nor could I remember where they came from or what happened to them. To each his own, but why in the world would you want a 60 or 70 year old piece of skin that doesn't quite fit when you could have a new one that does?

 

[AdeeC]

I am lucky in this respect to have a lean old style body shape. More often than not I get a good fit with vintage jackets around my size. I own four vintage leather jackets and several other types with good to excellent fit. Modern off the shelf clothes are always long in the arms for me. I also have two recent Aero leather jackets with good fit. I like having a mix of new and old. Those who are tall, work out at the gym to buff up or just plain overweight will struggle to get a good fit from most vintage gear.

 

[Azog]

As already mentioned it is very hard to find one that fits in good condition. I've had quite a few but it's rare to find one which doesn't smell musty or of mothballs. The lining is usually torn or worn through in a few places and often the stitching will begin to break after only light wear.
Repros eliminate all those issues.

 

[Vespizzare]

To me, given your location, I'd say a custom-fitted jacket from Johnson Leathers in San Francisco is a no-brainer. Some people are put off because they don't like the jackets on his lousy website. Take my word (and others on FL) for it, Alan can make you *anything* you want. If you want some particular Aero or Alexander Leathers jacket or some combination thereof, you can get it tailor-made for your bod at JL. And the price seems righteous (to me) for what you're getting. Besides, other things being equal, I'd rather have new than used.

 

[rocketeer]

I must be lucky as even second hand jackets seem to fit me ok. I have always had used bike jackets simply because in the past I could not afford new.
Things are a bit different now, got a bit older and a bit fatter(is FAT now a swear word?) I still find the odd jacket or coat a second hand bargain and if it fits, I like the style and it is good quality well all good
I also do like new things so spend a little more money on new items if I can afford them as nothing beats having a jacket for years knowing only you have ever worn it.

 

[Plumbline]

I have gone through a number of phases in my jacket collecting ....

In the early days ( early 90's) I was collecting originals ( military, Motorcycle and civillian) ... prices were relatively cheap and I was using magazines like Loot and Exchange & Mart, car boot sales and used clothing markets ( no internet forums or ebay back then) .. supplies weren't plentiful but I had decent access to jackets ( average price £30-£50)

In the late 90's and early 00's EBay exploded and prices for vintage jackets ROCKETED ... during this period decent jackets went up in price by a factor of 10 .... as did shockingly poor jackets. I sort of wandered away from originals ( which fast became a non commercial or practical (quality) option) and started looking at repro's

We're now past the 00's and mid second decade of the 21st century. Prices or original vintage jackets are still high, but prices of repro jackets are also relatively high .... so I'm a dedicated ebayer .. hunting bargains ( which are fewer and fewer now) but access is better to the global market. My originals are mostly limited to jackets I can actually wear ( G-1's and Shearlings) ... A2 originals are outrageously overpriced for what they are and even repro's are silly money. I'm also back looking at used clothing markets where ( surprisingly) there are still bargains to be had.

The internet has increased supply ... but also prices.

I am mostly ( 90%) a repro collector now .... with a few original M/C jackets ... unless it's a bargain or a particularly interesting jacket I tend to steer clear of originals .... that doesn't mean I don't like them, I just prefer the commercial reality and benefits of repro trading.

 

[jonbuilder]

Some good points have been brought up regarding finding vintage jackets in good condition that also fit well. I am been lucky in the fit department. I am 5-81/2” 185lbs with 44 chest, 34 waist, medium shoulders and have found vintage size 46 generally fit me well. I have size 46 Buco, Star Glove, Beck, Hercules, Windward, Harley Davidson, and Wards jackets that fit well. My Langlitz riding jacket is a pre-1984 off the rack size 44. Far as arm length and jacket length stock size Aero utility jacket fit fine.
I get the point regarding buying jackets to wear as opposed to collecting. I do not grab my mint Buco J24 to take my dogs out on their morning run. I recently brought a vintage Beck cafe racer to take wearing pressure off my Buco J100. The J100 is my lightest weight jacket and the one I was most likely to grab going out the door in the mild San Francisco Bay climate. I was in Johnson Leathers a couple months ago and Alan showed me a long Harley Davidson jacket in mint condition, belonging to one for his customers. Alan was reproducing the jacket in a larger size. I ended up buying the original jacket for $835 from his customer, the cost of the reproduction. Personally I am more excited about having the original jacket than getting a reproduction made. Besides vintage jackets I have a small collection of Aero utility jackets with one exception were purchased per owned from ebay or from Aero. The one new Aero I purchased was paid for through insurance to replace a jacket stolen from my truck.
Currently I decided to give the new made to order jacket route a try. Johnson Leathers is working on a reproduction of a 1940s Levi half belt from pictures I email to Alan. I am impressed with the work Alan showed me and the idea of getting a jacket I wanted within a couple of months seal the deal.

 

[Superfluous]

^ Thats an impressive collection of vintage jackets Jon!